Journal of Natural Gas Science and Engineering 29 (2016) 80e88

Contents lists available at ScienceDirect

Journal of Natural Gas Science and Engineering

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/jngse

Optimization of wellbore trajectory using the initial collapse volume

Qian Li, Zhiqiang Tang*
Petroleum and Natural Gas Engineering Institute, Southwest Petroleum University, Chengdu, China

a r t i c l e i n f o

a b s t r a c t

Article history:
Received 2 April 2015
Received in revised form
19 November 2015
Accepted 25 December 2015
Available online 29 December 2015

During an actual drilling process, the wellbore pressure might be below the critical pressure under which
the rock surrounding the wellbore begins to fail. Therefore, optimizing the wellbore trajectory based on
the critical pressure to improve wellbore stability may be unreasonable, because the critical pressure can
only reect the degree of difculty for the initial damage to occur at the wellbore rather than the extent
of the wellbore damage. In accordance with the linear poroelastic rock mechanics theory, combined with
the MogieCoulomb criterion, the shape of the initial shear failure zone of arbitrary wellbores is simulated. In order to predict the degree of the wellbore damage, the initial shear failure location, failure
width, and failure depth of arbitrary wellbores are determined, and then a new model for calculating the
initial collapse volume of a directional wellbore is derived in this paper. With the help of computer
programming, the failure position, critical pressure, failure depth, failure width, and the initial collapse
volume of arbitrary wellbores under different in-situ stresses are analysed. The results show that the
wellbore trajectory optimized according to the critical pressure is signicantly different to that optimized
according to the degree of wellbore damage, and these trajectories can be completely opposite. A case
from southwest Sichuan shows that, when the wellbore pressure has to be below the critical pressure
during a drilling process, the new model provided in this paper can be used for optimizing the wellbore
trajectory to ensure the safety of the drilling operation.
2015 Published by Elsevier B.V.

Keywords:
Directional wellbore
MogieCoulomb criterion
Initial collapse volume
Wellbore stability
Wellbore trajectory optimization

1. Introduction
The drilling process experiences wellbore shear failure when
the wellbore pressure is lower than a value known as the critical or
collapse pressure. Avoiding any degree of shear failure requires
excessively high wellbore pressure, which may result in drilling
uid leakage. A certain degree of wellbore damage will not cause
wellbore instability, and thus the wellbore pressure is allowed to be
below the critical pressure during the actual drilling process
(Zoback, 2007). However, serious wellbore enlargement will affect
the safety of the drilling operation and completion quality. In order
to improve wellbore stability during the drilling process, the critical
pressure or its equivalent density is generally used as a basis for
optimizing wellbore trajectory (Awal et al., 2001; Kadyrov and
Tutuncu, 2012; Lee et al., 2012; Al-Shaaibi et al., 2013; Fang et al.,
2013; Gao et al., 2014; He et al., 2015). However, it may be no longer
be reasonable to use the critical pressure as the basis for optimizing
when the wellbore pressure is below the critical pressure, since the

* Corresponding author.
E-mail address: tangzhiqiangb523@163.com (Z. Tang).
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jngse.2015.12.038
1875-5100/ 2015 Published by Elsevier B.V.

critical pressure can only reect the degree of difculty of wellbore

failure, and cannot reect the degree of damage of the wellbore.
The technique of determining the magnitudes and orientations
of in-situ stress using wellbore failures has been widely applied in
the literature (Zoback et al., 1985; Pe
ska and Zoback., 1995; Pei
et al., 2009; Zoback et al., 2003; Vernik and Zoback, 1992; Ramirez
and Frydman, 2006). Conversely, it is also feasible to predict the
degree of damage of the wellbore and optimize the wellbore trajectory based on the degree of wellbore damage if the in-situ stress
and rock mechanical properties are known. Aadnoy and Kaarstad
(2010) established a model to calculate the collapse volume of a
directional wellbore, but this model is based on the assumption
that the wellbore is a standard ellipse after shear failure and the
failure width maintains a constant 180
. However, the specic value
of failure width should change in accordance with parameters such
as stress magnitude and rock mechanical properties (Moos et al.,
2007). The failure width of 180
means that all the rock surrounding the wellbore will fail, which may lead to washouts due to
the lack of insufcient intact material around the wellbore wall to
support the applied stresses (Zoback, 2007).
According to the linear poroelastic rock mechanics theory,
combined with the MogieCoulomb criterion, the initial shear

Q. Li, Z. Tang / Journal of Natural Gas Science and Engineering 29 (2016) 80e88

81

failure of a directional wellbore at different wellbore pressures is

simulated, and a new calculation model for the initial collapse
volume is derived. Then, the paper demonstrates how to use this
model to analyse the wellbore stability under different in-situ
stresses, and nally, the wellbore trajectory for a directional wellbore from the southwest Sichuan is optimized.

and sV the effective stress of the vertical stress, MPa.

