Borehole stability in shales

1. Operational aspects of shale drilling

Once shale failure has occurred, shale fragments have to be transferred into
the hole before stability problems can occur and even then problems can be
prevented with proper hole cleaning.

Good operational practices in shale drilling can help to avoid or minimise

shale failure and transfer of cavings into the borehole.

1.1. Open hole time

Mud types that allow a certain degree of pore pressure penetration will, with
time, cause formation pressures to gradually equalise with the mud pressure.
Thus net effective rock stresses will increase around the borehole, bringing
the shale either to or close to failure.

Minimising open hole time will therefore reduce the chance of borehole
stability problems.

1.2. Pressure fluctuations

Pressure fluctuations in the well can cause cavings to be pulled into the hole
or they can directly cause shale failure.

At all times pressure fluctuations should therefore be minimised and care

should be taken when tripping in/out or breaking circulation.

Proper mud conditioning i.e. keeping the gels and the plastic viscosity within
specified limits, will help to decrease pressure fluctuations when circulating or
pulling or running pipe.

1.3. Hole cleaning

Hole cleaning is very important to prevent sticking problems after shale failure
has occurred. However, proper hole cleaning can also help to prevent shale
instability!

Insufficient hole cleaning will lead to large amounts of solids in the hole. This
effectively increases mud pressures exerted on shale formations , which in
turn causes an increase in pore pressure penetration and de-stabilisation of
the shales.

1.4. Mud weight increase

Ideally, shales should be drilled with a mud system which totally prevents pore
pressure penetration, and if correct initial mud weights are used shale failure
will be prevented.

However, most WBM systems do allow a certain degree of pore pressure

invasion and in those cases, the de-stabilising effect of pore pressure
penetration can somewhat be reduced by increasing the mud weight gradua lly
in small steps.

stbility.doc
 Borehole stability in shales
Every weight increase provides a small increase in effective mud support
which stabilises the hole. However, this increased mud support is only
effective for a limited time since the new mud pressure and formation
pressure will equalise.

Increasing the mud weight in small steps over a long time period is thought to
be more effective in providing sustained mud pressure support than a single
large increase.

1.5. Mud weight decrease

When the mud weight is lowered in an open hole section which has previously
been drilled with a higher mud weight, shales will be exposed to increased
rock stresses and may fail, especially when pore pressure penetration has
decreased the required mud pressure at which shale failure will occur.
Lowering the mud weight before a hole is cased off increases the chance of
borehole instability in shales!

It should be realised that decreasing the mud weight after a hole is cased off
can still cause shale instability in the pocket below the casing. These stability
problems will only become apparent when drilling out the casing shoe and
pocket. Thus, lowering the mud weight should be prevented whenever
possible.

1.6. Drill string vibrations

The mechanical action of the rotating drill string against the borehole wall can
cause sha le fragments to be pulled into the hole and in some cases can
initiate failure in brittle shales.

Thus is it important to minimise vibrations in the drill string.

Drill string vibrations are dependent on rotary speed, Weight on Bit (WOB),
hole size, configuration of the Bottom Hole Assembly (BHA) and hole angle.
Anti vibration technology such as anti-whirl bits and thruster/motor drilling
helps to reduce drill string vibrations.

BHA's can be designed to prevent drill string vibrations using vibration

analysis programs such as DRD's Critical Speed Analysis (CSA) module.
Such programs simulate the downhole behaviour of the BHA at various
operating parameters, allowing selection of a correct BHA and operating
parameters.

Similarly, if excessive drill string vibrations are noticed during drilling it is

possible to use vibration analysis to select optimum operating parameters.
Back-reaming i.e. rotating the drill string whilst pulling out of hole can also cause
shale fragments to be pulled/pushed into the wellbore. It is therefore important to use
back-reaming only when necessary i.e. in tight hole situations.

stbility.doc
 Borehole stability in shales

1.7. Nomenclature

Drill string Is the drill pipe or combination of drill pipe and bottom hole
assembly components.
Tripping in Is the continuous controlled operation of inserting the drill string
into the wellbore.
Tripping out Is the continuous controlled operation of removing the drill
string from the wellbore.
Back-reaming Is the operation of rotating the drill string with a top drive,
whilst moving the drill string upwards in the wellbore.
Mud pressure Is the pressure in the wellbore at a given depth, caused by a
homogeneous column of mud.
Mud gradient Is the mud pressure at a given depth divided by the true
vertical depth.
Formation (pore) pressure Is the pore pressure in a formation at the time of
drilling the well.
Swab pressure Is a pressure decrease at a given depth as a result of
moving the drill string upwards in the viscous medium of the drilling fluid.
Surge pressure Is a pressure increase at a given depth as a result of
moving the drill string downwards in the viscous medium of the drilling fluid.
Pore pressure penetration or invasion Is a gradual transmission of mud
pressure into the formation surrounding the wellbore, caused by the pressure
differential between the mud and pore fluid, and the lack of a filter cake on the
borehole wall.
Shale failure Is the breaking and fragmentation of a competent shale.
Fluid invasion Is the situation in which fluid from the wellbore enters a
formation.

Filtrate Is drilling fluid which has entered the pores of a formation, due to the
pressure differential between mud and pore fluid.
Borehole stability chart Is a plot of mud gradients versus true vertical
depth, showing the minimum and maximum recommended mud gradients for
various hole angles at a specific drilling site or area.
Hydration stress Is a repulsive stress or swelling pressure that gives shales
a potential to swell and disintegrate when in contact with water.
In-situ stress Is the combination of rock stresses at a given point in a
formation.
(Im) Permeable Is (not) having pores or openings that permit fluids or gas to
pass through.
Viscosity Is a measure of the resistance of a fluid or gas to flow.
Permeability Is the ease with which a fluid or gas can flow through a medium
at a given pressure differential and fluid/gas viscosity.
Darcy Is a measure of permeability (A rock with 1 Darcy permeability is
considered highly permeable).

stbility.doc