Fluid flow in a skewed annulus

Conference · Sat Dec 31 04:00:00 EST 1994

OSTI ID:93035

Haciislamoglu, M; Cartalos, U ^[1]

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1. Inst. Francais du Petrole, Rueil-Malmaison (France)

A novel, realistic treatment of annular flow in an oil well is developed. The fluid flow in an annulus with an inclined or S-shaped inner pipe is considered. The model covers laminar and turbulent flow regimes and the results are experimentally verified. The study predicts axial and angular velocities and frictional pressure losses. The frictional pressure losses are shown to be higher than the corresponding concentric annulus when the inner pipe is severely S-shaped. However, for typical drilling well geometries, the frictional pressure losses are found to approach asymptotically to eccentric annular predictions. Thus, the study finds out the average eccentricity of a vertical or near vertical well which is a difficult parameter to estimate for the engineer. The results of the study are of practical importance where high annular frictional pressures losses are encountered such as in slim holes and coiled tubing operations. The frictional pressure losses in complex annular geometries are presented in an easily usable form.

• OSTI ID: 93035
• Report Number(s): CONF-940113--; ISBN 0-7918-1182-4
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

02 PETROLEUM
42 ENGINEERING
ANNULAR SPACE
CALCULATION METHODS
DIRECTIONAL DRILLING
FLUID FLOW
FRICTION FACTOR
OIL WELLS
PRESSURE DROP