Introduction To Directional Drilling - Estudiantes 2

IPM – Drilling Engineering Manual - IDPT
Table of Contents
10. Introduction to Directional Drilling................................................................337

10. 1. Training Objectives................................................................................337
10. 2. Definition................................................................................................337
10. 3. Well Types..............................................................................................338
10. 3. 1. Vertical Well...................................................................................338
10. 3. 2. S-Type Well.....................................................................................339
10. 3. 3 Slant Well........................................................................................339
10. 3. 4. Horizontal Well...............................................................................340
10. 4. Terminology...........................................................................................341
10. 4. 1. True Vertical Depth (TVD)..............................................................341
10. 4. 2. Measured Depth (MD).....................................................................341
10. 4. 3. Horizontal Displacement (HD).........................................................342
10. 4. 4. Azimuth...........................................................................................342
10. 4. 5. Vertical Section (VS).......................................................................343
Schlumberger Private
10. 4. 6. Kick Off Point (KOP)......................................................................343
10. 4. 7. Well Inclination...............................................................................344
10. 4 .8. End of Build (EOB).........................................................................344
10. 4 .9. Start Of Drop..................................................................................344
10. 4 .10. End Of Drop..................................................................................345
10. 5. Directional Drilling Applications.............................................................346
10. 5. 1. Sidetracking....................................................................................346
10. 5. 2. Inaccessible Locations......................................................................346
10. 5. 3. Salt Dome Drilling...........................................................................347
10. 5. 4. Fault Controlling.............................................................................347
10. 5. 5. Multiple Exploration Wells from A Single Wellbore........................347
10. 5. 6. Multilateral Wells............................................................................348
10. 5. 7. Onshore Drilling to Offshore Locations...........................................348
10. 5. 8. Offshore Multi-Well Drilling...........................................................348
10. 5. 9. Relief Wells......................................................................................349
10. 5. 10. Short, Medium, and Long Radius Wells.........................................349
10. 6. Survey Calculation Methods...................................................................350
10. 6. 1. Tangential Method..........................................................................350
10. 6. 2. Average Angle Method....................................................................351
10. 6. 3. Radius of Curvature Method...........................................................353
10. 6. 4. Minimum Curvature Method..........................................................354
10. 7. Chapter Summary..................................................................................355
10. 8. Exercises.................................................................................................356
Page 335
Table of Figures
Figure 11. 1: Directional Well..............................................................................337

Figure 11. 2: Vertical Well...................................................................................338
Figure 11. 3: S-Type Well....................................................................................339
Figure 11. 4: Slant Well.......................................................................................340
Figure 11. 5: Horizontal Well...............................................................................340
Figure 11. 6: True Vertical Depth........................................................................341
Figure 11. 7: Measured Depth..............................................................................341
Figure 11. 8: Horizontal Displacement.................................................................342
Figure 11. 9: Azimuth..........................................................................................342
Figure 11. 10: Vertical Section.............................................................................343
Figure 11. 11: Kick of Point.................................................................................343
Figure 11. 12: Well Inclination.............................................................................344
Figure 11. 13: End Of Build.................................................................................344
Figure 11. 14: Start Of Drop................................................................................344
Figure 11. 15: End Of Drop.................................................................................345
Figure 11. 16: Sidetracking..................................................................................346
Figure 11. 17: Inaccessible Location.....................................................................346
Figure 11. 18: Salt Dome......................................................................................347
Figure 11. 19: Fault Controlling...........................................................................347
Figure 11. 20: Multiple Exploration Wells...........................................................347
Figure 11. 21: Multilateral Wells.........................................................................348
Figure 11. 22: Onshore Drilling to Offshore.........................................................348
Figure 11. 23: Offshore Multi-Well......................................................................348
Figure 11. 24: Relief Well.....................................................................................349
Figure 11. 25: Short, Medium, and Long Radius Wells........................................349
Figure 11. 26: Tangential Method........................................................................350
Figure 11. 27: Tangential Method – TVD and Displacement Error......................351
Figure 11. 28: Average Angle Method..................................................................352
Figure 11. 29: Radius of Curvature Method.........................................................353
Figure 11. 30: Minimum Curvature Method........................................................354
Page 336
10. Introduction to Directional Drilling
Directional drilling has become a very important tool in the development of oil and gas
deposits. Current expenditures for hydrocarbon production have dictated the necessity of
controlled directional drilling to a much larger extent than previously. Probably the most
important aspect of controlled directional drilling is that it enables producers all over the
world to develop subsurface deposits that could never be reached economically in any
other manner. In addition, the use of directional drilling allows several wells to be
drilled into a reservoir from a single platform
10. 1. Training Objectives
At the end of this training session, you will be able to:

