Frontiers in Energy Research (Apr 2024)
Study on settling characteristics of rock cuttings from terrestrial high clay shale in power-law fluid
Abstract
In the process of oil and gas drilling, it is of great significance to accurately predict the drag coefficient and settling rate of cuttings in the drilling fluid for hydraulic parameters and borehole cleaning. In this paper, particle settling experiments were used to obtain the final settling velocity of 196 groups of spherical particles and 224 groups of terrestrial high-clay pure-shale cuttings in the power-law fluid. Based on data analysis, a settlement drag coefficient model suitable for irregular-shaped shale cuttings was established. The model can be used to predict the settlement drag coefficient and settling velocity of irregular-shaped shale cuttings in power-law fluid, which can provide theoretical guidance for wellbore cleaning and hydraulic parameter optimization in Daqing Gulong shale oil drilling operations.
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