Drilling Fluid

On a drilling rig, mud is pumped from the mud pits through the drill string where it
sprays out of nozzles on the drill bit, cleaning and cooling the drill bit in the
process. The mud then carries the crushed rock ("cuttings") up the annular space
between the drill string and the sides of the hole being drilled, up through the
surface casing, and emerges back at the surface. Cuttings are then filtered out at
the shale shakers and the mud returns to the mud pits. The returning mud can
contain natural gases or other flammable materials. These can collect in and
around the shale shakers area or in other work areas. There is a potential risk of a
fire, an explosion or a detonation occurring if they ignite. In order to prevent this
safety measures have to be taken. Safety procedures, special monitoring sensors
and explosion-proof certified equipment has to be installed, e.g. explosion-proof
certified electrical wiring or control panels. The mud is then pumped back down
and is continuously recirculated. After testing, the mud is treated periodically in
the mud pits to give it properties that optimize and improve drilling efficiency.
The progress of drilling action depends on exposure of fresh rock surface to the bit. This
requires removal of the cuttings as soon as they are produced. The process of
flushing of drill cuttings involves mixing of the cuttings with a field and carrying
the mixture out of the hole. At the same time the drilling fluid need to fulfill the
following objectives:
1. Complete hole clearance
2. Holding the suspended particles preventing sedimentation
3. Stabilizing borehole wall
4. Stopping ingress of strata fluid at the sametime preventing wall breakage
5. Cooling of friction surfaces above the bit.
6. Lubrication of the friction surfaces
7. not impair oil tapping properties of producing horizon
8. prevent circulation loss
9. heat resistant while drilling in high thermal gradient
10. Inert to reactions
11. facilitating hole bottom rock breakage
12. non abrasive to drill string

13. corrosion preventing

14. pumping friendly
15. cheaper
Classification
A. Water Base drilling fluids
a. Water (fresh, sea, salt brine)
b. Clayey suspension
c. Natural suspensions
d. Hydrogel base suspension
e. Emulsions of oil in water type
B. Non-aqueous base drilling fluid
a. Degassed oil and petroleum product
b. Multi-component hydro-carbon base solutions
c. Recovered emulsions of water in oil type
C. Gaseous Active Agents (air natural gas, exhaust gas)
D. Aerated drilling fluids and foam
Water Based Drilling Fluid:
Water:

Water cools the bit and friction surfaces of the drilling shaft better than any
other drilling fluid. (Water has higher heat capacity (4184 J/kg oC, higher than
any other liquid except ammonia).
At high flow rate it can remove cuttings.

Cuttings removed of water easily (as it does not have thixotropic properties)

It can avert formation fluid influx to a depth where formation pressure is less
than hydrostatic head.

Rock breakdown speed is higher as water being lightest among drilling fluids
exerts lesser pressure on bottom hole and penetrating into the cracks prevents
their closure and facilitate subsequent breaking by the bit.

Flushing with water needs less power as its viscosity and density insignificant.

Less viscosity gives turbulent flow and good for cuttings removal.

Drilling crew does not have preparation and quality control of drilling fluid

Short Comings
i.
ii.

Rigidity of some formation is affected by water and contribute to caving

Loss circulation reduces flushing efficiency

iii. Due to lack of thixotropic properties cannot hold suspended particles in rest.
During bit changing thorough cleaning is essential
iv. Being good solvent many chemogenic rock dissolve to give corrosive solution. To
protect drill pipe inhibitors must be added.
v. Water affects oil tapping properties of producing horizons

Mud Fluid
Drilling fluid needs to be multi component system with adjustable composition and
properties.
i.
ii.

Density should be 1000 kg/m3 or more.

Cheap liquid medium

iii.

Colloidal particles providing sedimentational stability at rest due to

transformation into gel and capable of plugging up pores in fractured rock.
(clay - A fine-grained, firm earthy material that is plastic when wet and
hardens when heated, consisting primarily of hydrated silicates of aluminum,
argillaceous rock meaning rock having clay.)

iv.

Weigting mineral of high sp. Gr. Eg. Barite - usually white, clear, or yellow
orthorhombic mineral

v.

Chemical reagents to regulate physic chemical, mechanical properties and

environment protection.

