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NON-DAMAGING ECO-FRIENDLY DRILLING FLUID SYSTEM

Article · October 2021

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 1

OIL AND NATURAL GAS CORPORATION LIMITED

SUMMER INTERNSHIP PROGRAM – 2021

NON-DAMAGING ECO-FRIENDLY
DRILLING FLUID SYSTEM

S.No. Student Name College

1 ANKIT KUMAR DESAI NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY, RAIPUR

2 ARPAN BHUPENDRABHAI DESAI PARUL UNIVERSITY

3 MANVI BISEN NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGR, RAIPUR

4 TARUN GUPTA UNIVERSITY OF PETROLEUM & ENERGY STUDIES,

DEHRADUN

Under the Guidance of

MENTOR

MAJOR JANESHWAR PRASAD

GM (CHEMISTRY), LM DFS
ONGC ANKLESHWAR ASSET
2

TABLE OF CONTENTS

S.NO. TOPIC PAGE NO.

1. ABSTRACT 3

2. INTRODUCTION 4

3. OBJECTIVE 5

4. CONVENTIONAL DRILLING FLUID 6-7

5. DRILLING FLUID FUNCTIONS 8

6. DRILLING FLUID PROPERTIES 9 - 11

7. NON DAMAGING DRILLING FLUID 12 – 13

8. NDDF ADVANTAGE OVER CONVENTIONAL FLUID 14

9. DESIGNING OF MUD 15 – 16

10. POLYANIONIC CELLULOSE POLYMER 17 – 19

11. PRE-GELATINIZEG STARCH 20

12. XC POLYMER 21 - 22

13. HOLLOW GLASS SPHERES 23 – 25

14. CALCIUM CARBONATE 26 – 27

15. CAUSTIC SODA 28 – 29

17. A STUDY ON THE ROLE OF PRE-GELATINIZED STARCH (PGS) IN 31 - 37

THE NON DAMAGING DRILLING FLUID (NDDF) FOR THE TIPAM
SAND OF GELEKI OILFIELD OF UPPER ASSAM BASIN

16. CONCLUSION 38

17. REFRENCES 39 - 40
3

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

Our special thanks to our mentor Major Janeshwar Prasad, GM (chemistry),

Location Manager, Drilling Fluid Services, and Mr. Yogesh Yadav (Chemist),
ONGC, Ankleshwar Asset, who guided us during each activity and gave us so
much valuable information.

Our indebtedness and gratitude to the many individuals who have helped to shape
this report in its present form cannot be adequately conveyed in just a few
sentences. Yet we must record our immense gratitude to those who helped us
undergo this valuable learning at ONGC.

We are highly obliged to the Training and Development Department for

providing us this opportunity to learn at ONGC. We have furthermore to thank
the officers of production for sharing their knowledge about the plant and
production process. It was really a great opportunity for us by which we have
gained knowledge which is usually hard to find in textbooks.

We are very thankful to ONGC Ankleshwar Asset for providing us the great
opportunities during this pandemic under which we could able to take online
training.

We are thankful to all other persons who helped directly or indirectly during the
training period.
4

ABSTRACT
Drilling mud is one of the most important things in Oil and Gas well drilling operation. The
most important is to decompose that used drilling mud. Conventional drilling mud is non-
biodegradable in nature and harms the environment. Traditionally, the Barite has been using as
the weighting agent in conventional drilling fluid. But, the drilling of oil and gas wells from
surface to the pay-zone with conventional drilling fluids may damage the producing interval.
The formation plugging by drilling fluid’s compositional solids, drilled cuttings and particles;
hydration of clay envelops around pay zone particles by filtrate; formation of scales due to
chemical reaction between formation fluid and mud filtrate are the most common damage
mechanisms attributed to drilling fluid. So, to counter the damage, an ideal mud should not use
of non-degradable compositional fine solids; must have minimum drilled fine solids; should
reduce the filtration loss; and should generate inhibitive filtrate. Effective field development
needs high quality drilling fluid to minimize formation damage and maximize productivity.

The development of drilling fluid was to avoid fines and polymer plugging by optimizing the
Particle Size Distribution (PSD) of fine and medium sized particles of calcium carbonate. The
laboratory results have shown the effectiveness of sized particles of CaCo3 in Non-Damaging
Drilling Fluid (NDDF) to bridge the pore throat on the formation surface to build an external
filter cake which is much easier to be removed than an internal filter cake based on the Particle
Size Distribution of CaCo3 and Pore-throat diameter of the sandstone reservoirs.