Fig. 1 shows the stress transformation system in a directional
wellbore, where the azimuth angle is taken as the rotation angle
around the z1-axis, and the inclination angle is taken as the rotation
angle around the y1-axis.
The effective stresses of the in-situ stresses are given by:

1.1. Stresses around the wellbore

8
< sH SH  Pp
s Sh  Pp
: h
sV SV  Pp

When a well is drilled, the rock surrounding the wellbore must

support the stress that was previously supported by the removed
rock, which leads to a stress concentration around the wellbore
(Bradley, 1979). If this stress concentration exceeds the rock
strength, shear failure will occur at the wellbore. The severity of the
wellbore stress concentration depends on both the magnitudes and
orientations of the in-situ stresses and the wellbore inclination and
azimuth. Once the magnitudes and orientations of the three principal stresses (vertical, minimum horizontal and maximum horizontal) are known, the stress distribution near the wellbore can be
determined. Assuming that the rock is a linear poroelastic material
with isotropic properties, the stress near the wellbore as a function
of radial distance away from a wellbore is given by the well-known
Kirsch equations (Bradley, 1979; Aadnoy and Chenevert, 1987; Li
and Purdy, 2010):

where SH is the maximum horizontal stress, MPa; Sh the minimum

horizontal stress, MPa; and SV the vertical stress, MPa.
In order to predict the degree of damage of a directional wellbore, consideration needs to be given as to whether the principal
stresses acting in the tangent plane at the wellbore wall, and its
parallel plane away from the wellbore wall, will exceed the strength
of the rock. The principal stresses near the wellbore (Pe
ska and
Zoback, 1995) are given by Eq. (4).


q
8
1
2
2
>
>
< stmax 2 szz sqq szz  sqq 4tqz

q
>
1
>
:
szz sqq  szz  sqq 2 4t2qz
stmin
2







8
s11 s22
R2
s  s22
R4
R2
R4
R2
R2
>
>
1  2 11
1 3 4  4 2 cos 2 q s12 1 3 4  4 2 sin 2 q DP 2
> srr
>
2
2
>
r
r
r
r
r
r
>
>
>






>
>
2
4
4
2
>
s11 s22
R
s  s22
R
R
R
>
>
1 2  11
1 3 4 cos 2 q  s12 1 3 4 sin 2 q  DP 2
> sqq
<
2
2
r
r
r
r
>
2
2
>
R
R
>
>
szz s33  2ns11  s22 2 cos 2 q  4ns12 2 sin 2 q
>
>
>
r
r
>
>
>
>

>
2
>
>
: tqz s23 cos q  s13 sin q 1 R
r2

where q is the well round angle, degree; R the wellbore radius, mm;
r the distance between the analysis point and wellbore axis, mm; n
the Poisson's ratio; and DP the difference between wellbore pressure (Pw ) and pore pressure (Pp ), MPa. The symbols srr , sqq , szz , tqz
are the radial, tangential, axial, and shear stress components near
the wellbore as a function of radial distance away from the wellbore
axis, respectively. The effective stress components of the in-situ
stress near the wellbore (Aadnoy and Chenevert, 1987; Awal et al.,
2001; Li and Purdy, 2010) sij i; j 1; 2; 3 are given by Eq. (2) and
they are derived from the coordinate conversion, as shown in Fig. 1.