Montmorillonite is a very soft phyllosilicate mineral that typically forms in

microscopic crystals, forming a clay. Montmorillonite, a member of the smectite (clay
minerals) family, is a 2:1 clay, meaning that it has 2 tetrahedral sheets sandwiching a
central octahedral sheet. The particles are plate-shaped with an average diameter of
approximately 1 micrometre. It makes the mud slurry viscous which helps in keeping
the drill bit cool and removing drilled solids.

Similar to other clays, montmorillonite swells with the addition of water. However,
some montmorillonites expand considerably more than other clays due to water
penetrating the interlayer molecular spaces and concomitant adsorption. The amount
of expansion is due largely to the type of exchangeable cation contained in the
sample. The presence of sodium as the predominant exchangeable cation can result in
the clay swelling to several times its original volume. Hence, sodium montmorillonite
has come to be used as the major constituent in non-explosive agents for splitting
rock in natural stone quarries in order to limit the amount of waste, or for the
demolition of concrete structures where the use of explosive charges is unacceptable.

Montomorillonite history: Montmorillonite was discovered in 1847 in

Montmorillon in the Vienne prefecture of France, but is found in many locations
world wide and known by other names. Other modern discoveries include bentonite
in about 1890 and named by an American geologist for the one time Fort Benton (on
the Fort Benton Formation geological stratum) in the eastern Wyoming Rock Creek
area.

Clay minerals are hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, sometimes with variable

amounts of iron, magnesium, alkali metals, alkaline earths and other cations. Clays
have structures similar to the micas and therefore form flat hexagonal sheets. Clay
minerals are common weathering products (including weathering of feldspar) and low
temperature hydrothermal alteration products. Clay minerals are very common in fine
grained sedimentary rocks such as shale, mudstone and siltstone and in fine grained
metamorphic slate and phyllite.
Clay minerals include the following groups:

Kaolinite group which includes the minerals kaolinite, dickite, halloysite and
nacrite.
Some sources include the serpentine group due to structural similarities

Smectite group which includes pyrophyllite, talc, vermiculite, sauconite,

saponite, nontronite and montmorillonite.

Illite group which includes the clay-micas. Illite is the only common mineral.

Chlorite group includes a wide variety of similar minerals with considerable

chemical variation.

Drilling Fluid Properties

Drilling Fluid Properties are important issues that guys on the rig need to know and
understand. The properties are:
Most drilling muds are thixotropic (i.e. they gel under static condition). This
characteristic keeps the cuttings suspended when the mud is not moving during,
for example, maintenance. (Thixotropy is the property of some non-newtonian
pseudoplastic fluids to show a time-dependent change in viscosity; the longer the
fluid undergoes shear stress, the lower its viscosity. A thixotropic fluid is a fluid
which takes a finite amount of time to attain equilibrium viscosity when
introduced to a step change in shear rate. However, this is not a universal
definition; the term is sometimes applied to pseudoplastic fluids without a
viscosity/time component. Many gels and colloids are thixotropic materials,
exhibiting a stable form at rest but becoming fluid when agitated. )

It is important to note the distinction between thixotropic fluid and shear-thinning

fluid. The former displays a decrease in viscosity over time at a constant shear rate,
while the latter displays decreasing viscosity with increasing shear rate. Fluids which
exhibit the opposite property, in which shaking for a time causes solidification, are
called rheopectic, sometimes called anti-thixotropic, and are much less common.

Fluids that have shear thinning and elevated viscosities are efficient for hole
cleaning.
Higher annular velocity improves cutting transport. Transport velocity = annular
velocity slip velocity
High density fluids may clean hole adequately even with lower annular velocities
(by increasing the buoyancy force acting on cuttings). But may have a negative
impact if mud weight is in excess of that needed to balance the pressure of
surrounding rock (formation pressure), so mud weight is not usually increased for
hole cleaning purposes.
Higher rotary drill-string speeds introduce a circular component to annular flow
path. This helical flow around the drill-string causes drill cuttings near the wall,
where poor hole cleaning conditions occur, to move into higher transport regions
of the annulus. Increased rotation are the best methods in high angle and
horizontal beds.

