Research & Development

Leading-edge research and development for deepwater exploration and production

Baker Hughes has world-class research capabilities and technology development programs with a total annual budget of more than $400 million. A significant portion of our research and engineering programs are directed at meeting the challenges of deepwater exploration and production. Most of our engineering teams are collocated with world-class manufacturing plants, which use proprietary processes to build the industry’s most reliable downhole tools and instruments.

Center for Technology Innovation

The Baker Hughes Center for Technology Innovation (CTI) is a new $42 million facility devoted to deepwater, high pressure/high temperature, and harsh environment completion and production technology. This center has test facilities capable of evaluating downhole equipment at 700°F (370°C) and 40,000 psi (276 mpas). CTI also has reservoir visualization rooms, sand control laboratories and a prototype manufacturing shop, as well as labs to develop new metallurgy and elastomeric materials.

Celle, Germany Technology Center

The Celle Technology Center in Germany is devoted to advanced drilling system and logging-while-drilling technology, including rotary steerable, drilling motor, and drilling dynamics systems, as well as programs to enhance the reliability of complex downhole systems. All these technologies are used to improve drilling and evaluation operations in deepwater wells.

“A significant portion of our $400 million annual research and engineering budget is directed at deepwater exploration and production.”

Houston Technology Center

At our Houston Technology Center (HTC), engineers and scientists advance wireline and logging-while-drilling formation evaluation technology. Test wells, flow loops, formation labs, and high temperature and vibration testing facilities help evaluate, characterize and assure the reliability of these complex systems. HTC also is an important center for software development and for the advancement of petrophysical interpretation.

Drilling Fluids Laboratories

Drilling fluids laboratories in Houston, Aberdeen and Kuala Lumpur custom-engineer fluid systems to match client applications and develop innovative technologies for drilling, completion and reservoir remediation. Researchers at these centers have made advances in high performance water base muds, constant rheology synthetic fluids systems, and mesophase fluids to repair formation damage and enhance productivity from the reservoir.

Specialty Chemical Research

Chemical research laboratories in Sugar Land, Texas and Kirkby, England develop customized treatments to assure flow, mitigate well production problems, treat crude oil and fuels, manage water, and improve performance of refinery and petrochemical processes. Research chemists at these facilities have introduced low-dosage hydrate inhibitors, treatments to control calcium napthenates, and a certification program to qualify a full suite of chemical treatments for deepwater applications.

“Our new Center for Technology Innovation is devoted to deepwater, HPHT, and harsh enviorment completion and production technology.”

Developing Artificial lift for Deepwater and Subsea Applications

Engineers at the electric submersible pump system development laboratory in Claremore, Oklahoma, advance ESP technology to extend the operating range of pumping systems. They also develop new monitoring and automation technology to improve ESP system performance. Recent expansion of our ESP laboratories include an upgraded test well for evaluating subsea systems and flow loops to evaluate pump designs for production of high-solids, high-viscosity and high-gas content crudes.

Completion Technology Development

Completion engineering centers in Houston, Aberdeen and Broken Arrow, Oklahoma also develop new technologies for a wide variety of open and cased hole applications, including sand control systems, inflow control devices, wellbore isolation tools, liner hanger packers, intelligent wells systems, expandable completions, subsurface safety valves, and well intervention technology.

Simulators Advance Drill Bit Research

The Drilling Laboratory in The Woodlands, Texas has two drilling simulators to test new drill bits in atmospheric and downhole drilling conditions. The facility also includes a boring mill to test new cutter designs and a laboratory to evaluate drill bits that have been run in demanding applications. Recent developments include diamond drill bits that extend the range of PDC drilling to harder, more abrasive formations, casing drilling bits, and expandable reamers for enlarging hole in deepwater wells.

Full Scale Test Rig

Baker Hughes Experimental Test Area (BETA) near Tulsa, Oklahoma is a full-scale, fully instrumented drilling rig where Baker Hughes engineers from all product lines can test prototype and pre-commercial tools under actual downhole conditions. Testing at the BETA site accelerates product time-to-market by speeding field trials.