8
>
s11 cos2 a sH cos2 b sh sin2 b sV sin2 a
>
>
>
>
>
>
s22 sH sin2b sh cos2 b
>

>
<
s33 sin2 a sH cos2 b sh sin2 b sV cos2 a
>
>
cos a cos b sin bsh  sH 
s12 
>
>
>
>
>
s

sH cos2 b sh sin2 b  sV sin a cos a

>
13
>
:
s23 sin a cos b sin bsh  sH

(2)

where a is the inclination angle, degrees; b the azimuth angle

(measured from the direction of the maximum horizontal stress),
degrees; sH the effective stress of the maximum horizontal stress,
MPa; sh the effective stress of the minimum horizontal stress, MPa;

(3)

(4)

(1)

where st max , st min are the maximum and minimum principal

stresses on tangential plane of a directional wellbore, respectively.
1.2. MogieCoulomb criterion
Rock failure criterion is used for determining whether the rock
will fail under a certain stress. Among the many failure criteria, the
MohreCoulomb criterion is the most commonly used, although it
ignored the effect of intermediate principal stress on rock's failure.
Through compressive, tensile and biaxial tests on different rocks,
Mogi (1967) concluded that the intermediate principal stress has an
inuence on rock failure, but its inuence is relatively small
compared to the minimum principal stress. Al-Ajmi and Zimmerman (2005) developed the MogieCoulomb criterion for wellbore
stability analysis, in which the effect of intermediate principal
stress was considered, as shown in Eq. (5). Compared to the
MohreCoulomb criterion, the result by using MogieCoulomb criterion is more practical (Zhang et al., 2010).

soct a bsm

(5)

Rock material parameters a and b can be derived directly from

the uniaxial compressive strength (C0 ) and internal friction angle
(f):

82

Q. Li, Z. Tang / Journal of Natural Gas Science and Engineering 29 (2016) 80e88

mechanical parameters of sandstone rock and the stress magnitudes at the vertical depth of 5000 m are as shown in Table 1, and
the maximum horizontal stress direction is NE0
, the degree of
damage of an arbitrary wellbore is simulated. The initial shear
failure zone of the vertical wellbore, directional wellbores drilling
along the maximum horizontal stress direction with inclination
angles of 30
and 60
, and the horizontal wellbore changes with
decreasing wellbore pressure, as shown in Table 2.
In Table 2, the black circle is the intact wellbore and the red lines
sketch out the initial shear failure zone when the wellbore pressure
is below the critical pressure. As shown in Table 2, the shear failure
does not occur at the wellbore, and the wellbore can be maintained
as a standard circle when the wellbore pressure is sufcient. If the
wellbore pressure is below the critical pressure, shear failure will
occur symmetrically at the wellbore, and the initial shear failure
zone of wellbore is a part of an ellipse. With the decreasing of
wellbore pressure, the initial shear failure zone will expand to the
whole wellbore and turn into an ellipse.
2.2. The calculation model of initial collapse volume

Fig. 1. Coordinate conversion of directional wellbore.

p
2C0 cos f
a
3tan45
f=2
b

p
2 2
sin f
3

(6)

(7)

sm and soct are the effective mean pressure and octahedral shear
stress respectively, dened as:

sm

s1 s3
2

soct

1
3

q
s1  s2 2 s1  s3 2 s2  s3 2

(8)

(9)

where s1 , s2 , s3 are the maximum, intermediate and minimum

effective stress, respectively.
2. The calculation model of initial collapse volume
2.1. The initial shear failure zone
If the rock mechanical properties and the stresses distribution
around the wellbore are determined, according to the rock failure
criterion, we can predict whether the wellbore will be damaged, as
well as the degree of damage. To assess the degree of damage of the
wellbore, the simplest method is to determine the shear failure
radius of the wellbore in all directions. Generally, the rock shear
failure caused by excessive wellbore pressure is not considered, and
when rock shear failure occurs at some point around the wellbore,
the effective stress acting on it is as follows:

s1 stmax ; s2 stmin ; s3 srr

(10)

Using the above-mentioned stress equations and the

MogieCoulomb criterion, the shear failure radius in all directions
and the initial shear failure zone of wellbore can be determined
when the wellbore pressure is known. Assuming that the

