Smart Polymer BHP Measurement via Image Analysis
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Current methods for measuring bottom-hole pressure (BHP) during drilling operations are either costly, such as using Pressure While Drilling (PWD) tools, or rely on predictive models that do not provide actual measurements, leading to potential well instability and loss of circulation issues due to inadequate hole cleaning and pressure monitoring.
Innovation Solution
The use of smart polymers introduced into drilling fluid that change properties in response to pressure, captured by cameras at the shale shaker, allowing for real-time estimation of BHP through image processing and machine-learning models, enabling efficient and accurate pressure monitoring.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If Pressure While Drilling (PWD) tools are used to measure BHP in real-time, then measurement accuracy and reliability are improved, but device cost and complexity increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses pressure-sensitive polymer pills as inexpensive copies or proxies for expensive PWD tools. These polymer pills travel through the wellbore with the drilling fluid and change their physical properties in response to pressure, providing BHP measurement data without requiring complex electronic pressure sensors downhole. The polymer pills are imaged at the surface to detect pressure-induced property changes, effectively copying the measurement function of PWD tools at a fraction of the cost.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the mechanical/electronic pressure sensing system of PWD tools with a chemical/polymer-based pressure response system. Instead of using electronic pressure transducers that require power and complex signal transmission, the system uses pressure-sensitive polymers that passively respond to pressure changes through physical property changes (such as swelling, shrinking, or phase transitions) that can be detected by surface imaging equipment.
2Reliability
If PWD tools are deployed for accurate BHP measurement, then wellbore stability control is improved, but drilling cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs disposable polymer pills that are inexpensive to manufacture and can be discarded after a single use. Each polymer pill provides BHP measurement data as it travels through the wellbore, then is discarded with the drilling fluid returns. This approach replaces expensive, reusable PWD tools with cheap, single-use polymer indicators, dramatically reducing the cost component while maintaining the ability to monitor wellbore pressure for stability control.
3Quantity of substance
If theoretical ECD simulation models are used to predict BHP, then cost is reduced, but measurement accuracy and reliability deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The polymer pills serve themselves as both the measurement probe and the indicator. They travel through the actual drilling environment, automatically experiencing the downhole pressure conditions and changing their properties in response. This self-service approach eliminates the need for complex simulation models, as the polymers directly interact with and measure the actual BHP conditions rather than relying on theoretical predictions.
4Device complexity
If smart polymers are used instead of PWD tools, then device cost is reduced, but measurement precision may be affected
Solution Approach 1:
The patent utilizes pressure-sensitive polymers that change their optical properties (such as color, fluorescence, or transparency) in response to pressure changes. These optical property changes are detected by imaging the polymer pills at the surface, allowing BHP measurement through non-intrusive optical detection methods. This approach maintains measurement precision while using simple, inexpensive polymer materials rather than complex electronic sensors.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This approach provides a cost-effective and robust method for measuring BHP, optimizing drilling operations by predicting safe operational margins and preventing well instability, thereby improving drilling efficiency and reducing the risk of stuck pipes and loss of circulation.
Implementation Method 1
Units of smart polymers that are pressure-responsive are inserted by a monitoring system into drilling fluid pumped into a well during a drilling operation
Data Source
AI summary
Systems and methods include a computer-implemented method for determining well pressure. Units of pressure-responsive smart polymers are inserted into drilling fluid pumped into a well during a drilling operation. An insertion timestamp associated with each unit is stored indicating times that each unit was inserted. Continuous images and observed characteristics of drilling mud exiting through an annulus of the well and containing the units of smart polymers are captured by a camera. An estimate of a bottom hole pressure (BHP) at a drill bit of the drilling operation is determined using the continuous images, the observed characteristics, and the insertion timestamps associated with each unit of smart polymer. Determining the estimate is based at least in part on executing image processing algorithms, machine-learning models, and deep-learning models. Changes to be made to drilling parameters for the drilling operation are suggested based on the estimated BHP.