Abstract:
Circulation loss occurs frequently during drilling in fractured formations in the Sichuan-Chongqing region where plugging operations and drilling processes constrain each other. Conventional polycrystalline diamond compact (PDC) bits lack the capability of active extrusion-based plugging, which results in long plugging treatment cycles and frequent tripping operations, severely restricting drilling speed and efficiency improvement. To address this technical challenge, with “adding blades, weakening gauge protection, and enlarging nozzles” as the core design concept, a blade load vector regulation method was proposed, and a vector thrust-type plugging and anti-sticking PDC bit was developed. The bit achieved vector synthesis of lateral loads through an asymmetric blade configuration, so that the lateral thrust force acted directionally on the dedicated plugging blade. The bit structure was verified through cutter layout optimization, cutting mechanics analysis, computational fluid dynamics (CFD) numerical simulation of the bottom hole flow field, and laboratory plugging tests, and the bit was field-applied in several fractured lost-circulation blocks in the Sichuan-Chongqing area. The results showed that the lateral unbalanced force coefficient of the bit was 0.039, indicating good drilling stability, and the flow field distribution effectively ensures the directional migration of the plugging material at the well bottom. Laboratory tests confirmed that the bit could continuously press plugging materials into fractured lost-circulation channels through the scraping and pressing action of the blades. Field application in 10 wells showed that the bit achieved active plugging while drilling, reduced tripping operations by more than 2 trips per well, exhibited no sticking during tripping in gypsum and high-pressure brine layers, and maintained bit newness of more than 95% upon exit from the wells. The research demonstrates that the vector thrust-type plugging and anti-sticking PDC bit can simultaneously achieve rock-breaking drilling and plugging while drilling, effectively shortening the treatment cycle for complicated downhole conditions, and providing a new technical means for controlling severe circulation loss in fractured formations in the Sichuan-Chongqing area.