- Define directional drilling.
- Identify well types and well profiles.
- Describe the related terminologies.
- Understand the applications of directional drilling.
- List survey calculation methods.
10. 2. Definition
Controlled directional drilling is the science and art of deviating a wellbore along a
planned course from a starting location to a target location, both defined with a given
coordinate system.
Surface Location
Kick-Off Point
Deviated Wellbore
Vertical Wellbore
Target
Target
Figure 10. 1: Directional Well
Drilling a directional well basically involves drilling a hole from one point in space (the
surface location) to another point in space (the target) in such a way that the hole can
then be used for its intended purpose. The target is generally the point or location of
the oil and gas reservoirs. A typical directional well starts off with a vertical hole, then
kicks off so that the bottom hole location may end up a long distance away from its
starting point.
Page 337
10. 3. Well Types
Wells are drilled for three major purposes, i.e. exploration, appraisal and development.
Exploration wells, also known as wildcat wells, probe the earth where no known
hydrocarbons exist to determine whether oil or gas is present in a subsurface rock
formation. Appraisal wells are drilled to determine the extent of a field or the amount of
area it covers. Development wells, or production wells, are drilled in an existing field to
obtain the recoverable hydrocarbons.
Various well profiles can be directionally drilled to meet the purposes above. The type of
well profile to be selected will depend upon the geological objectives and the production
mechanism of the well. A directional well profile is defined as the planned well
trajectory from the surface to the final drilling depth by projecting the wellbore onto two
plotted planes (horizontal and vertical). In order to determine the best geometric well
profile from the surface to the bottomhole target, the following information must be
known:
1. The position of the surface location.
2. The position of the target location.
3. The true vertical depth (TVD).
10. 3. 1. Vertical Well
A vertical well has a bore with no deviation from vertical.
Figure 10. 2: Vertical Well
10. 3. 2. S-Type Well
An S-type well has a bore with a vertical (straight) section, a build section, a tangent
section, and a drop section. The tangent section (hold section) occurs after a build
section where the inclination of the borehole is held constant (hold angle) for a certain
Page 338
distance.
This type of well is drilled to improve the efficiency of the well and to assist in the
location of a blown-out well. In offshore drilling, S-type wells can ensure accuracy in
bottomhole spacing when multiple wells are drilled from the same platform.
Figure 10. 3: S-Type Well
10. 3. 3 Slant Well
Slant wells, sometimes called J-type wells, have a bore with a vertical (straight) section,
a build section, and a tangent section straight to the target.
Slant or J-type wells are drilled where it is not desirable or possible to locate the surface
location directly above the target.
Page 339
Figure 10. 4: Slant Well
10. 3. 4. Horizontal Well
Horizontal wells have a bore with a vertical (straight) section, a build section, tangent
section, a second build section (most of the time), and a horizontal section.
The well is drilled to a point outside the reservoir; then it is deflected and the angle
increases until it reaches 90 degrees (or more). As such, the horizontal well intersects a
producing formation horizontally and increases the exposed surface area of a producing
formation. When properly applied, one horizontal borehole can produce from a reservoir
better than several vertically drilled wells.
Figure 10. 5: Horizontal Well
10. 4. Terminology
10. 4. 1. True Vertical Depth (TVD)
The True Vertical Depth of any point or

station along a wellbore is the vertical
distance from the well surface reference
point to the station of interest.
Page 340
Figure 10. 6: True Vertical Depth

