SPE 165613

The Challenges for the Treatment of Drilling Fluid Wastes Generated by E&P
Industry in Brazil
G. B. Dos Santos, Universidade Veiga de Almeida
J. Veloso, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro

Copyright 2013, Society of Petroleum Engineers

This paper was prepared for presentation at the SPE Latin American and Caribbean Health, Safety, Social Responsibility, and Environment Conference held in Lima, Peru, 26–27 June 2013.

This paper was selected for presentation by an SPE program committee following review of information contained in an abstract submitted by the author(s). Contents of the paper have not been
reviewed by the Society of Petroleum Engineers and are subject to correction by the author(s). The material does not necessarily reflect any position of the Society of Petroleum Engineers, its
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Abstract

The activity of oil and gas exploitation in Brazil demands a significant infrastructure for provision of goods and
services in order to support these activities. Most of Brazilian gas and oil reservoirs are concentrated in offshore sedimentary
basins, mainly in ultra-deep waters, which increases the degree of risks involved in the drilling operations, necessitating the
use of drilling fluids in order to maintain the integrity of the formation drilled, thus minimizing these related operational risks.
Drilling fluids are products formulated of a combination of different chemical compounds using water or oil as the
main dispersant media or a synthetic specific dispersant media. The final fluid composition will depend on the characteristics
and behavior of the reservoir to be drilled. The main purpose of the drilling fluids is transportation of the cuttings to the
surface, sub surface pressure control and well stabilization. After use the drilling fluids and cuttings are treated on the offshore
facility in order to evaluate the disposal possibilities, whether they can be discharged at sea or should be sent onshore to
receive the appropriate treatment. In the environmental sphere the aspects due to the drilling fluids use, treatment and disposal
are regulated by IBAMA (Brazilian Institute of Environment and Renewable Natural Resources), which defines standards for
discharge to the sea, parameters to be evaluated, tests to be carried out before and after use, and criteria for their disposal
(overboard or onshore) depending on analysis results.
This study aims to describe the process adopted for treatment of drilling fluids in offshore drilling units, the
requirements for discharging them to the sea, the onshore logistics for treatment and disposal, the forms of treatment currently
available in Brazil, and additionally suggesting the adoption of new technologies that enable the recovery of the constituents of
the drilling fluids with the aim of reusing them in further industrial processes.

1. Introduction

Recent discoveries in hydrocarbon reservoirs in Brazil leveraged Oil & Gas Exploration activities, requiring an
operation support structure not yet developed in Brazil. Activities involving drilling, completion and flow assurance operations
require the best technologies available in the market in order to assure operational integrity and safety for high environmental
risk activities.
In this rapidly expanding exploitation of new found resources there comes the use of drilling fluids, substances
developed using a complex mixture of solids, liquids and chemical products (Thomas et al. 2001), designed to reduce drilling
times and thereby drilling costs. The environmental aspects associated with drilling activities, and the use and disposal of
drilling fluids are regulated by IBAMA (Brazilian Environment and Natural Renewable Resources Institute) through legal
requirements that will guide the environmental licensing process. IBAMA identifies and defines guidelines for the
development of an environmental impact assessment to be submitted to CGPEG (Oil & Gas General Coordination) by the
company licensed to develop the field, as well as the minimum requirements for the development of environmental projects to
be implemented during the performance of the activity, after environmental permit issuance by the environmental agency.
2 SPE 165613

2. Drilling fluids and their applicability

Drilling fluid is a circulating fluid whose purpose is to facilitate the drilling operation. According to Fam and
Dusseault (1998), drilling fluids are mixtures from different components used in the well drilling, where each component is
added in order to increase specific properties to the fluids, thus ensuring the operational integrity of the activity. One of the
basic characteristics of drilling fluids is the minimization of the physical and chemical changes of the formations to be drilled,
and the main purposes allocated to drilling fluids are:
• To remove the debris generated in the drilling operation (cuttings) and lead them to the surface;
• To maintain hydrostatic pressure to prevent formation fluids from entering into the well bore;
• To keep the bore open until the coating step, through cementing process;
• To cool, clear, and lubricate the drill bit;
• To reduce friction between the drilling tool, the formation and the well coating;
Drilling fluids are selected so as to prevent the following behaviors:
• Adverse effect to the formation drilled, its composition must not react chemically with the sedimentary material;
• Corrosion of drilling equipment as well as the tubular structures;
• Any environmental damage.

