DPT1

Rig Sizing and Selection

Rig Sizing & Selection - Objectives

At the end of this lecture YOU will be able to:

Select a rig for a given well

Rig Sizing & Selection - Agenda
1. Types of rigs

2. Hoisting system
– Loads: hook, fastline and deadline
– Drawworks sizing
– Drilling line Sizing, Ton-Miles, Slip & Cut
– Derrick/Mast
– Substructure
3. Rotating System
4. Circulating System
5. BOP System
6. Power System
7. Group exercise: Select a Rig for a 30000ft well
 Rig Sizing - Introduction
There are a number of considerations that are fundamental to the design of the well
program and selection of the drilling equipment that will be used.

• Territory in which to operate

• Ranges of well depths and hole sizes to be drilled
• Casing loads expected, Drill string components weights and sizes
• Range of rotary speeds and torque required
• Mud system, tanks and manifolding, solids control equipment
• Auxiliary services and power required
• Substructure height - clearances
• Blowout prevention equipment
 Rig Sizing - Introduction
A drilling rig is made of many individual pieces of equipment which together form
a unit to construct wells. Without this unit wells could not be drilled and cased.
The correct procedure for selecting and sizing a drilling rig is as follows:
1) Design the well.
2) Establish the various maximum loads to be expected during drilling
and all other operations to be done with the rig (Testing, Completions)
3) Find rigs available in the area that match the requirements
4) Discuss availability with Rig Contractors.
5) Issue tenders and select rig based on cost, capability and availability
 Rig Sizing
Rig Types:
•Land rig
•Offshore rigs:
–Floating rigs:
»Semisubmersible
»Drillships
–Bottom-supported rigs:
»Jack-up
»Platform
»Barge
Land Rig
Mobile Land rigs
Jack-up Rigs
Rig Move - Rowan Gorilla
 Submersible Rigs/Barges

Submersibles can be anchored when used in water depths

of up to 175ft, or can rest on the seabed when working in
water depths from 5 to 20 ft. “Swamp” barges are typically
used to drill wells in shallow water depths of up to 20ft in
inland waterways and swamps.
Semi-submersible Rigs

It can be self propelled or towed to its

location.

Station-keeping is maintained by
chains / wires connected to anchors
or by dynamic positioning.
Semi-submersible Rigs
Drillship

The drillships offer the same

possibility than semisubmersibles
but are less
stable. However they have a larger
payload.
Drillship
Rig Types - Summary
 Rig Components
The major rig components that need to be reviewed for
capability are:
• Hoisting system

• Derrick capacity and substructure

• Rotating equipment

• Circulating system

• Pressure control

• Power requirements

• Tubular goods
 Hoisting System
The hoisting system consists of:
1. The Supporting Structure:
– Derrick
– Rig Floor
– Substructure
2. The Hoisting Equipment
– Drawworks
– Crown block
– Traveling block
– Hook
– Drilling line
 Hoisting System - Drawworks
This is an assembly of a rotating drum, a series of shafts, clutches,
chains and gears for changing speed and for reversing. It also
contains the main brake stopping the drilling line.
The drilling line is wound a number of times around the drum and
passes to the crown and traveling blocks

The Drum
Hoisting System - Drawworks
Hoisting System – Crown Block

• A block located at the top of derrick

• It contains a number of sheaves on
which the drilling line is wound.
• The crown block provides a means of
taking the drilling line from the
hoisting drum to the traveling block
• The crown block is stationary and is
firmly fastened to the top of the
derrick
• Each sheave inside the crown block
acts as an individual pulley
Hoisting System - Sheaves
 Hoisting System – Travelling
Block
•A diamond-shaped block containing a
number of sheaves which is always less
than those in the crown block.

•The hook and bails hang below the TB

to facilitate drilling with the swivel and
running pipe.
 Hoisting System - Hook

• Connects the Kelly or Top

Drive with the traveling Block
• The hook carries the entire
drilling load
Hoisting System - Swivel
Hoisting System - Deadline Anchor
The Dead Line Anchor anchors the last line coming from the
crown block and allows new line to be fed from the reel in
which it is stored. New lengths of line can be fed into the
system. The used line is cut off at the drum side.
 Hoisting System - Block & Tackle
 The drilling line is wound continuously on the Crown and Traveling Blocks,
with two outside ends being wound on the hoisting drum and attached to the
deadline anchor respectively.
 The block and tackle is a term used to refer to the arrangement of crown
block, drilling line and traveling block.

