Assignment-2

Name: Dhrumil Savalia

Roll no:17BPE025
Topic: Jet drilling
Introduction
Radial jet drilling (RJD) is an unconventional drilling technique that uses the jet energy of high velocity
fluids to drill laterals with different geometries in both conventional and unconventional reservoirs. It is
used for effective completion of a well, by-pass damaged zones, re-complete old wells and many other
applications. This technique is useful in completion of marginal fields, since they are more effective than
other traditional technique and also are cost effective too.

Applications
 The effect of a high-pressure velocity jet of water with induced abrasive particle is used in many
industrial applications such as mining, shipbuilding, automotive etc.
 Earlier at the time of introduction of water jet in 1960, it was mainly used for cleaning and
unblocking drains, but as time passed there was an introduction to new technology of high
pressure pumps, which opened the doors for water jet technology to have itself used at
commercial scale to cut soft materials such as cardboard & rubber.
 Water jetting technique was not useful in drilling oil & gas industry because of the bereft
abrasive injection technique.
 In conventional drilling use of drilling fluid has proved quite helpful in providing significant
penetration rates to the drill bit.
 Radial jet drilling has proven to be effective in enhancing production rates, reducing decline
rates, reduce wellbore damage etc.
 RJD has proved to be feasible for more than 1.7million wells which would otherwise be cost
prohibitive to recover.
 It is useful for multilateral drilling
 This technique can be applied in Well completions, Well stimulations, Improve water injection, .
Reduce water coning etc.
Tools

 Jetting nozzles have diameter normally between 0.5in-0.75in diameter and length of 1.0in
contains two types of orifices: forward orifices & backward orifices.
 Forward orifices allow fluids to drill through formation whereas backward orifices widen
horizontal path and they provide a pushing force for a nozzle to move forward.
 The RJD Bottom Hole Assembly consists of casing cutter, small dia bit, mud motor, hydraulic
piston along with auxillary tools such as tubing end connector, anchor, orienter & steering tool
controller.
 Also a coiled tubing is needed in order to convey the drilling process from the surface.
 RJD fluids contain abrasive particles or grains so that each particles cuts a small part of material.

RJD downhole equipment

Jetting nozzle
Mechanism/process

Step 1 includes removal of production equipment

 In case if it is a cased hole completion, a cutter is lowered to open the path through both
cement & casing or else for open hole completion no cutter is needed.
 Deflector shoe is lowered down using a coil tubing unit and is thus oriented by a gyro
tool.
 The circulation of high pressure jet fluid is done with the help of a high pressure hose
through the jetting nozzles causing penetration of formation through forward orifices
and widening of laterals and pushing the nozzles is done by the backward orifices.
 Once a lateral or a horizontal path for the well has been created, the pressure is
decreased and then the hose is removed.
 Process is repeated as to obtain more laterals.
 The extension of well is dependent on the pulling force which is difference of ejected
surface developed due to fluid jetting from orifices and sum of friction between flexible
hose & well bore and force due to fluid pressure on the forward surface of jetting
nozzles.
 If pulling force is positive there is possibility of further extension of lateral developed,
but if it becomes 0 then there is no further possibility for the well to extend.

Advantages of RJD

 it is cost effective in case of completion of vertical wells through a open hole completion.
  In order to perform this process there is no need of large or expensive rotary rigs.
 No additional stimulation required
 No logging expense is required
 No need to change well-bore configuration
 There is no need of mud circulation back to surface
 It is better than perforation technique, it can further penetrate damaged area of the wellbore
 It also does not require mud pit

Limitations of RJD

 This method is only applicable for the wells having angle of inclination less than 30° or no more
than 15°
 It is difficult to penetrate formations having porosity of about 3 to 4%
 Bottom hole temperature should not exceed 248°F (120°C)
 Maximum tensile strength should not exceed 100000psi(7*10^8 Pa)
 Standard logging tools likely will not fit into the lateral
 Directional control of the lateral is also very difficult
 There are no surveillance options inside the lateral
Case study: Belayim Land Field, Egypt
Location : Central part of the Gulf of Suez, along the coast of the Sinai Peninsula
Rock composition: Beds of shales & some intercalations of anhydrite
 3 wells were tested for radial drilling
 Well #1: 3 drains at 7460ft(2274m) & the other 3 drains at 7450ft(2271m)
 Length of 5 lateral drains:160ft(49m)
 Length of 1 lateral drain:330ft(101m)
 Well #2:7 lateral drains 160 ft long and jetted between 7650ft and 7700ft.
 Well #3: 4 lateral drains 160ft long each, two at a depth 7500ft and the other two at a
depth of 8080ft.
  Well #1 showed increase from 470 to 820 BPD of oil
 Well #2 showed slight increase in production than well #1 i.e. from 233BPD to 246BPD
of oil.
 Well #3 there was no increase in production rate due to sand production.
 Well #2 and well #1 are drilled in unconsolidated formations with fines migration.

References
 https://www.researchgate.net/publication/321041247_A_technical_review_of_radial_jet_drilli
ng
 https://drillers.com/radial-jet-drilling-rjd-a-full-overview/
 https://www.drillingcontractor.org/low-cost-radial-jet-drilling-helps-revitalize-40-year-old-
oilfield-23377

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