2.1. Drilling Fluids Characteristics

Drilling fluids can be classified with respect to their fluid phase, dispersion properties, alkalinity, and the type of
chemical used in their make-up. Drilling operations in Brazil use basically three types of drilling fluids: Oil Based Mud
(OBM), Synthetic Base Mud (SBM), and Water Base Mud (WBM).
The basic components of the drilling fluids are: dispersant (oil, synthetic or water), viscosity conditioning agents,
gelling, flocculation and alkalinity control agents, and physical or chemical inhibitors. The concentration of each additive is
related to the characteristics of the formation to be drilled.
OBMs were long used extensively by the oil exploration industry due to its high efficiency as a shale inhibitor of the
formation, increased lubrication and cleaning abilities, and greater resistance to heat without breaking down.
One of the biggest problems caused by the use of oil base fluid (OBM) is related to the environmental impact caused
by their disposal at sea, due to their diesel and mineral oils based constituency tending to persist in the environment
indefinitely.
Currently the use of oil base fluid is limited to operations which are restricted by operational control scenarios such as
high temperature and pressure, or in conditions where the use of water base fluid significantly affects the formation.
Synthetic Base Mud (SBM) is formulated by synthetic organic compounds and have an operational efficiency similar
to the fluids formulated using oil derivatives (OBM) with the advantage of being biodegradable. Its composition is formulated
basically by esters and di-esters.
The main benefits of using SBM resides in the low environmental impact attributed to their use, rheology (high
viscosity), high thermal stability (reduced viscosity at high temperatures), compatibility with other compounds of drilling
fluid, and similar characteristics to OBM. However, the high cost associated with the characteristics of its formulation means
this kind of fluid is not chosen as the first option in a drilling activity unless specific characteristics of the formation require its
use.
The water base mud (WBM), in turn, comprises the dispersed phase (clay particles more dense, aiming to raise the
specific gravity of the fluid), and dispersing phase (water). WBM also contains other solid particles (sand, mica and
carbonates), and various salts in solution depending on the nature of the clay and the water used in its composition (Stefan,
1950 cited Persio, 1992).
Due to legal requirements in force in Brazil WBM can only be discarded at sea within the preset limits. For this
reason, in Table 01 are shown the major components used in formulating water-based fluid.

Table 01 - Water base mud compounds (Machado e Oliveira, 1986).

Components Concentration Characteristics / Function

Fresh water or sea water Not Applicable Dispersing Medium
Bentonite 14.25 - 85.5 kg/m³ Viscosifier / gelling
Sodium hydroxide 0.71 - 2.85 kg/m³ Alkalinizing and/or flocculant
Lignosulfonate 0 - 22.8 kg/m³ Dispersant and physical inhibitor
Starch 11.4 - 34.2kg/m³ Reducing agente filtrate
Polymer 0 - 5.7 kg/m³ Viscosifier and/or physical chemical inhibitor
Electrolyte 0 – 42.8 kg/m³ Chemical inhibitor and/or flocculant
Barite and/or Hematite According to the programmed density Thickening agent
SPE 165613 3

WBMs are used in practically all drilling activities since they have low operating costs, reduced environmental impact due to
the low risk of pollution, low penetration rate in interference, more ease to detect the presence of gas, as well as not restricting
the dispute and demand for specific geological profiles (Costa de Melo, 2008).

