Flow Characteristics of a Solid-Liquid Non-Newtonian Fluid for Directional Drilling.

As petroleum technology has developed, both slim-hold and directional drillings have developed as well. Although these techniques are currently being utilized in industry, the literature on them is still insufficient. In the present study, the friction coefficient, pressure loss, and particle transport ratio pertaining to these methods are measured. It is determined that these quantities are influenced by the particle size and concentration within the flow, the pipe rotation, the flow volume, and the inclination of the annulus. The study is performed on a concentric annulus with a variable inclination; the ratio of the inner to outer pipe radius is 0.7, homogeneous, 2-mm sand is used, and both experimental and numerical results are presented for fully developed solid-liquid two-phase flows of non-Newtonian fluid with different CMC solutions. It is determined that the transport ratio and pressure loss are both directly related to the drilling efficiency in directional drilling.