Mud Density: Mud density is the weight per unit volume of mud and normally it is
reported in Pound Per Gallon (PPG). Mud density is used for providing hydrostatic
pressure to control well for drilling operation.
Viscosity: It is defined as the internal resistance of fluid flow. There are 2 types of
viscosity which are Funnel Viscosity and Plastic Viscosity.
1) Funnel Viscosity: It is time, in seconds for one quart of mud to flow through a Marsh
funnel which has a capacity of 946 cm 3 (See Figure 1). A quart (1 quart [US, liquid] =

0.946 352 946 liter)of water exits the funnel in 26 seconds. This is not a true viscosity,
but serves as a qualitative measure of how thick the mud sample is. The funnel viscosity
is useful only for relative comparisons.

Figure 1 Mash Funnel

2) Plastic Viscosity (PV): A parameter of the Bingham plastic rheological model (See
Figure 3). PV is the slope of the shear stress-shear rate plot above the yield point (See
Figure 4). Viscometer is equipment to measure Plastic Viscosity (See Figure 2). Plastic
Viscosity is derived from the 600 rpm reading minus the 300 rpm reading and PV is in
centipoises (cp). A low PV indicates that the mud is capable of drilling rapidly because of
the low viscosity of mud exiting at the bit. High PV is caused by a viscous base fluid and
by excess colloidal solids. To lower PV, a reduction in solids content can be achieved by
dilution.
There are many rheology models shown in Figure 3. Normally Bingham Plastic Model is
used to describe mud properties as Plastic Viscosity and Yield Point (See Figure 4).

Figure 2 Viscometer

Figure 3 Rheology Model

Figure 4 Bingham Plastic Model describes PY and VP

Yield Point: Physical meaning is the resistance to initial flow, or the stress required
starting fluid movement. The Bingham plastic fluid plots as a straight line on a shear-rate
(x-axis) versus shear stress (y-axis) plot, in which YP is the zero-shear-rate intercept (PV
is the slope of the line). YP is calculated from 300-rpm and 600-rpm viscometer dial
readings by subtracting PV from the 300-rpm dial reading and it is reported as lbf/100
ft2. YP is used to evaluate the ability of mud to lift cuttings out of the annulus. A higher
YP implies that drilling fluid has ability to carry cuttings better than a fluid of similar
density
but
lower
YP.

Gel Strength: It is the ability of fluid to suspend fluid while mud is in static condition.
Before testing gel strength, mud must be agitated for awhile in order to prevent
precipitation and then let mud is in static condition for a certain limited time (10 seconds,
10 minutes or maybe 30 minutes) and then open the viscometer at 3 rpm and read the
maximum reading value. In a morning report, there are 3 values of gel strength, which are
Gel 10sec (lbf/100 ft2), Gel 10 mins (lbf/100 ft2) and Gel 30 mins (lbf/100 ft2).
Ph: This value tells the acid of drilling fluid. Ph paper is used to measure Ph.
Electrical Stability: This value reflects to the stability of emulsion of SDF. If water
disperses well in oil phase (good emulsion), the resistivity of drilling fluid will be higher.
In contrast, if water disperses badly in oil phase (bad emulsion), the resistivity of drilling
fluid will be lower. As the concept above, applied Ohms law (V=IR), electricity from the
electrical stability meter is emitted in to mud and voltage is measured by the electrical
probe. Normally if the measured voltage is higher than 500 volt, the electrical stability is
good.
CaCl2 concentration: Cl+ can prevent formation swell hence this value must be
maintained. It is measured by a titration test by using silver nitrate as titrant with
potassium chromate as the endpoint indicator and when titration reaches the equilibrium
point
mud
will
change
into
red.
Retort test: There are 2 values that are Saraline Water Ratio (SWR) and Solid Content
(LGS, Barite) obtained from this testing. Mud is retorted in retort test skid at 950 F for 2
hrs. High temperature can vaporize liquid phase into gas phase and then gas phase will be
transferred to a condenser and condense in liquid form. Liquid is stored in a tube that has
a level indicator to see how much of water and oil (saraline) extracted. Moreover, solid
left
in
the
retort
reflects
the
solid
content
in
mud.
HTHP (Fluid Loss): This test is conducted for testing fluid loss behavior of mud. Mud is
pressed through filter paper located in the HTHP filter press at 350 F with differential
pressure at 500 psi for 30 mins. Thickness of filter cake stuck in filter paper should be
less than 2 ml.

