Professional Documents
Culture Documents
PETROLEUM SOCIETY
CANADIAN INSTITUTE OF MINING, METALLURGY & PETROLEUM
Environmentally Friendlier
Drilling Mud Base Fluids
M. Fefer
Petro-Canada Lubricants
This paper is to be presented at the Petroleum Societys Canadian International Petroleum Conference 2001, Calgary, Alberta,
Canada, June 12 14, 2001. Discussion of this paper is invited and may be presented at the meeting if filed in writing with the
technical program chairman prior to the conclusion of the meeting. This paper and any discussion filed will be considered for
publication in Petroleum Society journals. Publication rights are reserved. This is a pre-print and subject to correction.
ABSTRACT
Two drilling mud base fluids are reviewed - the semisynthetic PureDrill HT-40 and the fully synthetic fluid
PureDrill IA-35. The former is targeted for on-shore
applications whereas the latter is used in the more
environmentally sensitive offshore and on-shore areas.
COMPOSITIONAL DIFFERENCES
PureDrill HT-40 is a product with a much narrower
distillation range than diesel. In addition, it does not
possess the very light ends which contribute to the low
flash and the irritating odour of diesel. Accordingly,
PureDrill is not classified as a fire hazard as per
Canadas WHIMIS regulations whereas, diesel is
classified as a fire hazard which necessitates added
handling precautions. For example, whereas grounding
precautions have to be used when handling diesel or
MANUFACTURING PROCESS
BIOREMEDIATION TESTS
Field trials on the bioremediation of drill mud cuttings
contaminated with PureDrill HT-40 and diesel were
carried out using a technique known as land farming.
The cuttings which originated from drilling operations in
the Alberta foothills contained PureDrill HT-40 and
diesel drill mud residues. The drill mud cuttings were
plowed into virgin soil with a resulting hydrocarbon
concentration of ca. 3.2% for the PureDrill HT-40
cuttings, and in the case of the diesel cuttings the
hydrocarbon concentration in the virgin soil was spiked
up to 1.3 wt%.
VISUAL POLLUTION
In the presence of sunlight on wet surfaces Diesel-like
oils are prone to exhibiting an iridescence or rainbow
effect. This phenomenon is a visual marker for presence
of pollution and can become apparent as a result of
water run-off at the disposal site or where pools of water
are formed.
BIODEGRADATION
The biodegradability potential of PureDrill HT-40
was evaluated through the use of the standard CEC-L33A-82 test, whereas the biodegradability of the
hydrocarbon portion of the drill mud cuttings containing
PureDrill HT-40 and diesel cutting was evaluated
through laboratory soil degradation studies and through
the use of land farming.
REFERENCES
1. Hinds et al., Diesel Bases And Low Toxicity Oil
Mud Systems, SPE1189/1, p 169-177, 1998.
2. M. Voltz et al., Biodegradability of Lubricant Base
Stocks and Fully Formulated Products, Synthetic
Lubricants, p 215, 1999.
Elastomer Compatibility
Failure of elastomer containing components such as
those found in the stator motors can be the cause of
costly delays and downtime. The cause of these failures
can sometimes be traced back to incompatibility with the
drilling fluid. Therefore to keep failures to a minimum it
is preferable to use higher quality elastomer components
and / or to use a less aggressive drilling fluid. From a
molecular perspective the aggressive components in
TABLE 1:
PureDrill IA-35
Water White
Water White
None
None
3.4
3.5
0.84
0.83
126
120
Pour Point, C
-30
-57
<2.2
<0.01
<0.01
<0.001
222 345
222-234
Appearance
Odor
TABLE 2:
Petro-Canada Winter
Diesel
C7-C23
Water White
Yellow
None
Strong
3.4
1.6-2.4
0.83
0.8434
126
63
Pour Point, C
-30
-33
Aromatics Content %
<2.2
32.2
<0.01
12.5
222 - 345
110 379
<5
>5000
Carbon Distribution
Appearance
Odor
Distillation, Range, C
Sulphur + Nitrogen content, ppm
TABLE 3:
PureDrill HT-40
BENZENE
DIESEL
<0.01 159
0.05
<0.5
<0.5
<0.5
<0.5
<0.5
<0.5
<0.5
<0.5
<0.5
<0.5
<0.5
<0.5
<0.5
<0.5
1.0
1.0
1.0
1.0
1.0
1.0
1.0
1.0
1.0
1.0
1.0
1.0
1.0
1.0
449
8
83.3
224
317
9.3
120
359
0.5
5
<0.5
<0.5
<0.5
<0.5
TABLE 4: TOXICITY
PureDrill HT-40
Diesel
Pass
> 400,000
>1,000,000
>2000
>1000
Fail
98
98
95
98
0
78
48
27
Toxicity Tests
Microtox
Rainbow Trout, ppm, LC50, 96h
Mysid Shrimp, ppm, LC50@96h
Acartia Tonsa, ppm, EC50@48h
Skeletonema Costatum, ppm, EC50@72h
% Hydrocarbon in Soil
Worm Survival %, 24 hours
Lettuce, % Root Elongation
Canola, % Root Elongation
Barley, % Root Elongation
TABLE 5:
Diesel Plot
Oat Height, cm
15
Root Elongation, cm
16
TABLE 6:
MICROTOX RESULTS
PureDrill HT-40 Plot
Diesel Plot
Pass
Fail
Microtox
TABLE 7: BIODEGRADATION
Biodegradability, % CEC-L33-A-82
* Literature values (2)
Diesel *
15-40
PureDrill HT-40
87.5
2%
6%
PureDrill HT-40
10.2
10.4
DIESEL
6.4
TABLE 9:
PRACTICALLY NON-TOXIC
LD50: >5,000 MG/KG
TABLE 10:
AROMATIC CONTENT
PureDrill HT-40
Benzene, ppm
Polynuclear aromatics, wt%
DIESEL
<0.01
<0.01
TABLE 11:
159
11.2
VOLATILITY
PureDrill HT-40
Volatility@100C, % (ASTMD2887)
TABLE 12:
ELASTOMER COMPATIBILITY
BUNA N RUBBER
SWELL, %@80C/22Hr
Diesel
11
PureDrill HT-40
-0.15
0
ATMOSPHERIC
DISTILLATION
SOLVENT
DEWAXING
HYDROGEN
HYDROGEN
Gas Oil
ULTRA PURE
OILS
HYDROCRACKER
WAX
HYDROGENATION
VACUUM
DISTILLATION
FIGURE 2: Hydroisomerization
ATMOSPHERIC
DISTILLATION
HYDROGEN
HYDROGEN
Purified
Paraffin
Feedstock
Isoalkane
Higher Viscosity
Fluids
HYDROISOMERIZATION
HYDROGENATION
VACUUM
DISTILLATION
10
FIGURE 3:
HYDROCARBON, %
HYDROCARBON CONCENTRATION
6
PureDrill HT-40
4
Diesel
2
0
0
20
40
WEEKS
11
60