This procedure requires an oven, a pycnometer, and an electronic balance to weigh samples. A pycnometer can be made by removing the beam from a pressurized mud balance. Any type of balance may be used to determine weight; however, electronic balances are more convenient.
Determine the volume of the pycnometer:
1. Weigh the pycnometer (assembled).
2. Fill with distilled water.
3. Determine the water temperature.
4. Reassemble the pycnometer and pressurize it.
5. Dry the outside of the pycnometer completely.
6. Weigh the pycnometer filled with pressurized water.
7. Determine the density of water using a table of density/temperature of water. (See Appendix.)
8. Subtract the pycnometer weight from the weight of the pycnometer filled with water, to determine the weight of water in the pycnometer.
9. Divide the weight of water in the pycnometer by the density of water to determine the volume of the pycnometer.
Determine the density of drilled solids:
1. Select large pieces of drilled solids from the shale shaker and wash them with the liquid phase of the drilling fluid (water for water-base drilling fluid, oil for oil-base drilling fluid, and synthetics for synthetic drilling fluid.)
2. Grind the drilled solids and dry them in the oven or in a retort.2
3. Weigh the assembled, dry pycnometer.
4. Add dry drilled solids to the pycnometer and weigh.
5. Add water to the solids in the pycnometer, pressurize, and weigh.3
6. Determine the density of the NAFs using the procedure used to calibrate the pycnometer with water.
7. Determine the density of the water.
8. Subtract the weight of the dry pycnometer from the weight of the dry pycnometer containing the dry drilled solids. This is the weight of drilled solids.
9. Subtract the weight of the dry pycnometer containing the drilled solids from the weight of the water, drilled solids, and pycnometer. This is the weight of water added to the pycnometer.
10. From the temperature/density chart for water, determine the density of the water.
11. Divide the weight of the water (determined in step 9) by the density of the water. This is the volume of water added to the pycnometer.
12. Subtract the volume of the water added to the pycnometer (step 10) from the volume of the pycnometer. This is the volume of drilled solids contained in the pycnometer.
13. Divide the weight of the drilled solids (step 8) by the volume of the drilled solids (step 11). This is the density of the drilled solids.
14. Multiply the volume fraction of solids in the drilling fluid by 100 to obtain the %vol solids in the drilling fluid.