Based on the above analysis, the rock shear failure will occur
symmetrically at the wellbore, and the initial shear failure area is an
ellipse or a part of an ellipse, as shown in Fig. 2. When the shear
failure zone expands to fully surround the wellbore, the area of
shear failure zone, namely the initial collapse volume, equals to the
area difference between ellipse and circular wellbore. Therefore, in
order to determine the area of the shear failure zone, we must rst
determine the parameters of the ellipse caused by shear failure.
In Fig. 2, b is the short semi-axis of the ellipse, mm; a the long
semi-axis of the ellipse, mm; qinit the initial shear failure position,
degrees; and u the failure width, degrees. The coordinate system
0
0
(x 0y )in Fig. 2 is obtained by counter-clockwise rotation of the
coordinate system (x0y) in Fig. 1 around the z1-axis by angle qinit .
The position of the initial shear failure is the direction of the
long axis of the ellipse, as shown in Fig. 2. Shear failure in a vertical
well always occur at the azimuth of the minimum horizontal stress,
regardless of stress magnitude or rock strength (Pe
ska and Zoback,
1995; Zoback et al., 2003). Similarly, if shear failure occurs at the
directional wellbore, the initial shear failure position is independent of the pore pressure, wellbore pressure, rock strength and
other parameters that will remain unchanged regardless of the well
round angle. Because that the radial stress is the same around the
wellbore and the shear failure will rst occur at the wellbore wall
where the difference of principal stresses is the maximum, the
initial shear failure position (qinit ) can be determined to be the well
round angle where stmax obtains its maximum value.
As shown in Fig. 2, point A is the position of initial shear failure.
The effective principal stress at point A can be determined by
importing the stress equation Eq. (1) at point A into Eq. (4). Then
inserting the effective principal stress at point A into the
MogieCoulomb criterion, the wellbore pressure under which the

Table 1
Basic data for analysis of the initial shear failure zone.
Item

Value

Unit

Poisson's ratio (n)

Internal friction angle (f)
Uniaxial compressive strength (C0 )
Pore pressure (Pp )
Vertical stress (SV )
Minimum horizontal stress (Sh )
Maximum horizontal stress (SH )

0.25
35
80
75
125
115
145

/

MPa
MPa
MPa
MPa
MPa

Q. Li, Z. Tang / Journal of Natural Gas Science and Engineering 29 (2016) 80e88

83

Table 2
Top view of the initial shear failure zone (look along the drilling direction).

shear failure occurs (or avoiding the shear failure) can be obtained.
The shear failure depth and width are the critical positions of
wellbore failure, and the combination of stress equations and rock
failure criterion are required to determine the size of both. The well
round angle at point C and point A is the same, where the initial
shear failure occurs. Similarly, according to the stress equation at
point C and the MogieCoulomb criterion, the long axis (a) and the
relative depth of shear failure (d) can be determined if the wellbore
pressure is known.

d a  R=R
where d is the relative depth of shear failure, percent.

(11)

Point B is also the critical position of wellbore failure. Assuming

that the width of the initial shear failure zone is u, the well round
angle at point B can be expressed as:

q qinit u=2

(12)

The width of initial shear failure (u) can easily be obtained by

inserting the effective principal stress at point B into the
MogieCoulomb criterion.
The initial collapse volume can be expressed by using the area
difference of the ellipse and the overlapping portion, so the only
parameter that needs to be determined is the short axis (b). According to the relationship between the ellipse and the circle, and
combining the shear failure width (u) and the long semi-axis (a),
the short semi-axis (b) can be expressed as Eq. (13).

8 r180
u 180

<
aR sinu=2
b
: q
2
a  R2 cos2 u=2

0
 u < 180

(13)

where r180
is the shear failure radius when the shear failure expands to the whole wellbore, which can be calculated by inserting
the stress equations at well round angle 180
into the
MogieCoulomb criterion.
In order to calculate the initial collapse volume (for unit well
0
0
depth) conveniently, the coordinate system (x 0y ) is selected, as
shown in Fig. 2. The elliptic equation and circle equation are given
as Eq. (14).

x2 y 2

1; X 2 Y 2 R2
a2 b2

Fig. 2. The initial shear failure of arbitrary wellbore.

(14)

When the failure width is less than 180
, the initial collapse
volume can be obtained by integrating the area of failure zone, as
per Eq. (15).

84

Q. Li, Z. Tang / Journal of Natural Gas Science and Engineering 29 (2016) 80e88

R sinu=2
Z

V 4

x  Xdy
0

R sinu=2

Z

a
b

q q
b2  y2  R2  y2 dy

(15)


 R sinu=2
  q
q
a y
b2
y
y
R2
y

arcsin
b2  y2 arcsin
R2  y2 
b 2
b
2
R 0
2
2
q
2aR
R sinu=2
sinu=2 b2  R2 sin2 u=2 2ab arcsin
 R2 sin u  R2 u

b
b

where V is initial collapse volume of wellbore (for unit well depth),

106 m3/m; u is in radians.
When the failure width is equal to 180
, the initial collapse
volume can be expressed by Eq. (16).