Drilling muds are complex formulations of a range of chemicals designed to have specific
properties under very specific drilling conditions. Environmentalists including different
government and non-government agencies always have a concern regarding the conventional
drilling mud system because drilling industry has no choice but to use huge amounts of
chemicals as additives. These chemicals are toxic and pose an excessive threat to mankind as
well as the environment. The recent priority of any drilling program considers the development
of environmentally-friendly drilling fluids so that the ecology is preserved to its maximum
level.

In this study some specific biopolymers such as XC-polymer (XCP), pregelatinized starch
(PGS) has been used to make in laboratory called Non-Damaging Drilling Fluid (NDDF) which
is biodegradable, environment friendly. XC-polymer generally used as a viscosifier which
controls the viscosity of the mud. Pregelatinized starch (PGS)is used as fluid loss control agent.
Calcium Carbonate is used as weighing and bridging material. Biocide is used to prevent the
bacterial action in the drilling mud. A rigorous study has been performed on the mud properties
and found their excellent role in respective purpose in the Reservoir Drilling Fluid (RDF).
5

INTRODUCTION
The drilling fluid decreases well’s productivity by rendering formation damage in numerous
ways. These fluids are retained at higher pressure than the formation pressure to avoid the entry
of formation fluid into the wellbore. Due to this overbalance pressure, the solids and filtrate
enters the formation and thereby induce formation damage. The fine solids (drilling fluid’s
compositional solids, drilled cuttings and polymers’ particles) may plug the pore throats to
reduce formation permeability; and the filtrate may react with the formation minerals to
mobilize and afterward re-deposit them, hydrate the clay minerals around the formation
particles, and may generate scales due to the reaction between filtrate and formation fluid
leading to a reducing rock permeability.

The conventional water-based mud may cause wellbore instability, formation damage, torque
& drag, stuck pipe, logging and primary cementation failures, borehole washouts etc. in water
sensitive clays and shale formations. These problems may become even more serious in
directional or horizontal wells. The alternate option of oil-based mud is also economically and
environmentally unfeasible. Moreover, due to the current rigorous environmental rules and
regulations, the oil industries are attracted to environmental friendly bio-degradable drilling
fluids.

Studies also revealed that solids invasion is one of the primary causes of formation damage
from drilling fluids. Fine particles penetrate deeply and are not easily removed by back-
flushing.

To counter the formation damage, an optimally designed drilling fluid should not use dispersant
and non-degradable fine solids like- Clay, Barite, etc. in the mud; should reduce fluid loss;
should minimize drilled fine solids in the mud; should produce inhibitive saline filtrate which
would not swell the clay envelops in the formation particles and should not react with the
formation fluid to generate insoluble precipitate; should contain specialized sized materials to
bridge all exposed pore openings; should deposit a thin and tough non - damaging filter cake
that can be easily and effectively removed by acid jobs; must hold all the relevant drilling fluid
characteristics; should lower overall well costs and most importantly must optimize the
production without neglecting HSE regulations.

The Non-Damaging Drilling Fluid (NDDF), a clay and barite free polymer mud system is
revealed basically to use in the pay zone sections to avoid formation damage and to keep pay
zone or reservoir intact. It incorporates long-chain, high molecular weight biodegradable
polymers in the systems either to encapsulate drill solids to prevent dispersion or to coat the
shales for inhibition as well as to increase viscosity and reduce fluid loss.
6

OBJECTIVE
Drilling fluid is an essential element of drilling operation, which is used to provide hydrostatic
head, to carry out drill cuttings, to cooldown the drill bit and to act as a lubricant. There are
several different types drilling fluid based on their composition and use. But the key factor
which should be kept in mind before selection of drilling fluid is cost and its effect on
environment. The complex drilling fluid represents 15-18% of the total cost of petroleum well
drilling. Growing orientation towards new techniques has led to development of Non-
Damaging drilling fluids. Most important component of these fluids is bridging material.
Bridging is required to initiate filter cake formation, and filter cake itself will then control
further losses of filtrate and fine to the formation.

• Our aim should be utilizing that huge amount on such types of drilling mud which is a
cost efficient, environment friendly and can be decompose easily. The non-damaging
drilling fluid (NDDF) is a clay and barite free polymer mud system mostly used in a
pay zone section to avoid formation damage and to keep pay zone or reservoir intact.

• The NDDF consist of water as a base fluid, calcium carbonate (CaCO₃) (specific gravity
of 2.7-2.8) as weighing and bridging material instead of barite (specific gravity of 4.2-
4.7). The purpose of using CaCO₃ in NDDF is to form a low permeable filter cake on
the well bore walls and thereby minimizing the invasion of filtrate and solid to the
formation. The external filter cake minimizes fluid loss and solid invasion to the
formation.

• Sodium hydroxide is used as pH controlling agent, the ideal pH of drilling fluid should
be range between 8-12. Pre-gelatinized starch is used as a fluid loss control agent, it is
used to minimizing the volume of fluid loss that slips into the formation. The higher the
fluid loss, the thicker formation of the mud cake and as a result drill pipe will get stuck.

