NOV’s Grant Prideco business unit recently launched a line of drill pipe grades to help mitigate sour service failures related to sulfide stress cracking (SSC) in complex wells and acid gas-bearing formations. The new H2Shield grades were designed to provide strength and durability in harsh, sour drilling environments, delivering maximum mechanical performance without sacrificing H2S resistance. Offered as a smaller portfolio, the H2Shield line will simplify customers’ drill string selection, allowing them to select the right grade to achieve optimum performance in their sour service application.
The H2Shieldgrades address every region of the National Association of Corrosion Engineers (NACE) environmental severity diagram, with six engineered grades for drill pipe and three for heavyweight drill pipe. H2Shield drill pipe grades maximize tension and torque to deliver a balance between SSC resistance and strength in each of the three NACE regions.
For NACE regions 1 and 2, the drill pipe grades are prequalified at the manufacturing plant to ensure the right SSC resistance, which offers the shortest lead time and the most economical option. For region 3 products, SSC-resistant drill pipe is a critical requirement, therefore NACE method A testing is performed on the pipe and joints prior to delivery.
Guillaume Plessis, director of Product Management and Support, stated, “We simplified this product line offering to create a possible alignment between the prescriber (operator) and the asset owner (drilling contractor or rental companies). With maximized operational envelope, this new offering promotes operational and financial efficiency.”