V pab  pR2

(16)

To eliminate the inuence of the wellbore size on the judgement

of wellbore stability, the relative collapse volume of the wellbore is
given by:

.
Vr V pR2

(17)

where Vr is the relative collapse volume, percent.

3. Wellbore trajectory optimization
The magnitude and orientation of stresses have a remarkable
inuence on the wellbore's stability which can be improved by
optimizing the wellbore trajectory. According to the relative
magnitude of the three principal stresses, the in-situ stress regimes
can be divided into three typical stress regimes, namely normal
faulting (SV > SH > Sh ), strike-slip faulting (SH > Sh > SV ), and reverse
faulting (SH > SV > Sh ). Then, by means of computer programing, the
wellbore trajectory under the three typical stresses will be optimized by using the critical pressure and the degree of wellbore
damage. The stability of an arbitrary wellbore under different
stresses will be analysed by assuming a Poisson's ratio of 0.25 for
sandstone rock at a vertical depth of 4500 m, an internal friction
angle of 30
, a uniaxial compressive strength of 67 MPa, a pore
pressure of 72 MPa. If the values of the in-situ stresses are 112.5,
121.5 and 130.5 MPa, and the direction of the maximum horizontal
stress is NE0
, the stability of an arbitrary wellbore with a wellbore
pressure of 72 MPa under the normal faulting stress, the strike-slip
faulting stress and reverse faulting stress are as shown in Fig. 3.
Fig. 3 shows the failure positions, critical pressure, failure width,
failure depth and the initial (relative) collapse volume of an arbitrary wellbore under the normal faulting stress, strike-slip faulting
stress and reverse faulting stress, respectively. The colours represent the critical pressure when the shear failure occurs and the
failure width, failure depth and initial collapse volume when
wellbore pressure is below the critical pressure. The warmer colours indicate the higher wellbore pressure required to avoid wellbore damage and a larger degree of damage of the wellbore when
shear failure occurs, whereas the cooler colours represent the
opposite.

Under the normal faulting stress, for horizontal or highly-deviated directional wellbores, the initial failure will appear on the left
and right of the wellbore, which is independent of the wellbore
azimuth. Vertical wellbore or directional wellbores with an inclination angle of less than 30
have the minimum failure width and
initial collapse volume. Wellbores have the lowest critical pressure
and the minimum initial failure depth when drilled along the
minimum horizontal stress direction, with an inclination angle of
45
. However, in this case, shear failure will occur on the whole
wellbore if the wellbore pressure is below the critical pressure.
Fig. 4 shows the reasons for this situation. According to the
MogieCoulomb criterion, the wellbore pressure required to avoid
shear failure mainly depends on the maximum principal stress
when the rock mechanical properties are xed. The maximum
principal stress peak is very high and the crest of the stress curve is
sharp when horizontally drilled along the direction of the
maximum horizontal stress (red line). Thus, the critical pressure is
high, but the shear failure occurs only in a part of the wellbore
under a certain wellbore pressure. However, the stress curve is
smooth and the maximum principal stresses are equal at almost all
locations when drilled along the minimum horizontal stress direction and with an inclination of 45
. Thus, the shear failure will
occur on the whole wellbore once the wellbore pressure is below
the critical pressure.
In strike-slip faulting stress, the initial failure will occur on the
left and right sides of the wellbore when drilled along the
maximum horizontal stress direction. When drilled along the
minimum horizontal stress direction, the initial failure will appear
on the top and bottom of the wellbore. Horizontal wellbores have
the minimum critical pressure and initial failure depth when drilled along the direction with a 45
angle to the maximum horizontal
stress direction, but there is a risk of whole wellbore shear failure.
Horizontal wellbores have a minimum failure width and initial
collapse volume when drilled along the maximum horizontal stress
direction. Vertical or directional wellbores with an inclination angle
less than 30
have a maximum critical pressure and failure depth,
but the failure width and collapse volume are relatively small.
Under the inverse faulting stress, for horizontal or directional
wellbores with a large inclination angle, the initial failure appears
at the bottom and top of the wellbore and is independent of the
wellbore azimuth. When drilled along the maximum horizontal
stress direction with an inclination angle of 50
, both the critical
pressure and the failure depth are minimal. However, the failure
width is the maximum in this case, which means that there is a risk
of shear failure of the whole wellbore. Horizontal wellbores have
the minimum failure width and initial collapse volume when