Fastline
 Hoisting System – Wire Rope
Wire rope differs in the number of strands and pattern of wires in the
strand. Most wire rope constructions are grouped into four standard
classifications, based on the number of strands and wires per strand
as shown in the following table taken from the IADC Drilling Manual:
Hoisting System – Wire Rope Strands
Strands are preformed to give them the helical shape they will take when
they are placed on the wire: preformed strands (PRF)
Patterns used in drilling line: Filler Wire, Seale, Combined patterns

The strands can be placed in a right or left direction and the wires in the
strand can be placed such that they appear to be parallel to the rope axis
(Regular) or to the axis of the strands (Lang).
Lay used for Drilling Lines:
Right Regular Lay (RRL)
Hoisting System – Wire Rope Core &
•
Grade
The primary purpose of the core in wire rope is to provide foundation or
support for the strands. There are 3 types of core:
Fiber Core (FC), Strand Core, Independent Wire Rope Core (IWRC)
• The strands provide the whole of the tensile strength of a FC rope but with
a IWRC rope, the core contributes to the nominal strength. For example in
a 6 strand rope with IWRC, 7.5% of the nominal strength is attributed to
the core.
• Wire rope used for Drilling Lines has IWRC

• All rotary drilling lines are of 2 grades: Improved Plow Steel (IPS) or Extra
Improved Plow Steel (EIPS)
• A standard 6 strand EIPS rope within the same classification have a nominal
strength 15 % higher than IPS ropes.
 Hoisting System – Wire Rope
Size
The correct diameter of a wire rope is the diameter of a circumscribed circle
that will enclose all the strands. It is the largest cross-sectional measurement.
Measurements should be carefully made with calipers.

The size of most Drilling Lines varies from 1/2” to 2”

Hoisting System – Wire Rope Strength
The table below taken from the SPE ADE textbook
shows the nominal breaking strength for 6X19 wire rope.
 Hoisting System - Wire Rope
What does the following description of a rotary drilling line mean?
What is its nominal strength?

1” X 5000’ 6 X 19 S PRF RRL IPS IWRC

1” = Diameter of line
5000’ = Length of line
6 = Number of Strands per Line
19 = Number of Wires per Strand
S = Seale Pattern
PRF = Preformed Strands
RRL= Right Regular Lay
IPS = Improved Plow Steel
IWRC = Independent Wire Rope Core
Strength = 89800 lbs
 Hoisting System Design
Design Considerations
1. Determine the deepest hole to be drilled
2. Determine the maximum drilling loads or casing loads
3. Use these values and compare to the derrick capacities on
available rigs

Elements for Calculation

1. Static Derrick Loading
2. Efficiency Factor
3. Dynamic Crown Load
 Exercise RIG 00 - Hoisting
System
Line Tension and Derrick Load Under Static Conditions:

W ( n  2)
Line Tension = FL  Derrick Load = FD  W *
n (crown block loading) n

Where: W = hookload and n = number of lines

Crown Block

Fixedsheaves
W W W W
4 W 4 4 W 4
4 4

Fastline

Hook

Drawworks Deadline

W
 Hoisting System – Dynamic Loading
For dynamic conditions friction between the line and sheaves has to be
accounted for:
For roller bearings which are the normal type of bearings in a block & tackle
system, the Friction Factor is K=1.04.

Efficiency Factor of the Hoisting System: (API RP9B)

KN 1
EF  S
K * N( K  1)

Where: N = the number of lines and S = the number of sheaves

Note: For the general configuration of a block and tackle system of a rotary drilling rig S = N.
 Exercise RIG 01: Efficiency
Factor
Calculate the efficiency factor for a hoisting system
employing 8 string lines.
 Hoisting System – Dynamic
Loads
Dynamic Fast-Line Load:
W
FFL 
EF * n
Dynamic Deadline -Load is given by:
W * ( 1 / K )n
FDL 
EF * n

What is the total derrick load under dynamic conditions ?

FDT  W  FFL  FDL

 Derricks
Standard Derrick:
• Bolted structure that must be assembled part by part, usually used on offshore
platforms.
• Derrick installed on floating rigs are designed to withstand extra dynamic stresses
due to rolling, heaving and stresses from the wind
• The space available between the rig floor and the crown block must be higher to
handle the wave-induced vertical movement of the floating support.

