High Pressure High Temperature

Wells (HPHT)
Note #2

Mahmoud Abdelrazik
Offshore DSV and Technical Instructor

Contacts: +20 100 079 2174

m.abdelrazik6@gmail.com
High Pressure High Temperature
• We talked about HPHT deinitions in Note #1 What is the HPHT?,
HPHT Classification, HPHT Consideration, HPHT Mechanisms, and
HPHT Challenges.
• And we know that the major challenging item is well control
equipment and operations as its frequency is higher representing
100-200% for each well.
• Today note; Note #2 is GAS BEHAVIOR, KICKS AND CONTROL FOR
HPHT WELLS.

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Note #2 Gas Behavior, Kick and Control
• Contents:
1. The behavior of gases
2. Real gas behavior
3. Change of state
4. Standard conditions
5. Gas expansion ratio
6. Gas migration effects
7. Kick tolerance

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1. The Behavior of Gases
• Gases are compressible
• a change of pressure will cause a “large” change of volume of a gas, but the
same change of pressure will cause only a very small change of volume of a
liquid. Gases can be changed into their associated liquids at the correct
conditions of pressure and temperature. This means that a gas is an
evaporated (or boiled-off) liquid and a liquid is a condensed gas.
• An equilibrium mixture of a gas and droplets of its associated liquid is called a
vapor.
• When the pressure or temperature of a gas change then the volume also changes
according to the appropriate gas laws.

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2. Real Gas Behavior
• The basic equation of state for a unit of mass
(ie 1 mol) of a perfect or ideal gas is:-
• PxV=RxT
• For R = 1545 its units are ft lbf/lb-mol/°R.
• For R = 8314 its units are N m/KG-mol/°K (or
Joules per Kg-mol/°K)
• Abs pressure = gauge pressure + atmospheric
correction
• Abs temperature = °F + 460 = °R (ie deg Rankine)
or °C + 273 = °K (ie deg Kelvin).

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2. Real Gas Behavior
• Real gas behavior
• Real gases do not behave exactly
according to the ideal equation of state
• PxV=nxZxRxT
• Where Z = the gas compressibility or gas
deviation factor.

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3. Change of State
• Change od state
• If a gas undergoes a change of state from
conditions of P1, V1, T1 and Z1 to those at a new
condition of P2, V2, T2 and Z2 so, PV/ZT =
constant = R

• Boyle’s Law is a simplification of the above

statement in which the temperature and
compressibility products are taken to be
constant ie: P1 x V1 = P2 x V2
*** Boyle’s Law is commonly used in drilling
practice

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4. Standard Condition
• Standard conditions

• Gas expansion ration

• Where :
• Pbh = downhole pressure, psia units.
• Tbh = downhole gas temperature, °R units.
• Zbh = value of gas compressibility factor at the downhole conditions.

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5. Gas Expansion Surface volume 354 ft3

• Gas expansion ration

• Example:
• The expansion ratio of 1 unit of
methane gas expanded from a TVD of
14000 ft in a well with 18.2 ppg mud
and BHT of 300°F.

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5. Gas Expansion
• Gas kick and expansion whilst circulation
• Initial assumptions
• The Driller’s Method is used initially.
• Temperature is constant.
• An ideal gas is used ie Z = 1 = const.
• The kick is not dispersed.
• Pressure drop across the gas is neglected.

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5. Gas Expansion
• Gas kick and expansion whilst circulation
• The maximum pressure Pi at any depth of
interest Di below the surface occurs when
the top of the gas bubble is adjacent to the
point at depth Di
• Pi = Pbh - Gm x (D - Di- Lg)
• Vg = Vg1 x Pbh/Pi

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5. Gas Expansion
• Gas kick and expansion whilst circulation
• Pi = Pbh - Gm x (D - Di- Lg)
• To calculate the maximum pressure at the casing
shoe, substitute Dshoe in place of Di.
• To calculate the maximum pressure at the
choke, substitute 0 for Di. The above analysis is
primarily for a surface BOP stack. For a sub-sea
well head, the method can be adapted .
• Pchk = Pbh x ( 1 - Vg1 x Gm/Pi)

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5. Gas Expansion
• Gas kick and expansion whilst
circulation
• Analysis in previous slides ignores
changes in temperature, gas Z values
and also the pressure drop across the
gas influx.
• Corrections for those can be made and
incorporated into the values of
coefficients “b” and “c” as well as
modifying the analysis for the Wait and
Weight method of pressure control.

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5. Gas Expansion
• Gas kick and expansion whilst
circulation
• Analysis in previous slides ignores
changes in temperature, gas Z values
and also the pressure drop across the
gas influx.
• Corrections for those can be made and
incorporated into the values of
coefficients “b” and “c” as well as
modifying the analysis for the Wait and
Weight method of pressure control.

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5. Gas Expansion
• Gas migration effects
• The buoyancy force = weight of the volume of displaced
fluid.
• If the buoyancy force is greater than the weight of the
immersed body, then this body will rise upwards within the
fluid. This is called migration (or percolation).
• Generally, if an immersed body has a density which is less
than the surrounding fluid, then it will migrate upwards.
• The greater the density difference, the greater will be the
migration rate, all other factors being equal.