• Xanthan gum is used as a viscosifier in NDDF. It provides viscosity, solid suspending

and fluid loss control. NDDF along with biocide will improve the stability of the drilling
fluid, it helps to maintain the pH of the drilling fluid and keep its basic nature. If drilling
fluid turns acidic (pH<7), it can cause corrosion in the drill pipe and damage the drill
pipe, the replacement of drill pipe can add extra cost to the drilling operation.
7

CONVENTIONAL DRILLING FLUID

Drilling fluids and Drilling muds are sometimes used interchangeably; however, the term
“fluids” is much wider and is preferred by most drilling companies and authors. Several
definitions are used by the industry to describe the drilling fluids without placing any
restrictions either on the composition or on the properties of the drilling fluids. Some of the
available definitions, taken from different sources are mentioned below:

A drilling fluid is defined as the fluid that encompasses all of the compositions used to aid the
production and removal of cuttings from a borehole in the earth.

Baker Hughes Drilling Fluids Reference Manual, mentions that a drilling fluid is a fluid
formulated with chemicals to obtain specific chemical and physical characteristics for
circulating during the rotary drilling process.

The American Petroleum Institute (API) defines the drilling fluid as a circulating fluid used in
rotary drilling to perform any or all of the various functions required in drilling operations.
According to Schlumberger Oilfield Glossary, a drilling fluid is defined as any number of liquid
and gaseous fluids and mixtures of fluids and solids used in operations to drill boreholes into
the earth.

It is worth noting that the wide and restriction free definition adopted by the industry has given
the opportunity to new compositions and properties of drilling fluids to arise throughout the
history of drilling.

Drilling mud is one of the most important elements of any drilling operation. The mud has a
number of functions which must all be optimized to ensure safety and minimum hole problems.
Failure of the mud to meet its design functions can prove extremely costly in terms of materials
and time, and can also jeopardize the successful completion of the well and may even result in
major problems such as stuck pipe, kicks or blowouts.

The three main categories of drilling fluids are: water-based muds (WBs), which can be
dispersed and non-dispersed; non-aqueous muds, usually called oil-based muds (OBs); and
gaseous drilling fluid, in which a wide range of gases can be used. Along with their formatives,
these are used along with appropriate polymer and clay additives for drilling various oil and
gas formations. A drilling fluid must fulfil many functions in order for a well to be drilled
successfully, safely, and economically.

Drilling fluid compositions vary based on wellbore demands, rig capabilities and
environmental concerns. Engineers design drilling fluids to control subsurface pressures,
8

minimize formation damage, minimize the potential for lost circulation, control erosion of the
borehole and optimize drilling parameters such as penetration rate and hole cleaning. In
addition, because a large percentage of modern wellbores are highly deviated, drilling fluid
systems must help manage hole cleaning and stability problems specific to these wells.

Drilling fluids have undergone significant development in various aspects keeping pace with
the advancement of drilling technology, since the time they were first used in the rotary drilling
process sometime between 1887 and 1901. Such development resulted in an obvious increase
in number of available drilling fluid types and thus a continuous update of drilling fluids
classification criteria was necessary.

Fig – Classification of drilling fluids

With passage of time and enhanced awareness on health safety and environment and also
concerns on economics, new criteria are introduced, in addition to the normal drilling fluid
functions. Below are some of these additional requirements that the drilling fluids are expected
to possess:

• Not to injure drilling personnel

• Not to be damaging or offensive to the environment,
• Should not require unusual or expensive methods of completion of the drilled hole
• Should not interfere with the normal productivity of the fluid-bearing formation
• Not to corrode or cause excessive wear of drilling equipment
9

DRILLING FLUID FUNCTIONS

The drilling mud must perform the following basic functions:

• To control sub-surface pressures by providing hydrostatic pressure greater than the

