Choosing The Right Drilling Rig Does and Donts

Many jobs require drilling. There comes a time in every driller&#;s life when a new rig has to be bought. If you are in the market for one and are looking for information that can help with making the right purchasing decision then you have landed at the right place. Read on to determine some of the essentials when it comes to choosing the right rig for your objectives.

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A few types of drilling examples:

• Pile Drilling: To support a building on unstable ground
• Micropile Drilling: To reinforce existing structures
• Drilling Wells and Oil Rig: To access groundwater or oil
• Geothermal Drilling: To access and extract the Earth&#;s heat
• Blast Hole Drilling: For quarries
• Continuous Flight Augering: Maintains the walls of the borehole with the drill cuttings that are driven by the auger.

Let us start with the basics. So, what is a Drilling Rig? &#; It is a type of construction equipment used to make holes in the earth&#;s surface. There are many variations of drilling rigs that vary considerably in size: they can be massive structures or light enough ones which can be moved manually by a single person.
Drilling rigs can take samples from mineral deposits and are capable of testing the physical properties of rocks, soil and groundwater as well. Additionally, they can also be used for underground installations: tunnels, shafts or pipes. Having said that, choosing the right rig doesn&#;t really have to be a daunting task. You just have to make sure exactly what you intend to use it for and what kind of terrain it will be used on.

Types of Drilling Rigs

Before selecting a rig, understanding the different types is essential:

• Rotary Drilling Rigs: These use a rotating drill bit to create holes, suitable for various applications.
• Percussion Drilling Rigs: They employ a hammer-like action to break rock, commonly used in mining.
• Directional Drilling Rigs: These can create holes at angles, essential for accessing resources in challenging terrains.

Key Considerations for Choosing a Drilling Rig

1. Purpose and Terrain: Clearly define your drilling objectives and the terrain you'll be working on. This will help you select a rig with appropriate capabilities.

2. Rig Type: Consider the specific type of drilling rig needed for your project, such as rotary, percussion, or down-hole hammer.

3. Depth and Diameter: Determine the required depth and diameter of the borehole. This will influence the rig's capacity.

4. Geological Conditions: Understand the geological conditions of the drilling site, including soil type, rock formations, and groundwater presence.

5. Safety Features: Prioritize safety by selecting a rig with robust safety features, such as emergency stop mechanisms and operator protection.

6. Maintenance and Support: Consider the rig's maintenance requirements, availability of spare parts, and the provider's after-sales support.

7. Cost-Effectiveness: Evaluate the total cost of ownership, including purchase price, operating expenses, and maintenance costs.

The Do&#;s:

• Always make sure to choose the rig according to the terrain you are going to be working on.
• Inspect the rig thoroughly before purchase. Check to ensure it meets with all the quality standards and has sufficient drilling fluid to avoid any accidents or mishaps
• Proper maintenance is the key to the long life of your rig. Do make sure to maintain it on a regular basis to avoid any breakdowns
  Safety, reliability and ease of use are also important elements to consider before purchase
• Make sure the drilling contractor you are dealing with promises the rig to be delivered on time without any delays and has great after-sales service. This is vital in case of any breakdowns
• Be wary of the speed & power of the drilling rig. This can help save a lot of time for your workers during the drilling process and increase efficiency
• Ascertain the drilling contractor you are about to place the drilling rig order with has a global presence and has happy client testimonials. This gives off a sense of credibility and trust in the market

The Don&#;ts:

• Improper Maintenance &#; Failing to maintain a drilling rig can cause serious damage to the equipment. It could also cause the drill rod to stop functioning which may cause injury or death to the rig operator. Other factors include, leaks in the hydraulic or fluid pump systems can cause shortages or cause the machinery to seize up while working and cause costly project delays
• Do not be hasty in your decision and succumb to high pressure. Always take the time out to research and see which contractor offers the best solution to your business needs
• Do not purchase a used drilling rig. No matter how tempting it may be due to factors such as low price, short delivery time, local contractors, etc, as it may not be future proof and there will be a high chance of a breakdown
• Drilling Industries are sanctioned to have their own auxiliaries such as drilling bit, drilling pipe, drill string, etc to help support the drilling process adding further enhancements. But the quality of these supporting equipments may not always be up to the mark.
• Therefore, it is imperative that a thorough inspection of these products be done before hand, if you are planning to buy it from your contractor itself
• No proper research &#; Factors such as size, capabilities and shipping considerations all need to be taken into account when thinking about how much your business or organization is able to commit to

Did you know?

There are two main types of drilling rigs: autonomous crawlers and truck or trailer-mounted.
Crawlers are used when you need to move at a low speed over unlevel areas or on very loose grounds. The truck or trailer-mounter drilling rigs are comparatively cheaper than crawler drilling rigs but they are not free in terms of movement or their energy source which may come from the transport truck or an independent generator.

Bonus Tips

To avoid any injury at the workplace, be sure that the workers are geared with proper protection equipments before the commencement of any drilling operations.
When it comes to the oil and gas industries, the biggest concern surrounding this will involve fire, particularly oil companies. There will never be a shortage of flammable substances on-site at an oil rig, with explosions and spreading fires being a common threat. If you are familiar with the Piper Alpha disaster of then you would be aware that it&#;s essential that all pipes and installations throughout the rig are entirely secure and sound for the oil workers.

DRILLING AND DRILL RIGS - Onshore Operations

Once the well site has been selected and all of the legal documents obtained, drilling can only begin after the site has been prepared, ground leveled, roads built (such as in a swamp area) where needed, and a derrick erected and other equipment that comprises the drill rig put in place. Sometimes a water well must be drilled before the oil well can be drilled in order to obtain sufficient water for mixing drilling mud (lubricant).

Most drill rigs are of the rotary rig type. Today's rotary drill rig consists of multiple engines (gas, diesel) that supply power, hoisting equipment that raises and lowers the drill string (drill pipe), and rotating equipment that turns the drill string and the drill bit at the bottom of the hole. These engines also drive the circulating equipment that pumps liquids (mud) down the hole to lubricate the drill string and drill bit (rotating in the hole), removes cuttings (loose bits of rock), and controls downhole pressure to prevent blowouts (pressure in reservoir traps may blow up the open hole and ignite causing an explosion).

The conventional drill bit has three movable cones containing teeth made of tungsten carbide steel and sometimes industrial diamonds. The rotating cones (Remember: the entire drill stem rotates in the hole and the drill bit is attached to the end of the drill stem) are the cutting heads. The downward force on the drill bit is the result of the weight of the overhead drill stem (steel pipe, pipe joints called collars) and drilling equipment on the derrick all of which can amount to thousands of pounds. While the bit cuts into the rock at the bottom of the hole, pumps located at the surface are forcing drilling fluids down the hole (lubricates, removes cuttings) through the inside of the drill pipe. This space between the drill pipe and the walls of the hole is called the annulus space. The fluid then flows out the center of the drill bit and is forced back up the outside of the drill pipe onto the surface of the ground where it is cleaned of debris and pumped back down the hole. This is an endless cycle that is maintained as long as the drill bit is turning in the bottom of the hole.

The drilling crew is under the supervision of the Driller (operates the drilling and hoisting equipment). The person who works on a platform high in the derrick is called a Derrickman; this very dangerous job is to handle the upper part of the drill stem as it is raised and lowered out/into the hole. Roughnecks are the workers on the drill floor; their job is to add new pipe joints as the well is drilled. All of these personnel and the entire operation of the drill rig is under the supervision of the Tool Pusher. A typical drill rig will operate 24 hours per day, 7 days per week. It never shuts down for holidays.