Q. Li, Z. Tang / Journal of Natural Gas Science and Engineering 29 (2016) 80e88

85

Fig. 3. The stability of arbitrary wellbores under different in-situ stresses.

drilled along the maximum horizontal stress direction. Vertical or

directional wellbores with a smaller inclination angle have a high
critical pressure, a large failure width, depth and initial collapse
volume, as well as poor wellbore stability.
Overall, the variation of the critical pressure with inclination
and azimuth is in good accordance with the failure depth. The
wellbore (with higher critical pressure) most likely to fail may not

Fig. 4. The maximum principle stress around the wellbore.

encounter a serious initial collapse when the wellbore pressure is a

constant. The inclination and azimuth optimized by using the
critical pressure may be inconsistent with that optimized by using
the degree of wellbore damage, even completely opposite.
4. Application example
The GK structure of southwest Sichuan is located in the southern segment of the Guangyuan-Dayi fault of the Longmenshan fault
zone, as shown in Fig. 5. Tectonic movements are active and the
formation is under a strong compressive stress in this area, which
has been vindicated by both the Wenchuan earthquake in 2008
(Wu et al., 2009) and the Lushan earthquake in 2013 (Yueqiao et al.,
2013). Statistical analysis of the failure of drilled wells in this area
shows that the orientation of the maximum horizontal stress is
approximately NE138
, substantially perpendicular to the direction
of the Longmenshan fault and the Guangyuan-Dayi fault. Research
by many scholars is in agreement that the maximum horizontal
stress gradient of the Longmenshan fault zone is approximately
4.52 MPa/100 m, and the minimum horizontal stress gradient is
2.51 MPa/100 m (Zhang, 2012). The vertical stress is determined to
be approximately 2.45 MPa/100 m, by integrating the density logging data, which is less than the minimum horizontal stress, which
means that this area is in a reverse faulting stress state.
Well GK00X-2 is a directional wellbore of GK structure in
southwest Sichuan. Considering the drilling process may encounter
wellbore instability, a prior trajectory optimization of the build-up

86

Q. Li, Z. Tang / Journal of Natural Gas Science and Engineering 29 (2016) 80e88

Fig. 5. The location of GK structure in Longmenshan fault zone (Li et al., 2008).

section is conducted. According to the known stress gradient of this

area, the vertical stress at the vertical depth of 4150 m can be
determined to be 101.68 MPa, the maximum horizontal stress
187.58 MPa, and the minimum horizontal stress 104.17 MPa. Core
experiments of adjacent wells show that the uniaxial compressive
strength of the rock at this depth is 108 MPa, the internal friction
angle 42.1
, the rock Poisson's ratio 0.157. The pore pressure
gradient has been determined to be approximately 1.6 MPa/100 m
from adjacent wells, namely the pore pressure at the vertical depth
of 4150 m is 66.4 MPa. Drilling history of adjacent wells also has
shown that wellbores are prone to lost circulation when the drilling
uid density is greater than 1.65 g/cm3.
According to the above parameters at the vertical depth of
4150 m, the required wellbore pressure of an arbitrary wellbore to
avoid shear failure can be obtained, as shown in Fig. 6a. The
required wellbore pressure for a horizontal wellbore drilled along
the direction of NE138
is only 60 MPa. However, the formation at
the vertical depth of 4150 m is not the target zone, so it is
impracticable to use a large inclination angle at this depth. Directional wellbores with a smaller inclination angle or azimuth angle

of NE48
have a large critical pressure, up to 95 MPa, which will

cause signicant lost circulation. Therefore, the wellbore pressure
has to be below the critical pressure during the drilling process of
well GK00X-2, and it is difcult to avoid wellbore damage. The
optimized inclination and azimuth should contribute to minimizing the degree of damage and avoiding the underground
complexities.
In order to ensure the smooth implementation of the drilling
operation, we analysed the possible degree of damage of an arbitrary wellbore at a vertical depth of 4150 m when the wellbore
pressure is 67.2 MPa (drilling uid density 1.65 g/cm3), and the
results are as shown in Fig. 6b and c. The degree of damage of any
wellbore is approximately equivalent, and is small when the inclination angle is less than 100
, indicating that the shear failure will
not appear around the whole wellbore. When drilled along NE48

or the opposite direction, the wellbore will experience a slightly
smaller collapse volume. In view of this, we decided to drill the well
along NE48
with a drilling uid density of 1.65 g/cm3. The vertical
depth of well GK00X-2 is 4544 m and the inclination angle is 31

when the drilling operation is complete.