formation pressure. This property depends on the mud weight which, in turn, depends
on the type of solids added to the fluid making up the mud and the density of the
continuous phase.
• To remove the drilled cuttings from the hole. The removal of cuttings depends on the
viscous properties called "Yield Point" which influences the carrying capacity of the
flowing mud and "gels" which help to keep the cuttings in suspension when the mud is
static. The flow rate of mud is also critical in cleaning the hole.
• To cool and lubricate the drill bit and drillpipe. As the drilling fluid passes through and
around the rotating drilling assembly, it helps cool and lubricate the bit. Thermal energy
is transferred to the drilling fluid, which carries the heat to the surface. In extremely hot
drilling environments, heat exchangers may be used at the surface to cool the mud.
• To prevent the walls of the hole from caving. This function is provided by the formation
of a stable mud cake on the walls of the wellbore, somewhat like plastering the walls
of a room to keep them from flaking.
• To suspend the cuttings and weighing material when circulation is stopped (gelation).
This property is provided by gels and low shear viscosity properties.
• Drilling mud is used to Maintain wellbore stability. The basic components of wellbore
stability include regulating density, minimizing hydraulic erosion and controlling clays.
Density is maintained by slightly overbalancing the weight of the mud column against
formation pore pressure. Engineers minimize hydraulic erosion by balancing hole
geometry against cleaning requirements, fluid carrying capacity and annular flow
velocity. The process of clay control is complex. Clays in some formations expand in
the presence of water, while others disperse. To some degree, these effects can be
controlled by modifying the properties of the drilling fluid. Regardless of the approach
used, controlling the fluid's effect on the formation helps control the borehole and the
integrity of the cuttings and leads to a cleaner, more easily maintained drilling fluid.
• To minimise the swelling stresses caused by the reaction of the mud with the shale
formations. This reaction can cause hole erosion or caving resulting in an unstable
wellbore. Minimisation of wellbore instability is provided by the "inhibition" character
of the drilling mud.
10

DRILLING FLUID PROPERTIES

The large number of functions performed by the drilling fluid require that some minimum
properties of the fluids be maintained. The measurement of these properties gives the mud
engineer a “status report” of the fluid and how it is reacting with the formation and the
subsurface environment. The most critical of the properties are density, viscosity, fluid loss
control, chemical composition, gel strength and sand content.

1. DENSITY - Density or mud weight is the mass per unit volume. The correct drilling
fluid density is dependent on the subsurface formation pressures. Strong, competent
formations can be drilled with a density less than 1.0, but over pressured shales and
high-pressure formations may require a fluid with specific gravities approaching 2.4.
The density can be adjusted with soluble salts or by addition of solids, termed weight
material. In the field, it is measured with a mud balance and is most often reported in
pounds per gallon (lb/gal or ppg); specific gravity or SG (g/ml); kilograms per cubic
meter (kg/cu m); or pounds per cubic foot (lb/cu ft). Density is used to determine the
hydrostatic pressure of the mud column and can also be measured and expressed as a
gradient such as pounds per square inch per thousand feet (psi/1,000 ft). This allows for
easy calculation of the hydrostatic pressure at any depth.

2. VISCOSITY - The flow properties of the mud depend on the depth of the hole and the
annular viscosities. In the upper hole, water may be sufficient, but at greater depths
more viscous fluids may be required. Deep wells, directional wells, high penetration
rates, high mud weights, and high temperature gradients create conditions requiring
close attention to the flow properties. The viscosity can be adjusted upward with
polymers or clay material or adjusted downward with chemical thinners or water.
Viscosity is a measure of the drilling fluids internal resistance to flow, or how thick or
thin it is. Drilling fluids are non-Newtonian, meaning that their viscosity is not constant
for all shear rates. These non-Newtonian fluids behave very differently than liquids like
water or oil which are Newtonian with a constant viscosity regardless of shear rate.
Non-Newtonian drilling fluids are shear thinning such that they have lower viscosity at
high-shear rates and higher viscosity at low-shear rates. This is desirable for drilling
where minimum pressure losses are wanted for the high-shear conditions inside the
narrow bore of the drill string. Higher viscosity is wanted in the low-shear conditions
of the larger annulus.
11

3. FLUID LOSS CONTROL - The fluid loss gives a relative indication of how the mud
is controlling loss of the base fluid into the formation. This becomes important when
porous formations, particularly those containing oil or gas, are drilled. In porous
formations, the drilling fluid may penetrate the rock and cause formation damage.
(However, a low fluid loss does not always ensure minimal formation damage.) There
are many types of fluid loss additives, such as bentonite, that can be used in the mud to
help mitigate this problem.
Filtration or fluid loss is a relative measure of the liquid that could invade a permeable
formation through deposited mud solids. This liquid is called filtrate and the deposited
solids are called filter cake or mud cake. There are two standard filtration tests that
measure the volume of filtrate collected after a 30-min period of time using filter paper.
These tests are the low-temperature/low-pressure fluid loss test, often called the
American Petroleum Institute (API) test, and the high-temperature high-pressure
(HTHP) test.

4. CHEMICAL COMPOSITION - Drilling fluids are two-phase compounds: a fluid

and solid phase. The character of the fluid phase is determined by chemically analyzing
the concentrations of calcium, chlorides, hydroxols, bicarbonate and carbonate ions,
sodium, potassium, and nitrates. The character of the solid phase is tested to determine
solids concentration, specific densities, and particle sizes. The primary means of
controlling solids are by removal via shale shakers, desanders, desilters, and/or dilution.
Chemical tests are carried out on the whole mud and filtrate to monitor specifications
and to identify contamination. Depending on the type of drilling fluid being used, these
tests may include: pH, various measures of alkalinity (PM, PF, and MF for WBM and
POM for NAF), lime content, chloride (or salt), calcium (or total hardness),
carbonate/bicarbonate, sulfate, methylene blue test (MBT), H2S, electrical stability,
water activity and others.