10. 4. 2. Measured Depth (MD)
The Measured Depth of any point or station

along a wellbore is the distance from the well
surface reference point to the station of
interest along the actual well path.
Figure 10. 7: Measured Depth
10. 4. 3. Horizontal Displacement (HD)
The Horizontal Displacement is the distance

between any two points along a wellbore
projected onto a horizontal plane or plan
view. For example, a target horizontal
displacement is the lateral distance from the
surface location to the target.
Page 341
Figure 10. 8: Horizontal Displacement
10. 4. 4. Azimuth
The azimuth is the angle in the horizontal

plane measured from a fixed reference
direction (such as True North), usually
measured clockwise. The rate at which a
well profile turns in azimuth is known as
the Turn Rate. It is usually expressed in
degrees per 100 ft (30m).
Figure 10. 9: Azimuth
10. 4. 5. Vertical Section (VS)
The Vertical Section is the distance between any two points along a
wellbore projection onto a vertical plane.
Page 342
Figure 10. 10: Vertical Section

10. 4. 6. Kick Off Point (KOP)
The Kick Off Point is the location at a given

depth below the surface where the wellbore is
deviated (well angle is increased) in a given
direction. The rate at which the wellbore
inclination increases is known as the Build Up
Rate (BUR). BUR is usually expressed in
degrees per 100 ft (30m) of the measured depth.
Figure 10. 11: Kick of Point
10. 4. 7. Well Inclination
The Well Inclination is the angle by which the

wellbore deviates from the vertical.
Figure 10. 12: Well Inclination
10. 4 .8. End of Build (EOB)
The End Of Build is the location where the
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wellbore has finished building angle.
Figure 10. 13: End Of Build

10. 4 .9. Start Of Drop
The Start Of Drop is the location where the

wellbore starts dropping inclination. The rate
at which the wellbore inclination decreases is
known as the Drop Off Rate (DOR). It is
usually expressed in degrees per 100 ft (30m) of
the course length.
Figure 10. 14: Start Of Drop
10. 4 .10. End Of Drop
The End of Drop is the location where the

wellbore finishes dropping inclination.
Figure 10. 15: End of Drop
Page 344
10. 5. Directional Drilling Applications
10. 5. 1. Sidetracking
Sidetracking was the original directional

drilling technique used to get past fish
(obstructions). Oriented sidetracks, the most
common type of sidetracking, are performed
when there are unexpected changes in
geology and obstructions in the path of the
wellbore.
Figure 10. 16: Sidetracking
10. 5. 2. Inaccessible Locations
Inaccessible locations such as targets located

beneath cities, rivers or environmentally sensitive areas make it necessary to locate the
drilling rig some distance away from the target.
Figure 10. 17: Inaccessible Location
10. 5. 3. Salt Dome Drilling
Salt Dome
Page 345
Trap
Salt domes have been found to be natural traps of hydrocarbons accumulating beneath the
overhanging hard cap. A directional well is used to reach the trapped reservoir to prevent
the problems associated with drilling a well through the salt formation.
Figure 10. 18: Salt Dome

10. 5. 4. Fault Controlling
Fault controlling is an application used to drill

a directional well into faulted subsurface
formations without crossing the fault line.
Figure 10. 19: Fault Controlling
10. 5. 5. Multiple Exploration Wells from A Single Wellbore
Multiple exploration wells from a single

wellbore use a single hole to drill multiple new wells by deviating away from
the original well at a certain depth. It allows the exploration of
structural locations without drilling another complete well.
Figure 10. 20: Multiple Exploration Wells
10. 5. 6. Multilateral Wells
Multilateral wells have several wellbores

running laterally and originating from one
original hole.
Page 346
Figure 10. 21: Multilateral Wells

