PROBLEMS ENCOUNTERED IN DRILLING ABN OR 21AL PRESSURE FORMATIONS 20

PROBLEMS ENCOUNTERED IN DRILLING ABNORMAL

PRESSURE FORMATIONS

Data are presented sho ing the estiiiiated foriiiation irator can be used not only to conserve weighting
pressure in more than 100 elms in Texas and Louisiana material, but also as an aid in controlling viscosity by
-here abnormally high formation pressures were rented ii g undesirable concentrations of clay fractions
encountered. front the riiud system.
The most important problems in connection u'iih Data are presented showing the coiiiparaiive pump-
drilling abnormal pressures are lost returns, and plan- horsepov+her requirements for an average light mud, i.e.,
ning the iiost economical thud program. Several pos- 10.3 lb per gallon, antl a heax- j- mud x eighing 16.3 lb sible
methods of pre eruing lost returns are discussed. per gnllon. The coniparatix'e carrj ing eapacii' of light
The method showing the most promise is the use of anl lieas y muds the heas mud having
cement iii zones of local weakness. The most iriiporiaiit considerably more carr; ing capacity than the light
mud. riuid-treat ing problems are x'iscositj- control arid con- This, to some extent, offsets the slower
circulating rates
material. A cenirif ugal conceii- whieh are usually obtained with heas y muds.

INTRODUCTION
In general, abnormally high formation pressures in
Texas and Louisiana are usually encountered in wells
drilled along the coast of the Gulf o:I Mexico, in a
belt 35 to 75 miles wide. There are numerous excep-
tions, however, and abnormally high for-mation pres-
sures have been encountered in sections of East and
\Vest Texas and Nor th LouisSiaana.
The most credible theoi-y as to the cause :for abnor-
mally high presser-es over deep-seated domes is the
incompetence of formations to bear the overburden
without compaction, coupled with a complete or partial
seal of the formation. The packing of the formation results
in a reduct ioOn of voOlume of fluicls can-red in the pore
spaces ; and, if there is no esca e, there is a consequent
increase in pressure The seal against escape of this
pressure may be caused either by deposition or faulting.
The conclusion that there must be a seal to traJ high
pressure seems inescapable ; otherwise, the
;ressure would be dissipated to the outcrop or into zones
of normal pressure and, thence, to the outcrop.
Ceographic arid Stratigraphic Location and Depth
Factors
More than 100 wells drilled to high-pressure zones
iii the Texas and Louisiana Gulf Coast are represented
by the data shown on Fig. 1. Fig. 1 shows 3 gen-
eral pressure gradients : 1, normal pressure gradient
of 0.465 psi per :f oot; 2, an earth pressure gradient
of
1.0 psi per foot; and, 3, a probable maximum pres-
sure gradient in abnormal pressure wells that
varies with depth. The data shown represent less
than half
Boulton, 'I'exas
at the sprlng meeting of the
of Production, Shreveport, Ln
of the wells di illed to abnoi'inal jaiessure :forniations
in an area extending from Brazoria County, Texas, to
Acadia Parish, Louisiana. The rna.Jority of the Texas
wells in this str-ip encountered abnormal pressure in
the Ft to, and in Louisiana in both the Frio and
Anahuac formations In the southwestern part of Texas
a sur- vey showed that a great rna.Monty of the
abnormal pressure formations have been encountered
in the Frio. This is, howevei-, probably caused by the
high peicentage of wells drilled to the Ft-to rather
than to deeper zones. A study of geological cross-
sections re- x eals no particular connection between
geological strati- graphic locations and abnoi inal
pressuresthe abnor- mality apparently being a
function of depth, regardless of geologic age of the
formation High pressures may occur in one area, only
a short distance from another area, along the stril:e
where the same formations con- taiinormal pressures
For example, high pressures occur in the Frio sands
at 9,000 ft to 10,000 ft at Halls Bayou, Alta Lonla, and
Dickinson, whereas these same
ssuies at depths below 11,000 it
in tied Fish Reef Field in C'alveston Bay. The differ-
ence is attributerl, no doubt, to the de; ositional and
faulting charactei-istics which impi-ison pressures in
one area and permit dissipation in another.
Referring again to Fig. 1, the maximum gradient
shows that abnormal pressures tray be expected to be
first encountered at 7,000 :ft, and that mud weight
may have to be gradually increased to a maximum
value at a depth of 10,000 It. This gradient also indi-
cates that 17.3-lb-per-gallon mud will balance the
maxi- i uiexpected pressure. It may be necessary to
use a mud weighing 18 lb per gallon, or heavier, to
provide an adequate safety factor to allow for gas-
cutting while drilling, and for swabbing tendencies
while di ill pipe is being hoisted.
W 8cott, The A tlaiitic Refin
The cost of penetrating high-pressure formations
30 DRILL ING PRACTICE

hole is then drilled to the projected de Mth if no heavier

than 17-lb-per-gallon mud is necessary to counteract the :forination pressureAs the necessary mud we

DEPTH FEET

2 OOO

4000

M 10 C E N E
6 OO 0
AN AH U A C

V IC K S B U R
8OOO
G JA C K SON

O C O C K F I E LD

l00OO
WILC0X

12 000

- E STIM A TE D FOR MA T ON PR ES S U R E L B S. PE R SQ . I N. GA CS
zooo sooo oooo 8ooo io ooo i 2 ooo
Estimate of Formation Preesures Vs. Depth.
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