Session: 11-01-01- Well Drilling Technology-1

Paper Number: 103836

103836 - Evaluation of Wear and Damage on Large-Diameter Disc Cutters 

The disc cutter is commonly used on cutter heads for drilling engineering, including tunnel boring, raise drilling, large diameter drilling, etc. Continuous use of the disc cutters over an extended penetrating time during drilling will lead to the disc cutter’s wear and damage, which then leads to reduced drilling performance, lost time, and ultimately higher economic cost. Therefore, it is significant to evaluate the development of the wear and damage of disc cutters in the drilling process and how they influence the overall drilling operation, thereby improving drilling performance prediction and cutter life assessments. In this study, the disc cutter wear and damage development were studied based on several ongoing field trials and research, and a quantitative method of measuring the wear and damaged of disc cutters was developed and has been used over the course of the research project. Based on the field logging data, the influence of drilling parameters such as weight on bit (WOB), rate of penetration (ROP), torque, vibration, hydraulics, and the type of fluid circulation utilized on the wear and damage of disc cutters were evaluated and compared with previous research. It was observed that the WOB and ROP have the most significant influence on the disc cutter’s wear and damage level.

Presenting Author: Stephen Butt Memorial University of Newfoundland

Presenting Author Biography: Prof. Stephen Butt has been a faculty at Memorial University and Dalhousie University in Canada where he
has been engaged in the sustainable development of natural resource industries through teaching,
research and industry collaboration. He is focused on technology development and optimization, reducing
environmental footprint, and the training of highly qualified personnel and industry professionals. He has
held research funding of $6.5M CAD as Principal Investigator and another $13.5M CAD as Co-Investigator,
supervised ~110 Highly Qualified Personnel, published ~230 articles and proceedings, and holds several
patents. He is the recipient of the SPE Canada Region Drilling Engineer Award and the CSChE Award in
Design and Industrial Practice.

Authors:

Oluwafemi Tytler Memorial University of Newfoundland
Zijian Li Memorial University of Newfoundland
Judith George Memorial University of Newfoundland
Stephen Butt Memorial University of Newfoundland