Share
    • If you want to catch a wily mouse, you need to build a better mouse trap. If you want to tap into increasingly more difficult reservoirs in the search for oil and gas, you need to drill a better well.When it comes to global hydrocarbon reserves, the low-hanging fruit was picked over years ago. What’s left and available for exploration is generally ultradeep, super-hot, overpressured, or some combination of that trio.That’s why technological innovation has played—and continues to play—a crucial role in the industry’s efforts to access previously untappable resources and produce hydrocarbons once thought unproducible.Computer vision, safety leading indicators, and rig automation are just a few of the advances in drilling operations making well construction safer and more efficient. From the drill bit to the shale shaker, technological impacts are bringing reliability up and costs down in deepwater operations.

    Companies are pushing the boundaries of what’s possible by applying today’s technologies in innovative ways—even to the simplest equipment. This includes reevaluating the placement of blowout preventer (BOP) sensors to improve alignment, reduce inefficiencies, and enhance safety, or repurposing surveillance cameras as data-gathering sensors.

    Real-Time Cuttings Analysis Delivers Operational Insights and Millions in Potential Cost Savings

    The latter was the topic presented at this year’s Offshore Technology Conference (OTC) in Houston in May. In OTC 35585, the authors presented a proof-of-concept trial in which a computer vision system was deployed and operated on a deepwater rig to measure drilled cuttings in real time using a remotely monitored camera system. Each camera was equipped with a processing chip to enable on-site data acquisition.

    Several Eni wells drilled from 7th-generation drillship Saipem Santorini offshore Egypt and the Ivory Coast were monitored consecutively over a 1-year period in 2023 and 2024, and an optical sensor and image analysis software was used to monitor cuttings on the rig’s shale shaker during drilling operations. The system was installed on the drillship while it was operating in the US Gulf, prior to mobilization to Africa.

    Computer vision is a form of artificial intelligence. It uses the camera to count the cuttings on the shaker as they fall, detecting different sizes in real time. When integrated with drilling parameters from the rig’s data system and mudlogging information, it provides key insights about wellbore stability and hole-cleaning efficiency.

    The system utilized a pair of Axis XFQ1656-DD explosion-proof cameras installed to monitor shakers #3 and #4. The cameras are hazard-rated for use in challenging environments and boast features such as high-resolution imaging, light compensation, and deep learning analytics for real-time monitoring of cuttings.

    Paper Number: SPE-0625-0005-JPT

    Read the Full Article