3. Drilling fluid generation and solids control

The generation of waste in the oil exploration activity occurs immediately after well drilling starts. In figure 01 below
it can be seen that once the drill bit starts drilling on the sediment, the fluid is pumped concurrently with the rotation of the
drill bit to carry the cuttings resultant from drilling to the surface. Once at the surface the cuttings and drilling mud are pumped
to a physical separation system where the operational characteristics of the equipment used will vary according to the
requirements to discharge the fluid and cuttings at sea.
The equipment used for offshore cuttings treatment is primarily aimed at treatment for solids control in order to
remove unwanted solids from the drilling fluid to gain the maximum practical recovery of drilling fluid for re-use. Disposal
options for the waste solids are offshore discharge to sea, offshore re-injection, and shipping onshore for disposal.

Figure 01 - Drilling fluid and cutting transportation flow

Source: Villardo, Cristiano (2007)

The equipment used to treat the fluids and cuttings is utilized on the offshore platform in a specific operational
sequence in order to maximize the removal of sand and sludge cuttings and fluids, firstly separating cuttings from the drilling
fluid as shown in Figure 02:
:

Static Sheen 
Shakers Cutting Dryers Test and Retort   
Test  
 
 

Figure 02 - Drilling fluid and cutting line-up treatment, on board in the maritime drilling units.
Source from author
4 SPE 165613

Shaker: equipment used for the primary treatment of the fluid pumped from the well. It consists of a series of screens with
meshes of different sizes which vibrate horizontally in order to separate the solids which have larger diameter from the other
solids by a screening process. The movement of the screens is designed to carry the solids by the sides of the screen, being
collected in order to discard at sea when the oil content of the shale (verified by retort test) is within the limits set by the
environmental agency, or transported for secondary treatment in the cuttings dryers.

Cutting Dryer: their initial design was adapted from a device originally used in the coal industry, to separate sludge from coal
(CAPP, 2001 et. Stantec 2009). It consists of a fine mesh metal screen coupled on a rotating basket, responsible for generating
centrifugal force required to separate the cuttings from the drilling fluid. The fluid collected after the treatment in the cutting
dryer system can return to the drilling process if it is in a condition suitable for re-use.
When re-use is not possible tests are performed on the samples collected on the outlet of the cutting dryer to
determine the presence of contaminants in the fluid samples, thereby identifying the possibility for disposal of the waste into
the sea, or the need for transport to shore for treatment.

4. Use of drilling fluid in the E&P Industry in Brazil

4.1. Legal aspects

IBAMA identify requirements for operating companies, aiming to approve and authorize the use of drilling fluids,
firstly in order to obtain the environmental licensing and secondly during the execution of the drilling activity.
Aiming to allow the use of drilling fluids and complementary compounds, the chemical characteristics should be submitted to
and analyzed by IBAMA through the Administrative Process for Evaluation of Fluid, for approval. Those already approved
should be reviewed when considered the development of a new licensing process. The table 02 below presents the information
required by the environmental agency for the Administrative Process of Fluids Assessment, and the environmental permitting
process for new activities to be performed.

Table 02 - Standards to discharge drilling fluids and cuttings at the sea.

Types of Fluid Administrtive Fluid Assessment Process Drilling Environmental Study

Formulation with concentrations of each product Previous Approval on

Administrative Fluid Assessment
Functions of each product Process;

Physical chemical properties (density, salinity and pH);

To each approved fluid on
Water Base Mud
Administrative Fluid Assessment
(WBM) and Non- Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) of all components
Process:
Water Base Mud
- Physical chemical properties:
(NWBM) Analysis of Cadmium and Mercury concentration in Barite
(density, salinity and pH);
Characterization of acute (Mysidopsis juniae) and chronicle toxicity - Acute and chronicle toxicity;
(Lytechinus variegatus) in each formulation; - Fluid formulation with
Analysis of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon (PAH) concentrations of each product

Analysis of bioaccumulation potential (log Pow)

Estimation of the volumes of
Non-Water Base Mud drilling fluid and cuttings being
Biodegradability Tests of organic base
(NWBM) generated by phase

During the drilling activity, the operator environmentally licensed to operate the maritime exploratory block should
implement the Fluids and Cutting Monitoring Program, previously approved by the environmental agency, through:
• Analysis physical-chemical as: pH, salinity, temperature, metals (Fe, Al, Ba, Cu, Cr, Pb, Cd, Zn, Ni, V, Mn and Hg),
polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and acute toxicity
• Cuttings particle size analysis, from the cuttings that return to the surface (riser phases);
• tests to define the kind of disposal of the fluids and cuttings (sheen-test, and retort test RPE);
• Gravel and volumetric records of the fluids.

