High Pressure Oil and Gas Well Drilling
High-pressure oil and gas well drilling is a process used to place a well for the purpose of obtaining petroleum and natural gas. There are various types of equipment needed to bore a well and well depths can range from shallow wells to deep wells extending to many thousands of feet. To begin well drilling, an engineer will design a drill plan to meet the needs and desires of the customer. The engineer will create a map of the area, based on the natural environment, to determine the best location for the well.
Once the location has been determined, the well drilling team will use specialized drilling pipes to bore into the rock and create the well. Drilling pipes can vary in size and type, depending on the well’s location, environment, and production needs. These pipes are held together by a drill string, which contains several pieces of steel that are connected to a rotating drive shaft and revolve in a circular motion. As the drill string is lowered into the ground, a directional bit is attached to the bottom of the string. This bit is responsible for grinding away the rock and creating the well shaft with its circular motion.
When the well has reached the desired depth, the drilling team will lay a casing, which is a large metal pipe, into the well. This casing is used to protect the wellbore itself and provide a safe way to pump the natural resources to the surface. A wellhead is then placed at the top of the well, which houses the valves and meters for controlling the flow of oil and natural gas into the pipeline.
Once the well is on track for production, the drilling team will attach specialized equipment to the wellhead and drill in order to reach the reservoir. The reservoir holds the oil and gas and directional drilling equipment, such as mud motors, bent subs and solid subs, are placed along the wellbore to help push the drill string further and adjust its direction as necessary. Once the drilling team has reached the reservoir, they will start to pump the natural resources through the pipeline and eventually to a storage facility.
High pressure oil and gas well drilling is a complex and meticulous process that requires a skilled team and specialized equipment in order to properly and safely drill a well. Although the process can be time-consuming and expensive, the potential rewards of discovering oil and natural gas in commercial quantities can often be worth the effort.
