SBIR-STTR Award

Directional, slimhole and coiled tubing drilling techniques in natural gas and oil fields are often employed for exploration or more economical access to reserves. These conventional techniques are limited in the horizontal length they can reach due to several factors such as: borehole/pipe friction, inadequate "weight-on-bit" and low penetration rates. This project will develop a Down Hole Thruster to eliminate these problems by creating the advancing thrust and torque resistance required by the bit down hole instead of at the surface. The thruster's novel valving, shifting and gripping concepts could greatly increase the drilling rate of penetration, open new and longer reach horizontal applications, and make slimhole and coiled tubing drilling economically feasible in more applications. In Phase I, conceptual designs will be developed, key components fabricated and tested, and a preliminary economic analysis prepared to demonstrate the feasibility and benefits of the concept. In Phase II, a detailed design and analysis of the Down Hole Thruster will be performed, a prototype will be fabricated, and extensive laboratory and field tests will be made.

Commercial Applications and Other Benefits as described by the awardee:
The Down Hole Thruster is designed to be used with conventional coil tubing, slimhole and horizontal bottom hole assemblies. The Down Hole Thruster will benefit the oil, gas, reentry and exploration drilling industry by making once marginal drilling programs economical, as well as, opening new longer reach markets.