03 Cutterbit PDF
03 Cutterbit PDF
Michael Azar
Wiley Long
Allen White
Houston, Texas, USA
The goal of drillers everywhere is to drill as quickly as possible from casing shoe to
Chance Copeland
Midland, Texas
is central to achieving this goal. A new bit, which has conical diamond cutting
Ryan Hempton
Cimarex Energy Company
Midland, Texas
penetration rates through challenging formations. This bit also delivers higher build
casing point without compromising borehole quality. The bit, which must withstand
variations in lithology, formation compressive strength and numerous other factors,
elements arrayed across its face, is attaining extended run lengths and increased
rates and a balanced steering response in directional drilling applications.
Mikhail Pak
Moscow, Russia
Oilfield Review 27, no. 2 (September 2015).
Copyright 2015 Schlumberger.
For help in preparation of this article, thanks to Diane
Jordan, Houston.
IDEAS, ONYX 360, StingBlade and Stinger are marks of
Schlumberger.
1. Ortiz B, Casallas C and Parra H: Improved Bit Stability
Reduces Downhole Harmonics (Vibrations), paper
IADC/SPE 36413, presented at the IADC/SPE Asia Pacific
Drilling Technology Conference and Exhibition,
Kuala Lumpur, September 911, 1996.
2. Bit whirl occurs when a bits axis of rotation is not in line
with the bits physical center. Instead, one of the cutters
becomes an instantaneous center of rotation, forcing the
bit to rotate about this contact point rather than about the
bit center. As the bit rotates about this contact point,
friction builds between the wellbore wall and bit, and
torque in the drillstring increases, which can force the bit
to move in reverse relative to the surface rotation of the
drillstring, or laterally, creating high-impact loads on the
bit and BHA.
For more on bit whirl: Centala P, Challa V, Durairajan B,
Meehan R, Paez L, Partin U, Segal S, Wu S, Garrett I,
Teggart B and Tetley N: Bit DesignTop to Bottom,
Oilfield Review 23, no. 2 (Summer 2011): 417.
Brett JF, Warren TM and Behr SM: Bit Whirl: A New
Theory of PDC Bit Failure, paper SPE 19571, presented
at the 64th SPE Annual Technical Conference and
Exhibition, San Antonio, Texas, USA, October 811, 1989.
3. Allamon JP, McKown T, Hill D, Brooks BA, Bayoud BB
and Winters WJ: Diamond Bit Handling and Operation,
paper SPE/IADC 16144, presented at the SPE/IADC
Drilling Conference, New Orleans, March 1518, 1987.
30
Oilfield Review
September 2015
1.25
CDE
Diamond
PDC
1.00
Relative scale
Substrate
0.75
0.50
Diamond
0.25
Substrate
PDC cross section
Wear
resistance
Impact
strength
Diamond
thickness
Figure 1. Conical diamond element (CDE). The Stinger CDE (left ), manufactured under high temperature
and pressure, has a layer of synthetic diamond that is substantially thicker than that of a conventional
PDC cutter (right ). The polycrystalline diamond material of the conical cutter is engineered to provide a
level of impact strength and resistance to abrasive wear that is higher than that of the conventional
PDC cutter (center ).
31
Bit Design
The Stinger conical diamond element was initially
introduced as a stand-alone cutting element
placed at the bit center to improve ROP and
enhance dynamic stability for PDC bits (Figure 2).
In this center position, the conical element fractured and crushed the rock as the PDC cutters
sheared the rock.4 The design team at Smith Bits
recognized the potential for increased drilling efficiency using multiple Stinger elements to fail the
rock through a combination of shearing and plowing actions. Bit design engineers used finite element analysis (FEA) to experiment with CDE
cutter placement and to model the resulting
changes in drilling performance.
The conical elements were placed at various
positions across the bit face. This design process
yielded a stronger overall cutting structure compared with that of conventional fixed cutter PDC
bits. As they experimented with Stinger element
placement across the bit face, the design engineers recognized the potential for improving
design configurations and the benefits of using
specific configurations to address specific drilling challenges (Figure 3).
Testing the Hypothesis
Design engineers conducted a series of laboratory
tests to evaluate Stinger conical diamond element
Figure 3. Variations in cutter placement. Depending on the application, cutter placement on the
StingBlade bit may vary from single and double rows of CDE cutters (left ) to alternating rows of PDC
and CDE cutters (right).
32
Oilfield Review
Figure 4. Impact testing. A technician prepares cutters for testing (left). Still images from a motion picture indicate that the conventional PDC cutter (center,
gray rounded element) failed on the first impact; the conical diamond element survived 100 impacts without damage (right ).
September 2015
Leading
edge
33
3,025
StingBlade bit
Depth, ft
PDC bit
3,075
180
90
0
Toolface angle, degree
90
180
on target (Figure 6). The higher build rates delivered by the StingBlade bit enabled it to land the
curve 20m [65ft] sooner than the standard PDC bit.