As well as the solid wastes having specific guidelines for monitoring the quantity of generation and disposal, through
Technical Note CGPEG / DILIC / IBAMA 01/11, the drilling fluid waste disposal will in future also be supported by a legal
device which will regulate the discharge to the sea and/or the onshore treatment facilities. In accordance with this Technical
Note, although the efforts adopted to mitigate the impacts arising from the disposal of drilling fluids and cuttings configures
SPE 165613 5

one of the steps adopted by CGPEG to control the pollution caused by new and ongoing projects, this issue is not required in
this Technical Note. The conditions to discharge these effluents, as well as the monitoring of the discharge to the sea and/or
onshore disposal will be required in another regulatory instrument of CGPEG, specific to this theme, as provided in this
technical note for other solid waste.
As there is no specific legislation that guides the operating companies in how to dispose of the drilling fluids to the
sea a workgroup comprised of companies that are involved in the oil exploration in sedimentary basins in Brazil was
developed. This workgroup, in partnership with the national environmental agency responsible for this activity, defined
specific guidelines for this purpose. These guidelines identify the verifications necessary to determine whether it is permissible
to dispose of the drilling fluid into the sea, using analytical tests evidencing the biodegradability characteristics, toxicity and
bioaccumulation of drilling fluids, in according to the standards described in Table 02. However, it is important to emphasize
that CGPEG prohibits the discharge of any type of fluid in places with less than 60m depth in sensitive areas.

Table 02 - Standards to discharge to sea drilling fluids and cuttings.

Non-water Base Mud

Water Base Mud (WBM) Cutting
(NWBM)
Hydrocarbon concentration below 1% - Retort
test (aqueous fluid) or RPE (non-aqueous fluid)
Disposal at sea is allowed if no oil contamination
present: Wet weight of gravel below:
Disposal at sea is not 6.9% bonded organic base (n-paraffins and fluids
Sheen test realization allowed based on mineral oil treated), or

Retort Test (present case the sheen test positive) 9.4% in the case of organic base being internal
olefins (OI), linear alpha olefins (LAO) polialfa
olefins (PAO), esters, ethers, and acetals. 

5. Shipping and trans-shipment

Once it is determined it is not possible to discharge the drilling fluid and the cuttings to the sea the pumping operation
of the wastes to the storage tanks on the supply vessels is initiated, thereby sending the waste to the shore base. During the
shipping step, recorded by a specific document, the storage of waste is provided in the tanks of the supply vessels, containers,
or certified boxes for this specific mode of transport. Once at the shore base the waste is identified, documented for the land
transport, and sent to the final destination.
It is important to highlight that the shore base has an important role in the generation of waste drilling fluid, since in
this place are executed the cleaning of the tanks of vessels in order to remove the excess drilling fluid adhered to the walls of
the tank using water jetting and mechanical scraping. The total percentage of the drilling fluid generated will increase
according to the quantity of water used in this process. Since the measurement of the total waste generated in the offshore
environment is done by estimation, the quantitative weight in kg is identified only when the road vehicles responsible for its
transportation are weighed in the shore base. Still in the shore base are defined the shore treatment forms to be adopted for the
drilling fluid waste.