MUD FUNCTIONS

Suspend and release cuttings

must suspend drill cuttings, weight materials and additives under a wide range of
conditions.
drill cuttings that settle can causes bridges and fill, which can cause stuck-pipe
and lost circulation.
weight material that settles is referred to as sag, this causes a wide variation in the
density of well fluid. More frequently occurs in high angle and hot wells.
high concentrations of drill solids are detrimental to;

o drilling

efficiency (it causes increased mud weight & viscosity which in turn
increases maintenance costs and increased dilution)
o Rate of Penetration (ROP) (increases horsepower required to circulate)
o mud properties that suspended must balanced with properties in cutting removal
by solid control equipment.
o for effective solids controls, drill solids must be removed from mud on the 1st
circulation from the well. If re-circulated, cuttings break into smaller pieces and
are more difficult to remove.
o conduct a test to compare the sand content of mud at flow line and suction pit (to
determine whether cuttings are being removed).

Control formation pressures

if formation pressure increases, mud density should also be increased, often with
barite (or other weighting materials) to balance pressure and keep the wellbore
stable. Unbalanced formation pressures will cause a blowout from pressured
formation fluids.
hydrostatic pressure depends on mud weight and True Vertical Depth. If
hydrostatic pressure is greater than or equal to formation pressure, formation fluid
will not flow into the wellbore.
well control means no uncontrollable flow of formation fluids into the wellbore.
hydrostatic pressure also controls the stresses caused by tectonic forces, these may
make wellbores unstable even when formation fluid pressure is balanced.
if formation pressure is subnormal, air, gas, mist, stiff foam or low density mud
(oil base) can be used.
in practice, mud weight should limited to the minimum necessary for well control
and wellbore stability. If too great it may fracture the formation.

Seal permeable formations

when mud column pressure exceeds formation pressure, mud filtrate invades the
formation, and a filter cake of mud is deposited on the wellbore wall.
mud is designed to deposit thin, low permeability filter cake to limit the invasion.
problems occur if thick filter cake is formed, including tight hole conditions, poor
log quality, stuck pipe, lost circulation and formation damage.
in highly permeable formations with large pore throats, whole mud may invade
the formation, depending on mud solids size;
o use bridging agents to block large opening, than mud solids can form seal.
o for effectiveness, bridging agents must be over the half size of pore spaces

fractures.
agents (i.e calcium carbonate, ground cellulose).
depending on the mud system in use, a number of additives can improve the filter
cake (i.e bentonite, natural & synthetic polymer, asphalt and gilsonite).

o bridging
o

Maintain wellbore stability

chemical composition and mud properties must combine to provide a stable

wellbore. Weight of mud must be within the necessary range to balance the
mechanical forces.
wellbore instability = sloughing formations can cause tight hole conditions,
bridges and fill on trips (same symptoms indicate hole cleaning problems).
wellbore stability = hole maintains size and cylindrical shape.
if the hole is enlarged, it becomes weak and difficult to stabilize, causes problems
(low annular velocities, poor hole cleaning, solids loading and poor formation
evaluation)
in sand and sandstones formations, hole enlargement can be accomplished by
mechanical actions (hydraulic forces & nozzles velocities). Reduced by
conservative hydraulics system. Good qualities filter cake containing bentonite to
limit the enlargement.
in shales, mud weight is usually sufficient to balance formation stress, and wells
are usually stable. With water base mud, chemical differences cause interactions
between mud & shale and can lead to softening. Highly fractured, dry, brittle
shales can be extremely unstable (leading to mechanical problems).
various chemical inhibitors can control mud / shale interactions (calcium,
potassium, salt, polymers, asphalt, glycols and oil best for water sensitive
formations)
oil (and synthetic oil) based drilling fluids are used to drill most water sensitive
Shales in areas with difficult drilling conditions.
to add inhibition, emulsified brine phase (calcium chloride) drilling fluids are
used to reduce water activity and creates osmotic forces prevent adsorption of
water by Shales.

Minimizing formation damage

skin damage or any reduction in producing formation natural porosity and

permeability (washout)
most common damage;
o mud or drill solid invade formation matrix
o swelling of formation clays within reservoir, reduce permeability
o precipitation of solids of mud filtrate to formations fluids or to the other

fluids
forming insoluble salts
o mud filtrate & formation fluids forming an emulsion (blocking reservoir pores)
o specially designed drill-in fluids or workover and completion fluids, minimize
formation damage.

