Chapter 5
Rotary Drllng Bits
Tfie purpose n f this chapter is lo introduce tlie studeni to
he selection and operalion ofdnlling hits. ncluded in
tle chapter are discussions uf (I) various bit types
availahle, (2) criterio f o r selecting the best hit for ti
giveii xilualitm, (3) staiulurd methods f o r evaitang diitl
hits, (4) factors uffeciin bit wear and dritliii> speed,
and (5) optitnization oj hit weight and rotary speed.
The proccss ordrilling u holc in the ground requires ihc
use of drllng bits. Indccd, the bit is the most basic toul
used by the drllng cngineer, and the selection of the
best bit and bit operating conditions is one of the niost
basic problems that he faces. An extreniely large varicly
of bits are manufactured for different situations cn-
countered during rotary drllng operations. Il is impor-
tant for the drilling engineer to leam the fundamentis of
bit design so he can understand fully the differences
among the various bits availabie.
5.1 Bit Ty pcs Availabie
Rotary drllng bits usually are classified according to
their design as cithcr drag hits or rolUng cutter hits. Al!
(Jrag bits consist of fixed cutter blades that are integral
with the body of the bit and roate as a unit with Ihe
drillstring. The u.se of this typc of bit dates back to the in-
tnxluction of the rotary drilling proccss in the I9th cen-
tury. Rolling cutter bits have two or more cones contain-
ing the cuning riements. whieh mtaie about the axis of
the cone as the bit is rotatcd at the bottom of the hole. A
iwo-cone rolling cutter bit was introduced in 1909.
5.1.1 Drag Bits
The design features of the drag bit include the number
and shape of the cutting hiades or stones, the sizc and
location of the water courses. and the metallurgy of the
bit and cutting elements. Drag bits drill by physcally
plowing cuttings from the bottom of the borehole muci
like a famier's plow cuts a furrow In the soil. This type
of bit inciudes bits with steel cuners (Fig. 5.1), dianiond
bits (Fig. 5.2), and polycry.stalline diamond (PCD) bits
(Fig. 5.3). An advantage of drag bits over rolling cutting
bits is that they do not have any rolling parts, which re-
quire strong, cican bearing surfaces. This is especially
important in the small hole sizes, where spacc is not
availabie for designing strength into both the bit cutter
elements and the bearings needcd for a ixilling cutter.
Also, since drag bits can be made from one sol id piece of
Steel, there is less chance of bit breakage, which would
leave junk in the bottom of the hole. Removing junk
from a previous bit can lead to additional trips to the bot
tom and thus loss of considerable rig time.
Drag bits with steel cutter elements such as a fishtail
bit perfomi best relative to other bit types in uniformly
sofi, onconsolidated formations. As the foniiations
become harder and more abrasive, the rate of bit wear in-
crea.ses rapidly and the drilling rate decreases rapidly.
This problem can be reduced by changing the shape of
the cutter element and reducng the angle al which it in-
tersects the bottom of the holc. Also. in soft fomiations
that tend to be " gu m m y, " the cuttings may stick to the
blades of a drag bit and reduco their effcctivencss. This
problem can be reduced by placing a jet so that drillmg
fluid impinges on the upper surfacc of the blade, Bccause
of the problems of rapid dulling in harder r<icks and bit
cleaning in gummy fomiations. drag bits with steel cut
ting elements largely have been displaced by other bit
ty[>es in almost all areas.
Diamond bits perfomi be.st relative to other bit types in
nonbrittle formations that have a plstic mode of failurt
for the stress conditions pre.sent at the bottom of the hole.
The face or crown of the bit consists of many diamonds
set in a tungsten carbidc ntatrix. Underproper bit opera-
tion only the diamonds contad the hole bottom. Icaving
a small clearance bctwcen the matn\ and the lile bot
tom. Fluid course.s are provided jn the niatrix to direct
the llow of drilling (luid over the face o) the hit. Thesc
ROTARY D R t L N G BITS 191

(a) Two-blacie design. (b)Three-blade design (c) Four-blade design

Fig. 5.1Example steel cutter drag bits dressed with tongsten carbide.

courses must be sizcd sniall eiiough so thal somc of the
fluki is forccd lo flow bclwccn ihc niatrix ;intl thc holc
txntom, thcrcby clcaning and ccioling the diamonds.
An important design feature of a diamond bit (Figs,
5.4A tlirough 5.4C) is its shape or crown profite (Fig.
5.4C). A bil with a long taperassists in driliing a straight
hole and allows the use of higher bil weights, On the
other hand, a short taper is easicr to clcan becaue ibc
available hydiuc energy can be concentrated over less
surlace area, A more concave bit face can be used in
directional driliing applications to assist in increasing the
angle of deviation of the borehole from vertical,
The sic and number of diamonds used in a diamond
bit dcpcnds nii the hardncss of (he fomiatiun to be
drilled. Bits for hard fomiations have niuny small (0.07-
to 0,125-earjt) stones, wbilc bits for sol't tomiations
have a tew large (0.75- to 2-cardt) stones. Examples of
diamond bits for both hard and sol't foniiations are shown
in Figs, 5,2A and 5.2B, If thc diamonds u.sed are too
large for ahiiost complete cmbcdment in the formal ion,
thc unil loadingon the diamond points wil) be exce.ssive,
resulling in local izcd hcat gencration and polishing of thc
cutting edge of the stones.
The dc.sign of the water-eourse pattem cut in tho face
of the bit and the junk slotx cut in the sidc of thc bit face
Controls cuttings removal and diamond coong (Fig.
5.4A). Diamond bits are designed to be operated at a
given tlow rate and pressurc drop across thc tace of tbe
bit. Expcriments conducted by bit manufacturers have
indieated tbe need for approximately 2.0 to 2,5 hhp/sq
in. of hole bottoni with an approximate 50- to 1,000-psi
prcssurc drop across ihc face of the bit lo olean and cool
the diamond adcquately, Thc pressurc drop across thc
face of the bit at a given flow rate can be establishcd as
tbe difference between thc pump prcssurc mcasured with
thc bit ofl" bottom and tbe pump prcssurc mcasured wbilc
driliing, Tbe bit manufaciurer u.sually will prov de an
estimatc of thc approximate circulaling rale rcquired to
establish the needed pre,ssure daip across thc bit face,
5.1.2 PolycryslaDine Dianitmd (PCD) Bits
Since the mid-1970's. a new faniily of drag hits has bccn
made possible by thc introduction of a sintercd
ptilycry.stalline diamond dnll bkuik as a bil cuiter ele-
ment. The drill blanks eonsi.st of a layer of Nynthctic

o' NciricMi Chrisiensen

(a) Soft iormaiion design (b) Hard formation design

Fig. 5.2Example diamond culler draq bls

192
(a)
Couriesy ol Norton Chnstensen
Fig. S. 3Example polycrystalline diamond cutler bits
polycrystalline diamond about ihick that is bond-
cd to a ccmcnted (ungsten carbidc substratc in a high-
pressure/high-temperature process. It contains niany
small diamond crysals bonded together. The cleavage
planes of thc diamond crystals have a random orientation
that prevents any shock-induced breakage of an in
dividua! diamond crystal from easily propagating
through the entire cutter. As shown in Fig. 5.3, the
sintercd polycrystalline diamond compact is bonded
either to a tungstcn carbidc bit-body matrix or to a
tungsten carbide stiid that is mounted in a steel bit body.
The PCD bits are still evolving rapidly, They perform
best in sofi, firm, and medium-hard, nonabrasive fomia-
tions that are not " g u m m y. " Good result.s have bcen
reponed with PCD bits in drilling uniform sections of
carbonates orevaporitcs that are not brokcn up with hard
shale stringers. Successful use of these bits alsu has been
APPLIED DRILLING ENGINEERING
accomplished in sandstonc, siltstone, and shale.
although bit balling is a serious problcm in very soft,
gummy formations, and rapid cutter abrasin and
breakage are serious problems in hard, abrasive forma
tions. As in the case of the oider, steel cutter drag bits,
bit hydraulics can play an important role in reducing bit
balling.
The bit shape or crown profile is also an important
design feature of PCD bits. In addition to the double-
cone profiles (Fig. 5.4C) used for diamond bits, single-
cone profiles of various tapers and flat-bottom profiles
are used for PCD bits. The hydraulic cleaning action is
usually achieved primarily by using jets for steel-body
PCD bits and by using water courses for matrix-body
PCD bits.
Other importan! design features of a PCD bit includc
thc size, shape, and number of cuttcrs used and the angle
ROTARY DRILLING BITS 193

COLLECTOR")
CROWFOOT fluid COURSES
OPENING 'Ieedr'
(Primory) J

JUNK SLOT
DIAMOND -C
SET PAD

CONTROL DIAMETERS
(TFA a Collector)

iCONE A N G L E
JOSE
APEX
FLANK ANGLE FLANK
CROWFOOT
SHOULDER RADIUS SHOULDER
GAGE POtNT
GAGE
GAGE LANDS
CROWN
j ; / C H AM F E R
BLANK
WELD
ALLIGNMENT THREADS
SHANK
BREAKER SLOT (2)

API PIN CONNECTION

Fig. 5.4ADiamond cutter drag bitdesign nomenclalufa

radial leeder collectoi

Fig. 5.46Diamord cutter drag bitexample prodes and features

194
(1) STEP-TYPE (Z) LONG TAPER
,LAH6ER
C GAGE
AREA
SMALLER
JU N K - S LOT S
NEARLY f L AT
15) DOWN-HOLE MOTOR ( 6 ) SIOE-TRACK
FIg. 5. 4CDia mond cutter drag
of attack betwccn the cutter and the surface of the ex-
poscd formation. Cutterorientation is defincd in terms of
back rake, siete rake. ard chip clearance or cutter ex-
posure (Fig. 5.5).'
At present, a negative back-rakc anglc of 20 is stan
dard on many steel-body PCD bits. However. snialler
back-rake angles, which are bctter-suited for soft forma-
tions, are also available, especially in the matrix-body
PCD bits. The side-rakc assists in pushing the cuttings
formed to the side of the hole, much like the action of a
plow. The exposure of the cutter provides room for the
cutting to peel off the hole bottom without impacting
against the bit body and packing in front of the cutter.
Cutter orientation must be properly matchcd to the
hardne.ss of the formation lieing drilled. In soft.
nonabrasive fomiations. where cutter wear is very slow,
the orientation can be set to eniphasize aggressive cut
ting. The high temperatures and wear rates caused by
harder, more abrasive foimations rcquire a less-
aggressive cutter orientation to prevent an excessive
wear rate. The cutter orientation also depends on the ex-
pected cuttei vclocity. whicli in lum depends on the
distance of the cutter location from the centerof the hole.
5,1.3 Kolling Cutter Bits
The three-conc rolling cutter bit is by far the most com-
nion bit typc cuacntly used in rotary drilling operaliona.
This general bit type is available with a large variety of
tooth design and bearing types and. thus, is suited for a
vide variety of formation characteristics. Fig. 5.6 is an
example of a rolling cutter bit with the various parts
labeled. The three cones rotate about their axis as the
bit is rotaied on bottom.
The largest lmitation a bit design engineer faces is ihat
the bit must fit inside the borehole. The designer, thus, is
rcquired to makc mximum use of a very iimited amouni
of space. The size of every critical part can be increa.sed
APPLIED ORILLING ENGINEERING
(3) SH O RT TAPER (4) N O N - TA P E R
PREMIUM HI6H VELOCITY
MORE POINTEOK RADIAL FLOW
PAT TE RN
'S T RONGE R CENTER
REPLACES CROW-
FOOT PATTERN
(7) OlL-BASE (B) CORE-EJECTOR
bit r adial and lee de r colleciors.
only at the expense of another critical part. This is
especially true for the smaller bit sizes, Whereas mosi
machines are designed to last for years, bits generally
last at best only a few days.
The drilling action of a rolling cutter bit depends to
some extent on the offset of the cones. As shown in Fig.
5".7, the offset of the bit is a measure of how much the
cones are moved so that their axes do not intersect at a
common pomt of the centeriine of the hole. Offsetting
causes the cone to stop rotating periodically as the bit is
tumed and scrape the hole bottom much like a drag bit.
This action tends to increase drilling speed in most for
mation types. However, it also promotes faster tooth
wear in abrasive formations. Cone offset is sometimes
expressed as the angle the cone axis would have to be
rotated to make it pass through the centeriine of the hole.
Cone offset angle varies from about 4 for bits used in
soft formations to zero for bits used in extremcly hard
formations.
The shape of the bit teelh also has a large cffect on the
drilling action of a rolling cutter bit. Long, widely
spaccd, Steel teeth are used for drilling soft fomialions.
The long teeth easily penetrate the soft rock, and the
scraping/twisting action pmvided by altemate rotation
and plowing action of the offset cone removes the
material f)enetrated. The action of this typc bit ofien is
compared with pushing a shovel into the ground and then
leaning back on the handle to rcmove a large piece of
earth. The wide spacing of the teeth on the cone pro
motes bit cleaning. Teeth cleaning action is providcd by
the intermeshing of teeth on different cones and by fluid
jets between each of the three cones As the rock type
gets harder, the tooth length and cone offset must be
rcduced to prevent tooth breakage. The drilling action of
a bit with zero cone offset is essentially a cmshing ac
tion. The smaller teelh also allow more room forthe con-
struction of stronger bearings.
ROTARY DRILLING BITS 195

The mctallurgy requircmcnts o f the bii leeth also <lc-

pend on thc fomiation characicrislics. The two primary
lypes Ucd are (I) inilled r<M/ih tultcrs and (2) tungsieii
carhide iiuert cutlers. The niilled tooih cutleni are
manufacturcd by milling thc teeth out of a steel cone,
while the tungsten carbide inser bits are manufacturcd EXPOSURE
by prcssing a tungsten carbide cylinder into accurately
machined holes in thc cone. The milled tooth bits dc-
signed for soft fonmations usually are faced with a wear-
resistanl materia], such as tungsten carbide, on one side
of the tooth. As shown in Fig. 5 .8 , the application of
hard facing on only one side of thc tooth allows more
rapid wcar on one side o f the tooth than thc other, and
the tooih stays relatively sharp.
Thc milled tooth bits dcsigned to drill harder forma-
lions are usually case hardened by special processing and
hcat treating the cutter during manufacturing. As shown
in Fig. 5.8, this casc-hardened steel should wcar by
chipping and tend to keep the bit tooth sharp.
The tungsten carbide teeth designed for drilling sott RAKE ANGLE
formations are long and have a chiscl-shapcd end. Thc (negative )
VBACK
inserts used in bits for hard formations are short and have
a hemispherical end. These bits are sometimes called
huiln bits. Examplcs o f various inscrt bit tooth designs
an: shown in Fig. 5.9.
Considerable thought has gone into the position of (he
teeth on the cones of a mlling cutter bit. The inncr rows
o f teeth are p<isitioned on different cones so that they in-
tcrmcsh. This intermeshing (I) allows more room for a
stronger bit design, (2) provides a self-cleanng action as
thc bit tums, and (3) allows mximum covcragc of Ihc
hole bottom for a given number o f teeth. The boltomhole
coverage o f most bits is about 7 0%. Th e outer row of
teeth on each cone do not intermesh. This row of teeth,
called the heel teeth, has by far the hardest job. Due to
thc circular geometry, more ntx'k must be removed fmm
the outermost annular ring of thc hole bottom, and this
rock is more difficull lo remove bccau.sc it tcnds lo rc-
man attached to the boreholc wall. Fig. 5.5 Cottef orlentation expressed tn lerms of exposute,
Some o f the heel teeth often are dcsigned with inicr- back rake. and side rakes
rupiions or identions as shown in Fig. 5.6. These inter-
ruptions allow the heel teeth to genrate a pattem on bot
tom having onc-half the spacing of the cutter tccth.
Thus, the cuttings are smaller than the space bctween thc cones. They also serve lo hold ihe cone in place on the
teeth and do not wedge bctween them rcadily. Bccause bit. The nose bearings are dcsigned lo carry a portion of
Ihe hcci iccth have a more difficull job, they may wcar thc axial or thnisl loads after thc ball bearings begin to
exccssively. causing thc bit to drill an out-of-gaugc hole. wcar. The nose bearing i s a friclion-type bearing in most
This causes a gross misalignmcnt of the load on the bear- bit sizes, bul in ihe larger bit siz.es anothcr rollcr bearing
ings and premaiurc bit failurc. Prcmature failure of the is used. In thc standard bearing design, ;ill bearings are
ncxi bit is also likely if thc hole remains undersized. lubricated by thc drilling fluid. When a gas is used as ihe
Most bit manufacturer offer more than one heel livnh drilling fluid, a modified bit is available witli
design with a given bit type so the drilling engincer may passageways pennitting a portion of thc gas lo llow
obtain the amounl of gauge protection nccded. Ihrough the bearing assembly (Fig. 5,10b).
Thc common bearing asscmblics u.sed for rolling cutlcr The intcmicdiatc-cost bearing a.iscmbly used in roMing
bits are shown in Fig. 5.10. The standard or most incx- cutter bits is thc sealed hearinf' assembly. A cross sec-
pensive bearing assembly shown in Fig. 5.10a consists tion o f a sealcd bearing bit is shown in Fig. 5. lOc In this
o f (1) u roller-type outcr bearing, (2) a ball-typc in- type bit. the bearings are maintained in a grcasc environ-
termcdiatc bearing. and (3) a friction-type nosc bearing. mcnl by grease seis, a grease rescrvoir, and a compcrv
Thc roller-type outer bearing is the most heavily loaded sator plug that allows the grease pressure lo be main
nicmbcr and u.sually lends to wcar out first. Thc race that tained equal to thc hydrostalic fluid pressure al thc b<i|-
thc rol 1er bearing rollsovcr lends to spall and wcar on thc Itim o f thc hole. While (he grcasc scals requirc some
botlom side whcrc thc weight applicd lo thc bit is Irans- space and, thus. a rcduciion in bearing capaciiy, thc
mittcd from the pin to the cone. The intcrmcdiatc hall climination of abrasivc inalcnal from thc bearings asiial-
bcarings carry primarily axial or thrust loads on ihc ly more than compnsales for ihis disadvantagc. As ihc
196 APPLIED DRILUNQ ENGINEERtNQ

BC ASSJ VHi "

011 T, r*
THAlii ViVM*
c;mA\k
JT NOZIF LUBRICAN! ShANK
N07LE HrSfftVOIH SHOl t
O RfM * OMPf MiATOR
NO?ZLC POTtCTOR
RtTAiMM
PMtSSUft
compensa TOM

SPtCAL
M: TAI INL ArS
-UHf ACF
qiT .IG
BAi i MI I . D
SHIHT T(l i Ot BACKi-Act
\tJt HCur
tjAut SlRF ACfc

PM OT P eALtS jl MjMKj Al tmhlSt riiTii

-U .CONt H L*' H L *%*

CTMPAi T I /Mi -MI I
fJ,U t. B> *SJ>
JF t

( s.
t \
MI HHUf'Tin\
NO 2CNE r.OM I; 'MU ? C O N NO ' CNt

(a) CARBIDE TOOTH CUTTING STRUCTURE (b STEEL TOOTH CUTTING STRUCTURE

Courtesy of Hughes Tcx>l Co
Fig. 5. 6Parts of a rolling cutter bil.

bit wears, the grcase seis cvenlually fail and thc drilling
fluid can entcr the bearings and accelcrate the bcaring
wear.
Rolling cutter bits with ihe most advanced bearing
assembly are the journal hearing bits (Fig. 5.10d). In
this type bit, ihe roller bearings are eliminatcd and the
cone rotates in contact with thc journal bearing pin. This
type bearing has thc advantage of greatly increasing the
contact arca through which the weight on ihe bit is trans-
mitted to the cone. Also, by eliminating one of the com-
ponents (the rollers), additional space becomes available
for strengthcning the remaining componcnts. Journal
bearing bits require effective grease seis, special
metailurgy, and extremely cise tolerances during
manufacture. Silver inlays in the journal help to
minimize friction and prevenl galling. While journal
bearing bits are much more expensive than thc standard
or sealed bearing bits, much longer bit runs can be ob-
tained, thus eliminating some of the rig time spent on
tripping operations.
5.1.4 Standard Classification of Bits
A large variety of bit designs are available from several
manufacturers. The Int!. Assn. of Drilling Contractors
(lADC) approved a standard classification system for
identifying similar bit types available from various
manufacturers. The classification system adopted is the
three-digit code.
The first digit in the bit classification scheme is called
the bit series number. The letter "D" precedes thc first
digit if the bil is diamond or PCD drag bit. Series DI
ihrough D5 are teserved for diamond bits and PCD bits
in the sofl. medium-soft, mdium, medium-hard, and
hard fonmation categories, respectively. Series D7
ROTARY DRILLING BITS 197

DIRECTION OF ROTATION

OFFSET
DISTANCE

OFFSET
ANGLE

Fig. 5.7Cone offset pfornotes cone slippage during rolation.

Chippmg
W(or

ta) SEUF SHARPENIftG WEAR DUC TO HARO FACING >> SELF 5HARPENING DUE TO CASE HARDENINfi

Fig. 5.8Wear characeristics of milled-tooth bis.

Gage Compaci Ovoid Ogive Concal 90 Chisel

Wige CriftLei Scoop Bunt Sharp

Chisel Chisel Chisel Chisel

Fig. 5,9Exampte lungsten carbde inser cutters used in rollmg culter b(t5
198 APPLIED DRILLING ENGINEERING

PRESSURE
AREAS

gl COMPENSATOft
/ PLUG

( COMPENSATOR

(3 CREASE
RESERVOIR
CONNECIING
HOLE

( ?) SEAL

BEARINC

(a) Rollar bearing design. (c) Sealed rotler beanng design.

COEEN
OURNAL PRESSURE AREA

. jG *1E
=. Sl'vi'l
4 Hl.t 7 '
Jourtvil
Riu.>
OTER B-l- B4CE
Bearirx)
CONE BAi-cSl NTEGiL oilOT PiM Pin
'Nhf o BALl OACt FlAnGE HARD
BUSHiWG
(b) Gas-cooled bearng design or drilitng wilh air or (d) Journal beanng design
natural gas.

Fig. 5.10Common beanng assembhes used (or rolling cutter bils

thriiugh Dy iire rcscrvcd Ibr diami)nd core hits and PCD
L'orc bits in tlie sofl-, nictiiuni-, und hard-l'ormatiiv
catcgorics. Series I, 2, and 3 aa rcservcd Cor milled
lODtli bils in the sol'i. iiicdium, and hard foniiaiion
cutegorics. rcspcciively. Series 5, 6, 7, und 8 are l'or in
ser bits in the sofl. mdium, hard, and exlremely hard
Ibnnation categorics. respcctivciy- Series 4 is rcservcd
Ior lulure use with spccial caiegories such us a "univer
s al" bit.
The seeond digit is caled the lypc nuniber. Type O is
rcservcd tVir PCD drag bits. Types 1 ihrough 4 desgnate
a liinuatiDn hardncss subelassiricatittn l'rinn the softcst lo
the hardest lomialion within cach catcgory.
The l'ealiire nunibers are interpreted dilerenlly.
dcpcnding on the general typc ot bit bcing dcscribcd.
Fcalurc numbcrs are defined ror(l) diamond und PCD
drag bits, (2) diamond and PCD drag-type core-cutling
bits, and (3) rolling cutier bits.
Eight standard diuniond and PCD drug bit leutures are
(1) stcp-typc profile. (2) long-tapcr pmfilc, (3) short-
tapcr profile, (4) nontaper prtifile, (5) downhole -mot or
typc. (6) sidctrack lypc. (7) oil-baso typc, and (S) ai re -
cjcctor typc. The remaining fcature (No. 9) is r c s e a e d
Cor special Icatures sciccted by the bit manulacturcr.
Thcrc are two standard fcature nunibers tbr diamond
and PCD drag-type eorc-cutting bils. Thcsc bii> are used
to rccovcr a length ol" Ibrmation sample cored Ironi the
central portion of the bt>rehole. The two featurcs are (I)
ROTARY DRILLING BITS 199

TABLE5.1lADC DIAMOND AND PCD DRILL BIT

CLASSIFICATION CHART FOR FOUR MANUFACTURERS

MANFACTUBER
AMEflICAN COLDSET (a)
BIT DESIGN FEATURES
uoc iTtr UthG mor i MU DQWtHU Sf cai
StRlfS TK Ti/Efl TAnn TAPCil MCtOfl f(U itE cjtaofi lfHh
FOAMATDM WJHflR 1 2 ) 4 1 4 7 9

0 STflATACUT STHATAtUT
1 SHAftKTOOTH (MAKiTOOtti 1
SOFT DI 2 " MAUTOOlH
Tftttl UtAOii.LQ UD
"
3
4 1*

STRATACtiT stratacut
1 AWlADfLLO UUKtiTOOT* T cmHun uo
eTOOTH
2 | n
MEDIUM 02
2 " " "
SOFT "
4 f
5TRATACUT STRATACUT
1 T&TT tmc,Li UD
TftlGt ARHAOILLO
"
MEDIUM 03 3
" I* "
3 SHnW "

4 "

1 THIGC WOLF TB* MUI cufian ita

"
MEDIUM 04 2
"
2 M
HARO "
4
0
1 TBVV MCLI UD
OLI ti
HA8D 05 Min

MANUFACTURER (b)
CHRISTENSEN BIT DESIG fEATURES

tADC STF IGMG SHW1 HW OOWfNOLt SiDE DIL CORE

tm MiFlh TAPfH lAPt" MOTOfl TftACIi bJlE EJECTOA OTHfn
SaiES
FDHWATIGP 1 2 3 4 S T 1 9 binatio
a ockul ! RockuC 17 fltickuC 11 Rcckut 21 n of N
1 KII2RP os. 3 a
SOFT 01 2 KD- 3fl MD-IA KT18P xn-asT HD-3a tid 6. T
3 MD-503 K11-31 Ml-315 he rcm
4 MT- 1 q?
ROCKITT aining
RocV.ut 1 ?6 Rocku 1 2ft
Icaiure
1
Kr-51P MD-i3ST Nos.
02 3 Kf>-196 MD'36J MD-Z62
MEDIUM
3 KD-3M MD'34 MD-362 KD"3tt and 9
SOFT
4 werc rt;
RockuL 2( FtoKut 26 servcd
1
03 Mn-331 HT-51P KD-nST MD-26; tbr spc
MEDJUM 2
3 D-3U KU-262 MD-28 cia) fea
4 HD-331 tures s
cicctcd
\
MEDIUM 04 2 MTl-iMCT m7ft iny ilie
3 bit ma
HARO
4 HD-2ft2 MD-262 nufactu
rcr. F
1 eature
W-illST KTt-l? No,
HAflD D5 7
3 8 is
4
often
convcniifinal corc-barrcl lyp and (2) tcc-dischargc; uscd
lypc. As iii ihc prcviouK casc, Icaiurc No. 9 is rcscrv'cd to
for spccia) t'eaturcs sclccicd hy ilic bit manufacturcr, designate bits designcd for direelional drillin:.
Thcrc are eight standard l'calurc nmuhers for rollirti:- Tablcs 5.1 ihrouh 5.3 sumniarizc many of ihc tiir -
L'uticr bits. The standard fcaturc numbcrs are ()) standard rently availablc bits by manut'acturcr and Inl! . Assn ot'
rolling cttcr bii {jet bit tir legularl, (2) T-shapt-'d liecl Dril li ng Contraetors (lADC) L'lassillcation nimibcr lor
tcctli l'or gaugc pnncL'iinn, (3) extra inseii tcelh Uir i;aui;e diamond bits, dianiond core bits, and roiling-ciittcr bits.
proicctiun, (4) sealcd rollcr bearings. (5) c om bi naron ni respcetively, W hile bits t'roni dilTerent manulauturers
Nos. 3 and 4, (h) scaled I riel ion bearinj:. and (7} coni-
200 APPLIED DRILLING ENGINEERING

