Drilling Fluid Management & Disposal
Drilling fluid waste management and solids control of drilling mud related technical and developed situation.
Other than hydrocyclone and manifold plugging, improperly sized or operated centrifugal pumps are by far the greatest source of problems encountered with hydrocyclones. Centrifugal pump and piping sizing are critical to efficient hydrocyclone operation. A pressure gauge should be mounted on the hydrocyclone inlet manifold.
Continue reading “HYDROCYCLONE OPERATING TIPS”
The major advantages of a closed pressurized separators are that it
(1) controls gas from the well and sends it to a flare line under pressure and (2) is serviced by a special crew.
The separator is usually operated under 3 to 5 atmospheres of pressure
(45 to 75 psig). Horizontal units are typically about 9 feet in diameter
and 50 feet long, with a throughput of 5 MMcf or 500 bbl fluid. These are
typical numbers, and sizes and pressure vary according to special jobs.
Continue reading “Pressurized, or Closed, Separators”
Drilling mud gas buster also called a mud gas separator or poor boy degasser. It captures and separates large volume of free gas within the drilling fluid. If there is a “KICK” situation, this vessel separates the mud and the gas by allowing it to flow over baffle plates. –wiki
The purpose of a gas buster is to remove gas mixed with the drilling fluid before the drilling fluid goes over the shale shaker. A gas buster works well in fluid with large bubbles of free gas. (Often the gas is starting to break free in the flowline.) A problem with the basic gas buster is that the heavier gases will not rise and be dissipated in the air but settle around the rig.
Continue reading “Drilling mud Gas Buster”
Shale shaker screening is dependent on a constant flow of drilling fluid
with cuttings. The fluid must pass through the screen, and the cuttings
must either pass through or be rejected by the screen. Gas cutting in the
drilling mud can have up to three different effects that upset the screening
process.
1. Gas heading can cause volume surges in the mud flow that exceed
the ability of the screen to handle fluid flow. This is usually from gas,
intermixed in the mud, rapidly expanding at the surface and pushing
large surges of drilling fluid out the flowline. Gas busters and gas
separators are the solutions to this problem.
Continue reading “Solids Control Equipment and Gas Cutting”
