Discussion of Fracture Width Logging While Drilling and Drilling Mud/Loss- Circulation-Material Selection Guidelines in Naturally Fractured Reservoirs

摘要

The discussion of drilling mud losses in naturally fractured reser- voirs by Lietard et al (SPE 57713, SPEDC. September 1999. page 168) provides valuable insight to a common drilling problem. The authors derived a differential equation describing the transient radial mud-loss invasion from a borehole into a fracture plane. They used numerical methods to solve the equation, having con- eluded that an analytical solution was not possible for muds with positive yield values. The results were used to product the type curves for the mud losses. Further analysis shows that an analyti- cal solution exists and confirms the efficiency of the numerical algorithm employed by the authors.