6. Drilling fluid treatment and final destination on shore

6.1. Legal aspects

The Technical Note CGPEG / DILIC / IBAMA 01/11 defines the guidelines to submit, to implement and to report the
Pollution Control Project, according with the environmental permitting of the maritime ventures of the oil and gas exploration
and production activities. As stated in its paragraph II, Item XIV, the conditions to discharge of the drilling fluids and cuttings
and the monitoring and actions to the land treatment and final disposal will be covered in another specific regulatory
instrument, not in this Technical Note, despite all the efforts of CGPEG to establish pollution control measures associated with
this kind of activity.
Currently in Brazil there are no specific regulations for monitoring discharge of the drilling fluid to the sea and all
stages related with the fluid disposal activity. If IBAMA will adopt the same guidelines established in the NT 01/11, it can be
anticipated that the aspects related to the logistics for storage, transport and final disposal of waste from drilling activity will
become significantly more restrictive than those currently in use, and that only then will the use of latest technology and
equipment with high operating efficiency and low environmental impact be adopted as a priority.
6 SPE 165613

Considering the above in the item II.4.2 in the same Technical Note CGPEG / DILIC / IBAMA 01/11, which sets
goals for final disposal on shore the following should be considered: the availability of disposal services facilities in the
region; the region’s capacity for employment generation; the available work force; handling capacity for receiving each type of
waste, waste final destination is proven adequate and acceptable according to the technological, legal, and socioeconomic
environmental aspects. With respect to the destination location, it is established that the provision of waste disposal and
handling facilities should be made ideally as close to the shore base as possible in order to reduce the energy consumption in
the transport operation and the risk of environmental accidents associated with this kind of logistics.

6.2. Quantitative referenced

With respect to identifying quantitative measurements of drilling fluid waste generation offshore an accurate
estimation can be achieved by referring to the total quantity generated by a specific venture in the years of 2010 and 2011,
which developed 03 drilling projects over this period, generating a total of 4006.27 tonnes of drilling fluid waste, (G.B. Dos
Santos, 2012). These wastes were sent for treatment and final disposal depending on the options available in the Brazilian
technological park, which mandatorily has the following characteristics:
• Environmental Permit authorizing the activity of treatment, recovery and disposal of waste classified by Brazilian
Technical Norm NBR 10.004/2004 as hazardous waste (Class I);
• Less distance from the disembark place;
• Less storage time.

6.3. Treatment Forms

The technologies available in Brazil for the onshore treatment of the drilling fluid wastes are considered of low
technological investment and with insufficient facilities to meet the demands of the E & P ventures (G.B Dos Santos, 2012).
 Industrial landfill is characterized by the permanent disposal process on the environment. Due to the vast territorial ground
available in Brazil, for many years this was a factor in favor of its use as a more economical alternative to more
technologically advanced forms of treatment, as well as being the most common method used to dispose of hazardous
waste. This kind of technology requires continuous monitoring and operational control. The waste disposed in landfills
will always be an environmental liability related to the companies who generated the wastes disposed of by this
technology.
 Blending and co-processing wastes in cement kilns is environmentally considered the best option available in Brazil, since
it enables energy recovery of waste as a substitute raw material used to obtain the clinker for cement manufacturing, while
the wastes are destroyed. It is considered the best way to treat the Class I wastes.
 The blend of waste is a process that precedes the co-processing since the wastes need to be homogenized and encapsulated
in order to facilitate its destruction in the clinker kilns. It consists of a pre-physical treatment, where the different types of
waste from various generators are uniformed, compressed, encapsulated and subsequently stored until there is capacity on
the part of the cement company to receive this material for purposes of co-processing.
 The thermal vacuum is a device whose operation draws the liquid part of the drilling fluid through the transfer of the
evaporative mass adhered in the waste. This form of treatment aims to reduce the percentage of water contained in the
fluids, separating them into two distinct parts: liquid and paste. It represents a form of preliminary treatment to the final
treatment, provided in the effluent treatment stations (liquid fraction) and in the ceramic industries (semi-solid fraction),
since the mischaracterization and the final disposal of waste will be done just after to treat or to destroy their fractions.
This process finds into implementation in Brazil.

