Claims
- 1. A well control method comprising:
measuring pressure with a downhole pressure sensor; transmitting pressure measurement data to a control system; and adjusting at least one of well shut-in, drilling fluid density, pumping rate, or choke actuation to change downhole pressure, wherein said adjusting is performed by the control system without any manual intervention.
- 2. The method of claim 1 wherein the pressure measurement data is transmitted to the control system in real-time.
- 3. The method of claim 1 wherein the pressure measurement data is transmitted to the control system at least once every second.
- 4. The method of claim 1 wherein the pressure measurement data is transmitted by electrical conductors along a drill string.
- 5. The method of claim 4 wherein the drill string is a composite coiled tubing string and the electrical conductors are integrated into the wall of the tubing.
- 6. The method of claim 4 wherein the electrical conductors are disposed within the bore of the drill string.
- 7. A method for controlling a well comprising the steps of:
detecting an influx of formation fluids into the well; regulating the flow of fluids out of the well; measuring pressure within the well with a sensor disposed on a drill string; transmitting pressure measurement data to a control system; monitoring pressure within the well; and adjusting at least one of drilling fluid density, pump rate, or choke actuation so as to maintain a constant pressure within the well as the formation fluids are circulated out of the well and an increased density drilling fluid is circulated into the well.
- 8. The method of claim 7 wherein the control system detects the influx of formation fluids by monitoring pressure data provided by a downhole pressure sensor.
- 9. The method of claim 7 wherein the control system detects the influx of formation fluids by identifying an imbalance in mass flow rates or volumes of fluids flowing into and out of the well.
- 10. The method of claim 7 wherein the control system regulates the bottom hole pressure of the well by adjusting choke actuation.
- 11. The method of claim 7 wherein the pressure measurement data is transmitted to the control system in real-time.
- 12. The method of claim 7 wherein the pressure measurement data is transmitted to the control system at least once every second.
- 13. The method of claim 7 wherein the pressure measurement data is transmitted by electrical conductors along a drill string.
- 14. The method of claim 13 wherein the drill string is a composite coiled tubing string and the electrical conductors are integrated into the wall of the tubing.
- 15. The method of claim 13 wherein the electrical conductors are disposed within the bore of the drill string.
- 16. The method of claim 7 wherein the adjusting of at least one of drilling fluid density, pump rate, or choke actuation is regulated by the control system.
- 17. A method for performing a leak off test comprising:
disposing a drill string into a wellbore adjacent to a casing shoe; measuring the pressure within the wellbore with a pressure sensor disposed on the drill string in a position proximate to the casing shoe; increasing the pressure within the wellbore using a pump; transmitting the pressure measurements to a control system; and regulating the wellbore pressure by using the control system to automatically shut down the pump in response to changes in the measured pressure at the casing shoe.
- 18. The method of claim 17 wherein the pressure measurements are transmitted to the control system in real-time.
- 19. The method of claim 17 wherein the pressure measurements are transmitted to the control system at least once every second.
- 20. The method of claim 17 wherein the pressure measurements are transmitted by electrical conductors along the drill string.
- 21. The method of claim 20 wherein the drill string is a composite coiled tubing string and the electrical conductors are integrated into the wall of the tubing.
- 22. The method of claim 20 wherein the electrical conductors are disposed within the bore of the drill string.
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application is related to and filed concurrently with U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______ (Attorney Docket No. 1391-34800), titled “Dual Gradient Drilling Using Nitrogen Injection,” which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.