(C)
tIT DESIGM FEATURES
lAOC rr i P LMC p(01 M- OOWNMOll SlO{ Ok canf
lAPEH TAfCR lAfC* ftwtofl TRAOt MSC LMCTOm tmn
TTff
1 3 3 4 i 7 1 *
fORMATION

1 0
1 Rr V-2 0 cnv-?n CHIi-iO CH-ZO RFT-ZO S T - 20 RFV-20
SOFT DI 7 " RFV-21 RF V - Jl RF-21 RfT - 21 **
Rrv-21
3
ii * *

4
-ff "

0
1 RFV-30 CHV-20 CHV-20 CH-20 RF T -20 ST-10 RFV-20
* RFV-21
Rrv-21 RFV-21 l l F-21 RFT -21
MEDIUM D2 2_
CrtV-W cMV-30 CH-30 k'T-W RFV-30
S
SOFT 4 fi--- RFV-31 Rrv-31 *r-3i RFT-Jl HFV-31
0
1 Rrv-30 C H - 3 0 CHV-30 CH-in RF T -30 ST-iO RFV-30
MEDIUM D3 2 RFV-40 Rrv-31 RFV-31 KF-31 RFT -31
"
RFV-31

"
4
0
1 t-irv 60 :FV-40 Rrv-40 RF - 30 RF T -40 ST-40 RKV-0 1
1*
MEDIUM D4 2
"
RFV-4 RFV-Al RF-. I RFT -41 Rrv-4i
3
HARD R " " "
4
0
1 Rrv-0 RFV-i O RF T -50 RFV. 50
2 Rrv-M RFV-51 RFT-51 RFV-Sl S-M
HAftD D6
3 RS-SO " "
" " " '
4 CF-50
O

MANUFACTURER NL HYCALOG
BIT DESIGN FEATURES
U3C Ttf lOMC IHDflT mu IWWNHOH SiOI 011 omi 1
tnis nrt IWflt itrfii MTDn Tiun ust CitCTOK OTKIII
FORMATKW NUMBiO ' ] 3 4 i > 1 < in beari
0 SATIII.SATIV jnpfix TUPBOfAX ng capa
1 cily is
SOFT DI 901 511 possible
3 901 HSIT 9011 ST 9C15 90K( ion BI CNTP for the
4 901 MSIT 90n ST un 9015 yolct 204 bits wi
0 atjil IV IfTI-A TURBOLA;. th a hig
1 901 tlSl 73C t901 7301 57 9015 901Ct 201 her
MEDIUM D2
1 901 51 73! E1T901 730" SI 9CI15 901C[ 20a class nu
1 901 MSI 73f 17 901 7301 S7 9015 901Ct 204
SOFT 9ni KSl M51T9Q1 m 57 WM 9015 901CE 20 " mber. T
73
0 his is p
1 901 73q WT 9017 730- S7 9015 901 CE 730CE 204 ossible
MEDIUM 03 I 901 7 ir MIT 9017 730' S7 9015 901Ct 730Ct 204 due lo t
1 901 71f mi 901T7301 S7 901S 901Ct 730CE 204 "

4 901 733 fllT 90 IT 7301 57 WM 9015 901Ct 730CE 204 he short

0 er lengt
1 oni Vi sni MIT 9017 7301 57 9Q1S 730CE 294 h
MEDIUM 04 3 901 S25 SOI M17 9017 7301 S7 9015 730CE 204 of bit te
HARD 3 901 730 52S SOI m7 9017 7301 S7 901S 730Ct 204
4 901 73 SZb SOI HIT MU 7301 51 HM SOIS 730CI 204 eth at h
0 igher bi
1 9(11 71(1 SP'i MI 1117 9017 7301 S7 9015 730CE l class
HARD 05 2 901 730 525 &01 mT 9017 7301 S7 901S 730CE
numbcrs
3 aoi 71(1 SOI KIT 5017 7301
* 525 SOI H17 H" i30CEj .
givcn ihc same classification numbcr are nM cxactly
equivalcnt, ihc classification schcmc is ol'icn usei'ul tbr
5.2 R
grouping similar bits in drilling performance studies. ock Filure Mechanisnis
Some of (he niain design fcalures of thc various
To operate a given bit properiy. thc drilling engineer
rolling-cutier bit lypcs have been summarizcii by Estes.
needs to understand
1 as niuch as possible aboui thc basic
Shown in Table 5.4 and Fig. 5.11 are some oi thc tooth
mcchanisms of rock removal thal are at work, including
design feaiurc.s of* the various bit types and classes. Nolc
that as thc class number incrcases. thc cone offset, twth (i) wedging, (2) .scraping and grinding, (?i) crosion by
Huid jet action, (4) pcrcussion or crushing, and (5) ittr-
heighi. and amounl of tooth hardfacing decrea.ses while
the number of teeth and amount of ttwih case hardening sion or iwisting. To some extcnt, thesc mechanisms are
incrcases. Shown in Fig. 5 . ) 2 are (he relative bearing interrelated. While one may be dominani for a given bil

eapacities for different bit classes. Noie thai an increase

ROTAFIY DRILLING BITS 201

TA0l .e5.2 l ADC DIAMOND ANO PCD CORE BIT

CLASSIFICATION CHAHT FOR FOUR MANUFACTURERS

MANUFACTURERr AMERICAN COLOSET DESIGN FEATURES

f4C(
CMURRU OtSCHAAGf OtHtR
i'\
FOMATrON Hiwei 1 t
Q STRATACQiX
1
SOfT D7 2 NAM HCU
2 -
(a) 4 ' "

0 STWTACCW
1 SNARft HtAfi f b
' **
MEOIM D8 2
3 til StAR -
4 * "

0
1 tH St M iham heao fd
MARO D9 2 ' -

3
4
ER: CHflJSTENSN DESIGN FEATURES
tJDC CeMVEMTICm
StRitS CVCURHH DISCHARGE DTHCR
VORMATIQM \ 9
0 lC-2 JC-3
1
SOFT 07 3 C,-22 C-35
2 c-j a C-f i
(b) 4
0
1
MEDIUM 08 2 c-*o C-IH
3 C-20I c-2a
4
0
1
HAno D9 2 r-?A
3 C-24
4 C-

CTURER, DOW OCO DESIGN FEATUnCS

UDL awvuiitOMi FALE
SERIES COMMUL IMSCHAMf <ITHR
FRWAllDN fUMBffl I 1
0 iOJT)corAX-7C lOurriLOhAX-f
1 M5 FD-2I bV
D7 3 hU-J "
SOFT
" ' *
3
4
(c) Q )ONl)LOJ'A)t-)'
\ K FD-10 Airt
08 2 MV
MEDiUM FFi iO
3 - "

4 * "

0 fOWDClAX- tjowCpAk'r
1 KD'0
HARD 09 2 4*
" "
1
"
4

RER NL HYCALOG OiSlGN FEATURES

l Dt COaLfitiONAL fACt
ttm GMiAMRU DtSCHJSWf dther
fORMATiCN NUMbf 1 2 f
0 GetjPa> GeoPd>
C5 c sf d
SOFT D7 2 rSFH
3 es rsFf.
4 rs r.SFn
(d) 0
1
MEDIUM D8 2 cw
3
4 CH
0
1 rvH
HARD 09 2 riM ClJHR
3 CUH CUHR
4 CUK CUHP imr.reQntt
 202 APPLIED DILUNG ENGINEERING

*
TABLE5.3lADC ROLLING-CUTTER BIT
CLASSIFICATION CHART FOR FOUR MANUFACTURERS

(a)
MANUFACTURER: HUGHES TOOL CO.

F0RMATION5 FEATURES
AlEO StAl(S
SERIE stahdaho
TYPES MOUfA MNilA SM(0 (KHllN *(0 IftCliON
ROtUI tlAMWG m e bAfri 04Li *6 &Abi FRCTKM MC CACf DMUC
S MAME A4N MWIECTIO KARHiG nuricTi MAIMC mirtcKO tNMAl OTHIH
ti tti lll ID
(A son FowMAiims t gSC3AJ X3A Jl M3A
H 1 WITH lOW COMPftESSIVE 7 SC3J s J2
---- SIRINGTM AMO MCM n esciGJ J03 MXIG
T 4
_M__ K 1 wvj/ew4j JD4
O --

O 2 ORMATIOMS WltH 7 W0
H HIGH CtIMPRfSSrVI 1
O SIKtNGTK 4
HARO SCM AeRASiVE
j W7J/W7C H J7 ----
7 W7Raj
S 3 ANO ABRASIVI 3
fORMAllOMS HR
4 J6 JDB
SOrt fORMATlOflS t
4 HITH law COMPflESSIVE 7
SIRtNCrH AND HIGK 3 XII
OmtlAHlTY
4
SSn TO MEDIUM 1 X22 J32
5 rORMAlICWS WITH
lOW C<3MPRf(SSlVE
7 -
,1 HH33 X33 J33
STftfNGTH
4
--- MtOlOM HARO 1 HH44 - X44 J44

fHMAhONS WtTH - J44C/J55R

6 WCH COMflSSlVE HH55 J55
3
STRtUGTH 4
HAf SIMI AWASIVE
( --
7 ANO ABlASlV 2 ---
fORMAtlONS 3 _77 - -., J77
4
1 HH8e
8 flTRtMtlV HAflO 4 O- -
ACRASlVE FQRMATIDNS 1 HH99 a99
4

(b)
MAMUfACTURER; RECO ROCK BIT CO.
FORMATIONS FEATURES

110 Stl(D
SERIES trAhOAio KOiLia HH it l AUO 0M4 iiia
TYPES *C CkU MI C
OUII tumc mi 'Ci OlUA b CCf l<1iON
1 Ar6 MOMCtlO f n ot K i l D Otiit
121 |4l 1 lll
(l i |3

__stt__ 1 yii YM-JO

1
MILLEOTOO WIIH lOW COWFRISSlVt 2 Yl2 YIZT SI2 FPI2
SIRNCTH ANO NICH 3 Y13 FPt3
YI3T/YI5C_ _S(3_ _SI3G_ -
[INSERT
BITS THBITS
{MHlAlHin
4
1 Y2I YZtG __SZI_ _S2G_ f P2I
2 fORMAlIDNS WiTH 3 Y22
MCH C0Mri5SIV{ 3 S23G
SIRfNCril
4
TS Y3IG S3IG FPitC YSI-RW
MARO S(Ml AtfMSIVf
J
3 A(D ABflASrVC
lOItMAIiONS _3 -- - -
4

1
SQir fORMATlONS
witM iQw c oumssrvf _2_
4
STRfMilH AMO HICM 3
&i(UA|(UrY
4

son TO tl S jS l F PS t
S iONMAIlONS WlTM 2 S52 HS5IJP52
low c oMr((ss rv{ 3 S53 HPSMjFfS
jTNCtN
4 HPSM.FPM

NARO HPSM/P6a
2 yti'M S62
fORMAfKMS WITN HPSM,ft4
e
HICH COMRtSSrVf 3 Y63-JA Y63 S63 HP FP63
S1RENC1H
4 S64 rtPMH.FPW
HPMH.
NAW SfM( AVUSfVE
2 MMK. F7n
7 ANO AlHAStVE Y7Z S72
fORMAhONS 3 r73-JA 73 HPH, FP73 V73RAP_
A 574 m'ph . FP74
-- 8 UI IK M Clf AMO i
) HPK_
2
_ta3__
AtAASiVf QIIMAtHMt
3_ Ye3-JA sas FPB3 -
4 1

[INSERTBITS|
 ROTARY DRILLING BITS 203

(C)
MANUFACTURER ; SECURITY 0<Vt
FOHMATIONS FEATURES
sfuia simo
TYPESSlftNDAftQ KHiC Oiiffl SfUCD ttkii* $(Alt FACIlOM
DlKll IfAAIN. kG Ci MOIliR ffW CACE Mfr 0* e<vc
KUWO ANt fdcrtcifo ifAMiMi ntOTfCUD MaNmC HtOIECTil) ncMui om*
ii| Ok Itk Ol ii4 (
F0RMAf4(MS 1 S3< S35S SWSG S33SF S 3S J0
1
MILLED WIIH (.(M COMPfEtSSlVf 83 S3T S33 S 3 F S3JD

srft{iiCrH AND HiGH
-- TOOTHB tmiLtAfliLm
3
4
4 S4T S 44 S4G
S/DSS 1
-- ITS WECNUM TO MfDlL>M HAflO ~ M4N M44N M4NF
2 FQRMATIONS WTH
HICN COMRESSIVE
Itit4
OM/DMM
.
irntHGTH M4L M44LF
4
H7 JiZI .. HTT lf77F
H4W 5{MI UlUjJVt
3 ANO URAStVf
7 -
fafWAilONS 1 H7SG t 7rsG
4 H77C H7 7CF
SOfT FO<*MAllDN
4 WlTH lOW CiXimESStVt 2
SmtNGTN AMO MGH
-- OmLlAftlUlT
3
A

SOFT TD MEDIUM 5B4 Se4F DGB4F

& fOlWAtlO*(S 2 --
IDW COMPVlSSlVt 3 S86F
$TA{t(CTH
4 SSJA sea SS8F osea
1SERIES1
MfOilM HAJV> T Ma4F_
6 rORMAriONS MhiN 2 M8JA M88FyMd9TF
HrCH COMPKSSIV 3 ---- Me9F
SIHNCrH
4
HARO StMl UflASiVE
7 ANO AKRAlVt 2 -
ORMArtOMS l Hfl4F
4 HSJA H8fl HSeF
H9JA__ H39 H93F
T
- -
8 EKtRiMHT HAflC 4
A8RA5IVE fORMAIiONS 3 h\0J~ ~Hbo HIOOF
- -
4

(d)
MANUFACTUREH ; 5M(TH TOOL

F O f lM AT I OM S FEATURES
SIAUQ umio
SERIES TYPESSIMOAKD nomn MOllU 5tAlEa m.ii* ald
11011,(11 AtAM*C. MC CACI ftCkiEn iW (AC( FMCIXIIf BlC CNI OlREC
AiAHMlG AlR railCTED BCAfUNC mUCIFD tAhiHG PMTtCKCk no'MJ DTHCn
\M m Ih [4| ai iSk O lll
SOFT FflRMATlCWS J. ... PS _ - $05. . , DJ
1INSERTBI
TS 1
MILLED m\H lOW COWPUSSIVL 7 DT DTT SOT_ __ FJ?1_ BHDJ MSOT
SIflfMCTH ANO HIG
OPULAOILITY __DG GT _
TOOTHB 4
SV__ ITS UfCHM ia MtDtUM kaho _ yz VH . . SVM
-- 2 FOKMAIIONS WTM T! -- -
HIG(4 COMPFtESSIVE 3 __T2_H _ ST2
SIfltNGFH
4
t4 . _L4H ._SL4 _ _5L4_H_ -
fiAO SEM: ABIUSIVF
3 ANO UflASiVt _i_ , .
FORMAnONS -
4

SOFT FORMATlONS -

4 WllH tOW CMftIES&jVt --

STHEN[FH ANb HIGH _L
DFttUAOlOFT
4
SQfT ia M(0k>M 2JS FZ Al
--- 5 A'ITH 2 - - - __ _
LD\V COMPELESS4VE 3 3JS F3
SIAfNClH
4
MEOlUii HAAO 1 4ja "
--- 4JS F4yF45 4GA
(OtWAtinN& WITH . ---- 5JA_ SJ5 F5 ""e<34
6
HICH raMPfl&S4VI 3 ..
F47/ F57
STRENIH
4
HAFtD SlMl AfiAttVE _7JA " " -

--- 2 TGA
7 ANC MRASivf
fOAWAIlON 3" . -
4

IXThEMaV HfLHQ L 7~~

-
8 -
AfiPAStVE lORWAhQNS 3 9 JA - - ... -
4
204 APPLIED DRILLING ENGINEERtNG

C L A S S l-t 1-2 1-3 1-4 2-3 3.4 CLASS l-l 1-2 1- 3 1-4 2-3 3.4
glz
10
9
i 1 10
9
BEARING CA PA C r r y

8 \, N U MBE R
8
7 \ rEEH \

7
V fi
6
\
5
A \ . \ 5 \
\ ___
4
A
'~
- TOOT H
- \
3

\
3 \
|HEIGHT
2 2 \
TO O T H V
HARn FACING V
> I
> OFFSET
O FIg. 5
O
F0RMAT1ON SO F T M E D I UM HARO FORMATION SOFT MEOtUM HARO .12
Relativ
e ofisel and bearing capacty between dil-
lerent bit types

The dcpth of the cut is controlled by thc plae of thrust

and is selected ba.sed on the .strength o f the rock and the
radius to the cut. The depth of the cut is often expressed
in terms of the bottom cutiing angle, a. The angle ot is a
function of the desired cutlcr peneliation per revolution
Lp and
radius r from ihe center of thc hole. This relation
*
Fig. 5.11Tooih design varialions between bil lypes can be defmed by

L
tan a = - ...... (5,1)
2xr
des'ign, more than onc mcchani.sm is usually present. In
The bottom clearance angle prevens the wedge from
this discussion, only ihe two ba-sic roiary drilling bit
types will be discussedi.e., thc drag bit and ihe rolling dragging the hole bottom whilc taking a chip and, thu.s,
cutter bits. causing the bit to jump and chatterand to wear fa.st. Thc
bottom clearance angle should nol be too great.
howcver, to preveni the bit from digging too dcep and
5.2.1 Failure Mechaiiisms of Drag Bits
stalling the rotary whenever the weight-to-toique ratio is
Drag bits are designed to drill piimariiy by a wcdging loo great. A slight rake angle can help promote an elTi-
mechanisni. I f drag bits could be kcpt drilling by wedg- cient wedging mechanism, although a positive rake
ing, they would noi dull so quickiy. It is whcn they are angle may not be necessary because of the downward
dragging and, Ihus. scraping and grinding that they drill slope of the hole bottom when the bit is operated proper-
slowly and dull quickly. A twisting action aiso may con ly. The bit tooth loses strength as thc rake angle is
tribute to rock removal from the center portion ol the increased.
hole. A schematic illustrating thc wedging action o f a
drag bit tooth jusl prior to cutting failure is shown in Fig.
5,13.- A vertical forc is applied to ihe tooth as a result
of applying drill collar weight lo the hit, and a horizontal
(after Estes*)
forc i.s applied to thc tooth as a result of applying the
torque nece Offset
Bil Type Class Formaton Type Tooth Descriplion
ssary to tum (degrees)
thc bit. The Steet-culter 1-1, 1-2 very soft hard-faced tip 3 to 4
result o f the. milled-iooth 1-3. 1-4 solt hard-faced skie 2 to 3
se two 2- \, 2-2 medijm hard-laced stde 1 to 2
forces defin 2-3 medium-hard case hardened 1 lo 2
es the plae 3 hard case hardened 0
of thrust o f t 0
4 very hard case hardened, circumferenlial
hc tooth or
wedge. Tungsten-carbide 5-2 soft 64 long blunt chisel 2 to 3
The cutting insen 5-3 medium-soft 65 to 80 long sharp chisel 2 10 3
s are sheare 6-1 mdium shales 65 10 80' mdium chisel 1 to 2
d off in a sh 6-2 mdium limes 60 to 70 mdium proiectile 1 to 2
ear plae at 7-1 medium-hard 80 10 90 shori chisel 0
an initial 7-2 mdium 60 to 70 short proiectile 0

8 hard chert 90cooical. or hemispherical 0

angle to the
plae of thrvi 9 very hard 120 comcal, or hemispherical 0
.st that is dcp
endent on thc prop-
ertics of the rock.
TABLE5.4TOOTH DESIGN CHARACTERISTICS
FOR ROLLING-CUTTER BITS
ROTARY ORILLING BITS
Fig. 5.13Wedging actioo of drag bit cutter
Diamond drag bits are designcd to drill wiih a very
smaU pcnetration into ihc fonualion. The diameter on thc
individual rock grdins in a fomiation such a.s sandstonc
may noi t v mueh smallcr ihan the dcpth of pcnetration of
ihc diamonds. The drilling aciion ord i amon d drag bit in
ihis .siiuation is primarily a grinding action in which the
ecmcnlaccous material holding thc individual grains is
broten by the diamonds.
205
Rock meehanics cxperts have applied .scvcral f'ailure
criteria in an attempt to relate rock .strength mca.sured in
simple compression tests to thc rotary dnlling proecss.
One sucli failiine uriterion oficn used is thc Mohr ihcory
o f failure. The Mohr criterion states that yiclding or Irac-
turing should occur when thc shcar stress exceeds thc
sum of thc cohesive resistancc of thc material < and the
f'ctional resistancc of thc slip planes or fracture plae.
206 APPLIED DRILLING ENGINEERING

(a) normal to
Nr FAILURE plae
\

REFERENCE
AN6LE , (f>

a t

Itt
o-,

\
(b)
yCTn d Ap

crdA
rd A
-
'3

t M t

(c) .TndAr

3 3

\ CTj d A| Sin

4>y
V'

r = C + CTn tnn e
(d)

K COMPRESSION

T = -C - o- <on e

Fig. 5.1 5Mohr's circle graphical analysis (a) relefence rock specimen. (b) reference Iree-body siress elemenl. (c) lofce balance
normal and paralltjl lo failure ptane, o, and (d) consWuction o( Mohr's circle
ROTARY DRILLING BITS 207

The Mohr criterion is stated mathematically by

T= +(c+ff tan0)........
(5,2)

where
T shear stress at tailure,
c = cohesive icsistance of thc material,
a = normal stress at the failure plae, and
6 angle of interna! friclion.

As shown in Fig. 5,14, this is the equation of a Une that

is tangen! lo Mohr's circles drawn for al least lwo com-
pression tests mado at different levets of confinng
Fig. 5.16.Apparatus use d tor study of bit tooth penetratlon
pressure.
under simulated borehole conditlons. '
To understand the use of ihe Mohr criterion, consider
a rock sample lo fail along a plae, as shown in Fig,,
5.15. when loaded uiider a compressive forc F and a
confining pressure p. The compressive stress a ( is given Expressing all unit areas in terms of d/( and simplifying
by
yields
F
T = (<T| as) sin<i) cos<i

= W(a I 03) sin(2<i) (5.3b)

Thc confining stress is given by
Note that Eqs. 5.3a and 5.3b are represented graphically
"3 = P-
by the Mohr's circle shown in Fig. 5.15d. Note also that
ir wc examine a small element on any vertical plae the angle of iniemal friclion, 8, and 2(t> must sum to 90.
The angle of iniemal friction for the mosi rocks varies
bisecting the sample. the element is in the stress siate
from about 30 to 40.
given in Fig. 5.15b. Furthennore, we can examine the The Mohr failure criterion can be used to predict the
forces present along the failure plae at failure using the
characteristic angle between the shear plae and the
free-body elements shown in Fig. 5.15b, The orientation
of the failure plae is defined by the angle 4> bctween ihe plae of thrust fora drag bit. Assuming an angle of intet-
nal friclion of approximately 30 implies
nomial-io-ihe-failure plae and a horizontal plae. Ii is
aiso equal to the angle bctween the failure plae and the
2<l) = 9 0 ' ' - 3 0 ' '
direction of the principal stress o \. Both a shcar stress t
and a normal stress a must be present to balance a \ and or
Oj.
<> = 30.
Summing forces normal to the fracture plae (Fig.
5.15c) gives
This valu of <l> has becn verified cxperimentally by Gray
el al. in tests made at atmospheric pressure.
od/1 = a 3 d/lj eos+ aId-4 I sin<.

The unit arca along the fracture plae dA is related to

the unit areas dA | and d/lj by Example 5.1. A rock sample under a 2,(X)0-psi confining
pre.ssure fails when subjecled to a comprcssional loading
d-l 3 = dA eos <tt of 10.000 psi along a plae which makes an angle of 27
with the direction of the compressional load. Using thc
and Mohr failure criterion. determine the angle of iniemal
friction. the shear strength, and the cohesive rcsistance
A I =dA sin<i. of the material,

Sohion. The angles t anii 2<i> must sum to 90. Thus.

Making the.se substituiions in the forc balance equation
ihe angle of interna! friction is given by
gives
0 = 9 0 -2 (27 ) = 36.
cr=cr| sin 0-l-ii cosit

= Vi(<j) +03) - W(o 1 -(7i) cos(2<i)....... The shear strength is computed using Eq. 5.3b as
(5..la)
follows.

Summing forces parallel to ihe fracture plano gives T= 'A(o I ffj) sin(2())

7-d.4 = o(d>< I cos<) ajdy j sin = '(10,000 - 2,000) sin(.54"') = 3.2.16.

208 APPLieD DRILLING ENGINEERING

BIT TOOTH Tho stress niimial tu the l'r.iclure plano is cmnpulcd usinj!
BOREHOLE PRESS Eq. 5.3i as tcillows

o = W(a 1+01) '/lo I o i ) cos<2())

= '/i(l0.000 + 2.(X)0)-'yi(l0.(XK)

(A)TOOTH IMPACT
-2 , 00 0 ) (.os(54) = 3.649 psi.

-U-L The fohcsive resisiancc can be computcd hy rearranging

Eq. 5.2 as t'ollows.
j'-'/cauSMED WOO-:'
c = Ta lan O
(B)WEDGE FORMATION
= 3.2-6-3.649 tan(36'') = 585 psi.

