Concerning Well Control: List the steps to shut in the well in (either soft or hard) while drilling:?

Answer 1

Depends on the well, drilling rig, and pressure rating of the equipment. There are three major components:
Hydrill -- a big inflatable donut just under the "possum belly" that inflates to shut in the well when the well is flowing. You can still circulate with this shut in.

Pipe rams are a set of two rams that shut in and seal around the drill pipe. There are two of them so that you can trip (openning and closing them like locks to let the drill pipe joints pass).

Blind rams or "shear rams" are what you use when all hell breaks loose. You shut those in and they'll shear the drill pipe off. It's a last resort when the rig is at risk.

The Choke Line is a line that leads to degassing equipment and quite commonly a flare to flare off gas through an "accumulator".

Kill Lines is a special high pressure line attached to the kelly to pump heavy kill mud into the drill pipe to circulate around and kill the well.



Here's a good site with illustrations:
http://www.osha.gov/SLTC/etools/oilandgas/drilling/wellcontrol.html#Blowout%20Prevention%20Program

The two principal methods for shutting in the well are the "hard" shut-in and the "soft". The "hard" is done by closing the BOP (Blowout Preventer) which the choke shut. This creates a pressure wave called a "water hammer" through the mud. It's believed that this can provoke formation damage and lead to an underground blowout. As a result, many operators prefer to use the "soft" shut in method where the choke line is closed slowly after shutting in the rams.

Every company has different rules and steps for shutting in a well. They all center around the principals of shutting in the well and telling the company representative while monitoring the casing pressure.

Answer 2

Soft:

1.Sound alarm
2.Stop rotary
3.Pick up Kelly or clear uppermost tool joint above rotary
4.Shut off pump
5.Check choke line valve on stack
6.Close BOP
7.Close choke while watching casing pressure
8.Notify company personnel
9.Read and record pressures every minute until stabilized

Hard:

1.Sound alarm
2.Stop rotary
3.Pick up Kelly or clear uppermost tool joint above rotary
4.Shut off pump
5.Open choke line valve on stack
6.Close BOP
7.Notify company personnel
8.Read and record pressures every minute until stabilized

Answer 3

I wish I could help, but I've only ever had city water...