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5. Gas Expansion
• Gas migration effects
• The factors which govern the rate of migration of an
immersed body are:
• Difference in density.
• Fluid viscosity.
• Fluid gelling.
• Surface tension.
• Size and shape of the immersed body.

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5. Gas Expansion
• Gas migration in shut in
• The fundamental concept of pressure control is
CONSTANT BOTTOM HOLE
• PRESSURE. This means that normally, in a
circulation, GAS MUST BE ALLOWED TO
EXPAND IN A CONTROLLED WAY.
• If a gas bubble migrates in a static shut-in well
and it is not allowed to expand, then the gas
pressure will not change (except for
temperature changes), and so it will bring
formation pressure up with it. This means that
all well-bore, bottom-hole and surface
pressures will also rise, with consequent
dangers to the well.
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5. Gas Expansion
• Gas migration in shut in
• Static rate for gas migration

• This is usually quoted as lying in the range 450

to about 1500 ft/hr.
• If gas migration rates are calculated on surface-
read changes in SICP and SIDPP, then they are
likely to produce gas migration rates which are
significantly lower than true values.

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5. The Behavior of Gases
• Gas migration in shut in
• To counteract the adverse pressure effects of
migration, it is necessary to allow a controlled
expansion of gas. This can be done by bleeding
off surface pressure at the choke.

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5. Gas Expansion
• Gas migration in shut in CASE 1 : Bit
at or near bottom
• Pressure at the choke is bled off until
the SIDPP has fallen to its original
value by an amount dP. This allows
the gas to expand by an amount dV1
and a similar volume of mud issues
from the choke.
• It also allows the BH pressure to fall
to its original value. This process is
repeated periodically.

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5. Gas Expansion
• Gas migration in shut in Case 1 : Bit
at or near bottom
• Since the gas is allowed to expand
in the annulus, the SICP will not fall
back to its starting value.
Eventually, the gas may be brought
to the choke and the situation is
then similar to the first circulation
of the Driller’s Method with the gas
at the choke.

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5. Gas Expansion
• Gas migration in shut in Case 2 : Pipe out of the hole
• In this situation, no U-tube exists, and the SICP is used to monitor
pressures. It is then necessary to allow gas to migrate to the surface
and control surface (and bottom hole pressure) by the volumetric
method.

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6. Kick Tolerance
• Gas influxes must be allowed to expand.
The initial SICP should obviously be less
than MAASP, but to circulate a gas kick
safely, then it is also necessary that the
choke pressure of the expanding gas at the
casing shoe should not exceed MAASP.
• A definition for a gas Kick Tolerance is thus:
• Kick Tolerance is the maximum
tolerable gas influx volume which can
be taken and circulated safely to the
surface.

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6. Kick Tolerance
• From the diagram, the maximum tolerable influx length Hmax, either at the
bottom of the hole or at the shoe is given by:

• Once Hmax is calculated it is then converted back into a volume,

1. At the casing shoe, which is then reduced to an equivalent volume at
the bottom of the hole
2. At shut-in, and then converted back into a volume at bottom hole.
*** The Kick Tolerance is the smaller of the values calculated from (1) and (2).

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6. Kick Tolerance
• Kicks generally fall into at least 2 categories:
1. Swabbed kicks, when initially the well was balanced.
2. Drilled kicks into an overpressurised formation.
• For many applications of a drilled kick, it is most likely that the value of Hmax
for the bottom hole condition will determine the kick tolerance.
• HOWEVER in cases where there are long open hole sections, the value of
Hmax at the shoe may be the more important and thus set the kick
tolerance.

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6. Kick Tolerance
• Kick Tolerance Calculations
• Mathmatical

• Graphical

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6. Kick Tolerance - Working Example
• The following data relates to a well:
• TVD of drilling = 16000 ft.
• TVD of shoe = 12000 ft.
• Frac gradient(shoe) = 0.950 psi/ft.
• Current mud = 0.860 psi/ft.
• DC/OH capacity = 0.0292 bbl/ft x 400 ft.
• DP/OH capacity = 0.0459 bbl/ft.
• Calculate the Kick Tolerance for a gas influx with gradient of .15 psi/ft for a
SIDPP = 450 psig.
• Please solve the following and send it me on m.abdelrazik6@gmail.com
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6. Kick Tolerance - Working Example
• Please solve the following and send it me on m.abdelrazik6@gmail.com
• Next note, will start with solving this example.

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End of Note # Gas Behavior, Kick and Cotrol
• Later, we have about 18 notes
• 12 Notes for Well control
• 1 Note Rig equipment summary
• 1 Note Management of the operation
• 1 Note Samples of HPHT guidelines (HSG’s)
• 1 Note HPHT Drilling Fluid
• 1 Note HPHT Cementing
• 1 Note HPHT Standards
• Keep Following for the updates.

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 Thank you, and keep following
************

Next Note, Note 3; Gas Solubility in OBM’s, Effect on

Kick Behavior

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