10. 5. 7. Onshore Drilling to Offshore Locations
Onshore drilling takes place when a reservoir is located

below large bodies of water that
are within drilling reach from land. The wellheads are
located on land, and the borehole is drilled directionally
underneath the water to reach the reservoir. This
technique saves money because land rigs are much
cheaper than offshore rigs.
Figure 10. 22: Onshore Drilling to Offshore
10. 5. 8. Offshore Multi-Well Drilling
Offshore multi-well drilling is the most
economical way to develop offshore fields.
Several directional wells are drilled in "clusters" on a multi-well offshore platform.
Figure 10. 23: Offshore Multi-Well

10. 5. 9. Relief Wells
Relief wells are used to kill wells which have

blown-out by intercepting the borehole. A
carefully planned directional well must be drilled with
great precision to locate and intercept the blowing
well’s borehole. In 1934, controlled directional drilling was
used to kill a wild well near Conroe, Texas, USA. The
technique has since gained favorable recognition.
Figure 10. 24: Relief Well

10. 5. 10. Short, Medium, and Long Radius Wells
Short radius wells, typically re-entries of old vertical wells, have curves with a 143 ft (44
m) radius or smaller that cannot be drilled with conventional motors. They are used to
isolate higher-/lower-pressured production zones or water sands without setting and
Page 347
cementing a liner. This type of drilling is desirable when kicking off below a problem
formation.
Medium radius wells have curves with a 200-500 ft (61-152 m) radius that can be
drilled with conventional motors. Long radius wells have curves with a 750 ft (229 m)
radius or larger that can also be drilled with conventional motors.
Figure 10. 25: Short, Medium, and Long Radius Wells
10. 6. Survey Calculation Methods
The normal method for determining the well path is to ascertain the coordinates by using
the measured values of well depth between two successive survey stations, inclination
angle and direction angle.
There are more than 18 calculation techniques for determining the trajectory of the
wellbore. The main difference in all the techniques is that one group uses straight line
approximations and the other assumes the wellbore is more of a curve and is
approximated with curved segments. The common survey calculation methods are:
1. Tangential Method.
2. Average Angle Method.
3. Radius of Curvature Method.
4. Minimum Curvature Method (Circular Arc Method).
10. 6. 1. Tangential Method
The Tangential Method uses the inclination and azimuth at a survey station, A 2, and
assumes the projected angles (of inclination and azimuth) remain constant over the
preceding course length, MD, to the survey station, A 2. The angles at A1 are not
considered.
Page 348
A1
A1
NORTH
h, MD
Lengt
e
Cours
TVD
E/W DISPLACEMENT EAST
A2 A2
Displacement
Figure 10. 26: Tangential Method
True Vertical Depth (TVD) = Course Length (MD) x cos 
Displacement = Course Length (MD) x sin 
Where,  is the inclination angle at A2.
North / South = Displacement x cos 
East / West = Displacement x sin 
Where,  is the angle of direction at A2 on the horizontal plane.
By not considering the previous inclination and direction,
the Tangential Method introduces a small error at each
straight-line segments. For instance, (a-b) is the actual
well path. As the well inclination increases, the
calculated TVD (a-c”) is shorter than the actual TVD (a-
c), but the calculated displacement (c”-b’) is longer than
actual (c-b). The opposite is true when the well
inclination decreases. These errors are cumulative. This
means, for an S-type well, if the drop rate and survey
spacing in the drop section is the same as those in the
build up section, the total error tends to vanish at the
return to vertical point.
Figure 10. 27: Tangential Method – TVD and Displacement Error
Page 349
10. 6. 2. Average Angle Method
The Average Angle Method considers the average of the inclination and azimuthal angles
at Point 1 (previous survey station) and Point 2 (current survey station) over a course
length increment, MD, to calculate True Vertical Depth, Displacement, North / South
Displacement, and East / West Displacement.
Figure 10. 28: Average Angle Method
True Vertical Depth (TVD) = Course Length (MD) x cos IAVG

Displacement = Course Length (MD) x sin IAVG
North / South = Displacement x cos AAVG

East / West = Displacement x sin AAVG
Where,
I1 + I 2 A1 + A2
IAVG = and AAVG =
2 2
Page 350
I1 and I2 are inclination angles at Point 1 and Point 2, respectively.