Q. Li, Z. Tang / Journal of Natural Gas Science and Engineering 29 (2016) 80e88

87

Fig. 6. Stability of arbitrary wellbore.

According to the critical pressure, the wellbore pressure at the

vertical depth of 4150 m needs to be maintained at 95 MPa in order
to avoid the shear failure of well GK00X-2 during the drilling
process. However, the drilling process experienced no wellbore
instability, and the related underground complexities when the
wellbore pressure is only 67.2 MPa at the vertical depth of 4150 m,
except local enlargement of wellbore. Therefore, when the wellbore
pressure has to be below the critical pressure and wellbore damage
is inevitable, the wellbore trajectory optimized according to the
degree of wellbore damage will help to avoiding underground
complexities.
5. Conclusions
According to the linear poroelastic rock mechanics theory, and
combining this with the MogieCoulomb criterion, the shape of the
initial shear failure zone of an arbitrary wellbore was analysed in
this paper. In order to predict the degree of the wellbore damage,
the initial failure position of any wellbore, and the failure width and
failure depth at a certain wellbore pressure were analysed, and the
calculation model for the initial collapse volume of the directional
wellbore was established. With the help of computer programming, the failure position, the critical pressure, the failure width,
the failure depth and the initial collapse volume of an arbitrary
wellbore under different in-situ stresses are compared and analysed. The results show that the degree of damage of the wellbore
easily to fail is not necessarily high, which means that the wellbore
trajectory optimized according to the critical pressure may be
different from that optimized according to the degree of wellbore
damage. A case from southwest Sichuan shows that the calculation
model provided in this paper can be used for optimizing the
wellbore trajectory to ensure the safety of drilling operations when
the wellbore pressure is below the critical pressure.
Acknowledgement
This research is supported by National Science and Technology
Major Project (NO. 2011ZX05021-006) and PetroChina Innovation
Foundation (NO. 2013D-5006-0212).
References
Aadnoy, B.S., Chenevert, M.E., 1987. Stability of highly inclined boreholes (includes