5.2.2 Failure Mtachantsm oF RoUin(; Cutter Bits

frct R V
Rolling cuttcr bits designcd wiih u largc cone nlTscl
(C)FRACTURE anglc fordrilling .soCt fonnalions cmploy all of ihe basic
mcfhunisms of rock rcmoval. Htiwcvcr, the pcrciissicin
orcrushing aclion is ihc prcdominant mcchanism presen!
f(tr the IADC Series 3. 7. and 8 rolling cutter bits. Since
thesc bit types are designeti for u.sc in hard, brittle foniia-
'RbkEf>l BCk'V;-. [ions in which pcnciraiion rates icnd to be low and drili-
I * 'o t* t
ing costs tend lo be ingb, ihe percussion mechanisni is oC
(D)POST-FRACTURE considerable ecotiomic iniercst. Basic experimcnlal tesis
BRITTLE PSEU DO PLASTIC conducted with an instrunienied single tooth inipacting
on a rock samplc havc providcd considerable insighi into
IRE)/
(LQW PRESSURE) \ ( H IGH PRESSURE
ihe basic mode o fiiilure bencatb (be bii tootb. Maiircr.
working with the apparatus shown in Fig. 5.16. studied
bit UMMh penetration under simulaled borehole condi-
tions. Tbis apparaius. unlikc tho.se uscd prior to
Maurcr'.s vvork, allowed the borehole pressure, rock pore
, i 7. t * I . pressure, and rock conllning pressure to be varied in-
dcpcndently Tbe apparatus was equipped with a static
(E') loading device which uscd an air-actuated pistn lo
simlate eonstant forc impacls similar to ihose pro-
duced in rotary drilling, Slrain gauges and a linear poten-
tionieter were used to obtain l'oae displacemeni curves
on an ,v-v plotting oscilloscope.
' I,' Maurcr found that tlie craier mcchanism depended lo
(F)SECOND WED6E -some extcni on ihe pressure dilTereniiai beiween the
V borehole atid the rock pore pressure. Al low vales of
differential pressure. the crushcd rtK'k benealh ibc bit
iiHilh was ejecied fruni the crter, while al high vales of
differeniial pressure Ibe cnished nick deformed in a
plstic manner and was not ejectcd conipleiely fnxn the
(G)EJECTION (6') eraier. The craier mcchanism for boih low and high dif
ferential Huid pressure is describcd m Hig. 5.17. The se-
Fig. 5.17Craier mechanism benealh a bit tooth.' qucnce of events shown m Ibis figure is dcscribed by
Maurer as follows.
As load is applied lo a bii ttmlh (A), ihe coiisiant
pressure bcneath tlie tooth increases until it excceds the
crushing .sirength of the rock and a wedge of finely
powdered rock thcn is foniied benealh the tot)lh (B). As
the forc on the tooth increases. the nutlerial in the
wedge contpresses and exerts high lateral foa-es on the
sol id nick surrounding the wedge until the shear stress r
excceds ihc shear sircngth S of the solid rtvk and ihe
rock fractures (Cl. These fractures propagaie along a
nuisimutu shear surface. which intersect the direction ot
the pnncipal slre.sscs al a nearly constan! angle as
ROTARY DRILLING BITS
10,000
STAT IC INDIANA LIMESTONE
"* 1/16" FLAT
1
8000 AP = 5000 P S I
m 1500
6000 //___y 1
O 1000
OC
O
Li.
I 4000 Isoo
l
O
o 2000 0
l 1 11 / 1
O 04 08 .12 .16
TOOTH PE NE TR AT ION ( IN )
Fig. 5.18Typicat forc displacement curves a s s lunction ot
ditlerenlial mud p r e s s o r e , '
predicied by ihe Mohr failurc critcria. The foruc at which
fraciuring begins bcneath ihc looth is called the neshold
forc. As ihe forcc oti thc tooth increascs above ihe
thrcshold valu, subsequent fracturing occurs in ihc
regin abtwc the inilial fractiirc, forming a zonc of
broken rock (D). Al low difrerential pres.sure, the cut-
tings formed in the zonc of broken r(x:k are ejecied easily
fmm the crter (E). The bit tooth then moves forward
until it rcaches thc bottom of the crter, and thc process
niay be repeated (F.G). At high differential pressures,
the downward pressurc and frictional forces bciwcen thc
rock fragments prcvent ejection of the fragmcnts (E').
As thc forc on thc tooth is incrcased, displaccrncnt take.s
place aiong fracture planes parallel to thc initial fractun;
(F'.C). This gives the appcarance of plstic deforma-
tion, and craters formed in this nianner are called
pseudoplastic cralers. Typical forcc displacement curves
for increasing vales of differential pressurc are shown
in Fig. 5.18.
Examples of craters fomied at both high and low
vales of differential pressurc- are shown in Fig. 5.19.
A 5-nim tungsten carbidc penetrator was loaded to pro
duce failure in a sample of Rush Springs .sandstonc, The
sample was coated with plstic to simlate the buildup of
a mudcake that would prcvent thc wellbtirc fluid from
cntcnng thc porc space uf thc rock and cqualizing ihc
prcssure differential. Thc two craters on thc Icft wcre
madc with thc formal ion at atmosphcric pressurc and
with bit t<Mrth loads of 1,61X) and 2.2(X> Ibf. Thc chips
fomicd wcre removed easily. Thc two craters on the
right wcre made at a pressurc differential of 5,(XX) psi
and bit tooth loads of 3,500 and 4.(XX) Ibf. The material
cxtruded from the cralers that is charactcristic of
pseudoplastic crter fomiation was not removed easily,
although it was weaker than the undisturbed fomialion.
High-speed movies** of full-scac bits drilling at at
mosphcric conditions with air as thc circulaling fluid
have vcrified that thc mcchanisms of failure for rolling
cuitcr bits with litllc or no offset is not ttMi diffcrcnl fmm
that observ'cd in single bit-tooth impaci expcnmcnts.
This is shown in the scquencc of phott)graphs in Figs.
209
1
.20
Courtesy ol Hugties Toot Co.
Fig. 5. 19Exa mple of cralers formed In single-toolh imoact
apparatus.
5.20a and 5.20b. Staning in Photograph 1, a tooth starts
to apply prcssure to the rock as the conc ralis forwand. In
Photograph 4. the thrtshold forc has been transmitted to
the rock and fracture is initiated- In Photograph 5. which
is shown in more dctail in Fig. 5.20b, ejection of the
rock fragments from the crter proceeds in an explosive
manner. Chips continu to be ejected in Photographs 6
through 9 as the tooth sinks furiher into the rock. Final-
ly, in Photograph 10, particle dischargc diminishes and
the next tooth begins to apply forc to thc rock.
The drilling aclion of rolling cutlcr bits dcsigncd wilh
a large offset for drilling soft, plstic formations is con-
siderably more complex than the simple erushing aciion
that results when no offset is uscd. Since each cone alter-
nately rolls and drags, considerable wedging and
twisting action is present. Shown in Fig. 5.21 is a com-
parison of the bottomhole pattems generatcd by a bit
with no offset and a bit with considerable offset. Thc
altemate rolling and dragging action of the high offset
cones is evident from the boitomholc pattem of the bit
tceth.
5.3 Bit Selection and Evaluation
Unfortunately, the selection of the bcst availablc bit for
the job, likc the selection of the bcst drilling Huid or
drilling cement composition, can be determined oniy by
trial and error, Thc most valid tritcrion for comparing
the performance of various bits is thc drilling cost per
unit intcrval drillcd. The cost-pcr-fcH>t fonnula prescnted
in Chap. I (Eq. 1.16) can be uscd for this purpose, Since
no arnount of arithmctic allows us to drill the same scc-
tion of hole more than once, comparisons must be madc
between succceding bits in a given well or bctwcen bits
used to drill the same formations in differcnt wells. Thc
formations drillcd with a given hit on a previous ncarhy
wcll can be correlatcd to thc well in progrcss using well
logs and mud logging records.
Thc initial sclcclion of hit type in a wildcat arca can be
madc on thc basis of what is known about thc fonnatioit
charactcristics and drillmg cost m an arca. Thc tcnns
210
(b)
Fig. 5.20 -Elas c rock failuro benoalh a rclling cultor
high-speed photographic seq ue nces and (b)
enlargement of Seque nce 5 stiowinq ejection o
crushed rock from crter.
APPLIED DRILLING ENGINEERING
usually used by drilling engineers lo describe the fomia-
tion characterstics are driUability and ahrasiveness. The
drillability of the fomiation is a measure of how easy the
formation is to drill. It is inversely related to the com-
pressive strength of the rock, although oihcr factors are
also important. Drillability generally tends to decrease
with depth in a given anea. The abrasiveness of the for
mation is a measure of how rapidly the teeth of a milled
tooth bit will wear when drilling the formation. Although
there are some exceptions, the abrasiveness tends to in-
crease as the drillability decreases. Shown in Table 5.5 is
a listing of bit types often used to drill various formation
types. The formation types are listed approximately in
order of the decreasing drillability and increasing
abrasiveness.
in the absence of prior bit records, several rules of
thumb often are used for initial bit selection. General
rules for bit selection, like rules of grammar, are famous
for the exception to the rules. Thus, the drilling cost per
foot must eventually be the final criterion applicd.
However, the rules indicate certain tendencies shown to
be common on the basis of past experience. Some of the
rules of thumb used by many drilling engineers are as
follows.
I. The lADC classificaiion charts (Tables 5.1 through
5.3) provide an approximate listing of the bit types ap-
plicable in a given formation hardness.
2. The initial bit type and features selccted should be
govemed by bit cost considerations. Premium rolling-
cutter design features and high-cost diamond and PCD
drag bits tend to be more applicable when the daily cost
of the drilling opcration is high. The cost of the bit prob-
ably should not exceed the rig cost per day.
3. Three-cone rolling-cutter bits are the mosl versatile
bit type available and are a good initial choice for the
shallow portion of the well.
4. When using a rolling-cutter bit:
a. Use the longest tooth size possiblc.
b. A small amount of tooth breakage should be
tolerated rather than selecting a shorter tooth size.
c. When enough weight cannol be applicd
economicalty to a milled tooth bit to cause self-
sharpening tooth wear, a longer tooth size should be
used.
d, When the rate of tooth wear is much less than the
rate of bearing wear, select a longer tooth size, a bctter
bearing design, or apply more bit weight.
e. When the rate of bearing wear is much less than
the rate of tooth wear, selcct a shorter tooth size, a more
economical bearing design, or apply less bit weight.
5. Diamond drag bits perform best in nonbrittle fonna-
tions having a plstic mode of failure, especially in ihc
bottom portion of a deep well, where the high cost of
(a) tripping operations favors a long bit life, and a small holc
size favors the simplicity of a drag bit design.
6. PCD drag bits perform best in unifomi sections of
carbonates or evaporites that are not broken up with hard
shale stringers or other brittle rock types.
7. PCD drag bits should not be used in gummy fomia-
tions, which have a strong tendency to stick to ihc bil
cutters.
Since bit selection is done largely by tria! and error,
the importance of carcfully cvaluating a dull bit when it
is removed fmm the well cannot be overstressed. It is
ROTARY DRILLING BITS 211

TABLES.5BIT TYPES OFTEN USED

IN VARIOUS FORMATION TYPES

lADC Bit
ClassHication Formalion
1-1 Sott formalions having low compressive strengtti and high
1-2 drillability (soft shales, clays, red beds, sal, soft limestone,
5-1 unconsolidaled (ormalions, etc.)
6-2

1-3 Soft lo mdium formalions or soft interspersed wllh harder

6-1 streaks (firm, unconsolidated or sandy shales, red beds, sait,
anhydrite, sofi limeslones.elc.)
2~ 1 Mdium to mdium liard tomiations (harder shales, sandy
6-2 shales, shales allernattng with streaks of sand and
limestone, etc.)
2-3 Mdium hard abrasive to hard formatons (higfi compressive
6-2 strength rock, dolomite, hard limestone, hard slaty shale,
etc.)
3-1 Hard semiabrasive (ormalions (hard sandy or chert bearing
7-2 limestone, dolomite, granile, chert, etc.)
3-2 Hard abrasive formations (chert, quartzite, pyrite, granite,
3-4 hard sand rock, etc.)
8-1

also important to maintain careful written records of the
perfonnance of each bit forfuture references. The lADC
has adopied a numetical code for reporting tbe degiee of
bit wear rclative to the (1) tcth, (2) bearings, and (3) bit
diameter (gauge wear) stnicture. Thi.s code allows some
of the more important aspects of bit wear to be quantificd
and logged quickly in the bit repons.
5.3.1 Grading Tfoth Wear
The tooth wea rof milled tooth bits is graded in temis of
the fractiona! tooth heighl that has been wom away and
is rcported to the ncarest eighth. For example, if half the
oiiginal tooth heighl has been wom away, the bit will be
graded as a T-4i.e., the teeth are % wom. Unfottunate-
ly, it is somelimes difficult to characterize the tooth wear
of an entire bit with a single number. Some teeth may be
wom more ihan others, and some may be broken,
Oenerally, the broken teeth are indicated by recording
"BT" in a "remarks" column, and the average wear of
the row of teeth with the most severe wear is reponed.
The best way to obtain the tooth wear is to measure the
tooth height before and afier the bit run. However, with
experience, more rapid visual estimates of tooth condi-
tion can be made using a profile chart guide like the one
shown in Fig. 5.22. Visual estimates are usually
satisfactory whcn a single bit type is used in the well.
Changes in the original tooth heights due to changing bit
types can cause inaccurate visual estimates of tooth
wear.
In some arcas, unacceptably low penetration lates may
occur before the tooth structure is completely wom.
However, the penetration rate of the bit just before pul-

(a) (b)

Fig. 5.21Comparison of bottomhole palterns ol hard and soft formalion rolling cutler bils: (a) hard formation bd (zero cone offset)
and (b) soft formation bit (mximum cone offset)
212
Fig. 5.22 To oth wear guide chart for mllled-tootti bits.
ing ihe bit should not influence the toolh wear evaJua-
tion. There are times when a T-3 will not drill, but this
does not mean it shouid be reported as a T-8.
The cutting stmctures of insert bits generally are too
hard to abrade as significamly as a milled steel tooth.
The tooth inserts become broken or lost rather than
wom. Thus, the tooth wear usually is reported as the
fraction of the total number of inserts that have been
broken or lost to the nearest eighth. Thus, an insert bit
with half the inserts broken or lost would be graded a
T-4i.e., % of the inserts are broken or lost,
5.3.2 Grading Bearng Wear
The field evaluation of bearing wear is very difficuU.
The bit would have to be disassembled to examine the
condition of the bearings and joumals. An examination
of the dull bit will reveal only whether the bearings have
failed orare still intact. Bearing failure usually resuUs in
(1) one or more "locked" cones so that they will no
longer rotate or (2) one or more extremely loose cones so
that the bearings have become exposed (Fig. 5.23).
A bearing failure s reported using the code B-8i.e.,
the bearings are % wom. A slightly loose cone usually is
reponed as a B-7. When bearing wear cannot be
detected, it usually is estimated bascd on the number of
hours of bearing life that the drilling engineer thought the
bearings would last. Linear bearing wear with lime is
assumed in ihis estmate of bearing life. Thus. if a bit
was pulled after 10 hours of operation and the drilling
engineer feit the bearings should have lasted an addi-
tional 10 hours, the bearing wear will be reported as a
B-4. A bearing grading chart such as the one shown in
Counesy cM Sintth Tool Co.
Fig. 5. 23Exa mple of s e v e r e bearing wear.
APPLIED ORILLING ENGINEER1NG
Fig. 5.24 frequently is used in determining the proper
bearing wear code.
5.3.3 Grading Gauge Wear
When the bit wears excessively in the base area of the
rolling cones. the bit will drill an undersized hole. This
can cause damage of the next bit run in the undersized
hole. A ring gauge and a ruler must be used as shown in
Fig. 5,25 to measure the amount of gauge wear, The loss
of diameter is reported to the nearest eighth. Thus, a bit
that has lost 0.5 in, of diameter is graded a G-O-4, The
"O" indicates the bit is "out of gauge" and the "4" in-
dicates the diameter has wom in, An "I" is used to in
dcate an "in-gauge" bit,
In additon tu grading the bearings, teeth, and gauge of
the bit, addtional comments about the bit condition may
be necessary, These remarles about the bit condition
should enable those who subsequently will use the bit
records to visualize readily the actual condition of the
bit. Usted alphabetically in Table 5.6 are some common
abbreviations used to describe the bit condition, Recall
that the ames used to describe various parts of a rol! ing
cutter bit are given in Fig. 5.6.
Example 5.2. Describe the dull bit shown in Fig. 5,26.
The use of a ring gauge indicated that the bit diameter
has wom 1 in, from its initial valu. The roller bearings
have fallen out of the bit, and all the cones are very
loose,
ROTARY DRILLING BITS 213

Soluiion. This bit should be graded using ihe code T-8,

B-8, G-O-8 since the cutting structure is completely
wom, the cones are very loose, and ihe bit is % in. out of
gauge. In addition, " S D " should be placed in the
remarks column to indcate that the shirttai) is damagcd.
The excessive tooth wear and gauge wear on this bit
indicates a poor choice of drlling practices. The cost per
foct for this bit run is probably unnecessarly high due to
extremely low penetration ratas of the end of the bit run.
In addition, the undergauge hole drilled by this bit will
reduce the efficiency of the next bit run by wasting bit
life on leaming operations. A bit with additional gauge
protection would be a better choice for this interval.
5.3.4 Abnormal Bit Wear
The ability to recognize the probable cause of the bit
wear observed generally increases as expericnce is
gained in evaluating dull bits run under various condi-
tions. To provide at least a little of this experiencc,
several bits that illustrate several types of abnormal bit
wear or failure are shown in Figs. 5.27 through 5.30,
Study each picture and attempt lo identify the possible
factors causing the type of wear shown before reading
the discussion that follows.
The type of wear shown in Fig, 5.27 occurs when the
cones are not free to roate. This frequently is caused by
bearing failure. However, in this case the bearings were
in good condition and cone drag was caused by bit ball- CONDITION; O ta OVTOF G A U G t H'
ing. Bit balling usually occurs in very soft, sticky forma- Coune$y o Sdcuiily BMs and Ori!l Tools
tions when sufficient bit weight is applied to bury the
teeth in the formation completely. The tendency for bit Fig. 5.25Determination of gauge wear,

TABLE 5.6COMMON ABBREVIATIONS USED IN

DESCRIBING BIT CONDITION IN DULL BIT EVALUATION
<Courtesy of Hughes Tool Co.)

Location of Conditkjns Hard sandy shale HSSH Broken circumierentally

S Sticky shale STSH Broken spearpoint
Spearpoint
Nos N Chert CHE Cracked
Middie row Chat CHA Eroded cone shell
M
Heel H Granito GRA
G Ouartzile Q
Gauge Gearing Condilions
Cone or head numtjer Pyrile P
1,2,3
Chalk CK Bearing lailure
Classification of Run Broken bearing pin
Bit Body Condilions Broken rollers
Very good Good +
Bent legs BL Compensator plug da maged
Good run Good
Damaged bil DB Cone locked
Atiove average Avg + Lost cone
Eroded nozzle EN
Average run Avg Lost rollers
Below average Lost nozzle LN
Av g - Seal failure
Poor run Poor Plugged nozzle PN
Shirttail damaged SD Seis questionable
Very poor run Poor-
Seis etfeclive
Formations Cone Teeth Condilions

Sand Broken teeth BT

S Journal Bearing Bils
Lime L Balled up BU
Cone dragged CD Seis etfeclive
Sandy lime SL
Ootomlle Cored CR Seis cuestionable
D
Lost/loose compacts LT Seal lailure
Sandy dolomile SD
A OfI-center wear OC Bit rerunable
Anhydrite
Rounded gauge RG Bit nol rerunable
Gypsum G
Sait Uniform wear uw Bit was regreased
SA
Worn oul o( gauge WG PuMed for lorque
Red beds RB
Sfiale SH Pulled on judgment
Hard shale Cone Shell Condilions
HSH (precaution)
Sandy shale SSH Broken axially BA Pulled for penetration rale
214
balling can be reduced by applying less weight or by n-
creasing ihe jet hydraulic cleaning action. A bit with a
central nozzle often reduces the lendency forbii balling.
The type of weai shown in Fig. 5.28 occurs when the
nose areas of the cones are wom away or lost. This frc-
quently occurs because of excessive loads being applied
to the cene tips. The cene tips break, allowing a "core"
of rock to be cut in the center of the bottomhole paitem.
The rock core causes subsequent abrading of inner cone
metal, When this condition is detected, care muM be
taken on ihe next bit run lo eliminate the formation core
on bottom without breaking the cone tips of ihe new bit.
This can be accomplished by breaking in the new bit us-
ing low bit weights and high rotary speeds.
The type of wear shown in Fig. 5.29 occurs when (1)
the driiling fluid contains a high conceniration of
abrasive solids or (2) the circulation rate is exlrcmcly
high. This problem is worse for regular bits than for jet
bits since the fluid strkes directly on the cones of a
regular bit. This problem usually can be eliminaled
ihrough the operation of the driiling fluid desanders.
Off-center bit wear occurs (Fig. 5.30) when the bit
dees not rotate about the true center of the holc. This
causes an oversized hole to be cut and circular ridges to
develop on the bonom of ihe holc. These circular rings
of rock wear away the cone shell area between the tecth
as wel! as the front and back faces of ihe bit teeth. This
problem u.sually indicates the need for a higher pcnetra-
tion rate, which could be achieved by using a bit with a
longer tooth or perhaps by increasing the bit weight,
Also, the bottomhole assembly could be altered to ensure
that the bit is properly stabilized and centered in the
borehole.
5.4 Factors Affecting Tooth Wear
One purpose forevaluating the condition of the dull bit is
to providc insighl about Ihe selcction of a more suitablc
time intcrval of bit use. If the dull bit evaluation in
dicates thal the bit was pulled green (.e,. with con
siderable bit lite remaining), expensive rig time may
AP P LI E D DRILLING E N G I N E E R I N G
have been wasted on unnecessary trip time. However, if
the time intcrval of bit use is increased too much, the bit
may break apart leavingjMn: in the hole. This will re-
quire an additional trip lo fish the junk from ihe hole or
may reduce greatly the efficiency of the next bit if an at-
tempt is made to drill past the junk. Thus, a knowledge
of the instantaneous rate of bit wear is necded to deter
mine how much the time interval of bit use can be in
creased .safely. Since driiling practices are not always the
same for the new and od bit runs, a knowledge of how
the various driiling parameters affect the instantaneous
rate of bit wear also is needed. The rate of tooth wear
depends primarily on (1) fomiation abrasiveness, (2)
tooth geometry, (3) bii weight, (4) rotary speed, and (5)
the cleaning and cooling action of the driiling fluid.
5.4.1 Effecl of Tooth Height
on Rate of Tooth Wear
Campbell and Mitchell*' showed experimcntally that the
rate at which the height of a steel tooth can be abraded
away by a grinding wheel is directly proportional to the
area of the tooth in contad with the grinding wheel. The
shape of steel bit teeth is generally triangular in cross
section when viewed from either a front or side view.
Thus, almost all milled lotilh bits havc teeth thal can be
described using the geometry shown in Fig. 5.31. The
bit tooth initially has a contad area givcn by
*\i-
After removal of tooth heighi, L, of the original tooth
height, L, the bit tooth has a contact area given by
/I = ., vvj. = + ( M' ,2 - w, I)
[iv, I
+
":vi
ROTARY DRILLING BITS 215

Couflesy o( Sdcunty Bit and Drill Tools Courtesy ol Hughea Tool Co.
FIg. 5.28Example of "cored" bit weaf. Fig. 5.29Example of "eroded teeth" bit wear.

The raiio L/L-, is defined as the fractional tooth wear h: If we define the geometry constants C) and G2 by

,h=L,/L (5.4)
G I == [w, ! {w,2 -H'ti) + (w,.2 - H > , 1 ) ] i

Expressing the contact area A in temis of fractional tooth and

wear h yields
G2 = [ (v'.r2 I ) (wy2 "'yI ) j -
- -
A=
+/l(w2-Vxl)][wv| +/i(h'v2-w,,|)]

= + - the contact area A can be exprcsscd by

(>' l ">1 ) [wyl W'jl )
A =A,-( + GI / + G2 )
+ 1
('>2-''vi)]
Since the instantaneous wear rate dh/dt i.s pro[x>rtional to
the inverse of the contact area A,

dh 1
- OC - ,
di A j (\+G \ h +G2

Courtesy o( Hughes Tool Co

Fig. 5.30Example "off-center" bit wear Fig. 5.31Typical shape ol a mided-tooth as a funclion of frac
tional tooth wear. h.
216 APPLIED ORILNG ENGINEERING

The initial wear rate, when /i = O, is proportional 10/4;.

Thus, expressing h/dt in lerms of a standard initial wear
rate (d/i/di) , gives

d>i /d/N 1
(5.5a)
d/
di (I + G ] /i + G2h )

For most bit types, ihe dimensin (ijc2

small compared with (Wy2 wi). This allows a constant
/2 lo be chosen such that the wear rate can be approx-
imated using
oc
( )
dh / *'
dh\ 1
" .(5.5b)
dt df j (I + 7/2 )

The use of Eq. 5.5b in place of Eq. 5.5a greatly

simplifies the calculation of toolh wear as a function of
rotating time, A case-hardened bit tooth or a tooth with
hard facing on one side often will have a self-sharpening
type of toolh wear, Even though the mechanism of self-
sharpening tooth wear is somewhat different Ihan in the
abrasive wear experiments of Campbell and Mitchell, a
constant H2 usually can be selected such that the instan-
taneous wear rate can be predicted using Eq. 5.5b,
Insert teeth used in rolling-cutter bits usually fail by
fracturing of the brittle tungsten carbidc. For this tooth
type. fractional tooth wear, h, represents the fiaction of
Fig. S.32Example cutter wear on a PCD drag bit."" the total number of bit teeth that have been brokcn. The
wear rate {dh/di) does not decrease with increasing frac
tional tooth wear, h. To the contrary. there is some
cvidencc that ihe tooth breakage accelerates as the
number of broken teelh bcneath the bit increases. This
type of behavior could be modeled with a negative valu
for Hi in Eq. 5.5b, However, this phenomenon has not
been studied in detail and in practice a valu of zero is
recommended for H2 when using insert bits.
Diamond bits also wear by breakage or loss of the dia-
mond cutter elements. The wear rate of diamond bits is
thus not sensitive to the fractional cutter wear. The wear
rate of diamond bits is far more sensitive to the amount
h -
~ 7~ of cooling provided by the flow of drilling fluid across
de
the face of the bit.
PCD blanks tend to wear in a manner somewhat
similar to a steel-tooth cutter due to the random orienta-
tion of the individual diamond crystals (Fig. 5.32).
However, the circular shape of the PCD blank provides a
Fig. S.33PCD blank geometry as a function ol traclional cut different relationship between fractional tooth wear, h,
ter wear, h, tor a zero-back-rake angle and cutter contact area. For a zero back-rake angle, the
cutter contact area is proportional to the length of the
chord, defmed by the lower surface of the cutter remain-
ing after rcmoval of the cutter height, (Fig. 5.33),
since the fractional tooth wear, h, given by

d,

and the dimensin y shown in Fig. 5.33 is

y = r,.
(eos I").
 ROTARY DRILNG BITS 217

Thcn Noie ihal dh/dt becomes infiniie for W/d,, = 10. Thus,
this equation predicts ihe leeth would fail instantaneous-
1-cos- ly if 10,000 Ibf/in. of bit diameter were applied. Later
V eos-)
authors" ' used a simpler relation between the weight
di r, and toolh wear rate. Perhaps ihe most commonly used
relation is given by
Solving ihis expression for the subtended angle, /J,
yields dh
dt (5.7a)
--
0 =
12/i (5.5c) (-)
cosy
where (W/di,) is the mximum bit weight per ineh of
Since ihe coniact arca is direcily pmportional to the bit diameter at which the bit leeth would fail instan-
chord length subtended by the angle /5, then taneously and W/df, < (W/di,),. Expressing this rela
........(5.7b) tion in terms of a standard wear rale at 4,tX)0 Ibf/in. of
bit diameter yields
A oc 2
I
"
dh
/dh.
and the wear rate (d/i/d/) is inversely proportiona! to this ot ()
di di
contad area.
d/i dh ,n dh
h / d/i 1
(5.5d) Shown in Table 5.7 is a comparison of the relative wear
t d/ .sin(/3/2) rates predicted by Eqs. 5.6b and 5.7b assuming a mx
imum bit weight of 10,000 Ibf/in. Since somewhat
The wear rale (d/i/dz) decreases with increasing frjc- similar results are obtaincd over the range of conditions
tional totuh wear. h, between O and 0.5. Above ihi.s usually encountered in the Tield. the simpler i>;lation
range, the wear rate inercases with increasing h. given by Eq. 5,7b is more widely u.scd. However,
For nonzero rake angics. the total contad arca of btiih neither Eq. 5.6b or Eq. 5.7b has been verified by
ihc PCD layer and the lungsten carbide subsirate published experimental data.
oc
bccomes (
more complex. Howcvcr, the above analysi.s
remains representalivc of the geonietry of the thin PCD 5.4.3 Effect of Rofary Speed
layer, which is believed to be the predominani contribu- on Rate of Tooth VN'ear
tion to the wear rcsislance of the PCD blank. The first published relation between the instantaneous
rale of tooth wear and the rolary speed aiso was
5.4.2 Effect of Bit Weight n Rate of Toolh Wea r "
presented by Galle and Woods for millcd-tooth bits.
Galle and Wood s " pubhshed one of the first equations The Galle and Wtxxls rclaiion is given by
for prcdicting the effect of bit wcight on the instan-
oc N+434X10-N .(5.8)
taneous rate of tooth wear. The relation assumed by
Galle and Woods is given by d/
However, several more rcccnt authors" " have shown
dh I that essentially the same results can be obtained using the
. . . (5.6a) simpler relation:
di
'Mx) d/i H
oc {N) (5.9a)
dt
where
where //1 is a constant. Also, H [ was IViund to vary with
IV = bit weight in l,(XK)-lbni units.
the bit type used. The Galle and Woods relation applied
di, = bit diameter in inches. and
oniy to milled-tooth bit types designed for use in soft for-
W/d,, < 10.0. mations. Expressing the tooth wear rate in tenns of a
standard wear rate that would occur at 60 rpm yields
The wear rate at various bit wc-ights can be cx|)re.s.scd in
dh / d/i \ "i N
temis of a standard wear rale that would occur for a bit .(5.9b)
weight of 4,000 Ibf/in. Thus, the wear rale relative to di M r 160 / I
ihis standard wear rate is given by
5.4.4 Effect of Hydraulics on Rale of Toolh Wear
The effect of the cix)ling and clcaning action of the drill-
dh 0.3979( )
ing fluid on the cutter wear rale (d/(/dM is much moa-
(5 fth>
di . W . imp<inanl for diamond and PCD drag bits ihan for
rolling-cutlcr bits. Each diamond cuttcr niust receive suf-
ficient flow lo prevenl the buildup of cxccssive cuttcr
 218 APPLIED DRILLING ENGINEERING