A1 and A2 are angle of direction at Point 1 and Point 2, respectively.
Page 351
10. 6. 3. Radius of Curvature Method
The Radius of Curvature Method uses the top (previous survey station) and bottom
(current survey station) angles to generate a space curve having an arc shape which
passes through the two stations. Each well path course length is assumed to be a smooth
curve (which can fit onto the surface of a cylinder of a specific radius) in both the vertical
and horizontal planes. This method greatly improves the well survey accuracy.
Figure 10. 29: Radius of Curvature Method
180 . Δ MD 180 . Δ H
Rv = Rh =
π ( I 2 −I 1 ) π ( A2 −A1 )
Δ TVD = Rv ( sin I 2 − sin I 1 ), Δ North = Rh ( sin A 2 − sin A 1 ),
Δ H = Rv ( cos I 1 − cos I 2 ), Δ East = Rh ( cos A 1 − cos A 2 ),
Where,
I1 and I2 are inclination angles at Point 1 and Point 2, respectively.
A1 and A2 are angle of direction at Point 1 and Point 2, respectively.
Rv and Rh are radius of curvature in the vertical plane and horizontal plane, respectively.
 indicates the increment of the parameter.
Note: If the inclination and azimuth angles remain unchanged between the survey points,
these equations are no longer applicable because of the resulting division by a zero.
10. 6. 4. Minimum Curvature Method
Page 352
This is the most common survey calculation method. The Minimum Curvature Method
uses the principle of minimizing the total curvature within the constraints of the wellbore
in order to produce a smooth circular arc. The surveys at the two stations define vectors
which are tangent to the wellbore at the survey points. A ratio factor (RF) is used to
smooth the vectors on to the wellbore curve.
DL/2
DL/2
Figure 10. 30: Minimum Curvature Method
Ratio Factor, RF =2 x 180 x tanD( )

DL x  L2
Where, DL = Dogleg angle (degree)
cos DL = cos (I2 – I1) – { sin I1 x sin I2 x [ 1 – cos (A2 – A1) ] }
TVD = ½ x MD x ( cos I1 + cos I2 ) x RF
North = ½ x MD x [ ( sin I1 x cos A1 ) + ( sin I2 x cos A2 ) ] x RF
East = ½ x MD x [ ( sin I1 x sin A1 ) + ( sin I2 x sin A2 ) ] x RF

10. 7. Chapter Summary
1. Controlled directional drilling is the science and art of deviating a wellbore along a
planned course from a starting location to a target location – both defined with a
given coordinate system.
Page 353
2. The information required to determine the best geometric well profile from surface to
a bottomhole target is the surface position, target position and true vertical depth.
The common well profiles include Vertical, S-type, Slant (J-type), and Horizontal.
3. The terminologies used to describe a well profile are True Vertical Depth (TVD),
Measured Depth (MD), Horizontal Displacement (HD), Azimuth, Vertical Section
(VS), Kick Off Point (KOP), Well Inclination (Well Angle), End Of Build (EOB),
Start Of Drop, and End Of Drop.
4. The applications of directional drilling include sidetracking, reaching inaccessible

