This article will handle the definition of the term Total Flow Area, how to calculate TFA, how to use the TFA chart to calculate bit total flow area, and finally, you can download its calculator for desktop and mobile.
What Is The Drilling Bit Jet Nozzles?
The part of the drilling bit includes a hole or opening for drilling fluid to exit. The hole is usually small (around 0.25 in. in diameter), and the pressure of the fluid inside the bit is usually high, leading to a high exit velocity through the total flow area of the nozzles that creates a high-velocity jet below the nozzles. This high-velocity fluid jet cleans both the bit teeth and the bottom of the hole. Total flow area TFA calculations depend on the sizes of the nozzles, which are usually measured in 1/32-in. Increments (although some are recorded in millimeters) are always reported in “thirty seconds” of size (i.e., fractional denominators are not reduced) and usually range from 6/32 to 32/32.
Why Are These Drilling Bit Jet Nozzles Necessary?
Drilling fluids circulate through a drill string to nozzles at the bit and back to the surface via the system annulus. They provide three crucial functions to drilling:
- Cleaning of the cutting structure.
- Cuttings removal from the hole bottom.
- Efficient cuttings evacuation to the surface.
What is The Definition Of Total Flow Area (TFA)?
This term is related to drilling bits jet nozzles, which can be defined as the summation of all the areas of the drilling bit jet nozzles that fluid can go through while circulating.
How To Perform TFA Calculation Without Chart?
So it is simple. All you have to do is count all the drilling bit jet nozzles. Accordingly, you can determine the flow area with a simple equation.
D is the diameter in inches and area in square inches, but we must consider that the diameter of the drilling bits jet nozzles is reported on xx/32 inches.
The total flow area TFA calculations formula above can be simplified like this.
N is nozzle size in number/32 inches. Area in a square inch
Example
For Example, a drilling bit has five jet nozzles. 3 x 10/32 in & 2 x 12/32in . To calculate the total flow area of the drilling bit, we will use this equation for each nozzle size and then make a summation for all of them.
Total Flow Area = ( 10^2 +10^2 +10^2 + 12^2+ 12^2 ) / 1303.8
So, solving the above equation, we will have 0.451 inch2
Drilling Bits Nozzles Total Flow Area TFA Calculator Chart
In the below TFA chart, you can calculate it using both the number of nozzles and the nozzle size. Just if you have three nozles of size 11 and 1 of size 13, you can get each flow area and add them together to give you the total area.
Download Bit Nozzles Total Flow Area TFA Calculator Spreadsheet
This drilling software/ spreadsheet calculates it for a selection of up to 11 nozzle sizes.
TFA Calculator Application Download On Mobile