TABLE5.7COMPARISON OF EQUATIONS FOR MODELING TABLE 5.8RECOMMENDED TOOTH-WEAR

THE EFFECT OF TOOTH HEIGHT ON TOOTH WEAR RATE PARAMETERS FOR ROLLING-CUTTER BITS

Relative Wear Rate Btl Class H, (W /d),.

k
Bit Weight (Ibf)
per Inch
K/e)J 1-10 1-2
1-3 to 1-4
2-1 lo 2-2
1.90
1.84
1.80
7
6'
5
7.0
0.0
8,5
(W/db) Eq, 5.6b Eq. 5.7b 2-3 1.76 4 9.0
1 0.4 0.7 3-1 1.70 3 10.0
2 0.6 0.8 3-2 1.65 2 10.0
3 08 0.9 3-3 1.60 2 10.0
4 1.0 1.0 4-1 1.50 2 10.0
5 1,3 1.2
6 18 1.5

temperaturas. The flow velocities mu>t also be maiiitain-
ed high enough to prevent clogging of fluid passages
with rock cuttings. The design of (he fluid distribution
passages in a dianiond or PCD drag bit is cxtremely im-
f)orlant and varios considerably among the various bit.s
availabk. Howcver, the manufacturer will generaily
specify the total flow area (TFA) of the fluid distribution
system foreach bit, Inaddition, ihe bit manufacturer will
specify a rccommended drilling-fluid flow rate or
prcssure drop across the bit face.
Mathematical models for estimating the effect of
hydraulic.s on the m e of cutter wear have not yet bcen
employed. The development of such models would be
extremely difficuli because of the wide variety of bit
designs available. It is generally assumed that as long as
j'"df=J2+//2h)h...........
ihe flow is present to clean and to cool the cutters. the ef-
feci of hydraulics on cutter wear rale can be ignored.
The loolh wear rate formula given by Eq. 5.10 has
been normalized so that the abrasiveness constant t /i is
numerically equal to the time in hours required to com-
pletely dull the bit leeth o f the given bit type when
operated at a constant bit weight of 4,000 Ibf/in. and a
constant rotary speed of 60 rpm. The average formation
abrasiveness encountered during a bil run can be
evaluated using Eq. 5.10 and the final tooth wear Itj
observed after pulling the bit. If we define a looth wear
parameterJ2 using
J-y =
() '(i),
M+W-./2'' ...(5.12
() -4

5.4.5 Tooth Wear Equalioti (5.11)

A composite tooth wear equation can be obtained by
Eq. 5.10 can be expressed by
combining the relalions approxiniating the effect of ti>oth
geometry. bit weight, and rotary .speed on the rate o f
tooth wear.Thus, Ihe instanianeous rate of tooth wear
is given by
rt (I

I'-4
d/i 1 /-Vn"' Integraiion of this equation yields
dt
() -O
Tff 60
//, "J; 7/ / (/ l y+ //!/ly/2) (5,12b)
"b m h
Solving for ihe abrasiveness constant Tu gives

/ 1+//2/2v
(5.10) (5.13)
\ 1 a. O- /. /
\+H-,h
where
h == fracttonal toolh heighl that has been wom
Although Eqs, 5.10 thaiugh 5.15 were developed for
away.
t = time, hours use in HKxleling the lo.ss of tooth heighl o f a milled tooth
bit. They have also been applied wilh some dcgree of suc-
= constani.s, cess to describe the loss of insen teeth by breakage. In
ser bits are generally operated at lower rotary speeds
W = bit weight. 1,000-ibf units,
than milied-tooth bits to reduce impact loading on ihe
N - rotary spccd, rpm. and britlle lungslen carbide nserts. In hard formations.
Tu formalion abrasivene.ss constant, hours. mtary .speeds above about 50 rpm may quickiy shatter
The rock bil classitlcalion schcme shown in Tahic 5.3 the inser.
can be used lo characterize the many bil lypes available
from the four major oil manufucturing companies.
Recommcnded vales of H\ . W i. and are
shown in Table 5.8 for the various rolling-cutter rock bil Kuimpti- 5,3. An 8.5-in Class 1-3-1 bit drilled roni a
classes. deplh of 8.179 lo 8,404 fi in 10.5 hours. The average bit
ROTARY DRILLING BITS 219

wcighl and roiary speed used for (he bit run was 45.000 TABLE 5.9RECOMMENDED BEARING WEAR
Ibf and 90 rpm, rcspectively. When the bii was pulled, ii EXPONENT FOR ROLLING-CUTTER BITS
was graded T-5, B-4, G-1. Compute the average forma-
tion abrasiveness for this depth interval. Also estmate Bearing Drilling Fluid
Type Type s.
the time required to dull the tceth completely using ihc
Nonsealed barite mud 1.0 1.0
same bit weight and rotary speed. sulfide mud 1.0 10
water 1.0 1.2
Soluiion. Using Table 5.8 we obtain = 1.84, //2 = ctay/water mud 1.0 1.5
6. and (W/di,), = 8.0. Using Eq. 5.11 we obtain oil-base mud 1.0 20

I.K4 Sealed _ 0.70 0 85

8 . 0 -4 5 / 8 . 5 /60 x
'_ roller bearings
8.0-4.0 90 Sealed - 1.6 1.00
journal tiearings
I
=0.08.
i+6/2 Lummus " has indicated thal too high a jet velocity can
be detrimental to bearing life. Erosin of bit metal can
Solving Eq. 5.13 for the abrasiveness constant using a occur, which leads to failure of the bearing grease seis.
final fractional tooth dullness of % or 0.625 T5) gives In the exainple diseussed by Lummus, this phenomenon
was important for bit hydraulic horsepower vales alxwe
4.5 hp/sq in. of hole bottom. However, a general model
10.5 hours for predicting the effect of hydraulics on bearing wear
0.080(0.625 + 6(0.625)-/2| was not pre.sented.
A bearing wear formula frequently used to e.stimate
= 73.0 hours. bearing life is given by

The time rcquircd to dull the teeth compleieiy (/i/= 1.0) dh l y N W

_
~ I .(5.14)
can be obtaincd from Eq. 5.12: 4/,.
d/ th 60 '
ih = 0.08(73.0)[l +6( 1 )*/2| = 23.4 houri. where
h ~ fractional bearing life that has bcen
consumed,
5.5 Factors Affecting Bearing Wear / = lime, hours,
The piediction of bearing wear is much more dit'ficull N = rotary speed, rpm,
than the prediclion of tooth wear. Like tooih wear, the W = bit weight. 1,000 Ibf,
nstanlaneous rate of bearing wear depends on the cur- df, = bit diameter, inches.
rent condition of the bit. After the bearing surfaces = bearing wear exponents, and
become damaged, the rate of bearing wear increases Tg = bearing constant, hours.
greatly. However, since the bearing .surfaces cannot be Recommended vales of the bearing wear exponent are
cxamined readily dunng ihe dull bit evaluation. a linear
rale of bearing wear usually is assumcd. Also, bearing given in Table 5.9. Note that ihe bearing wear formula
manufacturera have found thai fura given applied forc. given by Eq. 5.14 is normalized so that the bearing con
stant, Tg, is numericaily equal to the life of bearings if
the bearing life can be expresscd in lenus of total revolu-
the bit is operated at 4,000 Ibf/in. and 60 rpm. The bear
tions as long as the rotary speed is low enough to prevent
an excessive lemperalurt: increase. Thus, bit bearing lifc ing con.stant can be cvalualed using Eq. 5.14 and ihe
nesults of a dull bit evaluation. If we define a bearing
usually is assumed to vary linearly with rotary speed. wear parameier Vi using
The three main typcs of bearing asseiiibllcs uscd in
rolling cuttcr bits are (I) nonsealed roller. (2) .sealed
roller, and (3) sealed joumal. The pnce of ihc hit is
lowest for the nonsealed roller and highe.st for the .sealed \ \ W / .(5.15)
joumal.
The effect of bit weight on bearing lfe dcpciids oii the
number and typc of bearings uscd and whether or not the Eq. 5-14 can be exprcssed by
bearings are scalcd. When the bearings are not sealed.
bearing lubrication is accomplished with the drilling
fluid, and the niud properties also affcct bearing life. j dfd/.i,
The hydraulic action of the drilling Huid al ihe hit is
also thought to have stime effeci on bearing life. As llow
whcre b is the final bearing weat observed altcrpulling
rate increasc-s. the ahility ol the Huid to cool the bearings
also incrcases. However. it is generally believed thal Ihe bit.. Integration of this equation yields
tlow niies sulTieiem to lift cutlings will also be sut'llcieni
to prtvent excessive temperature buildup in the Ix'arings. -..........
(5. Ui)
220 AP P LI E D D R I L N G E N GI NE E RI NG

Solving for the bcaring constant Tg gives
The bearing constant for an intcmicdiatc-size
scaled roller-bcaring-type bit is usually ab<iut 45 hours.
An iniermediate-size joumal-type bit usually has a bcar
ing constant of about 100 hours. However. bearing per
formance has a quite large statistical variation. This
"statistical variation"" is probably a function of acciden
tal damage to the bearing seis (1) when the bit is run in
the hele, (2) when the bit is placed on bottom and the
new bottomhole pattem is established, or (3) when the
bit is not Miabilized properly. Also, the numerical valu
of the bearing constant depcnds on the selected valu of
the bearing wear exponents B\ and Bj.
life can be established oniy after enough wells are drilled
in the area to define the lithologic variations. For exam-
ple, it is sometimes desirable to drill an abrasive fomia-
tion with an alrcady dull bil and then place a sharp bit in
the next shale section. Altematively. it may be best to
termnate a bit run in order lo place a hard formation bit
in an extremely hard abrasive section where severe
gauge problems are likely to develop.
Example 5.5. Detemiinc the optimum bit life tbr the bit
r\in described in the table below. The lithology is known
to be essentially uniform in this arta. The tooth wear
parameter has a valu of 0.4, the constant /Yi has a
valu of 6.0, and the bearing wear parameter J- has a
valu of 0.55. The fomiation abiasiveness constant Tf
has a valu of 50 hours. and the bearing constant Tg has
a valu of 30 hours. The bit cost is $800, the rig cost is
$600/hr, and the trip time is 10 hours.

ELxample 5.4. Compute the bearing constant tor a Footage Drilling Time Solutinn.
AD
7.875-in.. Class 6-1-6 (sealed joumal bearings) bit that '/.+'<

(ft) (hours) Remarks The lim

was gradcd T-5. B-6, G-I after drilling 64 hours at
30,000 Ibf and 70 rpm. 0 0 New bit
e require
30 2.0
Solulitm. From Table 5.9, fi) = l.andfli = LO. Us- 50 4.0
d to wear
ing Eq. 5.15, we obtain 65 6 0
77 8.0 out the t
87 10.0
96 12.0 eeth can
104 14.0
111 16.0 Torquc increased be
Solving Eq- 5.17 for the bearing constant using h/ = % conipuie
yields d using Eq. 5.12;
64 hours ,,, =(0.4)(50)[ 1 -l-6( I)-/2j -80 hours.
7b=-= 104 hours.
0.820(0.75)
The time required to wear out the bearings can be coni-
puted using Eq. 5.16:
5.6 Terminating a BU Run r/, =0.55 (30 )(l)= l6.5 hours.
There is almost always some uncertainty about the best
time lo temiinate a bit run and begin tripping operations. The cost per foot of the bit run at various depihs can be
The use of the looth wear and bearing wear equations computed using Eq. 1.16. Thus. the overall cost per foot
will provide, at best, a rough eslimate of when the bit of the bit run that would result if the bit were pulled at
will be completely wom. In addition, it is helpful to the various depths shown are as follows.
monitor the rotary table torquc, When ihe bearings
heconic badly wom. onc or moit of ihc cones Irequently
will lock and cause a sudden incrcase or large lluctuation Footage Drilling Time Drilling Cos
in tlic roiary torque needed to mtatc the bii. AD '/)
When the peneiration rate decreases rapidly as bit wear (rt) (hours) <S/fl)
procrcsscs. i[ niay be advisable t pul the bil bcfoa' il is 0 0 0.0
completcly wom. If the liihology is somewhat unifomi. 2.0 266.66
the total drilling cost can be minimized by minimizing 50 4.0 184.(K)
the cost of each bit run. In this case, the best time to ter 65 6.0 I60.{X)
mnale the hit run can be dctemiincd by keeping a cur- 77 8.0 150.65
rent estimaie of the cos per foot for the bit run. assuming 87 10 0 147,12
tha! ihe bit would lie pulled at the currenl dcpth. Kven if 96 12.0 145.83
signilicani bit Mfe remains, the bit should be pulled when 104 14.0 146.15
the coniputed cost per fool begins tt increasc. However, 111 16.0 147,75
if the liihology is nol unifomi, this procedure will not Note thai the lowest drilling cost would have resulteil if
always result in the minimuii) total well cost. In this the hit was pulled after 12 hours.
case, an eficctive criterion for detennining opiimunt bit
ROTARY DRILLING BITS
Altentaie Solution. Ii usual ly is easier for field personnci
t deiermine the point of m ni mum drilling cost using a
graphical pnocedure. Eq. 1.16 can be rearranged to give
Ch
+'/ +('/,+'<)
_ r_
Cr D
Thus, if Ch/Cr+ti+(ih +tc) is plotted vs. AD, the cost
per fool will be a minimu m when the slope
A D / ( C h / C r + t , +/(, ) is a mximum.
C/, 800
+ , = - + 10 = 11.33 hours,
Cr 600
This is plotted as a negative offset m the graphicai con-
struction shown in Fig. 5.34. Next, footage drillcd is
plotted vs. time and the mximum slopc of a line starting
at -11.33 hours is noted. Th e plot in Fig. 5.34 indicates
a mximum slope aftcr about 12 hours or96 ft.
5.7 Factors Affecting Penetration Rate
The rate of penetration acheved with the bit, as well as
the rate of bit wear, has an obvious and direct bearing on
ihc COSI per fool drillcd. The most important variables af
fecting peneiration rate that have been identified and
siudied includc (1) bit type. (2) Formaiion charactcris-
tics, (3) drilling Huid propcrties. (4) bit operating condi-
tion.s (bit weight and rotary speed), (5) bit itwth wear,
and (6) bit hydraulics.
A considerable amount of experimental work has bcen
done lo study the effect of thcse variables on drilling
rate. In most of this experimental work, the effect of a
single variable was studied while holding the other
variables conslant.
5.7.1 Bit Typ e
The bit type .seiccted has a large effect on peneiration
rale. For rolling cutter bits, the initial penetration rale is
often highest in a given formation when using bits with
long teeth and a large cone offset angle. However, thesc
bits are practical only in soft formations bccause of a
rapid tooth destruclion and decline in penetration rale in
hard fomiations. The lowest cost per fiwt drilled usually
is obtained when using the longest tooth bit that will give
a tooth life consistent with the bearing life at optimum bii
operating condilions.
Drag bits are dcsigncd lo obtain a given penetration
rale. As di.scussed previously, drag bits give a wedging-
typc rock failure in which ihc bit penetration per n;volu-
lion depends on the n u m b e r o f blades and the bottom cut-
ling angle. The dianiond and PCD bits are designed for a
given penetration per rvvolulion by the selection of ihc
sizc and number of diamonds or PCD blanks. The width
and number of cutlcrs can be used to compute the effec-
livc number of blades. The lenglh of the cutters project-
ing from ihc face of the bit (less the bottom clearancc)
limits ihe deplh of the cut.
5.7.2 Fo rmat i on Ch a r a ct c ri s t i cs
The ctasiic limit and ultmate sirength of the fomiaiion
are ihe most nuportant fomiation propcrties affecting
penetration rate. The shear strength predicted by the
221
TIME, HOUflS
F ig. 5 . 3 4 G r a p h i c a l d e t e r m i n a t o n of oplima l bit lile in unifor m
lit hology.
Mohr failure en t e n a sometimes is used to characterizc
the strength of the formation. Mau rer ' has reponed that
the crter volume produced beneath a single tooth is in-
versely proponional to both the compressive strength of
the rock and the shear strength of the rock. Bingham '"
found that the threshold forc required to initiate drilling
in a given rock at atmospheric pressure coiild be cor-
related to the shear strength of the rock as determincd in
a compression test at atmospheric pressure. To deter
mine the shear strength froni a single compression test,
an average angle o f iiUemal friction of 35 was as.sumed.
The angle of intcmal friclion vanes from about 30 to 40
for most iTK-'ks. Applying Eq. 5.3b for a standard com
pression test at atmospheric pressure ( o j = 0 ) gives
T(] = '/[(0| 0) sin (90-0) = eos 6.
2
The threshold forc or bit weight ( W/d), required lo in
itiate drilling was obtained by plotting drilling rate as a
function of bit weight per bit diameter and Ihen ex-
trapolating back to a zero drilling rate. The laboratory
correlation obtained in this manner is shown in Fig.
5.35.
The permcabiiity o f the fomiation also has a signifi-
cant effect on the penetration rate. In permeable rocks,
the drilling fluid fltrate can move into the rock ahead of
the bit and equalize the pressure differential acting on the
chips formcd beneath cach to<.)th. Thi.s would tcnd to pro-
mote ihe more explosive elastic mude of crter fonnatioii
described in Fig 5.17. It also can be argued that the
nature o f the fluids containcd in the porc spaces o f the
rock also affects this nicchanism .since more fltrate
volume would be rtquircd lo equalize the pressure in a
rock containing gas ihan in a rcKk containing liquid.
The mineral composition of the rock also has some ef
fect on penetration rate. Rocks containing hard. abrasivc
minerals can cause rapid dulling of ihc bit tceih R(X-ks
containing gu mmy clay minenils can cause ihc bit to ball
up and drill in a very inefficicnt manner.
5. 7. 3 Drilliii}> Fluid Propcrties
The propcrties of the drilling Huid reponed lo affect ilic
penetration rate include <1) dcnsity, (2) rhcological llow
222 APPLIED OniLLING ENGINEEFItNG

propeitics, (3) filtration charactcrisiics, (4) solids con-

lent and size disiribution. and (5) chcniical composition.
Penciration rate tends to dccreasc wlih increasing tluid
densily, viscosity, and solids conicnl. and icnds to in-
crease with increasing filtration rale. The dcnsity, solids
conten, and filtration characteristics of the mud control
the pressure ditTeremial across the z-onc of crushed rock
beneath ihc bit. The fluid viscosity controls ihe parasiiic
frictional losses in the drillstring and, Ihus. the hydraulic
cnergy availablc at the bit jets forcleaning. There is aiso
experimental evidencethal increasing visco.sity
reduces penetration rate even when the bit is perfectly
Atmospheric Pressure clean. The chemical composition of the fluid has an ef-
fect on penetration rate in that the hydralion rate and bit
balling tendency of some clays are affeccd by the
chemical composition of the fluid.
Pink Quortzite It has been reported that (he prcscnce of colloid-sic
particles, which are less than 1 micron (l //m), are an
orderof magnitude more detrimental to penetration rate
Ihan are panicles coarser than about 30 ftni. It is believcd
ihat the colloidal particles are much more cfficicnt at
Rush Springs Sondstone plugging off the filtration beneath the bit. The develop-
ment of the nondispersed, polymer muds discussed in
Sections 2.3.9 through 2.3.11 of Chap. 2 was airned at
Anhydrite reducing the concentration of colloidal-size particles
present.
The cffect of drilling fluid density and the rcsulting
Berea Sandstone
boitomhole pressure on rate has been studied
'* penetration
by several authors. The previously di.scussed c\-
Corthage Marbie
periments of Maurer, which werc conducicd using a
single bit tooth under simulated borchole conditions.
-1-1_I_I_I < have provided soine insight into the mechanism by
which an increase in drilling fluid dcnsity causes a
O 40 80 120 160 200 240 2 80 320
decrease in penetration rate for Rilling cutter bits. An in
crease in drilling fluid dcnsity causes an increase in the
boitomhole pressure beneath itie bit and, ihus, an in-
'-rease in the pressure differential between the borchole
Fig. 5.35Relation between rock shear sirength aod Ihreshold pressure and the fomiation fluid pressure. This pressure
bit weighi at almosphecic pressure differential between the borehole pressure and fonnation

PSI

Fig. 5.36EMect ol overbalance on dnlliiig rale in Serea sandsione tor clay/water mud and 1.25-in roll
irig culler bit.
ROTARY DRILLING BITS 223

fluid prcssure often is called ihe overbaUince. Recall he

change in the crter formation mcchanism wiih increas-
ingovcrbalance described in Fig. 5.17. The Mohrfailure
criteria given by Eq. 5.3 prcdicts a similar effect o ovcr
balance on drag bit performance. The normal stress at
the failure plae a., for a wedging-type failure
mechanism is directly related to overbalance.
Cunningham and Eenink," working with a 1.25-
in.-diameter rolling cutter bit in a laboratory drilling
machine, studied the effect of overbalance on penetra-
tion rate for a wide range of rock permeabilities. Data
obtained in Berea sandstone having a permeability in the 2 r
range of 150 to 450 md are shown in Fig. 5 .36 for a wide
range of borehole and formation fluid pressures. Note
that a good corrclation is obtained when the data are
replotted with drilling rate as a function of overbalance (T
I
iPhh~P/)- Data obtained in Indiana limestone having a
permeability of 8 to 10 nid are shown in Fig. 5.37 and
are similar to those obtained in the Berea sandstone. INDIANA LIMESTONE
which had a much higher permeabiiity. Apparently, for LU W- 1 00 0 Ibf
mation damage beneath the bit caused by ihe deposiiion !- 50 RPM
<
of a filter cake of mud and formation solids prevented a ir
flow of mud fltrate ahead of the bit sufficient to equalize o
the pressure differential. Note that the effect of ovcr
balance on penetration rate is more pronounced at low
vales of overbalance than at high vales of overbalance.
cr
If the overbalance is quite large. additional incrcases in o
overbalance have essentially no effect on penetration
rate.
Gamier and van Lingen have publishcd laboratory
dala obtained using both small drag bits and rolling cut
ter bits in a laboratory drilling apparatus. Thcy conclud- 10 00 2000 3000 4000 5000

cd ihat the effective overbalance during chip removal by
a drag bit often can be greater than the difference be-
tween the static borehole and rock pore pressures. When
a chip is being lifted, a vacuum can be created under the
chip unless sufficient liquid can be supplied to fill the
- DIFFERENTIAL PRESSURE- PSl
Fig. S.37Effect of overbalance on dritling rale in Indiana
limestone for claywater mud and 1.25-in. folling cui
tar bit

E Qii
Cornpressive Prmeo&iity porofiry wtqhl
tfrnglh md % *0
3,600 <0.05 05 700
4,250 1 00 na 500
i (,000 9 00 18 0 300

25 50 75 125

(Pbh = P) PRESSURE (kg/cm)

Fiq. 5.38Eltect ol dniling Huid and rock permeability on eflective overtolance (al 32 rpm)
224 APPLIED DRILLING NGINEERING

100 r opcning void spacc. The liquid can be supplied oniy by

(1) drilling fluid llowing througli the fracture. (2) drilling
fluid fillrdie flowing ihmugh thc p<ircs of ihc chip, and
80 (3) fomiaiion fluid flowing inlo thc void from thc i\>ck
bencath the chip. When drilling a rock of low
pemieabiliiy wiih u clay/water mud. which readily form.-i
a filtcr eakc. the flow o f liquid into ihe void bcneath ihe
60
chip was found to be too slow to prcvcni a ptiessure
tieduction bcneath the chip. This was indicalcd by ihc
data shown in Fig. 5.38, which were obtaincd wiih thc
40 static pore pressure and wcllbore ptx:ssure niainlained al
32 rpm the same valu. Note that when inud is used as the drill
Atmospheric Pore Pressure
ing fluid, penetration rate decreased wiih increasing mud
o Obrnkirchener Sandstone Bit Lood 300 kg
20 - Vaurion Umestone Bit Lood SOOkg pressuiie, even though ihe static overbalance remained
Beigion Umestone Bit Load 700Kg consiani. This indicatcs that the cffective dynatnic ovcr-
balancc during chip formalion was greater ihan the static
_L X _L _L overbalance. When water was used as the drilling (luid,
O 25 50 75 100 125 pressure equalization bencath thc chip was more rapid
for the aKks of inodcralc p>cmicabiliiy, and penetration
(a) DRAG B I T rate remained constanl with increasing mud pressure.
To obtain the effect of ovcrbalance on penetration rate
for a drag bit, Gamier and van Lingen operated their
drilling machine al various levis of boreholc pressure
while maintaining the pore pressure constanl at at
L mospheric pressure. Since ihe pore pressure was already
- quite low. the dynamic and static overbalance were
< essentially equal. Shown in Fig, 5.39 are the results ob
ir taincd using a 1,25-in. dtiublc-blade drag bit. .Mso
shown for comparison ate similar dala obtaincd using a
diamond core bit and a 3%-in. triconc rolling cutlcr hit.
Laboraiory data on ihc effect of ovcrbalance un
< penetration rale were rccently obtaincd by using full-
o: scale bits in a high-pressure wcllbore .simulator.
H
Ll) Typical experimental results obtaincd in Collon sand-
2 Slone. which had an unconlned compressive strenglh of
L 7,600 psi and a pcmicability of 40 ;id, are shown in Fig,
O. 5.40. Note that thesc icsts confiniicd ihc behavior
ob.scrvcd in the prcvious sinall-scalc laboratory le.sts.
O 5 10 15 20 Sonie lleld data on thc effect of overbalance on
(b) DIAMOND CORE B T penetration rate are aiso availabic. The effect of ovcr
balance on penetration rale in shale on sevcn wells
100. drilled in .south Louisiana was studied by Vidrinc and
Benii, Data obtaincd on Wcll D at a depth of aboul
12,000 ft with an t(.5-in.-diameter nilling cutlcr bit aa'
shown in Fig. 5.41. Note that ihe shape of the curve i-S
quite similar lo the laboraiory data of Cunninghain and
Eenink. This type of behavior is accepted widely by ficld
drilling personnel familiar with changes in pcnctratiun
rate due to changes in mud tlcnsity.

