Soran University

Faculty of Engineering
Department of Petroleum Engineering

Drilling Engineering I [PETE 308]

Title: Mud Weighting

Experiment No: 02
Name: Muhammed Star Braim
Group: A1
Date: 23 Sep 2019
Supervisor: Mr. Rawezh Najat
Contents
Aim......................................................................................................................................................... 2
Theory.................................................................................................................................................... 2
Apparatus .............................................................................................................................................. 2
................................................................................................................................................................ 3
................................................................................................................................................................ 3
Calibration............................................................................................................................................. 4
Procedure............................................................................................................................................... 4
Calculation............................................................................................................................................. 5
Result and discussion............................................................................................................................. 6
Conclusion ............................................................................................................................................. 6
References .............................................................................................................................................. 6

List of Figures
Figure 2: spatula ...................................................................................................................................... 3
Figure 1: mixer ........................................................................................................................................ 3
Figure 3: cylinders ................................................................................................................................... 3
Figure 4: Electric balance ......................................................................................................................... 3
Figure 5: mud balance ............................................................................................................................. 3

List of Tables
Table 1: results ........................................................................................................................................ 6

1
Aim
The aim of this experiment is to increase the density of mud by adding barite.

Theory

Mud is a mixture of natural and chemical compounds, and it is an important component in

petroleum industry because it is helping to control the hydrostatic and formation pressures, and
used to lubricate and cool the drilling bit, and used to remove the drilling cuttings during drilling
process (Islam, M. R.,...2013). And the mud density is a mass of mud per the volume of it, and it
is reported in pounds per gallon (Ibm/gal) also known as (ppg), and the density of mud must be
controlled to prevent the influx of formation fluid and damage of hole. And usually use the mud
balance to measure the density of mud, and before use it must be calibrate it with water and should
be certain the cup of mud balance be fill with mud and should not be air in the interior of the cup
because if have air the measurement is not accurate and measure the density of mud when the level
glass is centered (Drilling formula 2016), and sometimes the weight of mud is low and need to
increase its density by adding the heavy materials such as barite into the mud, that is good operation
to save the stability of well, the causes of using barite are its have high density (4.48 gm/cc), and
its need a low coast and its low abrasiveness(Dante, R.C 2015), with using this law
(V1w1+V2W2=VfWf) can determine how many barites is needed to prepare the new mud.

Apparatus

Water: used to prepare mud and calibrate the mud balance.

Bentonite: used to prepare the mud
Barite: used to increase the mud density

2
 FIGURE 2: MIXER FIGURE 1: SPATULA
Used to blend the water with bentonite Used to remove the stick from the cup of
And combining the mud with barite. Mixer and add into mixture.

FIGURE 4: ELECTRIC BALANCE FIGURE 3: CYLINDERS

Used to measure the mass. Used to measure the volume.

.

FIGURE 5: MUD BALANCE

Used measure the density of fluids.

3
Calibration

a. Take out the lid from the cup, and fill the cup with water completely.
b. Put back the lid and clean dry.
c. Set the balance arm on the base with knife-edge resting on the fulcrum.
d. The level glass should be centered when the rider is set on 8.34 ppg. If not add to or
remove shot from the well at the end of the bream.
The percentage of error is %0.01 because the used water is not fresh.

Procedure

a. Calculate the calculation to find the volume of water and bentonite to prepare the mud (volume
of water = 229.13 cc and volume of bentonite 5.08 cc). And to find the volume of new mud
and barite (volume of barite= 0.867 cc and volume of new mud= 235.867 cc).
b. Use the density law to determine the mass of bentonite barite. (mass of bentonite 12.715 gm
and mass of barite = 3.728 gm).
c. check the electric balance.
d. Measure the mass of bentonite (12.715)
e. Pour the (229.13 cc) of water to the cylinder.
f. Clean the mixer.
g. Pour the (229.13 cc) of water to the cup of the mixer.
h. Turn on the mixer and use it carefully.
i. Add the (5.08 cc gm) bentonite to the cup of a mixer.
j. Calibrate the mud balance.
k. Fill the cup of mud balance with mud completely, and take back the lid.
l. Wipe the mud from the outside of the cup.
m. Place the balance arm on the base, with the knife-edge resting on the fulcrum.
n. Move the rider until the level glass is level.
o. Read the density of mud from the left hand of the rider. The level glass centered when the rider
in the 8.56 ppg.
p. Measure the mass of barite (3.728gm).
q. Add the (3.728gm) of barite to mud and mix it by a mixer.
r. Fill the cup of mud balance with new mud and replay the procedures that did for measuring
the weight of the first mud.
s. Read the density when level glass centered at the rider in the 8.65 ppg.

4
Calculation

5
Result and discussion
The difference between the theoretical and experimental data explain that some errors
happens during practical test, and those errors are happened because of below reasons: the used
water is not fresh, and its denser than freshwater and remaining a little amount of water from
cylinders and some of the bentonite stick from the cup of mixer and mixer do not blend the
substances completely and lose some volume of first mud while filling the cup of mud balance
with first mud.

TABLE 1: RESULTS
Components Theoretically Experimentally Error
Water 8.33 ppg 8.34 ppg % 0.01
First mud 8.6 ppg 8.56 ppg % 0.04
Second mud 8.7 ppg 8.65 % 0.05

Conclusion

In conclusion mud is a mixture of materials, and mud weight it’s a density of mud measured
from mud balance, and knowledge of how to increase the mud density is important because in
some cases the mud weighting up is necessary to prevent from a blowout. And with given
parameters can find other parameters by calculation after all parameters are known can start to
doing practically test, firstly calibrate the devices, next prepare the mud and measure its density,
after that add the barite to mud and, finally measure the density of new mud again, and determine
errors, by comparison, the results.

References
• Islam, M.R. and Khan, M.I., 2013, The petroleum engineering handbook: sustainable
operations, Elsevier.
• Drillingformula 2016, Mud Weight and Its Importance in Drilling,
<http://www.drillingformulas.com/mud-weight-and-its-importance-in-drilling/>,
[Accessed: 30 SEP 2019].
• Dante, R.C 2015, Handbook of friction materials and their applications, Woodhead
Publishing.