associated papers 18596 and 18736). SPE Drill. Eng. 2 (04), 364e374.
Aadnoy, B.S., Kaarstad, E., 2010, January. Elliptical geometry model for collapse
volume during depletion. In: IADC/SPE Asia Pacic Drilling Technology Conference and Exhibition. Society of Petroleum Engineers.
Al-Ajmi, A.M., Zimmerman, R.W., 2005. Relation between the Mogi and the
Coulomb failure criteria. Int. J. Rock Mech. Min. Sci. 42 (3), 431e439.
Al-Shaaibi, S.K., Al-Ajmi, A.M., Al-Wahaibi, Y., 2013. Three dimensional modeling for
predicting sand production. J. Pet. Sci. Eng. 109, 348e363.
Awal, M.R., Khan, M.S., Mohiuddin, M.A., Abdulraheem, A., Azeemuddin, M., 2001,
January. A new approach to borehole trajectory optimization for increased hole
stability. In: SPE Middle East Oil Show. Society of Petroleum Engineers.
Bradley, W.B., 1979. Failure of inclined boreholes. J. Energy Resour. Technol. 101 (4),
232e239.
Fang, Z., White, A., Tjengdrawira, A., Ashat, F., Lee, C.F., Vince, T., 2013, October.
Geomechanical optimization with managed pressure drilling for successfully
penetrating challengeable depleted reservoirs in offshore Sarawak, Malaysia. In:
SPE Asia Pacic Oil and Gas Conference and Exhibition. Society of Petroleum
Engineers.
Gao, H.J., Odunlami, T., Osayande, N., 2014, September. Shale bedding impact on
wellbore stability and drilling optimization. In: SPE/CSUR Unconventional Resources ConferenceeCanada. Society of Petroleum Engineers.
He, S., Wang, W., Shen, H., Tang, M., Liang, H., Lu, J.A., 2015. Factors inuencing
wellbore stability during underbalanced drilling of horizontal wellsewhen uid
seepage is considered. J. Nat. Gas Sci. Eng. 23, 80e89.
Kadyrov, T., Tutuncu, A.N., 2012, January. Integrated wellbore stability analysis for
well trajectory optimization and eld development in the west Kazakhstan
eld. In: 46th US Rock Mechanics/Geomechanics Symposium. American Rock
Mechanics Association.
Lee, H., Ong, S.H., Azeemuddin, M., Goodman, H., 2012. A wellbore stability model
for formations with anisotropic rock strengths. J. Pet. Sci. Eng. 96, 109e119.
Li, S., Purdy, C.C., 2010, January. Maximum horizontal stress and wellbore stability
while drilling: modeling and case study. In: SPE Latin American and Caribbean
Petroleum Engineering Conference. Society of Petroleum Engineers.
Li, Z., Liu, S., Chen, H., Liu, S., Guo, B., Tian, X., 2008. Structural segmentation and
zonation and differential deformation across and along the Lomgmen thrust
belt, west Sichuan, China. J. Chengdu Univ. Technol. (Science & Technology
Edition) 35 (04), 440e454.
Mogi, K., 1967. Effect of the intermediate principal stress on rock failure. J. Geophys.
Res. 72 (20), 5117e5131.
Moos, D., Barton, C.A., Willson, S., 2007, January. Impact of rock properties on the
relationship between wellbore breakout width and depth. In: 1st Canada-US
Rock Mechanics Symposium. American Rock Mechanics Association.
Pei, J., Wessling, S., Hartmann, A., Bartetzko, A., 2009, January. Constraining in-situ
stresses at BETA by analysis of borehole images and downhole pressure data. In:
International Petroleum Technology Conference.
Pe
ska, P., Zoback, M.D., 1995. Compressive and tensile failure of inclined well bores
and determination of in situ stress and rock strength. J. Geophys. Res. Solid
Earth (1978e2012) 100 (B7), 12791e12811.
Ramirez, A., Frydman, M., 2006, January. Using breakouts for in situ stress estimation in tectonically active areas. In: Golden Rocks 2006 The 41st US Symposium on Rock Mechanics (USRMS). American Rock Mechanics Association.
Vernik, L., Zoback, M.D., 1992. Estimation of maximum horizontal principal stress
magnitude from stress-induced well bore breakouts in the Cajon Pass scientic
research borehole. J. Geophys. Res. Solid Earth (1978e2012) 97 (B4), 5109e5119.
Wu, M., Zhang, Y., Liao, C., Chen, Q., Ma, Y., Wu, J., Qu, M., 2009. Preliminary results
of in-situ stress measurements along the Longmenshan fault zone after the

88

Q. Li, Z. Tang / Journal of Natural Gas Science and Engineering 29 (2016) 80e88

Wenchuan Ms 8.0 earthquake. Acta Geol. Sin. (English Edition) 83 (4), 746e753.
Yueqiao, Z., Shuwen, D., Chuntang, H., Jusong, S., Zhonghai, W., Hailong, L., Jian, L.,
2013. Seismogenic structure of the April 20, 2013, Lushan Ms7 earthquake in
Sichuan. Acta Geol. Sin. (English Edition) 87 (3), 633e645.
Zhang, L., Cao, P., Radha, K.C., 2010. Evaluation of rock strength criteria for wellbore
stability analysis. Int. J. Rock Mech. Min. Sci. 47 (8), 1304e1316.
Zhang, P., 2012. In-situ stress distribution and its effects on borehole stability in the
Longmenshan earthquake fault zone. Geol. Explor. 48 (2), 0379e0386.

Zoback, M.D., 2007. Reservoir Geomechanics. Cambridge University Press,

pp. 303e306.
Zoback, M.D., Barton, C.A., Brudy, M., Castillo, D.A., Finkbeiner, T., Grollimund, B.R.,
Wiprut, D.J., 2003. Determination of stress orientation and magnitude in deep
wells. Int. J. Rock Mech. Min. Sci. 40 (7), 1049e1076.
Zoback, M.D., Moos, D., Mastin, L., Anderson, R.N., 1985. Well bore breakouts and in
situ stress. J. Geophys. Res. Solid Earth (1978e2012) 90 (B7), 5523e5530.