Bourgoyne and Youtig obscrved that thc relalion bc-
tween overpressurc and fKnclration rate could be
representcd appro\imaicly by a straight linc on scmilog
paper for the range of ovcrbalance coniinonly used in
lleld practice. In uddition, they suggeslcd nonnali/ing
32 r p r
20 ihe penetration rate dala by dividing by the penetration
Atrnospheric Pore Pressure
" rale corresptinding to zcro ovcrbalance (boreholc
3 7/6 Convenflonoi Roller Bit
Selgion Limestone Bit Lood l500Kg pressure equal to fonnation Huid pressure). Thc data
J_I_L givcn in Figs. 5.37 through 5.41 are presented as sug
O 5 10 15 20 25 geslcd by Bourgoyne and Young in Fig 5 42, N(Hc that
a reasoiiably accuratc straight-linc rcprescniation cif thc
OVERBALANCE, kg/cm
data .. possible for modrate vales of ovcriialancc. Thc
( C ) ROLLNG CUTTER BIT equation for the .straight linc show n in Fig. 5..V5 i.s givcn
Fig. 5.39Compartson ol effect ol overbalance on peneiralion by
tale" (5.1Xa)
log(///(i )= -/>, ).
ROTARY DRILLING BITS 225

200
1 1 I 1
tr
X WELL D
> 160 db - 6.5 in
- 45k. Ibf
\
\
- I40rpm
u = 4.89 hp/it>?
120
COnON SONOSTONE <
N GO RPM CC.
80
O
Z
40
tr
o 1 1 1 1
-4 0 4 8 12
DIFFERENTIAL 16
1000 2000 4000 5000 (Pbh-Pf
Dlf'FERENTIAL PRESSURE ( PSI ) PRESSURE {100 PSI )
Fig. 5.40Peneiralicn rate as a funclion of pressure over- Fig. 5.41 Red measurement ol the elfect of ouerbatance on
batance for Cotton sandstone. penetration rale in shale.

where Bourgojiie and Young cho.sc to rcplaec the comhinaiion

K = penetratc ratc, ofconstanis 0,052?i) by a single ajeftlcicnl W4-
i.) = penetration rate at zero ovcrbalancc.
-p,.) 15.18b)
Phh ~ bottomholc pres.surc in thc tK)rehole,
= forrnalion fluid pressure, and This expre.ssion is useful for relating changcs in mud
Pf
m = thc slope ol the linc. density or pcirc pressure gradient to changcs in peneira-
lion rute.
If we cxprcss overbalancc ii) lemis of equivaicni cr-
culaling miid iJensity p, and piire pressure gradient
we obtain
Example 5.6. The slope of the shale linc in Fig. 5.42 has
a valu of 0,000666. Evalate the coelficient 4 for
(/'Wi-/'/)=0.052 this valu of m and esiimatc thc change in penetration
rate in this shale at 12,000 ft to be expected if thc mud
Substituting this expression Ibr ovcrbalance in Eq. 5.18a
density is increased from 12 to 13 Ibtn/gal. Thc curren!
gives
penetration rate in shale is 20 ft/hr,
log(/?//?,})=-0.052wD<P( -f,) Sotution. The coefflcient 4 is givcn by

=0.052(D(,-p. ). 4 -0.052(0.000666) = 35 x 10 .

Orag BitFig, S.39a

Diamond BitFig. 5.39b
Roiling Cutter BilFig. 5 39c
Rolling Cuttef BitFig. 5.36
Roiling Cullef BilFig. 5.37
Rolling Culter BilFig. 5.41 (shale)
'so- Rolling CuHer BilFig. 5.10
a: ir
o
o
-I -I

-2 X J
500 1000 1500 2000 2500
OVERBALANCE- PSI
Fig. 5.42Exponential relation tjelween peneiralion rate arid overDalance for rollino cutter biis
226 APPLIED DRILLING ENGINEERING

Flg, 5.43Typical response ol penetration rate to increasng bit Fig. 5.44Typical response of penetration rate to increasng
weight. rotary speed

Eq. 5.18b can be rearranged using the definition of a of bit weight (Segment de). This type of behavior often
common logarithm in lerms of thc initial penetration rate is called hi flourulerin. The peor response of penetra
RI and mud density p \ lo give tion rale at high vales of bit weight usually is attributed
to less efficient bottomhole eleaning at higher rales of
/f, =Ro X 1003",)(sp-0|) cuttings generation or to a complete penetration of the
cutting elemeni inio the hole boitom.
Similarly, forthe final penetration race fii nd mud den A typical plot of penetration rate vs. toiary speed ob
sity pj, we obtain tained with all other drilling variables held constant is
shown in Fig. 5.44. Penetration rate usually increases
linearly with rotary speed at low vales of rotary .speed.
At higher vales of rotary speed. the iiesponse of penetra
Dividing ihc cquation for by thc cquation for tion rate to ncrea,sing rotary speed diminishes. The poor
gives response of penetration rate at high vales of rotary
speed usually is also attributed to less efficicni btit-
Al lomhole eleaning.
_1_ 2.303i4D(p I Maurer developed a theoretical cquation for rolling
t cutier bits relating penetration rate to bit weight, mtary
speed, bit size, and rock strength. The equation was
Solving for the final penetration rate Ri yields derived from the following observation made in single-
looth impact exf)eriments.
I. The crater volume is proporlional to the square of
= 7,60 ft/hr. the depth o f cutter penetration.
_2ojf3 30.H35xlO"''!2.OOHt2-l3)j 2. The depth of cutier penetration is inversely propor-
tional to thc rock strenglh,
For these conditions, ihe penetration rate R is given by

5.7.4 Operating ('onditions K xW

R = ---( ) J - (5.19)
The effcct of bit weight and rotary speed on penetration
rate has been studied by numerous authors both in the
laUiralory and in the field. Typically, a plot of penetra where
tion rate vs. bii weight obtained experimentally with all K = constant of proportionality.
other drling variables held constant has thc S = compressive strength ol the rock,
characteristic shape shown in Fig. 5.43. No significant
If = bit weight,
penetration rate is obtained until the threshod bit weight = threshod bit weight,
is applied (Point a). Penetration rate ihen increases
d, = bit diameter, and
rapidly with increasing vales of bit weight for moderate
vales of bit weight (Segment ab). A linear curve isoften N = rotary speed.
observed at modrale bit weights (Segment be). This theoretical relalion assumes perfect bottomhole
Howcver, at higher vales of bit weight, subsequent in- eleaning and incomplelc bit tooth penetration.
crease in bit weight causes only slight improvemenis in The theoretical equation of Maurer can be verified us
penetration rate (Segment cd). In some cases, a decrease ing experimental dala obtained at relatively low bit
in penetration rate is observed al extremely high vales weight and rotary speeds correspondmg to Segment ab in
ROTARY DRILLING BITS
Figs, 5.43 a nd 5 . 4 4 . Al mo d c r j t e va les of bit we ig ht .
thc wcight e x p o n c n t usually is o b s c rvc d lo be clo.ser to a
vale o l'o n c (han ihc va lu of lw o prcd icted by Eq, 5 . 1 9 .
Al h ig he r va le s of bit we ig h i, a w cight e xp o ne n ! of lcs.s
Ihan o ne usually is ind ica ied. Bingham'" s ugge s ted thc
fo llow ing drilling e q ua iio n o n thc basis of c o ns ide ra b le
laboratory a nd fleid data.
= N, .(5.20)
A'()
whetie K is the co ns ta nt o f p r o p o n io na lit y that inc ludes
ihc effect o f rock s trc n gt h. and is the bit weighi
e xp o ne nt.
1n this cq ua tio n the thres ho ld bit w e ig ht was a s s u mc d
to be ne gligib lc a nd thc bit we ight e xp o nc nt mus be
d c ie miin e d e xp e r ime nta lly for the pre va iling c nnd itio ns.
H o w e v c r, a c o ns ta nt rotary speed e xpo ne n ! of o ne was
used in ihe B in g ha m c q ua tio n e v e n iho ugh s o me of his
data s h o w e d b e ha v io r s i mila r lo that dcsc rib ed by Scg-
me nt be in Fig. 5 . 4 4 .
Mo re rece nlly, sc vcra l a ut ho rs ha ve p rop ose d the
d e te miina t io n of btHh a bit w e ig h i e xp o ne n l and a rotary
speed e xp o nc nt us ing da la represe ntative o f ihc prevail
ing co nd itio ns. Young'- has pio ncensd the d e vc lo p me n t
of a c o mp u le r iz e d dtiiling c o ntro l s ys te m in w h ic h bo ih
the bit wcight and rotary spee d could be varied
sysietTiatically w he n a ne w forma l ion typc was en-
co unte nid and thc bit w e ig ht a nd rolary speed e xp o nc nt
auto niatica lly c o inp ute d fro m thc o b s c rvc d pc nctrat io n
rale rcsponsc. Va le s of the bit we ig ht e xp o nc nt ob-
taincd fro m ficid da ta ra nge fro m 0 . 6 to 2 . 0 . while
vales o f the rotary speed e xp o nc nt range fnim 0 , 4
lo 0 . 9 .
Freq ue ni c h a n g e s in litholo gy w ith dcpth can ma k c it
difficult 10 e va la te the bit w e ig ht and rotary sp ee d e x-
po nc nls fro m a series of pc netratio n rate me a s u rc mc n is
made at variou.s bit wc ights a nd rolary sp ced s, In ma ny
ca.ses. thc litholo gy ma y c h a n g e b e fo re thc tests are c o m-
plelcd. To o v e r c o me this p r o b ie m, a d r l l o j f test ca n be
p e rfb mic d . A d r illo ff test c o ns ists of ap p iy in g a large
wcight to the bit and thcn lo ck in g the b rakc a nd mo nito r-
ing thc decrea.se in bit w c ig ht w iih time w hiie ma inta in-
ing a co nsta nt rotary sp eed. Hook's law of ela.sticity then
can be applicd lo c o mp u t e the a nio unt the drillstring has
stretchcd as the w c ig ht o n the bit d e c re a se d and the ho o k
load incrcased. In this ma n n e r. ihc rcsp o nsc in pcnctra
tion ratc to c ha n g in g bit wc ight ca n be d e lc mi in c d tivcr u
very short dcpth interval.
Ho k 's law states that thc c h a n g c in stress is d ireclly
proportional to the c h a n g c in sirain.
iiu = EAt (5,21)
Fo r the case o f axial te ns i n in a drills tring, the stress
c ha n gc is equal lo thc c ha n ge in bit wc ight (axial te nsin)
dividcd by thc cross-.sccliona! a rca of thc drillp ipe. Thc
c ha n ge in strain is equal to thc c ha n gc in drillpipe Icngth
per unil Icngth T h u s . HcKik's la\v b e c o mc s
AW AL
' '
A, L bul at thc s a me bit we ig ht .
227
So lving this c xp re s s io n for AL gi vcs
AL = -AW
,
T he a ve ra ge pe nc ira t io n rate o b s e rve d fo r the c ha n gc in
bit we ig ht AW c a n be o b t a i ne d by d ivid in g this cquati()n
by the t i me interval A t req uired to drill o ff AW.
AW L AW
R =
At EA, Ai
Ra nge 2 drillp ipe has tooi j o i n l up scts overabout 5 % o f
its Icngth t hat ha ve a mu c h g re a t e r cross-sect io na l arca
than the p ipe bod y a nd csscnt ia lly d o nol contrib utc to
thc length c ha n g e o b s e r v e d . Re p la c ing L by 0.95 givcs
AW
K = 0.95 (5.22)
EAf A t
The length c h a n g e of t he drill co llars is al.so small and
can be i g no re d .
C a r e must be take n to estab lis h the b o t lo mh o lc pat tc m
of the bit at t he initial bit w e i g ht of thc test before per-
fonming the drillo ff test. Ihc fo llow ing p roccd urc was
ada pt ed fro m a C h e v r o n U.S.A.-'' rec o ni mc ndc d prac-
tice.
1. Select a dept h to nm the drillo ff test w he re a .section
of u n ifo r m litho logy (us ua lly shale) is c xp e c t e d .
2. W h i l e drilling w it h t hc bit weight c urre nt ly in use.
lock t he brak e and d c t e n n i n c the lime required to drill o ff
10% of this we ig ht . T h i s is c a lle d thc c ha ra c t c ns t ic lime
3. Inc rease thc bit w e i g ht to thc initial valu o f thc
drillo ff test. Th is initial va l u s ho uld be at least a 20
increase in bit w e i g ht o v c r the bit wc ig ht curre ntly in
use.
4. Drill at this bit w c i g h t lo n g e no ug h to establish thc
new b o t t o mh o le p a t t c m of thc bit. T h c tiinc a llowcd is
usually o ne c ha ract e ris t ic li me pe r 10% increase in bit
w c i g h t c . g . , a t i me interva l of t wicc the c haractcristic
time wo uld he used for a 20% increase in bit wcighl.
5. Lt Kk t hc b ra ke a n d ma int a in a co nsta nt rotary
speed. Rec ord thc t i me e ac h t ime thc bit wc ight falls o ff
4.0(X) Ibf. If the w e i g h t i nd ic a lo r is fluct ua t ing. use Ihc
mid p o in i o f thc (luc t ua t io ns as thc bii we ight. Co nt i nu
the test until ut Icasi 50 of thc initial hil weight has
been drilled off.
6. M a k e a plot o f Al vs. W o r R vs. W using log-log
grap h paper, A s lra ight-linc plot should resuli ha vmg a
slopc equal to thc bit w c i g ht e xp o nc nt. De vial ion fnw i
straight linc b e ha v io r ir.ay o c c u r al high bit wcights if bit
flo unde ring occ urs or is i mp c nd i n g,
7. If t ime pc rmit s. repeal the test at a different rotary
speed. If bit flo und e rin g ( n o n l i n c a r b e ha v io r al high bii
weights) was ob.servcd in thc initial test, use a lowc r
rotary .speed in ihc .sccond test, If no bit l l o u n d c n n g (k-
curred in t he initial test, u.sc a hi g he r mt a r y speed in thc
sccond test.
Thc rotary spccd c xp o nc n i can be )b ia med using
penctr4tion rates o b t a ine d al iw o different rtMary specils
228 APPLIED DRILLING ENGINEERING

TABLE5.10EXAMPLE DRILLOFF TEST ANALYSIS

N=150 N=-100
Average Elapsed Elapsed
Weight Bi! Weight Time di R Time Al R
DOO lbf> (1,000 Ibf) (seconds) (seconds (tt/hf) (seconds (seconds) (tt/hr)
76 0 0
74 52 16,6 54 16,6
72 52 54
70 53 16.6 60 14,4
68 105 114
66 55 15,7 66 13,1
64 160 180
62 5B 14.9 73 11.8
60 218 253
58 63 13,7 81 10.7
56 281 334
54 71 12.2 90 9.6
52 352 424
50 80 10.8 101 8.6
48 432 525
46 90 9,6 116 74
44 522 641
42 104 8,3 132 65
40 626 773
38 120 7.2
36 746

Solurion. The penelration rale can be evaluated u.sing

Eq- 5.21:
Ewmple 5.7. Using the following drilloff test data.
evalate the bit weight exponcnl and rotary speed expo-
nent. The length o f drillpipc at the time of the test was L AIV
10,000 ft, and the drillpipc has a cross-sectional arca of
5.275 sq in. Yo u n g 's modulus for sieel is 30x10''. EA M
Assumc ihat the thrcshcld bit weight is zero.
10.(X)0 4.000 0.24
Test No. 1 (rotary speed = 150 rpni) = 0.95--- =-
30(10)'5.275 Al Al
Bit Weight Elapsed Time
(1,000 Ibm) (seconds) If we express R in units of feet per hour and Ai in
76 0 seconds. this expression beconies
72 52
68 105 0.24 / 3,600 seconds \ 864
R =-(-)=-.
64 160
Ai 1 hour Al
60 218
56 281
52 352 The drilloff test dala have been evaluated using thi.s ex
48 432 pression in Table 5.10.
44 522 A plot of penelration rale vs. average bit weight can be
40 626 constructed on lug-log paper IVoni the re.sults of ihe
36 746 drilloff test analysis, This has been done in Fig. 5.45.
Graphical evaluation o f the slope i>f the straighl-line por-
Test No. 2 (rotary speed = 100 rp: tion of either line on Fig. 5.45 yield.s a valu of 1.6.
Thus. !l)o observed hii weight exponent is approxiniatcly
Bit Weight Elap.sed Time 1,6 for vales o' bit wcighl below the Houndcr regin,
11 .(Xm Ibm) (.seconds) The rotary speed exponen! can he evaluated froiii the
76 0 spacing between the lines in the parallel regin.
For example, a penetration rate of 13.7 ft/hr is ob-
72 54
served for a bit weight of 58.000 Ibf and a rotary S|')eed
68 114
o f 150 rpm. Reducing the mtary speed lo KX) rpni
64 180
rcsulted in a penetration rate o f I.7 ft/hr at ihe siinte bil
60 253
56 334 weight. Thus, we have
52 424
525
R = KN"'\
48
44 641
40 773 13,7 =A'(1.50)"''.
ROTARY DRILLING BITS 229

y 7
y
/
r
/
/
,4
y
/ /
//
10 ZO 30 40 50 60 TO 80 tOO
W < k - Ibf ) Fig. 5.46Cutaway view of extended-nozzle bi t . "

Fig. 5.4SExample drMIoff test analysis.

HYDRAULIC
and

10.7 = /(100)"\

where K is the constant of proportionality, and

rotary speed exponent.
is the
t
a:
Dividing the top equation by the bottom equation gives

Taking the logarithm of both sides and solving for

yields

db
log(13.7/10.7)
= - = 0 . 6 . Fig. 5.47Expected relationship between bit hydraulics and
Iog(150/100) penetration rate.

In this example, a good straight-line fit was obtained

below the flounder regin assuming the threshold bit
weight was zero. When the threshold bit weight is not
zero, it may be necessaiy to subtract the threshold bit
weight from the bit-weight column before plotting the
data. I f the threshold bit weight is not known, it can be
determined by trial and error as the valu that gives ihe
best slraighl-line fit.

5.7.5 Bit Tooth Wear

Mosl liits tcnd to drill slower a.s the bit run progresses
because of tooth wear. The tooth length of milled tooth
rollin.g cutter bits is reduced continually by abrasin and
chipping. As previously discussed in Section 5.3, the
teeth are altcred by hardfacing or by case-hardening
process to promote a self shaipening type of tooth wear.
However, while this tends to keep the tooth f)ointed, it
does not compnsate for the reduced tooth length. The
teeth of tungsten carbidc insert-type rolling cutter bits
fail by breaking rathcr than by abrasin, Olcn, the entire
tooth is lost when breakage occurs. Reductions in
pcnetrdtion rate due to bit wear usually are not as sevcre
for inscrt bits as for milled totMh bits unless a large
230 APPLIED DRILNG ENGINEERING

100
80 - GAL/MIN DIAMETER.in
QC 60 0 i/e 1/4
I 3-1/2 0
V, 40
- 10-1/2 a
li. 8 *
1 20
16 * X
UJ
H
< 10 0 Q
OC a 0
8
0 6 - oj
z
0
4 0 U
0
0
q:
o 2 w = lOOOLB N=75RPM
P - P, = 500PSI
I 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 i > 1 1 lili
0 . 0 6 0.1 02 0 4 0 6 1.0 4 6 10 20 40 100 150
REYNOLDS NUMBER FUNCTION {
Fig. S.48Penetration rales as a function of bit Reynolds number
K-)

numbcr of teeth are broken cluring ihe bit run. Diamond ncw bit is zero. Thus, for the rclation givcn as Eq. 5.24.
bits aiso fail from tooth brcakagc or loss o f dianionds we have , ;
IVom the matrix.
Scvcral auihors have published matheniatical modcl.s R = Ke
for compuling Lhc cffeci of tooth wear on penetration rale
for i>lling-cuner bits. Galle and WtM)ds" published thc 20 = Ke
ollowing modcl in 1963.
"T and
i '"i''
/? oc o t'
0.928125/-+6/f+ I ) (5,23)
12 = A>-"'"'"

whcrc h is thc fractional tooth hcight Ihat has bccn wom Dividing the llrst equation by (he sccond yields
away, and 7 is an cxponent. 20
~ o.75i/,
A valu of ,5 was rccommendcd for ihe exponent tiy '
12
for sclf-sharpening wearof milicd tooth bits, thc priniary
bit typc discussed in ihe pubcation. In a more reccnt Taking the natural logarithm of both sidcs and solving
for 7 gives
work. Bourgoyne and Young suggesicd a similar but
less complex rclationship givcn by ln(20/12)
"7
= 0.68
'titli 0.75
/f OC (' (5.24)

Bourgoyne and Young suggc.stcd that thc cxponent o-j be
determincd based on thc obscrved decline of penetration
rate with looth wear for previous bis run undcr similar
conilitions.
LiuitiiiU' An initial penetration rate of 20 ft/hr was
obscrved in shale at the beginning of a bit run. The
previous bit was identicul to thc cunent bit and was
opcrated undcr the same conditions of hit weight. aUary
speed. mud density, etc. However. a drilling ratc ol' 12 I
ft/hr was obscrved in thc saine .shale fomiation just
before pulling the bit. If thc prcvii>us bit was graded T-().
eonipute (he approximate valu of 7.1
Si)li4litm. The valu of li for the previous hit just before
lhc cnd of thc bii mn is % or. 73.,Thc valu of/ ; lorlhc
5.7.6 BU Hydraulics
The introduction of the Jct-lypc rolling eutter liitN m 1953
showcd ihat significant improveniems in penetration rate
could be achieved thmugh an improved jeiting aciion al
the ha. Thc improvcd jetting action promoted better
eleaning of thc bit teeth as wcll as thc holc bottoni. Some
evidence has bcen piescntcd-*' that thc jetting aciion i.s
most effective whcn using exicndcd-nozzlc bits in which
thc discharge ends of the jets are brought clo.ser to thc
bottoni of the hole {Fig. 5.46). A ccnterjet inu.st also be
uscd with extcndcd-nozzle bits to prevent bit balling iti
soft fomiations.
As discussed previously in Chap. 4. thca' is con
siderable unceriainty as to the bcst hydraulics paranieter
to use in chancteri/.ing lhc cffect of hydraulics on
penetration rale. Bit hydraulic horscpower. jci mipact
forc, and no/.zlc vcl<Kiy all are uscd commonly.
ROTARY DRILLING BITS 231

: INDIANA LiMf
I = 500 pii
- N = 75 rpp
- : 1 2fl
WANCO& SHAUC
7.0TS - m SMITH flir
W 30 K-lOf
H O H ' 60 npu
< 9 P.. - P. 2000 PSt

THREE - tH JtTS
1 r 1 1 1 -1-1- & TKftCE 952 - If*
1 < i d 1 1 11 D TKtee kO/2 - m JCTS
I 10 100 THREC (1/32 - kM JCTS
REYNOLDS NUMBER FUNCTION, ' ' I i i L 1
_L_ (* Pv \ 7 BSO i5 0 25 30 40 50 60 60 kOO
1976 '
REYNOLDS NUMBER FUNCTtON

Fig. 5.49Expefimenlally observed effeci of bit weight and bit

ReynoWs number on penetraiton rae-
(a)

The Icvcl of hydraulics achieved at thc bit is thoughl 30 MANCOS SHALE

X 7BT5 -IM SMITH F-5 Ott
by many to affcct thc flounder {winl of the bit. Shown n W 30 K'LBF
Fig 5,47 is a hypothctical example of ihc lype of * eD RFU
behavtor oftcn reponed. Al [ow bit weighls and penctra- U1 P, 2000P5(
lion rale?, ihe Icvel of hydraulics requred tbr Itole clcan-
ing is small. As more weighl is applied to thc bil and cut-
THRCE 7/>2'N JpTS
z T
tings are generaied faster. a flounder point is reachcd 6 THHEE 9/32 -IW JETS
e TnREC Ky32- iN kETS
cvL'ntually whcrc ihc cuttings are not removed as quickiy < & * THREC II/3Z-IM >ETS
as ihey are gcneraied, I f ihe level of hydraulics is in- te
crcascd, a higher bit wcight and pcnetraiion rate will be z
rcachcd bcfore bit floiindering occurs, UJ ' > t 1 i I-Ju
Q- 3
\5 20 25 30 40 50 60 dO DO I50 200 300 400
Eckel,-" working wiih niicrobits in a laboratury dnll- JET HYORAULIC HORSEPOWER, (HPi
ing machine, has madc the mo.st extensive laborutoty
study 10 date of thc rclalion hetween pcnetraiion rate and
thc leve! of hydraulics, Working at eonslanl bil wcight
(b)
and rolary spccd. Eckcl found that penctration rate could
be corrclated to a Reynolds numbcr group givcn by mancos shalc
X20 7,875- IW SMITH F
pir/ V 30 K - L0F
= A' I-
Wrc (5. 25) kj. 15 N > eO RPM
1,1 Pfc.' P, =2000S
wbere
A' = a .scaling constanl, 210
9
p drilling density, Z
O
V = tlow rate, THREE 7/52-m jets
A THRCC d/92 \H JCTS
d nozzle diameter, and fl THREe (0/S2 - IN TS
= THREE ' IW JETS
apparent viscosity of drilling tluid al 10,IXK1
z
scconds '' UJ
J.

