A New Approach to Total Lost Circulation: An Interwoven Fiber Network to Seal Losses

Abstract

Lost Circulation (LC) remains one of the most severe problems in drilling a Geothermal Well. The costs associated with LC often accounts for over 20% of the total costs of drilling for steam. Many of the conventional materials used in the oil and gas industries have been tried in geothermal wells but have been mostly unsuccessful because of the hostile well bore environment. Temperatures can far exceed the tolerance level of commonly used cellulosic and fibrous materials. Also common in geothermal drilling are the vugular, cavernous zones that are very difficult to seal with the standard wood fibers, etc… A simple common sense approach to the problem may supersede all of the other exotic cures for LC in geothermal drilling, but only if the proper procedures are followed.