SHALE PROBLEMS

1. Background __________________________________________________________2
1.1 Mechanical Effects:___________________________________________________3
1.2 Chemical Effects: ____________________________________________________ 4
2. Problems in Soft/Firm Shales ____________________________________________ 5
2.1 Bit Balling __________________________________________________________5
2.1.1 Occurrence of bit balling______________________________________________________ 5
2.1.2 Preventative Measures of bit balling _____________________________________________ 5
2.1.3 Symptoms of bit balling ______________________________________________________ 5
2.1.4 Cure for bit balling __________________________________________________________ 5
2.2 Mud Rings _________________________________________________________6
2.2.1 Occurrence of mud rings______________________________________________________ 6
2.2.2 Measures to prevent mud rings _________________________________________________ 6
2.2.3 Mud rings symptoms _________________________________________________________6
2.2.4 Curing mud rings ___________________________________________________________ 6
2.3 Tight Hole __________________________________________________________7
2.3.1 Tight hole definition. ________________________________________________________ 7
2.3.2 Occurrence of tight hole ______________________________________________________ 7
2.3.3 Techtonics ________________________________________________________________ 7
2.3.4 Overpressure ( Geo-pressures.) _________________________________________________ 7
2.3.5 Preventing tight hole _________________________________________________________8
2.3.6 Symptoms of tight hole _______________________________________________________ 8
2.3.7 Cure _____________________________________________________________________ 8
2.4 Erosion/Washout_____________________________________________________9
2.4.1 Occurrence of erosion and washout______________________________________________ 9
3. _____________________________________________________________________9
3.1.1 Preventing hole washout. _____________________________________________________ 9
3.1.2 Symptoms of hole washout____________________________________________________9
3.1.3 Curing hole washout________________________________________________________ 10
4. Problems in Hard/Brittle Shales _________________________________________11
4.1 Tight Hole _________________________________________________________11
4.1.1 Occurrence _______________________________________________________________ 11
4.1.2 Preventative Measures ______________________________________________________ 11
4.1.3 Symptoms ________________________________________________________________ 11
4.1.4 Cure ____________________________________________________________________ 11
4.2 Sloughing, Cavings and Packing -off _____________________________________12
4.2.1 Occurrence _______________________________________________________________ 12
4.2.2 Preventing wellbore cavings __________________________________________________ 12
4.2.3 Symptoms of wellbore cavings ________________________________________________ 13
4.2.4 Curing wellbore cavings _____________________________________________________ 13
1. Background
Shales can be defined as clay-rich sedimentary rocks. They are sensitive to
both mechanical and chemical influences and so are particularly problematic to
drill.

A useful classification of shales can be made in terms of hardness. Soft shale's

(claystone/mudstone ) tend to be relatively young and are usua lly located near to
surface. Harder shales are older and usually more deeply buried. Each type can
be associated with a particular set of drilling problems, as summarised in the
table below. For example, soft shales are more likely to cause tight hole, bit
balling and hole erosion problems. Hard or brittle shales suffer more from
sudden cavings and breakout due to failure at the wellbore wall. It is also seen
from the shale that hardness correlates with other properties such as MBT, water
content and shale density.

In tackling drilling problems in shales, both mechanical and chemical aspects

should always be borne in mind. The following provides a brief summary of the
key points:-

Table 1: Classification of shales according to hardness.

Shale Typical hole problems MBT* Water Clay Wt % Density

Type (meq content types (g/cc)
/100g) (wt%)
Tight hole due to swelling
Hole enlargement due to washout
(dispersion )
smectite
Soft Ledges if interbedded with sandstone 20 - 40 25 - 70
illite
20 - 30 1.2 - 1.5
Bit balling, mud rings, blocked flow
lines

Tight hole due to swelling

Possible wash out ( poorly inhibited illite
Firm mud ) 10 - 20 15 - 25 mixed 20 - 30 1.5 - 2.2
Particularly prone to bit balling layer
Occasional cavings
Cavings illite
Hard Cuttings beds leading to packing off 3 - 10 5 - 15 possibly 20 - 30 2.0 - 2.3
Tight hole in stressed formations smectite
Cavings illite
Brittle Hole collapse 0- 3 2-5 koalinite 5 - 30 2.1 - 2.5
Time delayed failure chlorite

*MBT = Methylene blue test-a measure of cation exchange capacity; high MBT
equates to smectite-rich scale.
1.1 Mechanical Effects:

There are a large number of variables. Those which can be controlled, and have
a significant influence over hole stability are:

Table 2 : Controlable shales variables

• Well Trajectory • BHA Design

• Bit Type • Jet Velocity

• Nozzle Size • ROP (rpm)

• Weight on Bit • Mud Flow Rate

• Swab/Surge Pressures • Mud Rheology

• Mud Weight • Drillstring Vibration

Of these, mud weight is probably the most fundamental with respect to hole
condition. If the mud weight is too low, tight hole or wellbore breakout can occur.
Too high a mud weight can fracture the formation.
1.2 Chemical Effects:

Water will hydrate the clay minerals in shale. This can lead to swelling, softening
and dispersion in softer types, or rock failure (fracturing) in the harder materials.
If the shale is physically constrained so that it cannot swell, significant swelling
pressures can develop.

It is crucial to minimise the reaction with water (i.e. create good inhibition) utilising
appropriate drilling fluids. For water based muds, this is done using a
combination of mud additives such as salts and polymers. Salts, e.g. kcl, reduce
clay swelling and dispersion, and polymers may encapsulate the shale to hold it
together (e.g. PHPA*) or have a chemical strengthening effect (e.g. glycols). The
action with water can be eliminated completely by using oil based mud, but the
salinity of the mud must be sufficient to prevent water entering the shale by
osmosis.

* Partially Hydrolysed Polyacrylamide

2. Problems in Soft/Firm Shales

2.1 Bit Balling

2.1.1 Occurrence of bit balling

Some shales can adhere to the BHA causing clogging of the drill bit, stabilizers
and drill collars. This is most likely with soft-firm and especially with plastic shale
sequences and when poorly inhibited water based muds are used. Bit balling is
extremely rare in oil based muds.

2.1.2 Preventative Measures of bit balling

• Review previous incidence of balling in the area and adopt similar procedures
if they were successful.
• Use inhibiting mud package (e.g. KCl/polymer rather than lime of gyp/PAC
mud, consider KCl/glycol muds).
• Add film-forming lubricant (consult service company for specific product).
• Avoid excessive weight on bit.
• Ensure good hole cleaning to avoid excessive cuttings build-up at the bit.
• Use appropriate bit type - PDC bits are more prone to balling than tricone.

2.1.3 Symptoms of bit balling

• Increased pump pressure as pathways become blocked
• Reduced ROP due to balled bit.
• Less cuttings coming over shakers (lower ROP + possible blockages).
• Blocked shaker screens indicative of clay with balling tendency.
• Overpull on trips due to restricted fluid pathway.
• Possible stuck pipe.

2.1.4 Cure for bit balling

• Reduce weight a bit.
• Add drilling detergent to WBM to disperse the balled clay. If this works,
maintain detergent in the mud. If it fails, consider freshwater pill to disperse
the clay. Addition of glycol (e.g. BP Chemicals DCP208 or DCP101), has
also been known to cure balling.
If still unsuccessful, POOH slowly whilst rotating, clean BHA and adopt
preventative measures.
• In OBM (rarely a problem) increase mud salinity to draw more moisture from
the shale and increase its hardness.
2.2 Mud Rings

2.2.1 Occurrence of mud rings

Soft cuttings may agglomerate in the annulus to form a “doughnut” ring which
impedes mud flow and cuttings transport. The ring of cuttings can migrate up or
down depending upon mud flow, and may lead to blocked flow lines. Restriction
of cuttings flow could ultimately lead to pack-off. Tends to occur only with
WBM’s.

2.2.2 Measures to prevent mud rings

• Use sufficient mud inhibition to avoid sticky cuttings (e.g. KCl/polymer rather
than lime or gyp/PAC mud, consider high KCl or KCl/glycol muds).
• Circulate annulus clean before trips.
• Use large diameter flowlines.
• Avoid excessive ROP’s.
• Ensure good hole cleaning to prevent cuttings build-up.

2.2.3 Mud rings symptoms

• Increase in pump pressures as the annulus partially blocks.
• Reduction in cuttings flow rate, seen at the shakers.
• Increase in torque due to braking effect of mud ring.
• Decrease in ROP and hook load as mud ring acts as piston to lift the drillpipe.
• Blocked flow line/plugged shaker screens.