5. GEL STRENGTH - Gel strengths refer to the shear stress required to initiate flow after
static periods of time. They are a measure of the degree of gelation that occurs due to
the attractive forces between particles over time. Sufficient gel strength will suspend
drill cuttings and weighting materials during connections and other static conditions.
Gel strengths directly affect surge and swabbing pressures when making connections,
tripping pipe or running casing. They also affect the pressure required to “break
circulation” and the ease of releasing entrained gas or air. Gels are determined using
the same direct indicating rotational viscometer as is used for viscosity.
12

6. SAND CONTENT - Sand content refers to the volume percent of whole mud that are
“sand sized” particles, meaning they are larger than 74 microns and do not pass through
a 200-mesh screen. These may be actual quartz sand or may be the coarse-sized barite
particles, sized bridging solids, LCM, drilled solids or any other particles larger than 74
microns. Sand content is measured using a sand content graduated glass tube, funnel
and 200 mesh sieves. It is monitored to gauge the effectiveness of solids control
equipment, the shale shaker screen condition and the potential for increased abrasion to
mud pumps and other equipment in the circulating system including drill string and
downhole equipment.

In order for drilling fluids to perform their required functions effectively, several principal
properties related to their performance should be controlled and evaluated. The principal
properties of drilling fluids to be controlled within a given limit are:

• Specific weight
• Particle size and shape
• Colloidal properties
• Flow properties
• Filtration properties
• pH
• Alkalinity
• Cation exchange capacity
• Electrical conductivity
• Lubricity
• Corrosivity

Evaluation and testing of the drilling fluid properties are described in the API publication RP
13B-2 which includes equipment and detailed laboratory procedures
13

NON DAMAGING DRILLING FLUID

Non Damaging Drilling Fluid (NDDF) is method to increase oil production by controlling
formation damage during drilling. The NDDF is a clay and barite free polymer mud system
mostly used in pay zone section to avoid formation damage and to keep pay zone or reservoir
intact. It incorporates long-chain, high molecular weight polymers in the systems either to
encapsulate drill solids to prevent dispersion or to coat the shales for inhibition as well as to
increase viscosity and reduce fluid loss. An extensive range of particle sizes is used which, on
de-hydration, fit together into a strongly compacted very low permeable mud cake on the
surface of the rocks to quickly seals off the permeable paths of the pay zone. NDDF was applied
for the first time in the Asset for drilling pay zones in the Linch field in three wells, Mehsana
Asset of ONGC, in North Cambay Basin in India.

Thus, the proposed / optimally designed NDDF –

• Should minimize formation damage, lower overall well costs and optimize production
without neglecting HSE regulations.
• Should retain all relevant drilling fluid characteristics
• Contain specialized sized materials to bridge all exposed pore openings.
• Deposit a non - damaging filter cake that is easily and effectively removed by initial
production and / or by treatment of mild reactant / oxidizing agents.
14

For a given geology, well geometry and production method, an oil well’s productivity depends
on the control over formation damage exercised during drilling of the well. Formation with
least damage is likely to produce more oil. Though all productive reservoirs are susceptible to
formation damage, the reservoirs which produce by the matrix mechanism like sandstone, are
far more sensitive to the effect of the well bore fluids than those produce through fracture
mechanism-like lime stone. Improper composition and parameters of a drilling fluid may cause
damage to pay zone and thus may influence the oil production from a freshly drilled well.
Various main mechanisms of formation damage attributed to drilling fluid can be summarized
as –

1. Formation plugging by drilling fluid’s compositional solids e.g., clay

2. Formation plugging by drilled cuttings (drilled fines dispersed in drilling fluid)
3. Formation plugging by polymers’ particles
4. Hydration of clay envelop around pay zone particles by filtrate. Consequential
dispersion of clay envelop also generates fine particles which may clog the formation
pores.
5. Change of Wettability by filtrate
6. Whole mud invasion into pay zone due to induced lost circulation
7. Formation of scales due to chemical reaction between formation fluid and mud
filtrate

To counter the above formation damage mechanisms an ideal productive drilling fluid must
have-

1. No use of non-degradable compositional fine solids like- clay, barite etc.

2. Minimum drilled fine solids
3. Effective check on polymer’s particles’ invasion into pay zone
4. Inhibitive filtrate which should not swell the clay envelop around pay zone
particles and also no use of dispersant in mud.
5. Reduced filtration loss
6. Lowest possible progressive gelation for minimizing whole mud invasion during
trips and gel break circulations.
7. Filtrate not reacting chemically with formation fluid to form insoluble precipitate