7. Discussion

The issues related to the recovery, treatment and disposal of waste drilling fluid must be guided both with regard to
the technologies adopted aiming at discharge to the sea, as opposed to the technologies of treatment and final disposal existing
onshore.
Discharge of water based mud (WBM) to the sea is considered a low cost option with reduced impact on the
environment as well as being authorized by the environment agency, however the discharge of any kind of waste without
treatment cannot be considered as a long-term measure, regardless of the potential impact, since this practice is against the
recent measures taken for proper disposal of wastes by both the Brazilian government, and by the industry in general.
One way to gradually reduce the disposal of these wastes at sea could be through the imposing of stricter measures by
the environmental agency responsible for the environmental aspects of the oil exploration, limiting to zero the amount of fluid
requiring further treatment to be discarded at sea. This action would generate increased investment in treatment facilities as a
SPE 165613 7

necessity. The process aiming for zero discharge requires in counterpart an investment in infrastructure to provide the wide
range of qualitative and quantitative services and equipment that is necessary for the processing and the recovery of drilling
fluids in accordance with the environmental requirements, operational needs and economic viability of all companies who
operate the oil activities in Brazil.
Based on the assumptions that govern the processes of waste management, specifically for the maritime enterprises of
E & P in Brazil, there is a high concern from the environmental agency to stimulate the development of the local economy
through the adoption of new technologies for the treatment of the wastes generated by this sector. This stimulation would
spread to the technological advancement of the companies which provide the waste management services and supporting
services, income generation for the area, as well as the provision of waste treatment operations whose products and services
will have a positive effect on the environment.
Analyzing the alternatives available in Brazil for the treatment of drilling fluid waste, it is noticeable that the country
still needs to evolve in the aspects of the provision of technologies to enable the treatment of these types of waste, aiming to
reduce the total dependency on the use of the co-processing technology, that even being a kind of treatment environmentally
appropriate, has its downside due to the demands imposed by the cement industries that incorporate the blends in the
manufacturing processes of clinker according with their production needs. If at a certain moment the economy is not favorable
to the cement industry the amount of waste to be co-processed will be restricted and will result in an environmental liability,
due to the large amount of waste that without another option for correct treatment will remain stored for an indefinite period.
The thermal vacuum process on the other hand has emerged as a viable option to the saturated co-processing. The
feasibility of this technology comes up against the logistics barriers related to the characteristics of operation of the equipment.
The process does not involve the destruction or the complete recovery of the compounds of the fluids in this process, only their
separation into two distinct fractions: liquid and semi-solid. The semi-solid fraction is sent for further treatment to be utilised
as aggregate material in the ceramics industry intended for the manufacture of bricks, and the liquid fraction sent to effluent
treatment plants.
A viable alternative that could be adopted, and that could allow the full recovery of the drilling fluid waste
components, would be the use of thermo mechanical desorption units, resulting in three byproducts after the treatment: solids,
water and oil. Thermal desorption is what is known as an environmental remediation technology using an external heat source
to increase the volatility of contaminants contained within a solid matrix such as soil or sludge so that the contaminant can be
removed.
The existing traditional processes of desorption, used primarily in the treatment of soils from degraded areas, provides
energy through the direct injection of heat in the material, which raises the cost of desorption process mechanics, due to the
high energy consumption required to heat extensive surfaces, the thermo mechanical desorption technology now enables the
treatment and the real recovery of the drilling fluid with minimal loss in mass balance of the process, as shown in Figure 03,
thereby allowing retrieval of the main constituents.

Figure 03 - Schematic of the desorption thermo mechanical process

Source: Thermtech SA (2008)
8 SPE 165613

In addition to the full recovery of the compounds of the drilling fluid, the mobility is another positive aspect related to
the thermo mechanical desorption unit due to the equipment compactness. This mobility offers the facility to treat the drilling
fluid wastes at the shore base or port where the supply boat is stationed dispensing with the need to transport the waste any
further, hence reducing the costs related with the transportation service.
Another important aspect to be considered, besides the technology cost to the treatment of drilling fluid, is the
logistics adopted to transport the waste to the final disposal site since this step represents a significant part of the total cost of
the disposal. In figure 04 are showed all forms of treatment available and their respective stages of transport. It can be used to
define a logistics strategy with lower costs whilst gaining greater environmental and operational safety.