2.2.4 Curing mud rings

• Circulate annulus clean by increasing flow rate (if ECD’s permit). Increase
size of flowlines if possible to prevent blockage. If necessary, use viscous pill
to circulate clean.
• If mud ring is severe, adding detergent may help to disperse the aggregated
clay making it easier to remove. If detergent is successful, maintain this in the
mud system to prevent recurrence.
2.3 Tight Hole

2.3.1 Tight hole definition.

“Tight hole” is the result of a reduction in the wellbore by mechanical and/or
chemical means.

It must be appreciated to be completely different to “excess drag.”

2.3.2 Occurrence of tight hole

Reactive shales can swell, causing a reduction in the diameter of the wellbore.
This is common with soft shales due to their frequent high swelling clay content.
There may be some time delay (the shale takes some time to react), Thus, the
bit may be free at the time of drilling, but subsequently could be difficult to pull
and/or pump out of the hole.

It can be argued that tight hole becomes more severe in deviated wells, due to
increased drillpipe friction. It must be remembered however that in this instance
due to the natural increased gravitational drags that are present it is much more
difficult to immediately realise if “Tight hole” or simply “excess drags” are at play
e.g due to poor hole cleaning for instance.

2.3.3 Techtonics
Techtonic movement can also contribute to tight hole, e.g. Salt formations (
Zechstien in the southern North sea.

Techtonic effects are generally more significant in the harder more deeply buried
shales .

2.3.4 Overpressure ( Geo-pressures.)

High pore pressures can also contribute to tight hole. However, their role again
is generally more significant in the harder more deeply buried shales.
2.3.5 Preventing tight hole
• Use inhibiting mud systems in soft reactive formations.
• Use sufficient mud weight to balance downhole stresses.
• Maintain around 20-30ppb KCl (or equivalent) in WBM when drilling highly
swelling shales.
• Use sufficient salinity when OBM is used.
• Make regular wiper trips.
• Use proprietary lubricant additive in deviated wells.
• Minimise open hole exposure time (casing design).

2.3.6 Symptoms of tight hole

• Increased torque.
• Higher pump pressures.
• Difficult to POOH, high Overpull/drag.

2.3.7 Cure
• Backream ( Note ; only as a last resort ) throug h tight sections.
• Note: Backreaming in itself can create further instability problems, remove
mud filter cake i.e. primary combatant to ensuring a stable wellbore.
• Increase mud weight to force wellbore back (provided fracture gradient
allows),
• Check mud salinity:

WBM’s: Ensure sufficient salt is present (salt is the single most important
additive for reducing swelling). KCl is the most effective salt; levels of around
50ppb have been used, although 20-30ppb is usually sufficient for North Sea
type shales. NaCl is less effective. Lime (CaCO3) is limited by low solubility;
CaC1 2 is very soluble but not recommended due to incompatibility with other
additives e.g. PHPA, WC, polymer, CO2 influxes). Acetate or formate salts
(e.g. Potassium acetate) can be used where use of chlorides is restricted.

OBM’s: Ensure mud salinity is high enough to prevent shale swelling by

osmosis. Mud salinity must be equal to or higher than the pore fluid salinity.

• Add lubricant to mud.

2.4 Erosion/Washout

2.4.1 Occurrence of erosion and washout

This is the result of the dispersive nature of soft reactive shales, leading to
enlarged hole. The effect is mainly associated with WBM’s and is rare in OBM.
Often localised, it is possible to experience washed out sections and tight hole
simultaneously. Washout can lead to problems of hole cleaning and difficulty
running into hole, plus poor cementing jobs, etc.

Figure 1 ; Hole washout

2.4.2 Preventing hole washout.

• Establish shale reactivity prior to drilling (e.g. by reviewing offset data, and/or
running lab tests).
• Select appropriate level of mud inhibition. Use glycol mud in soft reactive
shales, if WBM is to be used.
• Use mud with good hole cleaning properties (see “cure” below).
• If there is a high probability of washout, and particularly in deviated holes,
consider well-inhibited high XC polymer system. (MMH (mixed metal
hydroxide) and MMS (mixed metal silicate) systems give excellent hole
cleaning, but are not recommended for highly reactive shales as with current
technology shale inhibition with these muds tends to be poor.

2.4.3 Symptoms of hole washout

• Increase in cuttings volumes.
• Difficulty running in hole due to ledges.
• Poor hole cleaning leading to packing -off of the BHA.
• Packing off increased Overpull and drag.
• Directional problems.
• Bottoms up time increases.