. eo 100 *50 200 300 00 600 6001000

' was choscn as JET(MPACT FORCE, LBF
The shcar rale of 10.000 seconds
rcprcscnlativc of shcar rales prc.scnt in thc bil no/zle.
The .scaling constant, K, is somewhat arbitrary, but a
(c)
cotistani valu of 1/1,976 wa.s used by Fxkel lo y cid a
convenicnl range of the Reynolds number group. FIg. 5.50Eftect o hydraulics on penetration rale in Mancos
The results of Eckcl's cxperimenls are suminarizcd in shale under simulaed borehole condiiions: (a)
observed correlation using Reynolds number func-
Figs, 5.48 and 5,49. Note that penctration rate was in- tioo as hydraulics parameler, (b) observad correla-
creased by inereasing the Reynolds number l'unction for
tions using bit hydraultc power as hydraulics param
thc full rangc ol Reynolds iiumbers studied, When the bit eler, and {c) observGd correlation using jet impact
weigbt was increased, thc correlaliori curvc siinply was (orce as hydraulics parameler
shiftcd upward as shown in Fig, 5.49. The behavior at
thc lloitnder poini was not studied by Eckel. li can be
shown that, for a givcn drilling fluid, thc Rcynokls
nuntber Tunction is a mximum whcn thc jet impaci furcc
,s a mximum (,see Chap. 41.
 232 APPLIED DRILLING ENGINEERING

5 .7 .7 Pen et rali on Kati- Equatioii

The inannerin which the iinportani drilling variables ihat
have been discusscd affect pcncimiion rate Ls quite com-
plcx and only partially undcrsloi>d. Thus. Ihc dcvelop-
nient o f an accuraie malhemalical model o f thc roiary
drilling process is> nol yel possible. However, sevcral
mathcmatical modeis that aiiempl lo combine ihe known
relationships have been proposed. These modcls makc il
possible to apply fonna! optimization methods to the
BLADE OlAMDNDSX' problem of selecting ihe be.st bit weighi and rotary speed
to at hi eve the mnimum cost per foot. Many aulhors
have reponed" signiricant reduclions in diilling cos
through use of these approximate mathematical modcLs,
Diamond bits, as wcll as oihcr types of drag bits, are
dcsigiicd to achieve a given mximum penetration per
revolulion, Undcr ideal conditions. the bil wcighl and
torque is such that the bit is kfpl feeding into ihe fomia-
BIT PROFILE lion at the design cutting rale. The penetration rale o f a
drag bil for a given penetration o f the cutling element in
jtowe t c i to thc formation is given by

,;eiT :;./OtflMQND
-------------- R Lpi,n ifN, (5.26)

I PiaMOND THfltfL y'.'.'. ' ''l''''* whcre

'
* Vi *. ' v '
V 'j = effective
Lff. penetralion of each cutting element,
.c M
n. = effective number of blades, and
/V = mtary speed-
Peterson "'' has developed theoretical equalions for the
CLeARANCe eXPOSRE effective penetration and effective nu mber of blades
OUMONO pnpMATiDN
PENETRATtON FORMATlON for diamond bits. Thc equations were derived for a
(Lo)
simplificd model which assumed thc following.
1 Thc bit has a fat face that is perpendicular to the
axis of thc hole.
2. Each bladc is formed by diamonds laid out as a
helix as shown in Fig. 5.51a.
3. The stones are spherical in shapc as shown in Fig.
FLOW AREA
5 .5 )b .
4. The diamonds are spaced so that the cross-sectional
formation
a rea removed per stone is a mximum for thc design
EFfECTive
WIOTM OF EFFECTIVE DIAMONP depth of penetration.
CuT (Le) PENETRATION (Lp,) 5- The bit is operatcd at thc design depth of
-APPAftEyT-J
WfOTM OF
-DIAMOND PENETRATION tLp) penetration,
CUT, lO 6, Th c bit hydraulics are sufficicnt for ))crfcci bot-
tomhole cleaning.
Fg. 5. 51Diamond bil stone layoul a s s u m e d in penelralton For these conditions, ihe effective penetration Lj,,. and
rate equatlon (atter Re. 30). thc effective number o f blades are given by

= 0.67
Li. Lf, ...... (5.27a)

In spitc of thc convincing condal ion presciucd in and

Figs. 5.4K and 5.49. EckcTs work has not bccn widcly
applicd in practic Hydraiilic honscpowcrand jet impact /0. = i.92(),/V,.......
'5 .2 7h )
forc are more Irequently used in thc dcvclopmcnt ot"
corrclations bctwccn bit hydraulics and penetration rate. where
Recent data obtained in full-scalc laboratory drilling ex- concentration of diamond cuticrs.
perimcnts conductcd undcr simuluted borch(tk' condi
tions*'' has shown that thc jet Reynolds number gnjup. carats/sq in,,
= actual depth of penetralion of each sionc.
hydraulic horscpowcr. and jet impact fi)rce all givc
similar resiilts when uscd lo corrclatc thc cfibct ol jet bit in.,
hydrutilies on penetration nnc Fig 5.50 shows currela- 'hi = bil diamctcr, in.,
tions obtained tbr each of thcsc paramclcrs using data d. - avcrage diameicr o the lace sionc cuitis,
obtained in Mancos shalc wiih a 7.75-in, Sntith F. in., and
bit. = diamond size. carals/slone.
ROTARY DRILLING BITS
A fomiation property called thc formalion resistance, r j,
is used to compute the bit weighi required to obtain thc
design penetration Lp. The formation resistance is the
pressure needed to overcome the fonnation strength.
allowing thc stonc to pentrate the rock.
.(5.27c)
where is the effective weight applied to the bit after
the hydraulic pumpoff forces have becn takcn into ac-
count, and Aj, is the total diamond area in contad with
the formation. The formation resistance can be computed
from ari observed penetration rate after a bit is operated
in the formation of interest.
For a sphercal stone as shown in Fig. 5.51b. the con
tad area is given by
iu---
(-) -p)-
' (5.27d)
4 ,/
Exampie 5.9. An 8.625-in. diamond bit containing 270
0.23-in.-diameter stones of 1.00 carat is designed to
oprate at a depth of penetration of 0.01 in. Estmate the
penetration rate ihat could be obtained with this bit if thc
fonnation characteristics are such that an acccptable bit
weight and torquc for this penetration could be inain-
tained at a rotary specd of 200 rpm.
Soluiion. Ignorng the bit contouring reqiiincd forpropcr
hydraulic action and gauge protection, thc bit is assumed
to have a fat face that is perpendicular to thc axis of the
hole. Thu.s,
C, 270
=4.621 stones/sq in.
-(8.625)2
The effective number of bladcs is givcn by Eq. 5.27b.
=
1.92(4.621)(8.625)x>/o.23<0.01)-(0.01)-
= 3,59.
The effcctivc penetration is given by Eq. 5.27a-
=0.67(0.01) =0.0067 in,
Thc penetration rate at a rotary speed of 2(X) rpm is given
by
0.0067
{3.59)(60x200)
12
=24 ft/hr.
Penetration rate equations for rolling cuttcr bits have
bcen propo.sed by various authors. Thc appro:ich usually
233
taken is to assume that the effects of bit weight, rotary
specd, tooth wear. etc., on penetration rate are all in-
dependent of one another and thai the composite effed
can be computed using an equation of the form
/?=(/i) ( / j ) (Si) (/4) -- (/ ) {5.28a)
where/i./z./s,/, etc., represent the functional rela-
tions between penetration rate and various drilling
variables. The functional rclations chosen usually are
based on titnds observed in either laboratory or field
studies. Some authors have chosen to define thc func
tional relation graphically, while others have used cune
fitting techniques to obtain empirical mathcmatical ex-
pressions. Some relatively simple mathcmatical equa
tions have been used that model only two or thrce of the
drilling variables. An cxample is thc Bingham model
defined by Eq. 5.20.
Perhaps the most complete mathcmatical drilling
model that has been used for rolling cutter bits is the
model proposed by Bourgoyne and Young. They pro-
posed using eight functions to model the effect of most
of the drilling variables discussed in the previous sec-
tion. The Bourgoyne-Young drilling model can be de
fined by Eq, 5.28a with the following functional
relations.
=K..... (5.28b)
00. ,. -O,
(5.28c)
(5.28d)
..280
(-)-(-)h I
/s- .(5.28f)
l-(-)
/ y \ ty
'"w
,(5.28i)
1.000
In (hese equations.
= O = true vertical well depih, ft,
() = p<ire pressure gradicnl, Ibm/gal,
(>f. = cquivalem circulating dcnsity,
( WV//,), = threshold bit weight per inch of bit
diamctcr at which thc bit bcgins to
drill. 1,000 Ibl/in.,
h fractii na! tooth dullncss,
= hydraulic iiiipact loi\:c bcnoalh the hit.
Fj
Ibf. and
/1 lo - constants thai mus be choscn ba.scd on
local drilling conditions.
234
The co ns la nis thmugh ti ca n be c o mp u ic il us ing
pnor drilling diita obiainctl in the arcu w hc n de ia i lcd
drilling d a ta are a va ila b le . T he drilling mo dc l c a n be
uscd both for drilling o p t imiz a t io n calculalionN a nd Ibr
the dc icc iio n of c h a n g c s in o n n a l io n porc prcsNurc.
T he c o ns ta n is a | thro u g h o g ca n be c o mp u t c d us i ng
prior drilling dala o b ta ine d in the arca w hc n de ia iled
drilling d a ta are a va ila b le, The drilling mt)del c a n be
usc d bo th for drilling o p t imiz a t io n c a lc u la iio ns a nd for
ihc de tcc tio n of c ha n g e s in fo n na t io n porc p ress ure.
T he f u n c t io n / 1 p rima rily represe nts the e ffe cts of for-
matio n strenglh a nd bil type o n p e ne tra t io n ratc,
H o w e v e r, it a lso ine ludcs the e ffcct of drilling va ria b les
such as mud type. so lids c o nte nt. e tc ., whic h are not in-
c lud e d in t he drilling mo d c l. T h e e xp o nc ntia l e x p r e s s io n
for/i is useful whcn a p p iy in g a mltip le re grc ss io n lec h-
nique p rcs c nie d b y Bo u rg o y n c a nd Young' for c o m -
p utin g the va le s of </) thro ug h x froni p rio r d rilling
dala ob ta ine d in the arca. T h e coc ffic ic nt '"2.303"
allo ws the c o ns ta nt a | to be de fine d casily in te r ms of the
common lo ga riih m of an o b s c rve d pe netratio n rite. T h e
ulility of this will be d c mo ns tra te d in C ha p . 6. w hic h in-
c lude s a d is c uss io n of ihe de le rmina tio n of fo mi a t io n
po n; press ure fro m d n l li n g data,
T he func lio ns /i a n d mo d c l the e ffcct of compac-
tion on pe netratio n rate. T h e function/i a c c o u n is Ibr t he
rock sire ngth inc rease d ue to the no n n a l c o mp a c t io n wit h
d e p th, and ihe functio n J- nuxle ls the effcci o f undc r-
c o mp a c t io n e x p e r ie n c e d in a b n o mia lly p re s s ure d for ma -
tions. No te thai the (/i/i) prixluct is eq ua l lo 1.0 fo r a
pore pressure grad ie ni e q uiva le n ! to 9 . 0 Ib m/ga l a nd a
dep th of 1 0,000 ft.
T h e functio n mo<.1els the e ffect o f o v e r b a la nc e o n
penetratio n rate. T h is functio n has a valu u f 1,0 forzcro
o v e r b a la n c e i . e . . w h c n the fo miatio n pore p ress ure is
cq ua l to the bottomhok p ressure in ihe wcll.
T h e functionsand /(, modc l the effect of bil w e i g ht
a nd rotary speed o n pe ne tra tio n rale. Note thal /s has a
valu o f 1,0 w hc n ( W/iii,) has a va iuc o f 4,000 Ibf/in. of
bit d ia me te r a nd has a va lu of 1.0 for a rotary sp e ed
of 6 0 rp m. T h is w as c h us e n so Ihal the fJ\, p ro d uc t
w o u ld ha ve a va lu n e a r 1,0 fo r c o m mo n d rilling c o nd i-
tions., The thres ho ld bit we ight is o fle n q u ite s ma ll a nd
can be nc glec ic d in reas such as the U . S. g u lf coast
w hc re the fo mnations are relatively soft. In mo re compc-
tcnt fo mia t io ns , ihe thres ho ld bit w e ig ht c a n be
estima tcd fro m d r illo ff tests te rmina tcd at very low bit
weights. T h e functio n of has an u p p c r limit
c o r r e s p t md mg to the bit llo u nd c r po int. w h ic h mus be
eslabli.shcd fro m d r illo ff tests, T h e con.stants t/s a nd
also ca n be d e tc r mine d fro m d rillo ff tests as in E x a mp l e
5.7. k c p o r t e d va le s of range fro m 0 . 5 to 2 . 0 , and
reported va les of a,, range fro m O 4 lo 1,0.
T h e function fi niodc is the c ifec t o f tooih w c a r on
penetratio n rate. T h e va le oftJs can be c s iima te d fro m
penetratio n rate meas uiie me nts la ke n in s imila r fo m i a -
lions at s imila r bit of)crating c o nd itio ns al the b c g in n i n g
a nd c nd of a bit run as s h o w n prc vio us ly in E x a mp le 5 . 8 .
T h e lcnn/7 has a va lu of 1.0 for zcro tooth w c a r When
tu n gs te n c arb idc inser bits are uscd a nd o p c ra t e d al
mo d c ra te hit w e ig h ts a nd rotary speed. to o ih w c a r is
o ftc n ins ignifica nt a nd this t c n n ca n be nc gic ct cd.
Typ ic a l va les of 7 for mille d looth bits range fro m 0 3
to 1.5.
APPLieO DRtLLING ENGINEERING
T he function/g m o d c l s ihe e ffect of bil hyd ra ul ics o n
penetration ratc. Jei impact forc w as c h o s e n as the
hydra ulic p a ra mc t c r of intc rcst, with a no r ma l iz c d va l e
o f 1.0 fo r / B at 1,00 0 Ibf.
H o w e v e r, as s h o w n in Fi g. 5.50, the c ho ic c of i mpact
forc is a rb it rary. S i mi l a r results c o u ld be o b ta ine d w it h
bit hydra ulic h o r s e p o w e r or nozz le R e y n o l d s n u m b c r as
the hyd ra ulic p a r a me t e r a ffe c t ing p c netra lio n rale.
Typ ica l va le s for a ra nge fro m 0 . 3 lo 0 . 6 .
In p ract ice. it i.s p r ud e nt to sclect the besi a ve ra ge
vales of t hro ug h o o fo r the fo r mat io n t ypes in the
dep t h interval of inters !. H o w e v e r. ihe vale of /j
varics wiih the st re n gt h of t he fo n n a t i o n bcing d rilled.
The t e r m / 1 is expre.ssed in ihe sanie units as pe netrat io n
rale and c o m m o n l y is ca l lcd the drillabilit y of the forma
tion. T h e drillability is n u me r ic a l l y eq ua l lo the pe nc ira-
lion rale t ha l w o u ld be o b s c r ve d in the g ive n fo r ma t io n
type ( u nd c r no r ma l c o m p a c t i o n ) w he n o pe ra li ng w it h a
new bit at zero o v e r b a la n c e , a bit w e i g h l of 4,000
Ibf/in., a rotary .speed o f 6 0 rp m, a n d a de pt h of 10,00 0
fi. The d nila b i li iy of the vario us for ma t io ns can be c o m-
puled using drilling d a t a o b t a i n e d fro m p re vio us we l ls in
the anea.
Ev a m p l e 5 . 1 0 . A 9 . 8 7 5 - i n . mi lled tooth bit o pc ra ted al
40,000 Ibf/in. a nd SO rp m is d rilli ng in a shalc fo mi a l io n
at a depth of 1 2,0 00 ft at a pe ne trat io n rale o f 15 ft/hr.
T he fo rmat io n p ore p ress ure grad i cnt is eq uiva le n ! to a
12.0 Ib m/ ga l m u d . a nd ilie e q u i v a le n t mud den.sity o n
botto m is 12,5 Ib m/ ga l. The c o m p u t c d jet impact forc
beneath the bit is 1 . 2 0 0 Ibf, a nd ihe c o mp u l e d fractional
tooth w c a r is 0 . 3 . Compute t h e a p p a re nt for mat io n
drillability J\ us i ng a t h rc s ho ld bit we ig hl of ze ro a nd ihc
fo llow ing va le s ofoi t h ro u g h ((.
i i '4 "s "tt
0.00007 0.00(KX)5 0.00003 1.0 0.5 0.5 0.5
Solulioii. T he func iio na l rclations/t through/ are gi vc n
by Eqs. 5 . 2 8 a t hro u g h 5 . 2 8 h. T h e m u I l i p l i e r/ 3 a c c o u nt s
for the n o n n a l d e c re a s e in p e net rat io n rale w ith dep t h
f m m a re fe rc nce dc p lh of k3.0X) fl.
h =f
2 3()3(0 XXX)7)( i:.(KKl
= (' =0.724.
T h e multiplieraccounts for the incrca.sc in pe ne t ra t io n
rale d ue 10 u n d c rc o mp a c t i n n.
2 o.vo (kkxxism iz - y
=1.023-
The nuiliiplier/"4 a c c o u nt s for the c h a n g c m p e ne trat io n
rale with o ve rb a l a n c e a s s u m i n g a rc fe rc nc c o ve rb a la nc e
o I zcro.
74 i'
: -WlO IKMWI.ji 13 o I- 3l
= (' =0. 6 6 fK i.
ROTARY DRILLING BITS 235

The multiplier/s accounts lor ihe changc in pcnctration Citunl. I f we define a compiiNitc drilling variableyi using
wilh bit wcighl assuming a refcrencc bit wcight of 4.(X)0
'
ibf/in. J\ =/. h hh h h h.......(5.29)

"5 Eq. 5,28 can be expres.sed by

{-)-(-)
V///.
/s = dD - u '
R = = 7JJl =JyC .
4-( ) dr

Separating variables in this equation yields

1.0
-
li 7
(J) = 1.013. dD = f d/.....(5.30)-
9.875''

The cvaluation o f this integral requires a relation be-

The nmitipler/(, accounts for thc changc in pcnctration iween tirrie / and looth wear h. Recall that Eqs. 5.10 and
rato wilh mlary .spced assuming a rcference mtart' spced 5.11 give
ol" 60 rpm.
Ai = Vi(1+2

/ / V \."h /80vU.5
A = ( ) =( ) =1.155. Substituting this expression inte Eq. 5.30, we obtain

D - {\+H2h)h........ (5.31a)
The multiplier Ji accounts for thc changc in penetral ion
Finally, integration of this equation leads lo ihe follow-
ratc wilh looth duiiness using zero tooth wcar as a
rcference. ing expression of bit footage in terms of thc final tooth
wear observed.
r 1 e
]l=e =t ' =0.861. AD=J I -
/-

Thc inultiplier/s accounts for the changc in pcnctration '",h, a-ili -117/1
7"l
ratc with jet impact forc using an impact forc of 1 ,(XX)
.(5.31b)
Ibf as a rcference. -].

1.200\0..s This equation can be used lo determine thc footage cor-

=
= 1.095. responding to a given final tooth wear and composile
1.000 ) drlling parameter7|. Conversely, it also can be used to
compute an apparent or average vale of for an
Substitution of the computed vales of /i t o / n inlo Eq. observed footage AD and final tooth wear/iy. Thc for-
5.28 and solving for thc fomiation drillability yields mation drillability then can be computed from 7| using
Eq. 5.29.
= ./-! /: -h - /> In some cases, it s desirabie to compute the fcxnage
drilled after a given time interval /(, of bit operation. To
15 =/|(0,724)(1.023)(0.6606)(1.0)3) use Eq. 5.31 for this purpose. it is necessary to know the
tooth dullness al the drilling lime of interesi. Recall ihat
(1.I53)(0.86I)(1.095), the time required to obtain a given tooth wear is given by
Eq. 5.12b. Expressing ibis equation in temis of /i. we
and obtain

15 / H tJ iT II \
/i = = 27.8 f l/ hr
0.540 (~y' )/' "fj

Solving this quadratic for li, gives

In Examplc 5.10, delailed drlling data werc available

at a given p<5nt in time. This requires the use of a
niodem well monitoring and dala recording sysicm. In
many inslances. data ot this qualily are not available and
an average drillability foran entire bit mn must be coni-
putcd. For bits that show a signitlcani imMh wcar ovcr
thc life of thc bit, thc change in the looth wcar Cunction lxitmpk' 5.11. Compute thc average fomiation drillabili-
fj with time ovcr thc life of thc bit mu.st be taken into ac- ly for the bit run describcd in Examplc 5.3. Assume the
236 APPLIED ORILNG ENGINEERING

The multipliers /j through and /g can be obtained us-

ing Eqs. 5,28c through 5.28g and 5.28i.
2.3030,(10,000-D)
h = e

- 2,303(0.00007K 10.000- 8.2) _ I 32

'
h = e =1.0forgp=9.0.

U = e
-
g2.303(0.00003l(8.292)(9.0-9.3) _o 75]

KfT fi
\
4-()
FIg. 5. 5 2 N ee d for bit stabilizers.

average jei impact forc was 1,000 Ibf, the formation /45 >. 1.0
()-o
V s/ = 1.32.
drlled was shale with a normal formation pressure gra-
dienl (equivalent to a 9.0 Ibm/gal fluid), and the 4-0
cquivalent circulating density was 9.5 Ibm/gal. Also, use
the threshold bit weight and constants a 2 through ag
/
/V V "6 /90 \ 0.5
given in Example 5.10. /6 = ( ) =() =1-225.

Solution. Rccall from Example 5.3 that Hi had a valu

of 6, Jj had a valu of 0.080, and th had a valu of 73,0
/ F, \ "K
hours. Also, the bit drilled from a depth of 8,179 to = 1 . 0 forF; = l,(X)0.
/h = ( )
8,404 ft in 10.5 hours and was graded as T-5 (hf = % or M,000/
0.625). The constant 07 given in Example 5.10 had a Substituting these vales offi throughand/g into Eq.
valu of 0.5. Substitution of these data into Eq. 5.31
5,29 gives
yields
' ' ' '
r 1 ~e I = /i fz h fi f Ib fi'
AD=J [J2 -
a? 25.8 = /, {l. 32)( 1.0){0.751 )(1.32)( 1,225 H1.0).

'')i Solving this equation for the formation drillability, we

//(l-e -OT h f e
+--J' ohtain/i = 16.1 ft/hr.
o?
and 5.8 Bit Operaion
In addition lo selecting the best bit for the job, the drill-
(8.404 -8,179 ) = J,(0.08)(73.0) ing engineer must see that ihe bit sclccted is operated as
efficiently as possible. Items of primary concern inciude
-o 5(0.625} (1) selection of bottomhole assembly. (2) prcvention of
- accidental bit damage, (3) selection of bit weight and
0.5 rotary speed, and (4) bit nin termination
-o 5(0.625) _Q Propcr atteiition to all of these items must be given to
fij 1 5(0.625)f approach a minimum-cosl drilling operaion.
]
(0.5)2 5.8.1 Bottomhole Assembly
The bottomhole assembly used above the bit oftcn has a
Solving ihis equation f o r 7 | gives
significani effect on bit performance. The length of drill
collars used should be adequate to pnsvent the develop-
y, = 25.8ft/hr. ment of bending moments in the drillpipc for the range of
bit weight used. This can be accomplished through use
The mean deplh of the bit run is of Eq. 4.25b as described in Chap. 4. Also, .stabilizers
should be used above the bil in the strng of drill collars
8,179 + 8,404
D = - 8,292. to preveni bending of the lower portion of the drill col
lar. A severe wobbling bit action nsuUs as the bit is
ROTARY DRILLING BtTS 237

rntatcd iCihe drill collars above ihe bil are not held in a TABLES.11EXAMPLE COST-PER-FOOT TABLE"
conccntric position in Ihe boreholc (Fig. 5.52). This can
cause (I) sevetc shock loading on teeth. bcarings. and Rolary
Bil Weigtit per Inch o Bit Diameter (1.000 Ibf/tn.)
Speed
grease seis of rollng cuiter biis, (2) shock loading on 2.0 3.0 4.0 50 6.0 7.0
(rpm) per fo
diamond or PCD cutters and uncven fluid distribulion 20 $167.83 $103.51 $73.67 $56.88 $46 67 $42.82
bcncaih diamond bits, (3) a bclow-gaugc borehole 40 114.94 71.45 51.48 40.61 34 92 38.55
ot for
diameter, and (4) a crooked borehole. 60 95. 13 59.84 43,84 35.56 32,36 42,66 the bi
The use of stabilizers having a diameter near the hole 80 85.77 54.61 40.77 34 00 32.80 49.76
100 81.15 52 37 39 85 34.30 34. 70 58.52 l run i
sizc can reduce the severily of these problems greatly, 37,48
120 79.25 51 83 40.17 35.51 68.36
Special shock absorbing deviccs callcd slwck subs aiso 140 79.07 52.38 41 29 37.37 40 86 79.01 n que
can be used above the bit to dampen the shock loads fur- 160 80 08 53.68 42 96 39 69 44.68 90 29
81.97 55 54 45.06 42.37 48.85 102 11
stion
ther. The additional cost of shock subs isjustificd more 180
200 84.52 57.83 47.48 45.32 53.29 114 39 and o
easily for the more expensive joumal bearing bits, which
have the potential of exirumcly long bit runs if the grease n subsequent bit
scals and bearing surfaces are not damaged. runs, (2) the effect of the .selccted operating conditions
on crooked hole problems, (3) the mximum desired
5.8.2 Prevention of Accidental Bil Uamage penetration rate for the fluid circulating rales and mud
Accidental bil damage before placing the hit in service al processing rates available and for efricient kick detec-
lion, and (4) equipnient limitations on the available bit
the bottom of the hole can reduce the Ufe of ihe bil great
weight and rotary speed.
ly. The bil should be tightened in the drillstring to the In many instances, a widc range of bit wcights and
recommended lorque using a special hrcaker pate
rotary speeds can be selected without creaiing crooked
designed for the bit type in use. Care also should be hole problems or exceeding equipment limitations. Also,
taken to see thai the jet nozzles are instalied properly us-
penetration rales ihal can be achieved are usually less
mg a shroud to minimize Huid erosion of (he nozzlc than the mximum desirable penetration rale in the
passages
The bil is especially susceptible to damage during (he deeper portions of the well. Under these conditions. the
drilling engineer is free to seleci Ihe bit weight and rotary
Iripping operations. The prcsencc of tighi sp<Ms observcd
when pulling the previous bit out of ihc hole should be speed thai will result in the minimum cos per fool.
Scveral published melhods forcomputing the opiimum
noted in writing so ihat slowci pipe vclocitie.s can be
used al thcsc poinis when running the new bit to bottom. bit-weight/rotary-speed combinations for achieving
minimum drilling cosls are available." ' All of thc.se
Tight spots may be especially noticeable when mnning a melhods require the use of mathemaiical models lo
fully tabilizcd bottomhole assembly afler a bit ihut was define ihe effccl of bit weight and rotary spced on
obscrved to have signiHcanl gauge wcar. When reaming
is necessary, low bil wcights should be used. The bil penetration rate and bit wear. Melhods are available for
eomputing both the besl mriahie bit-weight/rotary-speed
bcarings are noi designed for the inward ihrusl prescnl schedule and the bcst consumt bit weight and rotary
during reaming operalions, It is also possible lo calch a
bit cone on an irregular ledge in ihe borehole wall while speed for the entire bit run. Galle and Wood s " have
reported that the simpler constant weight/speed melhods
running back lo bottom. Plstic bil guidcs can be in- result in only slighlly higher costs per fool than the
slalled beneath the bit lo minimize the risk of this type ol
methods allowing the bit weighis and rotary speeds to
damage.
vary as ihe bil dulls or encouniers different fonnation
Once the new bil reaches boiiom, it should he "broken
in" properly using a low bii weight and rotary spced for characieristics. Reed''' indicated a diffcience of le.ss
than 3% in cos per ftH>t belween the variable and con
the firsl fool or lwo drilled. This allows any microscopic
stan! weighl/.spced schedules for ihe cases studied.
irregularitics in the bearing suriaccs to be smtwthed and One straighlforward icchnique that can be used to
allows the bottomhole patlem of Ihe new cuiiers to be
determine the besl constant weight/speed schedule is lo
eslablished in the rock. The bit weight and rotar)' speed
then can be increased slowly to the desired valen. Also. gcncraie a cost-per-tVxH lable. The cost per font for
various assumed bit weighis and rolary speeds can be
ii always is imponant to establish drilling Huid circula
tion before re.suniing drilling operations. Heat buildup compuled using the penetration rale and bil wear models
and the results labulaled as shown in Table 5.11. The
can i.|uickly damage the bit when Huid circulation stops
besl combinaiion of bii weight and rotary speed, ihe bcsi
during drilling operations. bit weight for a giveu rolary spced, or the besl rolary
speed for a given desired bil weight ihen can be read
5.8..1 .Sek'clion of Bit Weight and Kolary Speed from the lablc. The use of ihe bcst bit weight for a given
As discussed in the previous sections, the weight applied rotary speed may be desirable when ihe rotary speed
10 the bit and the rotational spced of the drillstring have a seleclion is limited by ihe rolary powcr transmisin
major effect on both the pcnetration rate and the life of syslem. The be.sl rotar)' spced for a given bil wcighi may
the bit. In addition, thcsc paratneters can be varied easi he desirable when ihe bil weighl is limited becau.se of
ly. Thus. ihc detemiination of the besi bit weight and hole dcvialion piobicms.
rolary spced for a given bil mn is one of the rouline prob- Various algoriihms can be used lo evalate the cos
icms faced by che drilling engineer In selecting the bil pcr-fwt lable. When desired. a ooi-by-foot analysis o
weight and rotar>' spced to be used in drilling a given for- the bil run can be madc laking inio accouni fonnaiion of
mation, consideralion nuist he given to ihese iteins: (11
the eflcci of the seleeied opcraiing condilions on the cos
238 APPLIED DRILLING ENGINEERING

differeni drllabilities ihat may be encoumered during the / IV w 60 I

bit run. Howcver, when the use of a single average for-
mation drillability is possible, the integrated forms of ihe 4Ji, N
penetration rate and tooth wear modeis can be uscd. This For (IV/rf) = 4 and N = 60, Jj has a valu of 0.250. Us
greatly reduces the numbcrof calculation steps involved. ing a final tooth dullness of 1.0, Eq. 5.12b gives
For example, i f the Bourgoyne-Young penetration rale =
and bit wear modeis are used, Ihc following procedure 0.250(2--)() .
'h =72r[ l-1-6(1)/ 2] =4rJ2.
could be used.
I. Assume a bit wcighl and rotary speed. Substituting ihe vales of t// and Ji inlo this equation
2. Compute the time required to wear out the bit teeth
yields
using Eqs. 5.11 and 5.12.
3. Compule ihe time required to wear out the bearings / W V /60v, i.4
,.-4(15.7)(0.25)(2-)(-)
using Eqs. 5.15 and 5,16.
4. Using the smallerof the two computed limes, com
pute the footage that would be drilled using Eqs. 5.29 / H' \ / 60k1.w
and 5.31.
5. Compute the cos per foot u.sing Eq. 1.16.
The procedure will give ihe cost per foot as-ociated For (W/df,) = 4 and W = 60, the time required lo reach a
with complete bit wear. For a few cases where penetra tooth dullness of 1.0 predicted by this equation is 15.7
tion rate decreases rapidly with looth dullness, the hours.
=
mnimum cos per foot can occur before complete bit 15.7(2--)( )
The bearing life can be computed using Eqs. 5.15 and
wear. This situation can be determined by repeating 5.16.
Steps 4 and 5 using a drilling lime slightly less ihan the 60n /4fcv 1.0
bit life. If this results in a lowercosl per foot, successive-
=n()
V /V / \ w
ly lower drilling times should be assunied until the op-
limum drilling time is detemiined-
ffc = J , T f l ( / ) = J . i ( 2 2 H I . 0 )

Exmtple 5.12. A Class 1-3 bit will be u.sed to drill a l'or- \ wN '
mation al 7,000 ft having a drillability of 20 ft/hr. The
abrasivencNN constant 7/y has a valu of 15.7 hours, ihc For (W/d/f) = 4 and N = 60, the time required to com-
bearing constant Tg has a vaiue of 22 hours. and the pletely wear ihe bearings predicted by this equation is 22
bearing exponents 6| and B-> are cqual to I.O. The for- hours. Evaluation of the multipliers/i to/4 and/g yields
mation pore pressurc gradicnt is cquivaicnl to a the following.
9.0-lbm/gal Huid, and the mud density is 10.0 Ibni/gal.
The bit costs $400, the operating cost ol ihc drilling /i=20,0.
operaiion is $500/hr. the time required to trip for a rtew
bit is 6.5 hours, and 3 minutes are required to niake a 2.303((,(l,tK>-D|
connection. Using a threshold (Whli,), of 0.5 and the
vales of i through g as given, compute the cost per -
J.3O3(O,(XXX)f(7>(IO.(XK>-7.0tlO)
fmrt that would be observed for (W/dj,) = 4.0, W = 60
rpm. and a jet impacl forc of 900 Ibf. = 1.83,
"y
0.000087 0.000005 0.000017 1.2 0.6 0.9 0.4
= 1.0 for
gp 9.0.
Sotuikm. Using Table 5.8 for a Class 1-3 bit, we obtain 1 301ijD(f,',,-p, )
_
Wi = 1 4, //. = 6. and = 8,0 The \aliie of ./4 -
as a function of bit weight and n)tary speed is given - 2 03(0.(KKX))7M7.n(KM('} - lOl
by Eq. 5.11.

