Offshore staff
AMSTERDAM–Schlumberger companySmith Bits has introduced the StingBlade conical diamond element bit. This is designed to increase run length and rate of penetration (ROP) while also providing improved steering response in directional drilling.
“Our customers expect that each section is drilled from shoe to total depth with one drill bit at a high rate of penetration,” said Malcolm Theobald, president, Bits & Advanced Technologies, Schlumberger. “StingBlade bits have greater durability in hard and inter-bedded formations when compared to conventional PDC bits, enabling an increase in the frequency of drilling an entire section with one drill bit.”
StingBlade bits employ Stinger conical diamond elements optimally placed across the bit face. The conical shape of these elements induces high point loading on the formation, leading to increased run lengths and higher sustained ROP, Schlumberger claims. In directional applications, the new drill bits cut with lower torque than conventional cylindrical cutters, the company adds, leading to higher build rates with less toolface variation.
In a field trial in the Browse basin offshore northwestAustralia, a StingBlade bit was used to drill a 12 ¼-in. vertical section through a formation known to cause premature impact damage to conventional PDC bits. According to Schlumberger, the drill bit exceeded the planned footage interval, increasing interval length by 97% and ROP by 57%, saving the customer more than five days of drilling time.
10/29/2014
