DRILLING FLUID/MUD CIRCULATING SYSTEM AND TREATING EQUIPMENTS

1.Mud begins in the pump 2.Pumped up through the top of the well into the drill bit. 3.At the bottom of the well the fluid is turned around and flows back up outside the drill bit. 4.A system of filters clears the mud of impurities. 5.Mud is stored in the mud tank until it gets pulled into the pump.

Basics of Circulation

Mud Pump
Heart of the system Smooth operation (minimal bursts or lags in fluid) Designed to be simple, easy to maintain, and operate High pressure Varying flow rates Can be linked up with multiple pumps to increase flow rate or pressure If failure occurs can cause blow outs, explosions, etc. Due to the nature of the accidents, there are generally multiple pumps on any job.
5

HOW IT WORKS
(layout for the pump on the previous slide) 1. Tank for the mud to go into when the pump is on the push stroke 2. Flow check valves that prevent the fluid from flowing backwards. 3. Dampening element designed to balance flow rate. 4. A seal that converts the mechanical force of the piston to the fluid. 5. Piston 6. Shaft for the engine to turn.
Shown is a common piston pump 3

2 5

1 4 2

Pump Parameters

Displacement Calculated in Liters per Minute The larger the diameter of the hole and the faster it is drilled the greater amount of cuttings to remove. More cuttings requires more mud and more displacement from the pump. Typical drilling speed is .4 meter per minute to 1 meter per minute Pressure Pressure varies upon multiple things Larger diameter holes require more pressure to maintain. Deeper holes require more pressure to retrieve cuttings. Different formations require different fluid characteristics and different pressures.

Stand Pipe and Kelly Hose

Standpipe runs up the length of the rig to the Rotary hose The rotary hose (also known as a Kelly hose) is a flexible steel reinforced hole that transmits the mud from the standpipe to the drill pipe.

Once the mud travels down the drill

pipe it exits the drill pipe and is forced to turn around The mud travels back up to the surface through a space between the drill string and the borehole wall This space between the drill string and the borehole is referred to as the Annulus When the mud traveling up the Annulus is when the fluid characteristics and mud do the most work.

Mud remove the cuttings Cuttings must be removed from the well to prevent the bit from locking up Heavy cuttings require a denser mud to push the cuttings up the hole
Mud preserves the cuttings The mud preserves the chemical composition of the cuttings The chemical compositions are critical for mud engineers to analyze and determine what to add to the well Mud suspends the cuttings During maintenance of the bit or when extending the drill pipe, the mud prevents the cuttings from falling back down the well.

Mud and Cuttings

Mud transmit power Hydraulic power for the rotation of the drill bit is transmitted through the mud pumps Power for the equipment is generated through the mud pumps Mud Lubricate and Protect Drill Bit Chemicals in the mud help to lubricate the drill bit and prevent corrosion. Failure to lubricate creates air bubbles from the corrosion and the possibility of explosions. Mud provides cooling for the drill bit as it drills through formations. Supports the Drill Bit Buoyancy forces help to lift the drill bit up This removes a portion of the weight off of the drilling structure

Mud and Drill Bit

Mud and Formations

Seals Permeable formations Seals off formations that the driller does not want to penetrate; IE Water sources Creates a thin wall that prevents water from flowing into the well or mud from flowing out Maintains Wellbore Stability Prevents the well from caving in on itself or becoming irregular Large holes are more difficult to stabilize and cause low annular flow rate
Controls formation pressures Maintains control of the well, control of fluids moving in and out of wellbore is controlled Minimizes Formation damage When approaching the oil region the mud maintains the porosity and permeability of the well.

Two plugs are sent down with a cement slurry inbetween them. Mud provides the driving force when pushing this cement down the hole. Upon reaching the bottom of the hole the pumps are stopped to allow the cement to dry.

Mud and Cement

Shale Shaker
First part of filtration/mud preparation system Used to remove large soids and cuttingsfrom the mud Failure of shale shaker can cause backup in the system or large solids to get by and damage other components in the system

Dirty Mud is loaded into Hopper (Back Tank) Feeds down across the Screening Surface Vibrations separate the Fine Solids and liquids from the Coarse Solids Large particles get dumped into the Collection Pan Liquid Mud and Finer Solids drop down below and continue on

How it works

Used to remove gases from the system Failure to remove gasses causes pumps to fail early (best case) or blow outs and human causalities (not best case)

Degasser

Gassed mud flows into the Degasser Baffles in the Degasser create a negative pressure Negative pressure in the system pulls gasses out Degassed mud flows out Gas is released into the atmosphere or burned off

How it works

chamber Centripetal force pushes the solids down the cyclone chamber out to the screen box Clean mud is pushed up the cyclone then continue on Solids are sprayed onto the screen box where they are further separated from any escaped fluids

Dirty mud enters the cyclone

How it works

Functions as a storage unit for the mud Maintains homogenous and evenly mixture throughout the mud Mud

Tank

Generally constructed of a steel box Mud agitators use blades to turn the mud inside the tank, preventing the mud from settling Mud guns use a jet style nozzle to help mix the mud when it enters the tank

How it works

Safety and Health Hazards/Solutions

Exposure to Mud

Shaker house

Activities Sampling/monitoring Routine operation Cleaning/changing screens Mud Handling Activities Exposure Inhalation of mist, vapour Skin contact with fluid Influencing factors Flowline temperature Fluid characteristics and composition

Mixing of Drilling Mud

Mud House

Activities Chemical storage Manual handling mixing operations Exposure Inhalation Skin contact Check MSDS for exposure limits Influencing factors Hazardous properties of chemicals Packaging Form of chemical substances

Mud House Control Shaker House Control

Restrict access to hazardous maerials storage areas Store an handle chemicals to prevent damage to packaging Provide sufficient space, well organised, well lit and ventilated Separate incompatible materials Provide eyewash and emergency shower close to work-site Never store chemicals in unlabelled containers Provide suitable spill kits

Restrict access to the area Enclose shakers with LEV enclosure Use canopy hoods with plastic strips Do not use non-aqueous base fluid in high pressure washers to clean screens Use mud coolers to reduce flowline temperature Provide suitable sampling tools

Incidents

Alert 06-19 Safety Alert(IADS) TEMPORARY PLACEMENT OF MUD HOSE IN WALKWAY RESULTS IN A TRIPPING INCIDENT
What Happened Roustabout cleaning storage room.Mud Hose Temporarily placed in walkway(flagged danger) in front of storage room. an employee steps out of the door of storage room down onto hose.Trips falls twisted and fracture ankle.Employee wearing steel toe rubber boots that give no ankle support and makes foot placement difficult
12/14/2013

Corrective Action Reroute hose to an area less travelled.Do not step out of rooms carrying anything that's awkward to see where you are stepping.Wear boots that offer good ankle support and make foot placement easier.Instal steel mud piping if this is normal frequent operation

Employee burned while mixing Caustic Soda Event date:20/6/01 Source OSHA.GOV

Employee mixing caustic soda and water.Substance splashed onto arm. Sprayed warm water and given vinegar to neutralize caustic soda.Taken to dog houseand rinsed at shower fro 45 minutes. Transported to hospital by helicopter for treat ment. Empoyee worked at rigs above 5 years and familiar with duties and requirement of floorman.Was wearing Personal Protective Equipment(PPE)-face splash shield, apron,protective gloves extended past elbow No emergency shower locate less than 10 seconds away for removal of hazardous substance
12/14/2013

12/14/2013

12/14/2013