=0.76.
!!L] _: , F, , 900 v"''
<//i di,
J. =
/ s = () =(-) =0.959.
KOOO'' 1,000''
(-)- Substitution o f thesc vales imo Eq. 5.29 gives

J I =/l ' f-\ ' }i, ' /s f b /

=
/ 60 V I W y 1 (20KI.83)(I.0)(0.76)/5 /h(0.959>

V / \ I -(-6/2
=
26.7/, /,.
ROTARY DRILLING BITS 239

For ( Wld) = 4 and N 60, both ihc weight function

= 238 ft,
/j and the rotary funclion /(, have a valu of 1.0; thus.J i -0.9(0.974)f-'<"''''j/<0.9)']
has a valu of 26.7.
The footage drilled before tooih failure at 15.7 hours is The COSI per foot after 15 hours of dniling time is given
given by Eq. 5.31. by
400 + 500(15 +0,4+6 .5 )
r\-e
Cf--

D-J x J i T H 238
L a

a-ihr =$47.69/fi.

y Note that this cost per foot is slightiy giater (han the
cost per foot corresponding to the mximum possible bit
Since the bit tceth will fail first, the final tooth dullness life.
hf is known to be 1.0. When the bearings Tail firsi, il s
necessary to compute hf for the known valu of I), using
Eq. 5,32. Solving the above equation for AD, we obtain
Relatively simple analytical expressions for the best
iD=(26.7)(0.250)(15,7) conslant bit weight and rotary speed were derived by
Bourgoyne and Young' for the case in which tooth
1-f-o'
r \-e 6(l-'*'"-0.9'-"'')-| wear limiis bit life. Eq. 1.16, the cost-per-foot equation,
- can be rearrangcd to give
O, (0.9)-
Cr C
=246 ft.
AD
This footage comesponds to approximately 8 joints of
drillpipe at 3 minutc.s per conneciion. The total connec- Substituting Eq, 5.12a for If, and Eq, 5.31a for AD in
ton time is this cost-per-foot formula yields
=
777(7 ""O-
,. = (8) = 0.4 hours.
60 C,
The COSI per foot for the bit run is given by Eq. L16. Cr
C,=
f .h _
r"/ -o,ft JH
e (\+H2h)dh
Ch +C'r(/, j
Cf- G
AD

400 + 500(15.7+0-4 + 6.5)

]
r''/
-=$47.56/fi. {\-Hih)h
246
+ -fl-
This is the predicted cos per foot thai corrcsponds to
ending the bit run ju.st before bit failure and is usually the
mnimum co.st per foot for the bit weight and rotary
speed assumed. However. to ensurc ihat ihis is truc, the
cost per foot corresponding to a slighily shorter bit life Taking (bCf)l\d(W/d)\ = O and solving yieldft
should be checked. For example, if the bit was pulled
after 15 hours, the final tooth dullness, as computed
from Eq. 5.32. is given by / W ,
dh
1 5-
W
(-)' -(-)
di, max di,

"i{T3r I
--=0.974.
-J'
'6' 6
6(0.25)(I5.7)

The footage drilled for this valu of h/ would be Taking {dCf)l(dN) = O and solving yields

AZ>-(26.7)(Q.25)(15.7)
(--t-,+/,\fl-- +V2'
ti t (1 + W1 /t)d/
'
-0.y( V74) C,.
1
+
0.9 [6(i-.-''ww, =0 (5.33b)
240 AP P LI E D DRILLING E N G I N E E R I N G

Solving thcse two equations siniultaneously tbr {W/tl/,) Assuming a total trip time and conncction time o f about
gives the following expression for optimuni hit weighi. 7 hours, we obtain

(-) = dh/ max Vh /

, 400 \ / 1.84 I\ .OH
/, = (-+7)(--l)
500 ' 0.6 '
= i6.1 hours.
'fc /' OM
\dh opl OjWi +06
(5.34)
The optimum rotary .speed can be calculated using Eq.
If thc optimum bit weighc predicled by this equation is
5.36.
greater ihan the flounder bit weight. then the flounderbit '
weight must be used for ihe optimum. The optimum bit l///i
Ufe is obtained by solving cither Eq. 5.33a or Eq. 5,33b
max (-) -(-)
iipt
J (1 + W2 '') d / i . /Vp<=60
= / Oj \ / \ -4
'/' (+ O <'35) (1)
rnax

Thc optimum rotary specd /V, is obtained using the
known valu o f //, in Eq, 5.12b and solving fori, yVp,
then can be obtained fmm Jt using Eq, 5.11. This leads
10 the following exprcs.sion for A',,p,.
l/rt|
'"
<11, max dj, Aipl
/p,=60
>U
(X)
(5.36)
Unfortunately, Ibr the case where bit life is limited by
bearing wear or pcnetration rate. such simple expres-
sions lor the opti mum condilions have not been found
and ihe construction o f a cost-per-foot table is thc bcst
appaiach. This typc of calculation is most casily ac-
complished using a digital computer.
Example 5.13. Comput e thc optimum bit weight and
rotary speed for thc bit run described in Examplc 5.12.
Bit tloundering was observed to occur for bit weights
above 6,700 Ibfyin. at 60 rpm.
Solution. Thc opt imu m bit weight is computed using Eq.
5.34.
ri5.7 8-6.41 "8 -'
=60--=36 rpm.
1. i6,1 8-4 J
Since the computed op timu m wcighi is below thc
flounder point,.the use o f 1.2 for 05 is juslified. If the
computed optimum bit weight is above thc flounder
point. the weight at which floundering occurs should be
used for the optimum bit weight.
Significant cost savings ha ve bccn reported froni ihe
(Icld use of mathematical methods for obtaining the op
timum bil weight and rotary speed. Howevcr, these tech-
niques should not be applied without enginccring super
visin on K>cation. In many instances, the assumptions
niade in thc bearing wcar. tooth wear, and pcnetration
rate equations yieid inaccuratc results and thc computed
optimums are not valid. Whcn enginccring supervisin is
prcsent in the lleld. thc progresa o each hit run can be
monilored to ensure that ihe deviation belween the con v
puted and ob.served results is acceptable. Thc bit
manufacturcrs constantly are evaluating the pertbnnance
of their bits in the various areas o f drilling activity and
can fumish guidelines for thc driller when engineering
supervisin is not available. For examplc, the normal
range of bit weights and rotary speeds recommendcd by
one bit manufacturer for joumal-bearing, insen-toolh,
rolling-cuiter bits is shown in Table 5.12, Using thcsc
guidelines, the driller can cxperiment using his own
judgment and dull bit cvaluation.

/ '\ Exercises
(-) = r t a _ Uf ,
5//) +jf,
t 5.1 Lisi the two main typcs of bits in use loday. AIso,
list two subclassifications of cach basie bit typc and
di.scuss thc condilions considcrcd ideal (or thc ap-
plicatioii of each subclassitlcaiion givcn.
5.2 Discuss how conc offset, (ooth height. and numbcr
l.2(1 .84 )(8 .0 ) + 0.6(0.5) o f tceth differ between .soft- and hard-fomiation
=6.4.
l.2(1.84)+0.6 rolling cuttcr bits.
5.3 List fivc basic mechanisms of rock rcmoval that aic
Thus, the optimum bit weight is 6,40t) Ibf/in o f bit cniployed in thc dcsign of bits,
diamcter. The optimum bit life is computed using Eq. 5.4 Discuss thc primary mechanism of rock a'moval
5..15. used in the tiesign of drag bits,
5.5 Discuss ihc primar' mcchanism of r w k rcmoval
' ' u.scd in thc dcsign o f hard-foniiaiion rolling cuitcr
C, Uf, bits
ROTARY DRILLING BITS 241

TABLE5.12RANGE OF BIT WEIGHTS AND ROTARY SPEEDS

RECOMMENDED BY ONE MANUFACTURER FOR JOURNAL-BEARING,
INSERT-TOOTH, ROLLING CUTTER BITS

Bit Rotary Rotary Rotary

Slze Rafig Bit Weight Speed Bit Weight Speed Bit Weight Speed
(ifi.) (Ibt/in.) (rpm) <1bf/in.) (rpm) (Ibf/in.) (rpm)
Soft Shales, Clays. Unconsolidated Sc Shale
Class 5-1- 7 and Sal Wilh Sand Streaks
7% 1,500/3,500 55/90 2,500/4,700 40/60
8'/i lo 8V4 1,500/3,600 55/90 2,500/4,800 40/60
9'/ 1,500/3.700 55/90 2,500/4,800 40/60
12V 1,500/3.600 55/85 2.500/4,500 40/60

Son and Medium-Soft Unconsolidated Shale,

Class 5-3- -7 Medium-Solt Stiale Limestone and Oolomiie Soft Lime, and Sand
6 lo 6Vi 2,400/3,200 55/70 3,200/4,300 45/65 3,200/4,000 40/55
7% lo?'/!, 2.900/4,000 55/70 3,900/5,000 45/65 3,900/4,500 40/55
8% lo Bi 3,200/4,100 55/70 4,000/5,000 45/65 4,000/4,600 40/55
9'A lo 9% 3.200/4,100 55/70 4,000/5.000 45/65 4,000/4,600 40/55
105/i lo 11 3,000/4,000 55/70 3,900/4,500 45/65 3,900/4,500 40/55
12V* 2,600/3,800 55/70 3,800/4,300 45/65 3,800/4,400 40/55
14% 2,700/3,700 55/65 3,700/4,300 45/60 3,700/4,300 40/55
17'/! 2.600/3,100 50/65 3,200/4,000 45/60 3,200/3,700 40/55

Medium-Hard Lime Medium-Hard Sandy

Class 6-1- -7 Medium-Hard Shale and Shale Mixtures Lime and Shale
6to6% 2,600/3,900 50/65 3,200/4,300 40/60 3,200/4,300 35/55
7% to 7% 3,500/5,000 50/65 4,200/5,500 40/60 4.200/5,300 35/55
8% to 8Vfl 3,600/5,100 50/65 4,400/5,600 40/60 4.400/5,400 35/55
9% to 9% 3,600/5,100 50/65 4,400/5,500 40/60 4,400/5,400 35/55
10'A to 11 3,500/5.000 50/65 4,300/5,400 40/60 4.300/5,300 35/55
12Vj 3,400/5.000 50/65 4,200/5,300 40/60 4,200/5,200 35/55
14% 3,300/4,700 45/60 4,000/5,000 40/55 4.000/5,000 35/55
17V 3,100/4,100 45/60 3,500/4,700 40/55 3.500/4.700 35/50

Class 6-2- -7 Hard Shale Wilh Lime Hard Sandy Shale

6 lo 6% 3,300M.500 40/60 3,300/4,400 35/50
7 lo 7a 4.300/6.000 40/60 4.300/5,500 35/50
8 to 8% 4,300/6,000 40/60 4,300/5.600 35/50
9'/ to 9% 4,300/6,000 40/60 4,300/5,600 35/50
IOVb to 11 4,200/5,800 40/60 4,200/5.500 35/50
i2y4 4,200/5,600 40/60 4,200/5.400 35/50

Medium-Hard
Limestone, Dotomite, Medium-Hard Sandy
Class 637 and Brittie Shale Lime and Dolomite
6 to 64 3,200/4,500 35/60 3,000/4,300 35/50
7'/b 4,500/6,300 35/60 4,500/6,000 35/50
S'/j to 8% 4,500/6,300 35/60 4,500/6,000 35/50
9V2 4,400/6,300 35/60 4,300/6,000 35/50
12V4 4,000/6,200 35/60 4,000/5,700 35/50

Class 7-2- -7 Hard Lime and Dolomite Hard Sandy Lime

6 lo 6Va 2.800/4,600 35/55 2,700/4,300 35/45
7Vb lo 7% 4,500/6,500 35/55 4,300/6,000 35/45
8 to 8% 4,500/6,500 35/55 4,300/6,000 35/45

Hardest Sandy Lime Hardest, Unconsolidated

Chert, Basalt, Abrasivo Formalions
Class 8-3- -7 Bromide, etc. With Pyrie, Cher;, etc.
6>/i 3.500/5,500 35/50 2.700/4,300 30/45
77b 4,000/7,000 35/50 3.500/5,000 30/45
B'/i to 8% 4,000/7,000 35/50 3,500/5,000 30/45
242
5.6 A rock sample is placed in a strenglh-icsting
machine at atmospheric pressurc and compressed
axially co failure. A forc of 12,000 Ibf was re-
quired for rock railurc, and the cross-seconal area
of the sample was 2.0 sq in. The sample failed
along a plae that makes a 35 angle with the direc-
lion of the compressional loading.
a. Construct Mohr's circle using the two prin
cipal stresses prcsent.
b. Compute the shear stress present along the
plae of failure. Answer: 2,819 psig.
c. Compute the normal stress lo the plae of
failure. Answer: 1.973 psig.
d. Compute the angle of nterval friction.
Answer 20.
e. Compute the cohesive resistance of the
material. Answer: 2,100 psig.
f. Label the parameters coniputed in the previous
four steps on the Mohr's circle constniction. Using
the Mohr critcrion. compute the compressional
forc required for rock failure if the sample is
placed under a 5,000-psi confining pressure.
Answr: 16.200 psig.
5 7 Discuss how the mode of failure benealh the tooth
of a rolling cutter bit changes as overbalance
increases.
5.8 List seven rules of thumb of bit selection. What is
the best basis of comparison when trying to choose
betwccn two diffcrent bit types?
5.9 The bit type currently used to drill a given fomia-
tion consistently yiclds a drilling cost of about
$50/fl. You are sending a new experimental bit
type to the fieid for evaluation in this fomiation.
The new bit is expected to have a bit life of about
150 hours as compared with the usual bit life of 15
hours. The new bit costs $10.000, and the
operating cost of the drilling operation is $750/hr.
Trip time is approximately 10 hours for the depth of
intenest. Prepare a graph that shows the break-even
costs of $50/ft as a function of penetration nite and
hit life to assist in the field evaluation of the new
bit. Label the regin of the graph that shows com-
binations of penetration rate and bit life which are
not acccptable. If the initial penetration late of the
new bit during the first hour is 4 ft/hr, what would
you recommend? /l/iirt'T: Pul bit.
5.10 Grade the bit shown in the photograph below.
Answer: T-8, B-8, GO.
5.11 Describe the dilfercnce bctwccn sclf-sharpcning
and abrasive tooth wear. Discuss what is done by
the bit manufacturers to promote sclf-sharpening
bit wcar on milled-tooth. rolling-cuttcr bits.
5.12 A 9.875-in. Class 1-11 bit drilled from a dcpth of
12,000 to 12.200 ft in 12 liuurs. The aveiagc bil
weight and rotary speed used for the bit run was
40,000 Ibf and 90 rpm, respectively. When the bit
was pulled. it was graded T-6. B-6. The drilling
fluid was a barite-weighted clay/water mud having
a density of 12 Ibm/gal.
a. Compute the averagc fomiation abrasiveness
constan! for this depth interval. 43.7
hours.
b, Estimate the lime rcquin;d to complctely dull
the bit tceth using a bit weight of 45.0()0 Ibf and a
AP P LI E D DRILLING E N GI NE E RI NG
rotary speed of 100 rpm. Answer: 13.5 hours.
c. Compute the bearing constant for this depth
interval. Answer: 24.3 hours.
d. Estimate the time required to completely dull
the bearings using a bit weight of 45,000 Ibf and a
roiary speed of 100 rpm, Answer: 12.8 hours.
5.13 Compute the bearing constant, tb, for the bit of
Examplc 5.3 if the drilling fluid were a weighted
clay-water mud (barite mud). Use vales of B | and
recommended in Table 5.9. Answer: 41.7
hours.
5.14 Field data obtained on 7,875-in., Series 6, roller-
bearing bits at a mtary speed of 60 rpm show an
average bearing life of 32 hours for a bit weight of
5,700 Ibf/in. and 45 hours for 3,800 Ibf/in. Com
pute the apparent bearing weight exponent, B2*
bearing constant, tb. for this bit type. Answer:
0.84 and 43.1 hours.
5.15 Field data observed on 7.875-in., Series 6, sealed
joumal-bearing bits at a rotary speed of 60 rpm
shows an average bearing life of 67 hours at 5.700
Ibf/in. and 100 hours al 3,800 Ibf/in. Compute the
apparent bearing weight exponent, B2, and bearing
constant. t, for this bit type. Answer: 0.99 and 95
hours.
5.16 Field data observed on 7.875-in., Series 6, sealed
joumal-bearing bits operaied with 4,000 to 5,000
Ibf of bil weight per inch of bit diameter showed a
mdium bit life of 95 hours at a rotary speed of 60
rpm and 185 hours at 40 rpm. Using an assumcd
valu of 1.0 for Bt. compute the apparent vales
for B and tb from these observations. Answer:
1.64 and 107 hours.
5.17 Field data obiained using 7.875-in., Series 6,
sealed roller-bearing inser bits operated at 4,000
Ibf per inch of bit diameter indicated an average bil
life of 42 hours at a miary speed of 60 rpm and 55
hours at 40 qim. Compute the apparent vales of
By and tb- Answer: 0.67 and 42 hours.
5.18 Recommend vales of 62 ""d '''B 7.875-in.,
nonsealed, roller-bearing bits operated in oil muds,
weighted clay-water muds (barite muds), and a
clay-watcr mud containing H2S (sulfide mud). The
recommendation should be based on the laboratory
Couflesy of Hugh Tool Co
Fig. 5. 53 Du l l bil fof E xer c is e 5. 10 .
ROTARY DRILLING BITS 243

TABLE5.13LABORATORY BEARING-LIFE 5.23 The penetration rate in shale s observed to mcrease