2.4.4 Curing hole washout

• Increase mud inhibition (WBM’s), by using appropriate salt/raising salt level -
see previous section and, if available, by adding glycol (e.g. BP Chemicals
DCP208 or DCP101. Glycols harden soft shales, so reducing
dispersion/erosion.
• Improve low shear rheology of mud (higher YP and higher gels) to ensure
good hole cleaning. This will help to clean washed-out sections and prevent
cuttings slip. Alternative regime is to use turbulent flow conditions (low
viscosity mud) - consult Sunbury on this. Hole cleaning is particularly
important in deviated holes.
• Maintain mud circulation to prevent cuttings slip.
• When making trips, POOH slowly to minimise swab/surge pressures.
3. Problems in Hard/Brittle Shales

3.1 Tight Hole

3.1.1 Occurrence
Tight hole due to chemical swelling is less common in harder shales, due to
lower swelling clay (smectite) content. However, high downhole stresses can
lead to tight hole, especially if accompanied by high pore pressures. Oval-
shaped (elliptical) holes may occur in some cases.

3.1.2 Preventative Measures

• Establish mud weight window using available data/rock mechanics models.
Utilise resistivity a nd gamma log data if available.
• Strength tests will give better handle on maximum permissible mud weights.
• Screen shale samples, if available, to determine chemical reactivity, and use
results to select appropriate drilling fluid.
• Consider optimum direction for deviated and horizontal wells, to minimise hole
closure due to stress effects.

3.1.3 Symptoms
• Increased torque.
• High pump pressures.
• Increased drag/overpull.

3.1.4 Cure
• If chemical reactivity is suspected, reduce swelling by improving shale
inhibition (see sec tion on soft shales),
• If mechanical (i.e. due to downhole stresses), raise the mud weight.
• Do not raise mud weight if the formation is naturally fractured as this could
destabilise the wellbore (fluid will enter the fractures and “lever” rock away).
• Add lubricant.
• Run 4-arm caliper to check for elliptical hole, which is indicative of
unsymmetrical rock stresses.
3.2 Sloughing, Cavings and Packing-off

3.2.1 Occurrence
Many hard/brittle shales tend to fragment into cavings at the wellbore wall,
leading to sloughing and sometimes causing packing-off. This is particularly
likely in naturally fractured formations and in very brittle shale types. The hole
enlargement which occurs can be sudden (even catastrophic) and can be difficult
to predict or control. Highly stressed formations are the most problematic.

Figure 2 . wellbore cavings

3.2.2 Preventing wellbore cavings

• Establish mud weight window using available data/rock mechanics models.
Strength tests will give better handle on maximum permissible mud weights.
• Consider optimum direction for deviated and horizontal wells to minimise hole
instability due to stress effects.
• Choose casing points carefully to reduce exposure time of unstable sections
to drilling fluid.
• Screen shale samples, if available, to determine chemical reactivity and use
results to select appropriate drilling fluid.
• Use mud with well-defined and understood rheology profile. Consider high
XC polymer system, or MMH (mixed metal hydroxide), or MMS (mixed metal
silicate) system for superior hole cleaning.
• Add particles (e.g. gilsonites, asphaltenes, micas, calcium carbonates) to seal
fractures in naturally fractured shales. Selection of appropriate particles
requires screening tests as particle size distribution and shape are important.
• Take steps to minimise/reduce drillstring vibration in brittle shales.
3.2.3 Symptoms of wellbore cavings
• Production of characteristically-shaped cavings at the shakers - appearance
of smooth curved surfaces indicative of pieces once at the wellbore wall.
• Sudden increase in cuttings volumes, possibly large hard chunks.
• Difficulty running in hole due to jamming on ledges.
• Cuttings fall back due to poor hole cleaning, causing pack-off.
• Torque/pump pressures increase.
• High torque and drag due to trapped cavings.
• Bottoms up time increased.
• Directional problems.

3.2.4 Curing wellbore cavings

• Raise mud weight.
• Do not raise mud weight if the formation is naturally fractured as this could
destabilise the wellbore (fluid will enter the fractures and level rock away),
• Improve the low shear rheology of mud (higher YP and higher gels) to ensure
good hole cleaning. This will help to clean washed-out sections and prevent
cuttings slip. Alternative regime is to use turbulent flow conditions )low
viscosity mud). Hole cleaning is particularly important in deviated holes.
• Maintain mud circulation at all times to prevent cavings settlement.
• When making trips, POOH slowly to minimise swab/surge pressures.