Cool, lubricate & support the bit and drilling assembly

heat is generated from mechanical and hydraulic forces at bit and when drillstring rotate and rub against casing and wellbore.

cool and transfer heat away from source and lower to temperature than bottom
hole.
if not, bit, drillstring and mud motors would fail more rapidly.
lubricity base on Coefficient of friction. Oil and synthetic base lubricate better
than water base mud (but can improve if WBM added lubricants).
amount of lubrication provided by drilling fluid depends on type & quantity of
drill solids and weight materials + chemical composition of system.
poor lubrication cause high torque and drag, heat checking of drillstring but aware
these problem also caused by key seating, poor hole cleaning and incorrect
bottom hole assemblies design.
drilling fluids also support portion of drill-string or casing through buoyancy.
Suspend in drilling fluid, buoyed by force equal to weight (or density) of mud, so
reducing hook load at derrick.
weight that derrick can support limited by mechanical capacity, increase depth so
weight of drill-string and casing increase.
when running long, heavy string or casing, buoyancy possible to run casing
strings whose weight exceed a rigs hook load capacity.

Transmit hydraulic energy to tools and bit

hydraulic energy provides power to mud motor for bit rotation and for MWD
(measurement while drilling) and LWD (logging while drilling) tools. Hydraulic
programs base on bit nozzles sizing for available mud pump horsepower to
optimize jet impact at bottom well.
limited to;
o pump horsepower
o pressure loss inside drillstring
o maximum allowable surface pressure
o optimum flow rate
o drillstring pressure loses higher in fluids

o
o
o

higher densities, plastic viscosities and

solids.
low solids, shear thinning drilling fluids such as polymer fluids, more efficient in
transmit hydraulic energy.
depth can be extended by controlling mud properties.
transfer information from MWD & LWD to surface by pressure pulse.

Ensure adequate formation evaluation

chemical and physical mud properties and wellbore conditions after drilling affect
formation evaluation.
mud loggers examine cuttings for mineral composition, visual sign of
hydrocarbons and recorded mud logs of lithology, ROP, gas detection or
geological parameters.
wireline logging measure electrical, sonic, nuclear and magnetic resonance.

potential productive zone are isolated and performed formation testing and drill
stem testing.
mud helps not to disperse of cuttings and also improve cutting transport for mud
loggers determine the depth of the cuttings originated.
oil base mud, lubricants, asphalts will mask hydrocarbon indications.
so mud for drilling core selected base on type of evaluation to be performed
(many coring operations specify a blend mud with minimum of additives).

Control corrosion (in acceptable level)

drill-string and casing if continuous contact with drilling fluid may cause form of
corrosion.
dissolved gases (oxygen, carbon dioxide, hydrogen sulfide) cause serious
corrosions problems;
o cause rapid, catastrophic failure
o deadly to human after short period

o
o

of time
low pH (acidic) aggravates corrosion, so use corrosion coupons to monitor
corrosion type, rates and to tell correct chemical inhibitor is used in correct
amount.
mud aeration, foaming and other O2 trapped conditions cause corrosion damage
in short period time.
when drilling in high H2S, elevated the pH fluids + sulfide scavenging chemical
(zinc).

Facilitate cementing and completion

cementing is critical to effective zone and well completion.

during casing run, mud must remain fluid and minimize pressure surges so
fracture induced lost circulation does not occur.
mud should have thin, slick filter cake, wellbore with no cuttings, cavings or
bridges.
to cement and completion operation properly, mud displace by flushes and
cement. For effectiveness;
o hole near gauges
o mud low viscosity
o mud non progressive

gel strength

Minimize impact on environment

Mud is, with varying degree, toxic. It is also difficult and expensive to dispose of in an
environmentally-friendly manner.

Metric Conversion Factors

Multiply

Fluid Ounces
Ounces (dry)
Grams
Grams
Kilograms
Pounds
Pounds
Quarts
Quarts (dry)
Quarts (liquid)
Liters
Gallons
Gallons

By

29.57
28.35
0.0353
0.0022
2.21
453.6
0.4536
0.946
67.2
57.7
1.0567
3,785
3.785

To Get

grams
grams
ounces
pounds
pounds
grams
kilograms
liters
cubic inches
cubic inches
quarts
cubic centimeters
liters