SIMULATION OF GAS KICK IN WELL CONTROL OPERATIONS

Abstract

A gas kick simulator was built using Visual Basic for Application in Microsoft Excel to simulate gas kick behavior during well control operations. The simulator uses basic programming loops and logic to simulate the migration and expansion of gas as well as the change in annular pressure and pit gain. It is designed to take into consideration the wellbore geometry and trajectory, drilling fluid type and properties, formation properties and gas kick properties. The simulator is tested on a gas kick scenario and the results are shown and discussed in details. A comparison between OBM and WBM simulations is made, and the results showed that even though gas kicks in WBM reach the surface earlier, they are also more easily detectable which makes it easier for the drilling team to handle and remove.