Non Damaging Drilling Fluid (NDDF) provides all of the above ingredients of formation-
damage-control during drilling.
15

NDDF ADVANTAGE OVER

CONVENTIONAL DRILLING FLUID

NDDF has distinct advantages over conventional dispersed muds and controls formation
damage as briefed hereunder-

1. Fine solids of conventional muds enter deep into the formation and choke the oil
passage from reservoir to well. NDDF does not contain fine solids (clay).
Thixotrophy - the most needed property of drilling fluid, is provided by the additive-
XC polymer which is bio-degradable.

2. Mud filtrate swells the clay envelops around sand particles of pay zone. This
obstructs the oil flow. NDDF generates saline inhibitive filtrate, so clay swelling does
not take place.

3. Properly selected sized particles of Calcium carbonate (CaCO3), in NDDF, bridge

the pore throats on the formation surface to form an external filter cake. An external
filter cake is much easier to be removed, by draw down, than an internal filter cake
inside the formation matrix.

4. Calcium carbonate is also used to impart higher specific gravity to NDDF (instead of
barites used in conventional muds). Calcium carbonate is acid soluble and can be
removed later on.

5. Presence of dispersant generates fine clay particles inside the formation matrix, these
particles migrate further to clog the pores. Since NDDF does not contain any
dispersant, no clogging takes place due to dispersion generated fines.
16

DESIGNING OF MUD
Due to the overbalance pressure the mud invades the formation and can cause formation
damage. Invading particles which were initially suspended in the drilling fluids can plug the
pores and hence reduce rock permeability. Mud filtrate can interact with formation minerals to
cause mobilization and subsequent redeposition of in-situ fines, to swell the pay-zone clay, to
alteration of reservoir rock wettability, to development of emulsions leading to reduction of
permeability. Lesser the damage; more is the production of hydrocarbon. Therefore, to
diminish the formation damage, the most important points to keep in mind for the designing of
a fruitful mud are:
1. Diminish fluid loss
2. Should not use dispersant and non-degradable fine solids like- bentonite, barite, etc. in
the mud
3. Should minimise drilled fine solids in the mud
4. Produce inhibitive filtrate which would not swell the clay envelop in the formation
particles and should not react with the formation fluid to generate insoluble precipitate
The general components used for formulation of NDDF are:
1. Base fluid - fresh water
2. Viscosifier- XC polymer
3. Fluid loss control / coating agent - Starch e.g., PGS (Pre-Gelatinized Starch), PAC
(LVG) & PAC (RG)
4. Lubricity- Linseed oil
5. Formation clay/shale inhibitor-Potassium Chloride
6. Weighing and bridging materials: Limestone, MCC (Micronized Calcium Carbonate)
7. pH control agent: Caustic Soda (NaOH)
8. Bactericide (Formaldehyde) to control the bacterial degradation of Polymer/Starch used

BASIC COMPOSITION OF NON DAMAGING DRILLING FLUID

 17

According to proper measuring manual instructions different muds samples are formulated by
varying the composition using the following equipments:

A. Mettler Electronic Precision balance to measure the mass of different chemicals for
proper composition.
B. 1000 ml measurable stainless-steel cup for measuring the water volume.
C. Hamilton Beach Mixer for proper stirring/mixing water and the mud component for
generation of proper mud properties.
D. 15 ml pipette to measure small liquid volume.

To investigate the effect of varying composition with increasing time in days on the various
mud properties, the following equipments have used:

A. OFITE 4 scale plastic model Mud Balance to measure the density of formulated mud.
B. OFITE plastic Marsh Funnel Viscometer to measure the Funnel Viscosity of formulated
mud.
C. OFITE model 800 Viscometer to measure/determine Gel0, Gel10, Apparent Viscosity,
Plastic Viscosity, Yield Point of formulated mud.
D. Filter Press for measuring the Fluid Loss and Mud Cake Thickness of formulated mud.
E. pH Meter for measuring the pH of water used for formulating mud and the formulated
mud.
F. Conductivity Meter to measure Salinity of water used for formulating mud and the
formulated mud.

