Some research advances in downhole tubular mechanics and control methods

Abstract

Research on down-hole tubular mechanics has been more than 70 years so far. Many breakthrough research results have been obtained, and they have been successfully applied in drilling & completion engineering. However, due to the complexity of wellbore constraints and operating conditions, it has not been able to fully and accurately reveal the complicated mechanical behaviors of tubular strings in long and narrow wellbores. These facts also make the current design and control methods difficult to solve many complex engineering problems. First, this article reviews the overall development context of down-hole tubular mechanics and introduces the static deformation control equations of down-hole tubular strings. Next, research progress, the latest results and the existing problems of several important tubular mechanical problems are introduced, including down-hole tubular buckling, down-hole tubular friction and wear, safe operation limit of down-hole tubular strings, mechanics of bottom hole assembly and the corresponding design & control methods. Last, a summary and outlook on down-hole tubular mechanics are made. It is expected to provide some meaningful enlightenment for the development of down-hole tubular mechanics and control methods and the improvement of drilling & completion engineering technology.