Hydrocylones unit are utilize centrifugal force to separating solids from liquids. Solids are forced to the wall of the cone and exit through the bottom; cleaned fluids exit from the top.
Hydrocylone working principle from Eric Tian on Vimeo.
Without proper mud chemistry and solids control, we would have drilled up all the cheap, easily available oil years ago. The fact that we now can access oil that was previously undrillable is thanks to sharp thinkers and having plenty of money available to solve the problems. Kinda like an old geezer with a bad bladder, the “trickle-down” theory finally worked for water well drillers. We now have access to the latest and best equipment available to make more hole faster, cheaper and better than ever before.
One of the only and most elementary items of solids-control instrumentality is that the desander. A desander relies on the principle of the hydrocyclone. the essential plan is: Pump mud into the fringes of the highest of a round shape. The mud whirls around quicker and quicker because it travels down the wall of the cone. The solids area unit forced by force to the surface, close to the walls of the cone. The clean mud moves to the middle of the cone. The solids eventually build it to the lowest of the cone associated area unit forced out of an opening by what’s referred to as underflow. The clean mud, minus the solids, travels upward through the middle of the cone and is discharged out the highest, back to the suction pit.
Hydrocyclones are available in a range of sizes. the scale designation relies on the within diameter of the highest of the cone. The smaller the cone, the finer the cuttings it’ll take away. this is often as a result of a smaller diameter produces the next G force, that force smaller cuttings to the surface. The draw back is what’s known as turnout. The smaller cones solely can method atiny low quantity of mud, and on giant systems, an outsized range of cones area unit necessary. giant cones simply method giant amounts of mud, however don’t take away all the fines.
Oilfield desander cones sometimes area unit ten inches or twelve inches in diameter. they’re going to method four hundred gpm to 600 gpm of flow, however solely the coarse cuttings are going to be removed. Typically, within the field, 10-inch cones area unit followed by 4-inch cones, known as desilters, to get rid of the smaller fines. this needs a further pump and power. The water well business has return up with the 5-inch cone. It removes coarser materials, however still makes a fine enough move satisfy most conditions. A 5-inch cone is between a typical desander and a desilter cone. it’s ordinarily known as a desander. A 5-inch desander can take away cuttings all the way down to twenty microns.