Figure 04 - logistics for drilling fluids transportation and treatment/final destination

Author source

8. Conclusion

Despite the continuous growth of the E&P industry in Brazil many factors still undertake the development of the
industrial sector, especially regarding the use, handling, and disposal of waste drilling fluid. The governmental regulatory
environmental agency has still to implement a regulatory guideline that determines the parameters to control the disposal of
drilling fluid, as occurs with other solid waste through Technical Note CGPEG / DILIC / IBAMA 01/11, allowing that the
majority of wastes generated are discharged at sea (WBM), consequently delaying the development and the growth of the
economic segment related to the waste treatment for the oil and gas industry.
The economic segment focused on the treatment of drilling fluid onshore is not aligned with the needs of the E&P
SPE 165613 9

industry, simply for commercial issues. A possible implementation of a policy of "zero discharge" of drilling fluids to the sea
certainly becomes the first step toward encouraging investment in, and increasing the quality and the quantity of companies
and technologies focused to attend this commercial niche. The technologies currently available, with the exception of the co-
processing, are characterized as palliative measures, since the treatment and disposal of waste will always require a new
operational step.
In this context the thermo mechanical desorption process emerges as a viable possibility considering the operational,
economic and environmental aspects. The thermo mechanical desorption process offers environmental gain incomparable to
the others forms of treatment currently used for drilling fluid wastes, both because of the 100% recovery of the drilling fluids
compounds in a single treatment step, as well as the possibility to treat the waste at the source of generation / vessel
offloading, reducing the high costs associated with transport and onshore storage, saving the drilling fluid generator from
possible violations by environmental accidents, as well as other risks associated with the activity of transport and treatment of
drilling fluid.

9. Acknowledgment

We would like to give thanks to everyone who directly or indirectly contributed to the conception of this work: Carlos
Hernan Pulido Pasachoa, Cristiano Villardo, and Terence Alan Chapman.
We are grateful that our friendship has overcome all obstacles, allowed us to write and publish this work of such
importance to the oil industry in Brazil, even when we do not had more the professional and daily contact.

10. References

DOS SANTOS, G.B. Rio Oil & Gas Expo and Conference, 16, 17, 18 and 19, 2012, Rio de Janeiro. Wastes management in the oil industry:
attending of the environmental permitting requirements in Brazil. Paper # IBP 2111_12.

Fam M, Dusseault MB., 1998. Evaluation of surface-related phenomena using sedimentation tests.
ASTM Geotechnical Testing Journal, 21 (3), 180-184.

Halliburton. 2007. Thermal desorption solutions data sheets. September 2007.

Jacques Whitford Stantec Limited, July 2009. Cuttings Treatment Technology Evaluation
Environmental Studies Research Funds Report No. 166. St. John’s, NL. 100 p

Machado, J.C.V.; Oliveira M.M. Optimum concentration of potassium chloride to reduce the hydration capacity of clay formations. Internal
publication. PETROBRAS, 1986.

MAPEM, 2004. MAPEM Project Environmental Monitoring of Offshore Drilling for Petroleum Exploration
Offshore Brazil.

Thermtech AS. 2008. Thermomechanical Cuttings Cleaner (TCC) commercial specifications and brochures.

Thermtech, undated, "TCC® – Thermomechanical Desorption Process for Drilling Waste".

Available at: <http://www.arcticrecovery.com/dokumentasjon/Presentasjon%20av%20TCC.pdf>

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. 2000b. Environmental Assessment of Final Effluent Limitations
Guidelines and Standards for Synthetic-Based Drilling Fluids and other Non-Aqueous Drilling Fluids in the Oil
and Gas Extraction Point Source Category. EPA-821-B-00-014. December 2000. Washington, DC.