DATA OBTAINED AT 60 rpm from 12 to 18 fi/hr when the bit weight is increased
Bit WeighI/in. Bearing Lite (hours) from 30 ,000 to 50,000 Ibf. Compute bit weight ex-
(K-lbf/ln.) Sulfide Mud Barite Mud Oil Mud ponent 15. /In.vtver: 0.8.
3 14.0 4F 5.24 Using the following drillolT test data, evalate the
6 7.5 17.5 80 0 bh weight exponent a and rotary speed exponent
9 25.0 a. Th e length of the 4.5-in., 16.6-lbm/ft drillpipc
was 12.000 ft.
Test No. I (rotary speed = 120 qim)
Bit Weight Elapsed Time
bearing wear data shown in Table 5.13 and con- (1.000 Ib o (seconds)
ducied at a rotary speed of 60 rpm. Th e bearing life
80 0
was dctermincd based on 0. l-in. wear in (he bear
76 104
ing races. Answer: 2.87 and 256 hours; 1.46 and 72 210
31.5 hours; and 0.9 and 10.8 hours, respcciively.
68 320
5.19 Field data obtained on 8.5-in. sealed roller-bearing
64 436
inser bits are shown below. Use these data to ob-
60 562
tain representative vales of fi|, 82, and tb for
56 704
this bit type,
52 864
Bit Wcight Rotary Speed Bearing Life 48 1.045
(1,000 Test No. 2 (rotary speed = 80 rpm)
Ibf/in.) (rpm) (hours) Bit Weight Elapsed Time
4 60 41 (1.000 IbO (seconds)
6 60 30
80 0
4 40 81
76 108
Answer: 1.68, 0.77, and 41 hours. 72 228
5.20 Determine the optimum bit life for ihe bit run 68 360
described in the following table. The lithology is 64 506
known to be uniform for the depth range of intcrcst. 60 668
The tooth wear parameter Jj has a valu of O,! 5, 56 848
the constani has a valu of 7.0, and the bearing 52 1,050
wear parameter 3 has a valu of 0 .56. The fomia- Answer: = 1.6 and f, = 0 .6,
tion abrasivene.ss constant has a valu of 40 5,25 The average penetration rate in shale is observed to
hours, and the bearing constant 7g has a valu of
drop from 18 ft/hr for a new bit to 11 ft/hr al ihc
40 hours. The bit cost is $6(X), the rig opemtmg end of the bit run. The bit was graded T-6. B-7,
cost is $ l ,0 0 0 / h r, and the trip time is 6 hours.
Assuming all variables other than tooth wear re-
Total mained constant. evalate the tooth wear exponent
Drilling
Time 7. /Vi.vver: 0.7.
Footage
5,26 A bit contains three 'y3i'in. nozzles, and the mud,
/ / ,+/ ,. AD
which has a density o f 10 Ibm/gal, is being cir-
(hours) (ft) Remarks
culated at a rale of 600 gal/min, The penetration
O O New bit rate s observed to dccrease from 15 to 11 ft/hr
2 30 when one of the two pumps is stopped temporarily,
4 54
causing the circulation ratc to fall from 600 to 4CK)
6 73
gal/min. Comp ute the apparent hydraulics expo
8 88 nent ig . .jI/i.vmw; 0.4.
10 I4 5,27 A diamond bit with a total blade length of 5.585 in
12 117 contams 200 .stones of 1.0 carats that have a width
14 127 o f 0 .0848 in. for a pcnetration ofO.OI in. Compuii*
16 135 the expected pcnetration rate if sufficicnt bit weighi
18 142 for a 0 .0 l -i n . depth of diamond penetration could
20 i 47 be mainiained at a rotary speed of 100 rpm.
22 151 Torq ue increasc Assume that the diamonds are shaped and arrayed
/.vHV'r: 12 hours. so that the penetration s two-thirds the mximum
5 21 List eight factors affecting pcnetration rale penetration depth. Answer: 8.0 t/hr,
5.22 A pcnetration ratc in shale of 20 ft/hr was ohtairied 5,28 An 8,5-irt. Class 1-1-1 bit opcrated at 35,(KX> Ib!
using a mud duMisily o f 12 Ibm/gai ni a dcpth <)(' and 90 rpm is drilling in a shale formation al a
10.(KX) ft. When the mud dcnsity vas incneascd to depth of 9 .000 ft at a penetration rale of 30 fi/hr,
13 Ibni/gal. the peneiration rale was dccrcascd lo The fonnation pore pressurc is equivalen! lo a
9.5 ft/hr for similar driilng conditions. Compute 9.0-lbni/gal mud. and the equivalent mud dcnsily
(he apparent valu of tiie overlialancc cxponcni 1/4. on bottoTi is 9.7 Ibm/gal, The compuied impaci
.li.vufii-: 32 X 10 ' ' forc benealh the bit s 1.3(K) Ibf. and the conipuied
244
fractional tooth wear is 0.4. Compule the apparent
formation drillability /1 for this bit type at 9.000 ft
using a thrcshold bil wcight of zem and thc f'ollow-
ing vales o( a j through g.
oy
(I flg as Qg
0.00009 0.000004 0.00002 1.2 0.6 0.4 0.4
Answer. f = 26.1 ft/hr.
5.29 A 9.875-in.-diamelerCtass 1-1-1 bit will he usecl to
drill a formation at 9,000 ft that has a drillability of
40 ft/hr. The abrasiveness constant t// has a valu
of 38 hours, and the bearing constant has a valu
of 22 hours. The formation pore pressure gradient
is equivalent to a 9,0 Ibm/gal fluid gradient, and
the wcighted clay/water drilling fluid barite mud
has a density of 9.7 Ibm/gal. The bit co.st i $600,
the operating cost of the dtilling operation is
$800/hr. the time required to trip for a new bil is 7
hours, and 4 minutes are required to makc a con-
nection per 30-ft joini of drllpipe. Using a
threshold bit wcight per inch of 0.5 and ihe con-
stants a2 through og given in Excrcise 5.28, com
pute the cost per foot that would be observcd for
( W/dh) = 4,5, A' = 90 rpni, and a jet impact forc
of 1,100 Ibf. /J/iiM-r 29.73 S/tt.
5.30 Write a fortran program for determining a co.st-
per-foot table. A.ssume a constant bit weight and
that rotary speed will be maintained throughout the
bit run and that the formation drillability constant is
a constant. Use the program to determine the op-
timum bit wcight and rotarv specd for Exercise
5,29.
5.31 Compute the optimum bil weight and rotary speed
for the bit dcscribed in Exerci.se 5.29, assuming bil
life is limited by tooth wear. Ignore the effect of
connection time. The flounder bit weight is known
to be 60,000 Ibf/in. Answer'. 5,650 Ibf/in. and 60
rpm.
5,32 Use the program developcd in Exercise 5,30 to
determine the optimum bit wcight and rotary speed
for Exercise 5.29 i\ rg has a valu of 95 instcad of
22 hours.
Referenccs
I Ccrkovnik. J.: "Dcsign, Applicalion. anil Fuiurc of
Polycrysiallinc Diamond Cotnpact Cuticrs iit ihc RiKk> Miiun
tains," piiptr SPt prt."iOt)ti'd ul lito IW! SP1-. Rm-ky Mnuii
luin Rcgiimul Muiiiiiji. lllin. MI . May iy-21
2 Bil Hiiiuthiiiik. Hughes Twt Ct>,, Houstim
A Durrcll. E.; " R vvk Bil Iilciitirifulion Sinipliricil h> lAW Ac
linn." Oit unU Giis J (May 22. 1972) 7,
4. Esles, J C.: ""Selft-liin; Ihc Pnipcr Ri)lar> R<Kk Bil.' J Pf l
Tf-h. (Nov, l<}7h l.1.Sy-67
S Hughirs, K V. "Urag Btis Rali New m Lighl of -S)H--ci1
Dnlling." Woriit OH (March ly.-il 'M,
6. Gray. K.E.. Anuslrotig, T,, and Gadin. C : "Two-IJiinL'iiMiiiial
Sludy ol KiKk Brcakugi' in Drag-Bii fliilling al Atniospheric
Prcjisiiiv." J Pf!. Tcfh. (Jan (yft2)9-98, Triiii\ . AIME. 225
7 Mailiet. W C ; "Bil-Toolh Pi.-iiL*(rjlii>n Uniicr .Siniuliiloil Biirchole
y, P't. Tt''h (IX't." 143 A 42, Tnttn , AIMH,
2.M
K Murray. A S aml MacKay, S 1' ; "Walcr Slitl Poso Titiiyli Pmh
leiit iti Diilliiii! willi Air," Oil iiml Gii\ J (June III l't.STi MIS
y Catuphcll, ,1 M atuJ MiuIil'IL fi J : 'lfli.vt ul Tot'lti
oti T<i(li W ear Rak' iif Kt)lary Rin.k UiIn." papt'i provcntiM at API
Mid-Coiiiini'tit llisi Spring Mivlini!. Marth
AP P LI E D DRILLING E N GI NE E RI NG
10 Hoovcr. E.T und Middicton. J.N "l.aHorauiry Evaliialiiin ot
PCD Drill Bits Under High Spccd and High Wear Cundilions."
papcr SPE 10,126 prcscnicd m the IRI SPE Annual TL-chntcal
Confcrcncc and Exhibilinn. San Antonio. Otl 47.
II, Galle, E.M. and Woods. A.B.: '"Bcsl ConsiunI Weighl and
Rolaiy Spccd for Rotary Ri>ck Bits," Drill, tinti Prinl Pnn.. API
(196.1) 48-7.1
12 Edwards. J H.; "Enginccring Dcsign of Drilling Opcr.ilinns "
Drill, aiul PuhI. Priii'.* API I9M) 38-55. "
13, Young, F.S. Jr.; "Compulcrizcd Drilling Conirol. J. Pci, Teth
(April 1969) 4H.1-96: Tnins.. AIME. 246.
14. Recd. R.L : "A Monte Curio Appmach to Opitnul Drilling.'*
Pe. Eiin. J. <Ocl. 1972) 42.1-4,18; Ttoii.! . AIME. 253.
15. Bourgoync. A.T. and Young. F.S. Jr.. "A Mltiple Rcgrcs.sjon
Appmach loOptimal Orilling and Abnomul Prcssurc Dcteclion."
&. Pf!. Eiif. J. (Aug. 1974) 371-384. Traii.\.. AIME. 257.
16. E.stes. J.C.: 'Guidelincs for Seicciing Rotary ln.st.rt Rotk Bits."
Pe. Eii;. (Scpl. 1974).
17, Lummus, J.L.: "Analysis of Mud Hyraulies Inleractmns,' P<'i.
EiiK- (Feb. 1974).
18. Bingham, M.G.: "A Nl*w Appmath lo InlL-npaling Kock
Drillabilily." rcpnnied Inim OH witl GasJ. .series hy Petroleum
Publishing Co. (April 1965).
19. Cunningham. R A and Ecnink. J.G.. "tjboraiory Sludy of Ef
fect of Ovcrburden. Fonnution. and Mud Colunin Pressures on
Dnlling Rale of Pcrmeahle Formutions." Truns.. AIME (1959)
216. 9-17.
20, Gamler, A.J. arvd van Lingcn, N.H.: "Ptienomena Aflcclinp
Dniling Rales al Dcplh,- Trtms.. AIME (|9.59l 116, 2,12-2.19
21. Black. A.D and recri. S.J.; ''Uiboralory Siniulalion of Deep
Well Dniling. " Pn. Ena. (Maixli 1978).
22- Vldnne. D,J. and Senil, E.].: "Ficld Ventication o( the ElTeci of
Differenlial Prcvsurc nn Dniling Rale." J. Pt i. Tt'
23 Murray, A.S. and Cunningham, R A.; "Etfecl of Mud Coluoin
Pressure on Drilling Rales," Jrtin.\ . AIME (1955) 204. l9(>,2tM
24 Eckel, J R.: "Effect of Pres.suic on Rock Dnllahilily. * Iniii.y .
AIME (1957) 213. 16.
25. Maurer, W.C.: "The "Perfect-Cleaning'Thcory of Rotary Drill
ing," J. Pfl. Tech. (Nov. 1962) 1270-74; Trtm.s,. AIME. 2 2 5
26. Viddcr. A.; "Chevron Dnll-Off Test (DOT)," Chevnm Oil Co..
New Orieans.
27 Prjtl. C.A,; "lncrea.scd Peneirjtion Rale Achieved Wilh New Ex
tended Noz/.lc Bit."" J Pi'i. Ti'fh. (Aug 1978) 1192-9K
28. Bckcl, ] R. "Miciobit SludtC-s of ihe Effet'l of Fluid Propcrtles
and Hydraulics on Drilling Rate. II.'" papcr SPE 2244. SPE,
Ualla.s (1968).
29 Tibbill,s. G.A. f i al. "ETects of Bil Hydraulics on Full Scale
Ljiboratory Dnlled Shule." J. Pfl. Tech. (July 1981) 1180 88
.10. Pcterion, J.L.: "Diamond Drilling Model Vcrilled in Fjeid and
Laborainiy Tests." J. Pct. Tcch. (Feb. 1976) 215-222; rriH.v.,
AIME, 261.
Nomenclatlire
= exponents in the penetration rale equation
A = arta
Al, = arca of bit
total diamond arca in coniitCt with thc
Aj,
fomiation
hf = fmal bearing wear at end of bit run
= bearing wear exponents
Bx-Ri
r = cohesivc resistance of matenal
cost per interval tirillcd
Cf
C,. = concentration of dianiond cutters,
carats/sq in.
= fixed operating cost of rig per unil lime
Cr
d - diameter
= diameter -f hit
f//,
/, = diamclcr of cuiicr
D = dcplh
A = depth intcnal drillcd during bit r\in
ROTARY DRILUNG BITS 245

E = Young's modulus of elasticity angle subtended by wear surface on PCD

/i -/ = functions defining effect of various blank

e = axial strain or
drlling variables elongation per unit length
F = forc O = angle of intemal friction
= formation = viscos ity
gp pore pressure gradient H
expressed as an equivalen! fluid Ha = apparent viscosity
density p = mud density
G = geometry constant for a given tooth a = normal stress
design T = shear stress
/( = fractonal toolh wear = bearing life constant
final tooth wear at end of bit run Tfl
hf = formation abrasiveness constant
T//
W1-//3 = tooth geometry constants used to predici = angle between failure plae and diiection
0
bit tooth wear
of principal stress
J\-Jy = composite functions of bit weight and = logarithm, common base 10
log
rotary speed used in penetratlon rate. = logarithm. natural, base e
tooth wear, and bearing wear In
equations, respectively
K = constant Subscripts
f - tooth Icngth a apparent
L length b = bit
bh = bottomhole
L, = initial height
= depth of penetratlon of t" = cutter; also circulating
Lp drag bit cutter
L, = height removed dp = drillpipe
= width cut by an individual dianiond for a e effective
penctration Lp / = formation
ni, = effeclivc number of blades of drag bit I = initial
~ number o cutters
n, J = jet
N rotary speed max = mximum or destructive, also slopc
Arc = Reynolds number n = nonnal to plae
p = pressure opi = optimum
q = flow rate r = removed
r = radius s = Steel, also standard or reference
fomiation resistance t = threshold
rj-
R = penetration rate x.y = spatial coordnales or directions
Rq = penetration rate at zero overbalance = average
s,i = size of diamond, carats/stone
S = compressive strength of rock
t time SI Metric Conversin Factors
ij, = bit life ft X 3.043* E-01 m
tf = nonrotating tune during bit run (such as gal/min X 3.785 412 E-03 = m'/min
connection time) in. X 2.54* E+00 = cm
= time of tripping operations required to Ibf X 4.448 222 E+00 = N
f,
Ibm X 4.535 924 E-01 -
kg
changc bit
Ibm/gal X 1.198 264 E + 02 -
kg/ni'
M' width
psi X 6.894 757 E + 00 - kPa
= weight on bit
sq in. X 6.451 6 E-00 - cm
x,y = spatial coordinates
a Iwttom cutting angle
Chapter 6
Formation Pore Pressure and Fracture Resistance
The ohjcctve of this chapter ix ro fiimiUarize the sludent
wth coimnonly useJ meihoth of esiimatmg the naturaHy
occurrin pressure of suhsurface formation fluUis anel
the inttxiimi! weltbnrc pressure ifiat a given formuion
can withsiantl wiihoui frofturc-
Wiih lite liriIMng of mos! deep welis, formaiions are
peneirdtcO that will flow naiuraliy d\ a Jiignitlcant rate. In
driling these wells, safcty diciates that Ihc wellbore
pressure (ai any dupth) be mantaincd belwccn the
naturally occurring pressure of the fomiation lluids and
ihe mximum wcllbure pressure that the formation can
withstand without fracture. In Chap, 4, we focuscd on
the dctermination of wellbore pressures during various
lypcs of driling operations. In this thapier, the deter-
mination of formation Huid pressure and Fracture
pressure is discusscd. Knowledge of how these two
parameters vary with deptri is extremely itnportant in
planninc and driling adecp well.
6.1 Formation Pore Pressure
To understand the forces responsible forsubsurface Huid
pressure in a given area, previous gcologic proccsses
mus be considercd, One of ihe simple.st and niosl com-
mun subsurfacc pressure dislribotions occurs in ihc
sbaltow sediments (bal wcrc laid down slowly in a
deltaie depositional environnient (Fig. 6.1)
While detritus maieriai, whieh iscarried by river to the
sea. is rcleased from suspensin and depisitcd. the
sediments fomied are initiaily unconsolidated and un-
compactcd and, (bus, have a relatively high porosity and
penncabiliiy. The seawatcr mixed witb these sediments
remains in (luid communieailon with the sea and is at
hydrostatie pressure.
On a ' depisilion has occuiTcd, the weight of the s<i)id
part' 'les is supported at grain-to-grain contad poinls and
the seitled solids havc no intluencc on the bydrostatie
tluid pressure beiow. Tbus, hydrostatie pressure of the
Huid coniained within ihe pore spaces of the sediments
depends only on (be fluid density. Wilb greaicr burial
depth as deposition eonlinues, the previously deposited
roek grains are subjecied to incrcased load ihrougb the
grain-to-grain contad poinls, This causes realignment of
the grains to a closer spacing, resulling in a more eom-
pacted. lower-porosity scdiment.
As compaetion oeeurs, water is expelled continually
from the decreasing pore space, However, as long as
tbere is a relatively penneable tlow path to the surface,
the upward fiow potential gradient that is required to
relase the coinpaction water will be negligible and
bydrtistatic equilibrium will be Ti a int ai ne d. Thus, the
fonnation porc pressure can be eomputed by use of Eq,
4.2b in Chap. 4,
When formation pore pressure is approximately equal
to theoretical hydrostatie pressure for the given vertical
depth, formation pressure is said to be normal. Normal
piire pressure for a given arca usually is expressed in
lerms of the hydrostatie gradient. Table 6.1 lists ibe nor
mal pressure gradient for several areas that havc con
siderable driling activity.
Ktaniplc 6. l. Compute the normal fonnation pressure
expected at a depth of .OtX) ft ir> the Louisiana gulf eoast
area.
Siflmion. The normal pressure gradient for ihe U.S. gulf
euasi area is listed in Table 6.1 as 0.465 psi/ft fbs, the
normal fonnation pore pressure expceted at 6,0(X) ft is;
= 0,465
/> psl/ft (6,(K)0ft) =2,790 psi.
6.1.1 Ahmtrmal Formation Presswrc
|[) niatiy instances, formation pressure is encounlered
ibat is greater than tbc nomial pressure for that depth,
The tenn ahnorfwil forotaiion prcxsttrr is used to
FORMATtON PORE PRESSUR AND FRACTURE RESISTANCE 247

FLUID RIVER

Fig. 6,1Normal s u b s u r t a ce tluid p re s sur e disiribulion in shallow dellaic sediments.

dcscribe fomwtiun prcs. surcs thut a r e grcutcr than nor
ma !. Abnomially l o w f o r m a t i o n p r c s s i i r c s a i s o are cn -
L'iiuriicreO, iind i hc tenn xuhiioniiit Jhntuirioii pri'ssurc s
useci 10 describo t h c s c p re ss un es.
A b f i o r m a l ronnation pressurcN a r e Coutitl in at least a
pon ion of mosi o!' i hc scdimernaty basiris of ih e world.
Whik" llic o r i g i n of ahnoniiat f o n n u l i o t i prewurc is no t
undorsiood t : o mp ) c t c l y. sc ve ral mc fli an iN ii is i h a l tend lo
c a u s o ahnormal f o n n a l i o n prcssutr havc bccn i d c n t i r i e d
in o di mc nt ar y basins, T l i c s c mcclianisms can bo
classidcd gcncrally as; (I) conipaciion cffccts. (2)
diagcnctif cftccK, (3) d i f t c r e n t i a l d c n s i i y o f f c c t s , and f4)
Huid n i i j i r j t i o n cCtcctv.
6.1.2 Compaction E f Te c ts . Pore water expands with in-
bccome re.strL-ted ( r e p r e s e n l e d by c l o s i n g th e v a l v e in
the model), The p i s t o n s a r e l o a d c d by Ihc wcighi o l ihc
ovcrburden, or ge o s l a t i u l o a d , cr,j, al Ihe given dcplb of
burial. Resi. sting ih is l o a d ar e (1) (he s u p p o r t provided by
the vertical grain-to-grain, or mu i r i x , .stress, o-, and (2)
the po re flu id pressure, p. Thus. wo havc
As long a s p o r e water can e s c a p o a s n u i c k l y as re-
q u i r c d by t he iialural compaction rato, t h e hip; p r e s s u r e
will remain at hydrosiaiic p r e s s u r e . Tho malri> s t r e s s
will coniinuc l o i n c r e a s e a s th e p i s t o n s n x i v c c l o s o r
t o ge l h e r until th e overburdcn s t res s is balancod,

creasing burial d e p t h a n d increased temperature, while

the pore space is rcduced by increasing gcostatic l o a d .
Thus, normal formation pressure can b e maintaincd only
if a paih of s u f f i c i e n t permcability e x i s t s to allow forma-
l i o n water to escape r e a d i l y,
To illusirdic Ihis p r i n c i p i e , a simple, ono-dimensionalv
snil tncchanic. s m o d e l is shown in F i g, 6.2, In t h e modcl.
the rvick g r a i n s are repro. sentcd by p i s t o n s llial contact
une another through compressiona! s p r i n g s . Connate
w y t c r. w h i f t i filis t he s p d c e heiwecn t h e pistons, has a
nat ur al l l o w piith to t he s u r f a e e . Howeer. t hi s p a t h may

TA8LE6, 1NORMAL FORMATION P R E S SU R E

GRADIENTS FOR SEVERA!. AREAS
OF ACTIVE DRILLING

Pre ss ur e Equvalenl
Gradienl Water Density
(psi/ft) (kg/m) SfttliG
West Te xa s 0.433 1 000
6u1f of Mxico coastIinG 0,465 1.074
Nonn Se a 0.452 1.044
Malaysia 0,442 1.021
Mackenzie Pelta 0,442 1.021
West Africa 0442 1.021
Aadarko Basin 0.433 1.000
Rocky Moontains 0.436 1 007
California 0 439 1.0U Fig- 6.2 One-dimens+onaJ sedirnent compaction model.
248 APPLIED DRILUNG ENGINEERING

O
X UPPER LtMITS
*
OF ALL DATA POINTS
2000
V

4000 fe

6000 No.
o
O
\

LOW E R LIMIT '
OF A LL DATA POtNTsN \\
2j- 10000
eooo
o
\
Y \
12000 \ \ >
\ , \
5 14000 \ \ \
UJ
<n
\
\ \ \
16000 \
\
\ \
\ \ \
18000
\ \
l
20000 V \ \
1.9 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 aos 01 o.z 0.3 o.ft 1.0
BULK DENSITY, Pjg/cm) PORCStTY

FIg. 6.3Composite bulk density curve (rom density log dala Fig. 6.4Computed average porosity trend for U.S. gulf
for the U.S. gulf coast.' coast area.

TABLE 6.2AVERAGE SEDIMENT POROSITY However, if the water flow path is blocked ur scverely
COMPUTATION FOR U.S. GULF COAST AREA restricted, the increasing overburden stress will cause
pre.ssurization of the porx; water abovc hydrostatic
(1) (2) (3)
Sediment Bulk Average
pressure. The pone volume also will remain greater than
Thickness normal for the given burial depth. The natural loss of
Density Porosity
D, fit, permeabiliiy through compaction of fine-grained
m (g/cm3) (frac.) sediments. such as shale or evaporites, may create a seal
0 1.95 0.43 that wouid permit abnormal pressures to develop.
1,000 2.02 0.38 The vertical overburden stress resulting from geostatic
2.000 2.06 0.35
load at a sediment depth, for sediments having an
3.000 2.11 0.32
4,000 2.16 0.29 average bulk density, p/,. is given by
5,000 2.19 0.27
6,000 2.24 0.24
2.27 = (6.2)
7,000 0.22 | Pbl D,
8,000 2.29 0.20
9,000 2.33 0.18
10,000 2.35 0 16
where g is ihe gravitational constan!.
11,000 2.37 0.15
12,000 2.38 0.14 The bulk density at a given depth is related to the grain
13,000 2.40 0.13 density, the pore fluid density, pfi, and the porosity,
14,000 2.41 0,12
0, as follows.
15,000 2.43 0.11
16,000 2.44 0.10
17,000 2.45 0.098 .(6.3a)
18.000 2.46 0.092
19,000 2.47 0.085 In an area of significant drilling activity, the change in
20,000 2.40 0.079
bulk density with depth usually is determined by conven-
tional well logging methods. The effect of depth on
average bulk density for sediments in the Texas and
Louisiana guif coast areas is shown in Fig. 6.3.'
The change in bulk density with burial depth is related
priniarily to the change in sediment porosity with com
paction, Grain densitics of the common mincral.s found
FORMATION PORE PRESSURE AND FRACTURE RESISTANCE
in scdimentary depoits do not vary greatly and usually
can be assumcd constani al a representative avetagc
valu. This is also true for pone fluid density.
In tnany areas, t is conveniem to use ihc exponential
relationship relating change in average sedimcnt porosity
to depth of bural when calculating ihe overtiutxlen
stress, c,, resulting from geostatic load at a given
depth. To use this approach, the average bulk density
data are expressed first in terms of average porosity.
Solving Eq. 6.3a forporasity yields
<t>= .(6.3b)
Pk-pji
This equation allows average bulk density data read
from well logs to be expressed easily in terms of average
porosity forany as.sumed grain density and fluid density.
If the.sc average porosity vales are plotted vs, depth on
semilog paper, a good straight-line trend usually is ob-
tained. The equation of this line is given by
-KD,
.(6.4)
where <i>, is the surface porosity, K is the porosity
decline constani, and Og is the depth below the surface
of the sediments. The constants <)> and K can be deter-
mined graphically orby the least-squarc method.
Exampte 6.2. Deiermine vales for surface porosity, <t),
and porosity decline constant, K, for the U.S. gulf coast
area. Use the average bulk density data shown in Fig.
6.3. an average grain density of 2.60 g/cm, and an
average pore fluid dcnsily of 1.074 g/cm-'.
Soluiion. The porosity calculations are summarized in
Table 6.2. The bulk density given in Col. 2 was read
from Fig. 6.3 at the depth given in Col. I. The porosity
vales given in Col. 3 were computed using an average
grain density of 2.60 and a fluid density of 1.074 g/cnv
in Eq. 6.3b.
2 . 6 0 -p i ,
~_2.60-pfc
2 . 6 0 -1 . 0 7 4 1.526
The computed porosities are plotted in Fig. 6,4. A sur-
face porosity, <j>, of0.4l is indicated on ihe trcnd line at
zero depth. A porosity of 0.075 is read from the trend
line at a depth of 20,000 ft. Thits, the porosity decline
constant is
. <t> / 0,41 \
In ln(--)
y 0.075/ -1
=0.000085 ft
0,v 20,000
and the average porosity can be computed using
0=0.4 le
The vertical overburden stress resulting fmm the
geostaiic load is computed easily at any depth once a
249
conveniem expression for the change in average sedi-
ment porosity with depth is obtained. Substitution of Eq.
6.3a into Eq. 6.2 gives
(6.5)
In offshore areas, Eq. 6.5 must be integrated in two
parts. From the surface to the ocean bottom. the
seawater density, p., is equal to 8.5 Ibm/gal and the
porosity is 1. From the mudline to the depth of imercst.
the fluid density is assumcd equal to the normal forma-
tion fluid density for the arca and the porosity can be
computed using Eq. 6.4. Thus, Eq. 6.5 beeomes
n
o,
Integral ion of this equation and substitution of
(D-Du ), the depth bclow Ihe surface of the sediments,
vields
o<=P>wgD.+p gD,-
K
.(6.6)
Example 6.3. Compute the vertical overburden stress
resulting from geostatic load near the Gulf of Mxico
coastline at a depth of 10,000 ft. Use the porosity rela
tionship determined in Example 6.2.
Solufion. The vertical overburden stress resulting from
geostatic load can be calculated using Eq. 6.6 with a
water depth of zero. The grain density, surface porosity,
and porosity decline constant determined in Example 6,2
were 2.60 g/cm', 0.41, and 0.000085 ft, respectve-
ly. As shown in Table . 1, the normal porc fluid density
for the gulf coast arca is 1.074 g/cm. Converting the
density units to Ibm/gal, using the conversin constant
0.052 to convert pg to psi/fi, and inserting these vales
in Eq. 6.6, yields
a=0.052(2.60)(8.33)(10,000)
0.052(2.60-1.074)(8.33)(0,41)
0.000085
e -O 0WK5( 10,000)]
[l
= 11,262 -1,826 =9,436 psi.
The vertical overburden stress resulting from geostatic
load often is assumed equal to 1.0 psi per foot of depth.
This correspond to the use of a constant valu of bulk
250
RSrSn
;ToQ STRESS f i
OT OVERBURDEN
W E IG H T
Fig. 6.SExample of compressive stress in excess of geoslatic load.
dcnsily for the cntirc sediment section. This simpfying
assumption can Icad lo significani errors in the computa-
tion o f overburden stress, especially for shallow
sediments, Such an assumption should be made only
when the change in bulk density with respect lo depth is
not known. Note that in Example 6.3, an averagc over-
bunJen stress gradient of 0 .9 44 psi/ft was indicated.
The calculation of vertical overburden stress resulting
from geoslatic load does not always adequately describe
the total stress state o f the rock at the depth of interest.
Compressive stresscs resulting from geologic processes
olher tlian scdimentalion may be present; these aiso lend
to cause sediment compaction. For example, the upward
movemem of low-density sait or plstic shale domes is
commoti in the U.S. gulf coast arca. In the U.S. wesl
coast arca, continental drill is causing a collision of ihc
North American and Pacific plates, which rcsults in
large lateral compressive strcsses- If therc are overiying
roeks with significanl shear resislance, the vertical stress
state at depth may exceed the geostatic load. This is il-
lustrated in Fig. 6.5. However, rocks generally fail
rcadily when subjectcd to shear stress and faulting will
occur, which lends to relieve the buildup of stre.sscs
above the geostatic load.
6.1.3 Diajenelk Effects
Diagcncsis is a tem that refers to the chcmical alicration
o f mck mincrals by geological processes. Shales and car
bonates are ihought lo undergo changes in crystallinc
structure, which contributes to ihc cause of abn on ral
pressure. An often ciled example is the ptissible conver
sin of montmorillonite clays to illites, chlontcs, and
kaolinite clays during compaction in the presence of
potassium ions.'
Water is present in clay deposits both as frec pore
water and as water of hydraiion, which is held mure
tighlly wtihia the shale oulerlayer structurc (see Fig.
6.6). Pore water is lost first during compaction ot mont
morillonite clays; water bondcd within tie shale in-
terlayer slrucuire tcnds tt> Ix' retained longer Aficr
ncaching a burial depth al which a tcmperaturc ol 2(X) lo
300F is present, dehydratcd montmorillonite relcascs
APPLIED DRILLING ENGINEEBING
FORMATION
WITH SIGNIFICAN!
SHEAR STRENGTH OR
INTERNAL FRICTION i
the last water interlaycrs and becomes illite.
The water of hydraiion in ihe la.st interlaycrs has con-
siderably greater density than free water, and, thus,
undergocs a volume increase as it desorbs and becomes
free water. When the permeability o f the overiying
sediments is sufficiently low, rclease of the last water in-
terlayercan result in development o f abnormal pres.sure
The last interlaycr wat ert o be released would be relative-
ly free of dissolved sals, This is thought to explain the
fresh water that sometimes is found at depth in abnor-
mally pressured formations.
The chcmical afllnity for fresh water demonstraied by
a clay such as tnontmonlloniie is thought to cause shale
formations to act in a manner somewhat analogous lo a
scmipcmieable membrane or a partial ion sieve. As
discussed in Chap. 2. ihere are similarilies between ihe
osmotic pressure developed by a semipermeable mem
brane and ihe adsorptive pressure developed by a clay or
shale. Waier movement through shale may be conlrollcd
by a difference in chcmical poiential resulting from a
salinity gradient as well as by a difference in darcy tlow
potential resulting from a pre.ssure gradienl.
For abnormal pressures to exist. an overiying pressure
,veal must be present. In some cases, a relatively thin sec
tion of dense caprock appears to fonn such a seal. A
''
hypothesized mcchanism,*' by which a shale formation
acls as a partial ion sieve lo fonii such a caprock, is il-
lustnited in Fig 6.7.
In the absence ot pressure, shales will absorli water
only tf the chcmical potential or tictiviiy of the water is
greater than ihat of ihc shale. However. shales will
dehydrate or release water if the activity of the water is
Icss than that of the shale. Since salinc water has a lowcr
activity than fresh water, therc is Icss tcndency for water
nioleculcs lo Icave a salinc solution and cnter the shale.
However. if the salinc water is abnormally pre.ssured. the
shale can be forccd to accept water from a solution of
lowcr activity. The higher rhe pressure, the greater the
activity ratio thai can be overcome. This rcvcrsal of the
normal direciion of water transfcr sometimes is leferrcd
lo as reverse osmosis, lons that cannoi enier the shale in-
teriayers rcadily are left behmd and beconic more con-
cenlraied, eveniu ally formmg precipitalc.s. The