When drilling first began, drilling a straight vertical hole was the most desirable. Now days, however, new drilling technology has developed methodologies for directional drilling (deviating from the vertical at some angle) and horizontal drilling (starting with a vertical hole and then deviating at depth to a horizontal hole). A vertical well has the advantage of penetrating more than one reservoir trap, but the disadvantage is that it can pull hydrocarbons from only a small area within the vicinity of the well. Horizontal wells on the other hand, are much more limited in penetrating multiple reservoir traps, but can remove hydrocarbons from greater areas within a given trap. Almost all wells drilled from an offshore platform are of the directional type. Completing the bottom of the well so that it is ready to withdraw hydrocarbons from the subsurface is done in the same manner regardless of whether it is a convention vertical hole or a horizontal hole. This is because moving the platform to a new site is too costly.

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A drilling operation produces waste material that includes drilling mud, rock cuttings, and salt water brine (highly concentrated salt water generally about 80,000 PPM Sodium) which flows out of a reservoir trap and up the well to the surface. These materials must be disposed of properly. The reserve pond is often dug to temporarily hold the brine and drilling mud, but environmental regulations require such ponds be lined with materials that will prevent the contaminants from entering into the subsurface. Often the brines are pumped back into the hole being drilled. In any event, neither the drill mud nor the salt water brine is allowed to remain at the drilling site. All waste materials must be removed off site and sent to a properly licensed landfill for disposal.

DRILLING AND DRILL RIGS - Offshore Operations

Much of the drilling methodologies discussed above apply whether the rig is located on dry land or in the water. But offshore operations do require some modification to both equipment and drilling techniques. For example, the drilling platform structure must be movable, be able to float in some instances, and be entirely self contained. All supplies and personnel must be brought to the site.

The first offshore exploration was in the Gulf of Mexico in the 's; it was a derrick built on a barge that was towed offshore behind a tug boat where it was submerged to rest on the sea floor. The first offshore platform was built in in water that was 23 feet deep. Offshore rigs have progressed a long way in 70 years, but all are either floaters or sinkers. Floaters refer to semi-submersibles and drill ships. They are used in deep water where it is not practical to anchor to the sea floor. Semi-submersibles may be self propelled, but all have a steel superstructure that is part above and part below water level. The semi has a deck that is mounted on large columns connected to pontoons that are able to raise the structure when it's being moved or lower it when it is drilling a hole. Ballast is added when stability is a required by adding water into the pontoons.

In water less than about 300 feet deep, exploration is performed using self-elevated, or jack-up rigs. The derrick and support equipment are built onto a large barge that is towed out to sea. When the exact location is reached, the barge is held in position while steel legs are lower (jacked down) to the sea floor. Then the barge portion of the rig is jacked up the steel legs so that the entire platform including the barge portion is now above the surface of the ocean.

The first offshore platform was built in in water that was 23 feet deep. But technology was evolving at a rapid pace. It was thought that platforms anchored to the sea floor in water >300 feet deep was impractical. But in today's world, it is now possible to construct offshore platforms taller than most of the world's skyscrapers and yet be anchored to the sea floor in more than 1,300 feet of water. This illustration graphically depicts the engineering advances that made possible from to .

REFERENCES

HARBAUSG, J. W., J. H. DOVETON, and J. C. DAVIS, , Probability Methods in Oil Exploration: London, Wiley, 269 pp.

BERGER, W. D. AND K. E. ANDERSON, , Modern Petroleum - A Basic Primer of the Industry: Penn Well Publ. Co., 3rd Ed., 517 pp.

EXXON CORPORATION, , A Guide To Petroleum Exploration and Production: The Upstream Magazine, Dec , New York, NY, 29 pp.

____________, , Understanding Petroleum Exploration and Production: National Energy Foundation, Wiley Post Way, Suite 200, Salt Lake City, UT., 11 pp.

____________, , Basic Oil Information: Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, Obere Donaustrasse 93, A-, Vienna, Austria, 41 pp.

____________, , Oil: Shell Corporation, Houston, TX., 47 pp.

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