Sl. No Name of the Chemical Chemical formula Properties

• Biodegradable
• Control properties such as plastic
viscosity yield point and gel strength
1 Xanthan Gum C35H49O29 • Very good shear thinning and
suspension characteristics
(monomer)
• Increase the pH of drilling fluid
2 Sodium Hydroxide NaOH • Biodegradable
• Bridge the pore throat on the
formation surface
3 Calcium Carbonate CaCO3 • Biodegradable
• Environmental friendly and non-toxic
(C6H10O5)n • Control the fluid loss of the drilling
4 Corn Starch mud
• Anti-bacterial
CH2O • Slow down the decomposition of
5 Formaldehyde mud
TABLE – 1 – Properties of chemical used
18

Polyanionic Cellulose polymer (PAC)

PAC Polyanionic Cellulose polymer of high purity and used as a main fluid-loss reducer for
water-based drilling fluids. Polyanionic cellulose (PAC) is a widely used drilling fluid additive.
It has a similar molecular structure to carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC). However, it is
considered better than CMC in terms of filtration reduction, anti-salt, anti-collapse, and high-
temperature resistance. It can be used at temperatures up to 150°C.

PAC is considered a premium product because it typically has a higher degree of

carboxymethyl substitution and can contain less residual Sodium Chloride.

PAC polyanionic cellulose is added to drilling fluids and other mixtures of chemicals to aid in
several actions, including the cool down and lubrication of the mud bit, suspension of formation
cuttings, and aid transportation of the surface, and management formation pressure throughout
the oil well.

Adding PAC can prevent any dangerous situations such as well blockages or bore collapses
during the production process by making the drilling fluid stiffer. Its low water loss properties
can reduce the amount of water needed to go into the productive zone. PAC is used to adjust
the mud’s viscosity levels, and it can be used as part of a mixture to change the PH levels.

There are two main versions of PAC available –

1. Low Viscosity Polyanionic Cellulose (PAC-LV)

It has strong water solubility, high resistance to salts, calcium and magnesium, and fluid loss
reducing capability.

PAC LV has the following features.

1). With uniform substitution and high transparency, Polyanionic Cellulose can control
viscosity and reduce fluid loss.

2). Polyanionic Cellulose is appropriate for the water-base mud of fresh water, seawater and
saturated salt water.

3). The prepared fluid has better fluid loss reducing capability, rejection capability and higher
temperature resistance.
19

4). The prepared fluid has better rheological property and can prevent the dispersion and
swelling of clay and shale in high salt medium, so Polyanionic Cellulose can control the
pollution of shaft wall.

5). Polyanionic Cellulose helps to stabilize the structure of soft soil and prevent the collapse of
shaft wall.

6). Polyanionic Cellulose can slow down the accumulation of solids in the fluid when the drill
passes through rock faces.

7). Polyanionic Cellulose can restrain the turbulence number in the drilling pipe and enables
the reverse-flow system to keep the minimum stress loss.

8). Polyanionic Cellulose enables the mud to increase yield and reduce filter loss.

9). Polyanionic Cellulose can stabilize the foam of mud.

2. High Viscosity Polyanionic Cellulose (PAC-HV)

PAC HV can improve the coagulation stability of the system by forming a relatively thick
solvent absorption layer on the particle surface of drilling fluids, reduce the electrostatic
attraction between particles by absorbing fine particles of clay and thus increasing the surface
charge of particles, and the permeability of filter cake by enhancing the viscosity and capability
to plug holes of filtrate

PAC HV easily disperses in all water-base drilling fluids and applicable from fresh water to
saturated saltwater drilling fluids. In low-solid and solid-free drilling fluids, PAC HV can
strikingly reduce the filter loss as well as the filter cake thickness and shows strong inhibitory
effects on the shale hydration.

It is high quality water soluble cellulose derivative. In shape of white or light yellow free-
flowing powder, it is odourless, tasteless, non-toxic & non-fermented, and has good thermal-
stability and high salt resistance. It is soluble into water to form thick liquid, and it widely used
in water-base drilling fluid, so as to enhance the drilling fluid viscosity and control the fluid
loss.
20

Item Specification

Presence of starch derivatives absent

Moisture, % ≤10

Apparent viscosity ≥50cP

API Filtrate Volume ≤23ML

Applications

PAC-HV widely used in water-base drilling fluid for a variety of applications, such as filtration
control, viscosity and shale inhibition. It Can provide filtration control in fresh or brackish
water-based drilling fluids, promote borehole stability in water sensitive formations, minimize
rotational torque and circulating pressure, improve hole cleaning and core recovery, stiffen
foam to improve cuttings transport in air/foam drilling and reduce air requirements, up hole
velocity and borehole annulus pressure in air/foam drilling.

Method of Addition

The common dosage is usually 0.2-0.6 %.

Advantages

1) Compatible with most chemicals used in drilling fluids.