locations, salt dome drilling, fault controlling, multiple exploration wells from a
single wellbore, multilateral, onshore drilling to offshore locations, offshore multi-
well drilling, and relief well.
5. Short radius wells have curves with a 143-foot radius or less. Medium radius wells
have curves with a 200 to 500-foot radius. Long radius wells have curves with a 750-
foot radius or more.
6. Survey calculation methods are used to determine the well path trajectory based on
inclination and direction at various depths. The common methods are Tangential
Method, Average Angle Method, Radius Curvature Method, and Minimum Curvature
Method.
Page 354
Page 355
1. Match each well profile feature with its correct definition.
A. Kick Off Point I. The angle by which the wellbore deviates from the
B. Surface Location vertical.
C. Build Up Rate II. The length of the projection of the horizontal
displacement onto the vertical plane defined by its
D. Turn Rate
azimuth.
E. Well Inclination
III. Direction of a course measured in a clockwise direction
F. Drop Off Rate from 0o to 360o referred to North.
G. Start Of Drop IV. The rate of which the wellbore angle is reduced
H. True Vertical V. The geographical position on earth where the well
Depth starts.
I. Vertical Section VI. A point where a well profile finished dropping angle.
J. Azimuth VII. This occurs after a build-up where the borehole
K. Measured Depth inclination is held constant for a certain distance.
L. Horizontal VIII. This determines the rate a well profile turns in azimuth.
Displacement IX. The location at a given depth below the surface where
M. Tangent Section the wellbore is deviated in a given direction.
N. End of Build Up X. The actual measured vertical depth from a reference
O. End of Drop point on the surface to a point of interest.
XI. The location where the wellbore starts dropping
inclination.
XII. The rate at which the wellbore angle is increased.
XIII. The distance between two points that are projected onto
a horizontal plane.
XIV. The location where the wellbore inclination has
finished increasing.
XV. The actual length of the wellbore from its surface
location to any specified station.
Answer:
A - IX E-I I - II M - VII
B-V F - IV J - III N - XIV
C - XII G - XI K - XV O - VI
D - VIII H-X L - XIII
Page 356

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IPM – Drilling Engineering Manual - IDPT

10. Introduction to Directional Drilling................................................................337

Figure 11. 1: Directional Well..............................................................................337

10. Introduction to Directional Drilling

10. 1. Training Objectives

At the end of this training session, you will be able to:

Figure 10. 1: Directional Well

10. 3. Well Types

10. 3. 1. Vertical Well

A vertical well has a bore with no deviation from vertical.

Figure 10. 2: Vertical Well

10. 3. 2. S-Type Well

10. 3. 3 Slant Well

Figure 10. 4: Slant Well

10. 3. 4. Horizontal Well

Figure 10. 5: Horizontal Well

10. 4. 1. True Vertical Depth (TVD)

The True Vertical Depth of any point or

Figure 10. 6: True Vertical Depth

The Measured Depth of any point or station

Figure 10. 7: Measured Depth

10. 4. 3. Horizontal Displacement (HD)

The Horizontal Displacement is the distance

Figure 10. 8: Horizontal Displacement

The azimuth is the angle in the horizontal

Figure 10. 9: Azimuth

10. 4. 5. Vertical Section (VS)

Figure 10. 10: Vertical Section

The Kick Off Point is the location at a given

Figure 10. 11: Kick of Point

The Well Inclination is the angle by which the

Figure 10. 12: Well Inclination

10. 4 .8. End of Build (EOB)

The End Of Build is the location where the

wellbore has finished building angle.

Figure 10. 13: End Of Build

The Start Of Drop is the location where the

Figure 10. 14: Start Of Drop

10. 4 .10. End Of Drop

The End of Drop is the location where the

Figure 10. 15: End of Drop

10. 5. Directional Drilling Applications

Sidetracking was the original directional

Figure 10. 16: Sidetracking

Inaccessible locations such as targets located

Figure 10. 17: Inaccessible Location

10. 5. 3. Salt Dome Drilling

Figure 10. 18: Salt Dome

Fault controlling is an application used to drill

10. 5. 5. Multiple Exploration Wells from A Single Wellbore

Multiple exploration wells from a single

Figure 10. 20: Multiple Exploration Wells

10. 5. 6. Multilateral Wells

Multilateral wells have several wellbores

Figure 10. 21: Multilateral Wells

Onshore drilling takes place when a reservoir is located

Figure 10. 22: Onshore Drilling to Offshore

10. 5. 8. Offshore Multi-Well Drilling

Figure 10. 23: Offshore Multi-Well