Mast or Portable Derrick:

 This type is pivoted at its base and is lowered to the horizontal by the use of
drawworks after completing the well and the rig is ready to move to another
location
 The mast is dismantled into a number of pin-jointed sections, each of which is
usually a truck load.
Mast or Portable Derrick
 Derrick/Mast Rating
 Historically, the rating was defined as GNC (Gross Nominal
Capacity) in the API 4A. It is now obsolete definition.
 Now in API STD 4E, the rating is defining as maximum rated
static hook load for the number of lines strung to the traveling
block.
 The maximum rated wind velocity with and without setback load
should be considered.
 The derrick must support hookloads, deadline load, fastline load,
pipe setback and wind loads.
Example of Derrick Name Plate
Example of Wind loading
Specificity of a Cantilever jack-up
A typical Cantilever jack-up has a load chart showing loss of capacity in
varying skidding position.
 Hoisting System - Design

If the breaking strength of the drilling line is known, then a design factor,
DF, may be calculated as follows:

DF = Nominal strength of wire rope (lb) / Fast-line Load (lb)

Min Design Factors (API RP 9B);

Drilling / Tripping : 3
Casing Running : 2
Pulling on Stuck Pipe : 2

In emergency cases (eg stuck pipe), you can not exceed the
capacity of the weakest link in the system: 80% of the tensile yield of
the pipe (in premium condition) or the capacity of the drilling line with
a DF of 2.
Hoisting System – Drawworks Power
As a rule of thumb, the drawworks should have 1 HP for every 10 ft to be
drilled. Hence for 20,000 ft well, the drawworks should have 2000 HP.

Power developed at hook: P = W x Vhk

Power consumed at the drum: P = FFL x Vf
P = W x Vhk / EF

Drum output (horsepower) = W x Vhk / (EFx33,000)

 Vf = Velocity of fast-line load (Vf)
 Vhk = Velocity of traveling block
 Vf = N x Vhk
For indication, we can consider the following traveling block speed:
 0.5 m/s (100 ft/min) for rig rated less than 15000 ft
 0.675 m/s (135 ft/min) for heavier rig
 Exercise RIG 02 – Drawworks Power
The following data refer to an Oilwell block-and-tackle system:
Number of lines = 10 with EF = 0.81,
Maximum expected hook load = 500,000 lbf,
Hook load speed = 120 ft/min,
Hoisting drum diameter = 32”,
Mechanical efficiency of drawworks = 0.88

Calculate:
1) The power at the drawworks
2) The motor power required
3) The fast line speed.
4) The RPM of the drawworks drum.
 Exercise RIG 03 – Drilling Line Loads
Consider a travelling block with 10 lines of 1.5” EIPS wire rope of strength 228klbs
Hole depth(MD) = 10,500 ft
DP = 4000 ft 5” - 19.5 lb/ft (S-135-NC 50) 22.61 approx #
= 5700 ft 5” – 19.5 lb/ft (E-75-NC 50) 20.85 approx #
Drill collars = 800 ft, 8” x 2.825”, 150 lb/ft
Mud weight = 10 ppg
Sheave bearing type = Roller Bearing (K=1.04)
Travelling Block Weight = 23,500 lbs

Calculate:
1) Weight of drill string in air and in mud
2) Hook load.
3) Dynamic deadline and fast-line loads.
4) Dynamic crown load
5) Wirerope Design Factor during drilling
6) Design Factor when running 7 in casing of 29 lb/ft
 Drilling Line Slip & Cut
Fig. M4-1 of the IADC Drilling Manual Illustrates the
critical wear points of drilling line.
 Slip & Cut Practice
The objective is to find the optimum cut off rate for each particular situation.

• In order to optimize cut off rate it is necessary to be able to measure the

amount of work done by the drilling line.

• The work of the drilling line is measured in “ton-miles” which refers to lifting
one ton one mile or ( lifting 2000 lbs 5280 ft )

• Therefore: one ton mile = 10,560,000 ft-lbs.

• If a line is cut off with very low ton-miles per ft of line, rig operating costs will
be higher than necessary but if the line is cut with excessive ton-miles per foot
there is risk of causing an accident or having to cut and slip the entire length to
string up the system.

• It is essential to perform this operation with the bit inside the deepest casing
shoe for two reasons: well control situation and stuck pipe avoidance.
Slip & Cut Practice – Ton Miles

Grand total of work done by the drilling line is the sum of

ton-Miles done during:
1. Drilling
2. Coring
3. Tripping
4. Setting casing
 Substructure
• The substructure is a structure underneath the rig floor through which hook load, rotary load and/or
setback load are transmitted.
• The height of the substructure above the ground varies according to the size of the rig (from 10’ to 35’).
• The substructure is rated for (API Spec 4F):
 A maximum rated static rotary capacity
 A maximum rated pipe setback capacity
 A maximum combined rated static rotary and rated setback capacity (it is not necessarily the sum of the two
above, but the maximum the structure can see at one time)

For example, you may have a max. setback capacity of 70 kips, and a SHL capacity of 200 kips on the mast however only 200
kips combined capacity, which means you can have full setback capacity only if you do not pull to the maximum on your mast.
Substructure Name Plate
Rig Sizing & Selection - Agenda
1. Types of rigs

2. Hoisting system
– Loads: hook, fastline and deadline
– Drawworks sizing
– Drilling line Sizing, Ton-Miles, Slip & Cut
– Derrick, Rig Floor & Substructure
3. Rotating System
4. Circulating System
5. BOP System
6. Power System
7. Group exercise: Select a Rig for a 30000ft well
 Rotating System
Rotary Horsepower is the horsepower required to rotate the drill string and the bit.

