New Interactive Simulator to Mimic Kick Behavior in Wells of Southern Iraqi fields

Abstract

An unprepared drilling team or an inexperienced group in dealing with bottom hole drilling problems
can cause serious injury, health troubles, environmental damage and rigorous financial losses for any
contingency hole troubles that might be faced during the drilling progress. For that reason, drilling
simulators have been developed and used in teaching and training, usually in well control, focusing on
how to handle the most dangerous and expensive problems such as kicks, mud losses, and stuck pipes.
It is believed that the practice preferred to be related to real cases for best results, so modern techniques
have been introduced in this research to build anew drilling simulator software under the name “Kick-
Sim100”. The main programming language used is C# language and Unity3D editor used as a programming environment, together used to connect, exhibit and implement field experiences and field
data that gathered and analyzed from southern Iraqi fields.
Kick-Sim100 imitates the behavior of the kick for both types: gas and water kick. It also mimics two of
the most common well control methods, namely the “Driller” method and the “wait and weight”
method. This simulator deals with southern Iraqi formations also manages the possibilities of kick
occurrence and problems solving steps by involving all the potential odds that might arise during well
killing procedures automatically, in which It does not need any instructor involvement.
Kick-Sim100 is expected to have a great impact on the improvement of the drilling staff abilities in
handling kick detection while drilling and well-killing methods. It is also planned to participate in Iraqi
petroleum engineering educational systems in the future if developed.