An apparatus for drilling a borehole in an earth formation includes: a plurality of drill pipes configured to be coupled together to form a drill string that is configured to convey an earth formation disintegrating device while progressing into the earth formation; a communication medium disposed on the drill string and configured to communicate a signal; and one or more processors. The one or more processors are configured to: receive drilling information; determine a stress distribution along at least a part of the drill string using the drilling information; determine a cumulative fatigue damage of at least a part of one drill pipe in the drill string using the stress distribution; and write the cumulative fatigue damage of the at least a part of one drill pipe to a memory.

An apparatus for drilling a borehole in an earth formation includes: a plurality of drill pipes configured to be coupled together to form a drill string that is configured to convey an earth formation disintegrating device while progressing into the earth formation; a communication medium disposed on the drill string and configured to communicate a signal; and one or more processors. The one or more processors are configured to: receive drilling information; determine a stress distribution along at least a part of the drill string using the drilling information; determine a cumulative fatigue damage of at least a part of one drill pipe in the drill string using the stress distribution; and write the cumulative fatigue damage of the at least a part of one drill pipe to a memory.

A wireline drilling system for the hydrocarbon exploration and production industry incorporating a drilling cuttings removal system which acts to remove and store cuttings displaced by a drill bit during drilling operations. The cuttings removal system may employ a screw member having a tapered lower portion and a narrow upper portion to transport drilling cuttings to a cuttings basket and distribute the cuttings therein. Embodiments of the invention include an integral tractor to progress the wireline drilling system and provide weight-on-bit, as well as assist in retrieval of the wireline drilling system if the tool should become stuck.

An modular apparatus for generating electrical power in a borehole penetrating the earth includes a body comprising first and second mechanical connectors at opposing ends and first and second electrical connectors at the opposing ends, the mechanical connectors and the electrical connectors being configured to connect with the same type of corresponding connectors on another modular apparatus when the modular apparatus and the another modular apparatus are stacked together. The modular apparatus further includes: an electrical generator having a rotor and stator in mechanical communication with the first and second mechanical connectors and in electrical communication with the first and second electrical connectors; and a turbine wheel coupled to or integrated with the rotor and comprising one or more turbine blades that are configured to interact with fluid flowing through the borehole causing the turbine wheel to rotate and the rotor to rotate in order to generate the electrical power.

An modular apparatus for generating electrical power in a borehole penetrating the earth includes a body comprising first and second mechanical connectors at opposing ends and first and second electrical connectors at the opposing ends, the mechanical connectors and the electrical connectors being configured to connect with the same type of corresponding connectors on another modular apparatus when the modular apparatus and the another modular apparatus are stacked together. The modular apparatus further includes: an electrical generator having a rotor and stator in mechanical communication with the first and second mechanical connectors and in electrical communication with the first and second electrical connectors; and a turbine wheel coupled to or integrated with the rotor and comprising one or more turbine blades that are configured to interact with fluid flowing through the borehole causing the turbine wheel to rotate and the rotor to rotate in order to generate the electrical power.

There is disclosed a device for use in evaluating the integrity of soil behind a wall of an infrastructure. The device generally has a frame having a plurality of rests adapted to be received onto the wall during use; a hammer assembly having an actuator fixedly mounted to the frame and a hammer element having a head movably mounted to the frame, the actuator being actuatable to move the head to strike the wall while the plurality of rests hold the frame in a fixed position relative to the wall; and a sensor configured and adapted to sense vibrations of a portion of the wall resulting from the strike and to generate a vibration signal indicative thereof.

A method for controlling fluid flow through a wellbore by introducing a plug with a variable choke into the wellbore, setting the plug in the wellbore, and mechanically adjusting the variable choke in the wellbore, thereby controlling a flow rate of a fluid through the plug. A plug that can control fluid flow through a flow passage in a wellbore, where the plug can include a body, an annular seal element that prevents fluid flow through an annulus between the plug and the wellbore, and a variable choke, where a closure member of the choke is mechanically rotated downhole to adjust a fluid flow rate through the choke. A method that can include producing fluids from two zones and using a plug to control a ratio of the fluids in a produced mixture.

A drill bit for directional drilling includes a main body and a wear component. The main body is unitary and formed of a first material. The main body includes opposed outer surfaces and a periphery extending between the opposed surfaces. The wear component is unitary and is formed of a second material that is harder than the first material. The wear component comprises a retention portion and a wear portion. The retention portion is positioned within the first material of the main body. The retention portion includes opposed retention surfaces that, moving in a direction inward from the periphery of the main body, taper apart from each other toward the opposed outer surfaces of the main body. The wear portion extends outward from the retention portion relative to the periphery of the main body. The wear portion is substantially planar and is configured to form an outer wear edge.

A system and method for controlling a drilling rig, of which the method includes receiving a first message-based command from a supervisory system at a first gateway, determining a first system-specific command based on the first message-based command using the first gateway, and transmitting the first system-specific command from the first gateway to a first system-specific controller. The first system-specific controller is configured to execute the first system-specific command by controlling first rig equipment, but is not configured to execute the first message-based command.

Some examples of producing water-based drilling fluids including ecofriendly lubricating additives are described. A raw material oil including fatty acids with a short chain alcohol is esterified in the presence of a catalyst to produce alkyl ester products and triglycerides. The alkyl ester products are washed and heated to remove any residual water or the short chain alcohol. A first quantity of the alkyl ester products is mixed with a second quantity of a water-based wellbore drilling fluid.