Drilling Rigs Offshore Drilling - 5013 Words

An offshore drilling rig is a machine that creates holes (usually called wells or boreholes) and/or shafts in the ground. Drilling rigs can be huge structures that house equipment which is then used to drill water wells, oil wells, or natural gas wells. The term â€Å"rig† refers to the complexity of the equipment that is used to penetrate deep into the surface of the earth’s hard crust. Offshore drilling is a mechanical process where a wellbore is drilled through the seabed. Typically carried out in order to explore and extract petroleum which lies in rock formations beneath the seabed. The term is used to describe drilling activities on the continental shelf, the term can also be applied to drilling in lakes, inshore waters and inland†¦show more content†¦Oil rigs are primarily used in the drilling of wells and various platforms are mounted directly on the working field for the extraction of oil and/or gas. In some cases the drilling for natural oil and gas offshore is really far away from shore/land and therefore various challenges and hurdles are encountered in drilling offshore than onshore. When drilling at sea, the sea floor is often found to be thousands of feet below sea level. Hence, when dealing with onshore drilling, there is a ground which provides a solid relatively easy platform on which to drill, as compared to at sea on which an artificial d rilling platform has to be constructed (Sadeghi, 2007). . Moveable offshore drilling platforms/rigs Generally, there exist two different types of offshore drilling rigs. The first is called a moveable offshore drilling rig. This can be moved from one place to the other and the second type is called fixed rigs (Sadeghi, 2007). Drilling barges These are used most commonly in inland shallow water drilling. This usually takes place in small water bodies such as lakes, swamps, rivers. Drilling barges are essentially massive floating platforms that need to be towed via a tugboat from one location to the other. Suitable for small water bodies which comprise of still and shallow waters - drilling barges are unable to resist and endure the strong and rapid water movements that are found in large water body environments such as oceans (Sadeghi, 2007). JackupShow MoreRelatedDeepwater Horizon Was An Offshore Drilling Rig966 Words   |  4 PagesHorizon was an offshore drilling rig built in 2001 in South Korea by Hyundai Heavy Industries. In September 2009, the rig drilled the deepest oil well in history with a vertical depth of 35,050 feet. An unplanned flow of well fluids into the wellbore can be dangerous as it could cause a blowout which would then cause a fire. In order to prevent this, driller’s pump a drilling mud into the well, creating a barrier between the undersea oil and gas and the rig. The safety of the drilling crew reliesRead MoreWhat Happened At The Macondo Well1007 Words   |  5 Pagesinhabitants. There are many ways we do this, offshore oil drilling being one of them. Offshore oil drilling is the process of drilling into the earth and pulling up petroleum, a natural fuel source made of decomposed organisms. While there are many positive effects, there are too many negative ones for oil drilling to continue. Offshore oil drilling is too dangerous to be considered safe for use in the ecosystem. Not only is it too dangerous, oil rigs are made in an environment many would deem tooRead MoreThe Drilling Of Fshore Drilling Industry1509 Words   |  7 PagesThe offshore drilling industry can be split into 5 key markets: upgrade market, contract drilling market, second-hand market, scrap market and contract drilling market. 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This is when crude oil that seeps in the ocean water from geologic formations beneath the ocean floor. Despite these risks, the growth of the global oil businesses continue to grow and our need, and ultimately our dependency on it, grow right along with it. Arguably, the greatest impact of off-shore drilling on the environment is indisputable. There are 3,500 drilling rigs and platforms, 79 of them deep-water wellsRead MoreOil Drilling Essay examples1403 Words   |  6 PagesAmerica’s has massive oil demands and off-shore drilling has become a temporary solution and scientist are trying to find alternative sources of energy that can last us a very long time. There are many disadvantages and hazards when it comes to offshore drilling. Theses disadvantages can affect the wildlife, animal population, marine environments, pollution and much more. With there being so many disadvantages for offshore drilling, why continue drilling? Oil that is spilled in the ocean water canRead MoreHistory Of Southern California s Shoreline And Transformation After Its Oil Reserves Discovery1087 Words   |  5 PagesProspectors for oil quickly begin to flood the Santa Barbara shorelines with drilling rigs. Although, many of Summerland’s wells produced a poor quality of crude oil its value tripled on the market from $0.35 per barrels to $1.03 per barrel within a matter of few years (Wilder, p. 33). Oil companies and prospectors quickly started developing oil rigs on private beaches, and in 1896, the world’s first offshore drilling rigs was originated in Summerland, California. Summerland was a tourist town known