Methods and Systems For Modeling, Designing, and Conducting Drilling Operations That Consider Vibrations

A method of drilling a well for use in the production of hydrocarbons, the method comprising:

• a) constructing at least one surrogate representing at least a portion of a bottom hole assembly, wherein the at least one surrogate includes at least two virtual sensors;
• b) calculating a transmissibility index between the at least two virtual sensors for each of the at least one surrogates;
• c) selecting an optimized bottom hole assembly configuration for a drilling operation based at least in part on the calculated transmissibility index;
• and
• d) drilling a well with drilling equipment incorporating a bottom hole assembly at least substantially embodying the selected bottom hole assembly configuration.

A modeling system comprising:

• a processor;
• a memory coupled to the processor;
• and
• a set of computer readable instructions accessible by the processor, wherein the set of computer readable instructions are configured to:
• a) construct at least one surrogate representing at least a portion of a bottom hole assembly, wherein the at least one surrogate includes at least two virtual sensors;
• b) calculate a transmissibility index between the at least two virtual sensors for each of the at least one surrogates;
• and
• c) output the transmissibility index for use in selecting an optimized bottom hole assembly configuration for a drilling operation based at least in part on the calculated transmissibility index.

A method of modeling drilling equipment to represent vibrational performance of the drilling equipment, the method comprising:

• constructing at least one surrogate representing at least a portion of a bottom hole assembly disposed in a well;
• utilizing a frequency domain model to calculate a sideforce at least at one contact point between the bottom hole assembly and the well, wherein the sideforce is calculated as a function of rotational speed for each surrogate;
• determining at least one sideforce slope index as a function of rotational speed for the at least one contact point;
• and
• displaying the calculated sideforce slope index as a function of rotational speed.

A method of drilling a well for use in the production of hydrocarbons, the method comprising;

• constructing at least one surrogate representing at least a portion of a bottom hole assembly disposed in a well;
• determining at least one sideforce slope index as a function of rotational speed for at least one contact point between the bottom hole assembly and the well;
• selecting an optimized bottom hole assembly configuration for a drilling operation based at least in part on the determined at least one sideforce slope index;
• and
• drilling a well with drilling equipment incorporating a bottom hole assembly at least substantially embodying the selected bottom hole assembly configuration.

A modeling system comprising:

• a processor;
• a memory coupled to the processor;
• and
• a set of computer readable instructions accessible by the processor, wherein the set of computer readable instructions are configured to:
• construct at least one surrogate representing at least a portion of a bottom hole assembly disposed in a well;
• determine at least one sideforce slope index as a function of rotational speed for at least one contact point between the bottom hole assembly and the well;
• and
• output the at least one sideforce slope index for use in selecting an optimized bottom hole assembly configuration for a drilling operation based at least in part on the determined at least one sideforce slope index.

A method of modeling drilling equipment to represent vibrational performance of the drilling equipment, the method comprising:

• identifying two or more fundamental excitation modes for a drilling bottom hole assembly;
• wherein each fundamental excitation mode is weighted relative to at least one other fundamental excitation mode;
• and wherein the excitation modes are related to at least one vibration-related drilling parameter;
• constructing at least one surrogate representing at least a portion of a bottom hole assembly;
• utilizing a frequency-domain model to simulate a response of the at least one surrogate to excitations corresponding with the identified fundamental excitation modes;
• determining one or more performance indices for the simulated surrogate, wherein at least one of the performance indices is based at least in part on the simulated response of the surrogate at least at two fundamental excitation modes and on the relative weight of the at least two fundamental excitation modes;
• and
• utilizing the one or more performance indices in selecting at least one of one or more bottom hole assembly configurations and one or more drilling plans for use in drilling operations.

A method of drilling a well for use in the production of hydrocarbons, the method comprising;

• identifying two or more fundamental excitation modes for a drilling bottom hole assembly;
• wherein each fundamental excitation mode is weighted relative to at least one other fundamental excitation mode;
• and wherein the excitation modes are related to at least one vibration-related drilling parameter;
• constructing at least one surrogate representing at least a portion of a bottom hole assembly;
• utilizing a frequency-domain model to simulate a response of the at least one surrogate to excitations corresponding with the identified fundamental excitation modes;
• determining one or more performance indices for the simulated surrogate, wherein at least one of the performance indices is based at least in part on the simulated response of the surrogate at least at two fundamental excitation modes and on the relative weight of the at least two fundamental excitation modes;
• utilizing the one or more performance indices in selecting at least one of one or more bottom hole assembly configurations and one or more drilling plans for use in drilling operations;
• and
• drilling a well with at least one of 1) drilling equipment incorporating a bottom hole assembly at least substantially embodying the selected one or more bottom hole assembly configurations and 2) the selected one or more drilling plans.