Drilling the Curve in Variable Lithologies
In Lea County, New Mexico, USA, Cimarex Energy
is targeting the Delaware basin Avalon shale
CDE2
PDC
CDE1
Figure 7. Alternating CDE and PDC cutting elements. Using FEA modeling of cutting action, bit
engineers created a StingBlade bit design to plow, then shear the rock (left). Stinger cutting elements
create troughs separated by a small ridge (right). This ridge of stress-relieved rock is then easily
sheared by the PDC cutter.
34
ded carbonates and is characterized by unconfined compressive strengths ranging from 9,000
to 30,000psi [62 to 207MPa].
The highly variable lithology creates challenges for directional drillers in the form of bit
whirl and axial, lateral and torsional vibrations.
These problems cause the bent motor assembly
to deviate from its intended course, thus forcing
the directional driller to reorient the toolface
and adjust the trajectory to get back on target.
Each toolface adjustment creates additional time
not spent drilling in the desired direction, resulting in a longer curve section and increased
potential for missing the target.
In general, standard fixed cutter bits can be
affected by variable formations, as evidenced by
erratic toolface control and difficulty in drilling
tight curves. Consequently, operators in this area
typically rely on roller cone bits to drill the curve
and have lately turned to a premium roller cone
hybrid bit. These bits produce consistent torque
responses for better steering control; however,
they also drill at lower ROPs than do PDC bits.
Although the operator had success with the
roller cone hybrid, the bit did not consistently
drill the entire curve in a single run. A review of
bit records for nine wells drilled by Cimarex
within five miles of the target wellsite showed
completion of the curved section using one bit in
only 55% of the wells and an average ROP of
20.8ft/h [6.34m/h].
Based on bit performance and wear analysis
in offset wells, Smith Bit engineers evaluated key
areas along the bit face to determine where CDE
placement would prove most effective. Using the
IDEAS integrated drillbit design platform, they
developed a fixed cutter bit having an alternating
CDE and PDC cutter configuration. With this
design, the conical diamond elements score the
rock, creating two adjacent troughs. A PDC cutter, which trails behind the pair of CDEs, then
shears away the unconfined rock ridge between
the troughs (Figure 7). This arrangement
requires lower force than is needed using traditional PDC cutting structures, providing more
efficient rock removal with less reactive torque.
Cimarex engineers selected an 8 3/4-in.
StingBlade bit to drill the curve interval in its
next two Avalon shale wells. Each bit drilled the
curve in just one run with no significant toolface
7. Hempton R, Copeland C, Cox G, Faught J, Blackmon W,
Prewitt E, McDonough S and White A: Innovative
Conical Diamond Element Bits Drill Back-to-Back Tight
Curves in One Run, Improving Economics While Reducing
Risk in Avalon Shale Play, New Mexico, paper SPE
175534, presented at the SPE Liquids-Rich Basins
ConferenceNorth America, Midland, Texas,
September 23, 2015.
8. For more on the ONYX 360 rolling cutter: Bruton et al,
reference 4.
Oilfield Review
1
6
2
2
Figure 8. Conical diamond element bits after a full curve run. Bits pulled from wells are assessed using industry standard dull grading criteria. Increasingly,
these assessments are supplemented with digital photographs. The first bit (left) displayed slight chipping on one Stinger element in the trailing position on
the nose of Blade 3 and on one PDC cutter on the nose of Blade 4 (circled). The bit pulled from a second well (right ) shows a delaminated and worn PDC
cutter in the cone of Blade 3 and a chipped and worn CDE cutter on the shoulder of Blade 5 (circled).
control problems. The configuration of the conical diamond elements also helped protect the
PDC cutters; when pulled from the hole, the bits
were graded in very good condition (Figure 8).
Furthermore, protection of the PDC cutters contributed to an improvement in ROP. Compared
with bit performance from the previous nine
wells, the StingBlade bits were able to complete
the curve interval at an ROP that was 36% faster
than the average roller cone hybrid one-run bit.
Broader Horizons
Advances in bit design software, materials science and manufacturing enable bit engineers to
not only test their ideas in the laboratory but to
also see their designs come to fruition within days
of conception. As a result, the variety of StingBlade
bit designs is expanding rapidly to address a number of challenges. Already, Stinger cutting elements are being mounted on steel or composite
bit bodies of various blade configurations, fre-
CDE
PDC
Rolling cutter
Figure 9. StingBlade bit variations. Of the dozens of configurations designed for different drilling applications, five examples are shown. Designed for drilling
hard carbonates with high concentrations of chert, this bit (A) uses Stinger elements to help support PDC cutter loading in applications that have potential
for impact damage. Designed for highly interbedded formations, this bit (B) has alternating PDC and Stinger elements on the leading position of each blade
to reduce torque variation and improve toolface control for curve intervals. A third variation (C), for hard, abrasive formations, uses Stinger elements to help
support PDC cutter loading; ONYX 360 rolling cutters are strategically placed for wear resistance. Another design utilizes Stinger elements only (D); this bit
is intended for granites or other extremely hard, abrasive igneous rocks. The Stinger cutting elements provide high concentrated point loading to fail the
rock. Utilized in soft formations with hard stringers, the three-bladed bit (E) tends to drill faster than conventional five-bladed bits; the Stinger elements
protect the PDC cutters from impact damage while the bit is transitioning through hard stringers.
September 2015
35