Torque * RPM
( ft lb )
RHP 
5,250
 The Rotary Horsepower requirement is usually between 1.5 to 2 times the
rotary speed, depending on the hole depth.
 Hence for rotary speed of 200 RPM, the power requirement is about 400 HP.
Circulating System

Hydraulic Horsepower:
The horsepower requirements of the
pumps depends on the flow-rate
and the pressure.

FlowRate( gpm ) x Pr essure( psi )

HP 
1714

The heart of the circulating system is

the mud pumps
 Circulating System – Mud Pumps

• A basic pump consists of a piston reciprocating inside a cylinder.

• A pump is described as single acting if it pumps fluid on the forward strokes (triplex pumps) and
double-acting if it pumps fluid on both the forward and backward strokes (duplex).
• Pump Liners fit inside the pump cavity, these affect the pressure rating and flowrate from the pump.
• For a given pump, different size liners have the same OD but different ID.
• The smaller liner (small ID) is used in the deeper part of the well where low flow-rate is required
but much higher operating pressure
• A full hydraulic program needs to be calculated to determine the pressure requirement of the pump.
Circulating System – Triplex Pumps
Mud Pumps – Stroke & Efficiency

• Drilling mud usually contain little air and is slightly compressible.

Hence the piston moves through a shorter stroke than theoretically
possible before reaching discharge pressure.

• As a result, the volumetric efficiency is always less than one; typically

95% for triplex and 90% for duplex.

• In addition, due to power losses in drives, the mechanical efficiency of

most pumps is about 85%.
Exercise RIG 05 – Mud Pump Power
Calculate the power requirement for the following pump:
 Flowrate = 1200 gpm,
 Pressure = 2000 psi,
 Mechanical Efficiency = 0.85
 Circulating System
-Auxiliaries
Centrifugal Pumps:
This type of pump uses an impeller for the movement of fluid, rather a
piston reciprocating inside a cylinder. Centrifugal pumps are used to
surcharge mud pumps and to provide fluid to solids control equipment and
mud mixing equipment.

Mud Handling Equipment:

Shale Shakers: size, type.
Mud Pits: Number and size is determined by the size and the depth of hole. Also
by the size of the rig and space available, especially on offshore rigs. Size
of a pit usually 8-12 ft wide, 20-40 ft long and 6-12 ft high
Desanders, Desilters.
Centrifuges and mud cleaners
Degasser
 Pressure Control Equipment
Required as per IPM Standards – HSE 001, WCI 003, WCI 005 :
 Gas Detection Equipment
 BOP Stack and Diverter
 Kick Detection Equipment (Trip Tank, Flowshow)

Required as per Good Oilfield Practice :

 Choke manifold, Choke and Kill lines
 Accumulator and BOP Control System
 Rotating heads if air drilling or UBD
 A fluids system with enough storage for all hole sections +100%
 Power System
• The power on modern rigs is most commonly generated by
diesel-electric power units,

• The power produced is AC current which is then is converted to

DC current by the use of SCR (Silicon Controlled Rectifier),

• The current is delivered by cables to electric motors attached

directly to the equipment involved such as mud pumps, rotary
table, drawworks etc.
 Power Requirements
The total power requirements of a rig is the sum of the power requirement of:
• Drawworks
• Rotary table or top drive
• Mud pumps
• Mud handling system.
• Auxiliary power requirements for lighting etc,
• Life support system.

The actual power required will depend on the operation being carried out:
• The maximum power used is during hoisting and circulation.
• The least power used is during wireline operations
Rig Sizing & Selection - Agenda
1. Types of rigs

2. Hoisting system
– Loads: hook, fastline and deadline
– Drawworks sizing
– Drilling line Sizing, Ton-Miles, Slip & Cut
– Derrick, Rig Floor & Substructure
3. Rotating System
4. Circulating System
5. BOP System
6. Power System
7. Group exercise: Select a Rig for a 30000ft well