New surface and down-hole sensors needed for oil and gas drilling

The history of oilwell drilling includes a number of innovative techniques to infer the conditions down-hole and their impact on drilling performance. Surface and down-hole sensors have been deployed to measure related physical phenomena that can be generally associated with the actual environment. Some direct measurements have been made after drilling using sensors suspended on a wire line, and this evolved into near real-time measurements using Measurement While Drilling (MWD) and Logging While Drilling (LWD) equipment that use low bandwidth pulse telemetry communications. With the advent to high speed wired drillpipe, new sensors are needed to take advantage of the improved telemetry capabilities to produce true real-time measurements. New surface sensors are needed that employ smart technologies and enhanced data processing. By combining these high-speed, high quality measurements with predictive models, set points and limits can be directly connected to the latest generation of open-architecture rig control systems to improve drilling safety and efficiency. This paper briefly outlines the shortcomings of a wide variety of existing sensor designs and identifies emerging technologies that could provide better measurements if the harsh environmental constraints can be met. The authors then call to non-industry participants to adapt sensor technologies used in other commercial applications to help automate the process of drilling for oil and gas. They discuss where the oil and gas industry needs accurate, real-time measurements of chemical, rheological and physical properties, and how these measurements could be used. They also address the need for power generation and/or storage to overcome challenges encountered today. The paper ends with a look ahead as the industry seeks new sensors, perhaps based upon a very different set of physical measurements that will improve our ability to safely produce oil and gas until alternate energy sources become commonplace.