2) Environmentally safe.
3) Effective in fresh water, salt water and brackish water-based drilling fluids
4) Effective in small quantities for filtration control
5) Non-fermenting
6) Compatible with other Baroid drilling fluid additives
7) Resistant to harsh environments and contaminants
21

PRE-GELATINIZED STARCH
Pregelatinized starch is extensively used as an additive to prevent the seepage of soil filtrates
into the wells by increasing the viscosity of the drilling mud and reducing the fluid loss by
sealing the walls of the borehole. Pregelatinized starch helps drills reach further and run
freely, control fluid loss, provide temperature stability and maximize solids removal and
hydraulic efficiency.

It is a Non-ionic natural polymer and highly effective in all waters including fresh-, sea,
saturated salt water, calcium chloride or potassium chloride or any other brine-based system.
High quality biocide added to resist against bacterial and enzymatic degradation.

Pre-Gelatinized Starch (PGS), an environment friendly non-ionic polysaccharide which control

the Filtrate and Particle invasion, and Mud Cake thickness by increasing the viscosity of the
drilling fluids and by sealing the walls of the borehole due to its long chains of monosaccharide,
has been using in the NDDF. PGS works excellently as the fluid loss control agent in NDDF
which also has a moderate role in controlling the rheology of the mud.

But, the PGS is limited to low temperature i.e., shallow depth. The Poly Anionic Cellulose
(PAC) is also a fluid loss reducer and coating agent in fresh and salt water used as a high
temperature and biodegradation resisting component in the NDDF. It also works excellently as
the rheology and Fluid Loss control agent in NDDF which also has a moderate role in
controlling the Mud Cake Thickness.

Applications / Advantages:

1. Pregelatinized starch is extensively used in oil well drilling to reduce the fluid loss.
2. Effective in a wide range of make-up water, including high hardness and high salinity
brines.
3. It is used to stabilize rheology and to reduce the filter cake permeability.
4. It helps to keep drill bit cool and lubricate, remove the rock fragments or drill cuttings
from the drilling area and transport them to the surface.
5. It provides well bore stability through filtration control.
22

XC POLYMER
The XC-Polymer, a biopolymer is used in NDDF instead of the non-degradable Bentonite
(clays) to provide rheology for good lifting capacity and ROP and to encapsulate drill solids to
prevent dispersion. It is also a fluid loss reducer and coating agent for inhibition. XC-Polymer
is a high molecular weight polysaccharide produced by fermentation of carbohydrate with
Xanthomonas Campestris. It is a premium grade viscosifier and display exceptional shear
thinning properties and good suspension characteristics even in the absence of inorganic
colloids. This allows for high penetration rates, borehole cleaning and pays zone protection.
There is an increase in the rheological properties of drilling fluid as XC-Polymer increased.
The thickness, porosity and permeability of the filter cake of the drilling fluid also slight
decreases as XC-Polymer concentration increases. It is highly bio-degradable. Therefore, the
XC-Polymer is used in NDDF as a substitute of the non-degradable clays (e.g., Bentonite). XC-
Polymer works excellently as the rheology control agent in NDDF which also has a moderate
role in controlling the fluid loss of the mud.

A polysaccharide secreted by the bacteria genus Xanthomonas campestris, also known as XC

polymer. XC in water muds provides non-Newtonian mud rheology, highly desirable because
of the flat velocity profile it produces in annular flow, which is required for
efficient cuttings lifting in lower density muds. XC polymer is anionic, with tolerance for
salinity and fair tolerance for hardness ions. XC is a finely powdered material that can vary in
the number of residual bacteria debris and the ease with which it disperses into water.
Temperature tolerance varies with water-phase components but starts to degrade around 200
to 250 degF [93 to 121 degC]. Extreme pH or hardness are not well-tolerated by XC polymer
and it is susceptible to bacterial attack.

Xanthan gum is a polysaccharide created through the fermentation of simple sugars by a

bacteria called Xanthomonas campestris. It's a member of a family of polymers called
hydrocolloids, which are both water-soluble and hydrophilic, meaning its molecules are
attracted to water. Having an attraction to water is an essential characteristic of xanthan gum,
as water is the base carrier fluid in drilling muds.

Operators use xanthan gum as a thickening agent in drilling muds to increase the mud's
viscosity. When mixed into water, xanthan gum swells, and the mixture takes on a gel-like
consistency that has proven to be an excellent carrier of drill cuttings. Even when the flow of
drilling mud stops, the viscous mixture helps keep cuttings trapped in suspension instead of
allowing them to fall down the drilling pipe due to gravity.
23

Xanthan gum has been used extensively as a viscosifier in the oil field for drilling, drill-in and
completion fluids due to its unique rheological properties. In this paper we explore the
rheological properties of xanthan-based fluids in Berea sandstone rocks and how these
properties can be used to control fluid loss.

Xanthan gum, a high-molecular weight biopolymer, provides versatile rheology control in a

wide range of brines, drilling and fracturing fluids. Xanthan gum is considered non-hazardous
and suitable for use in environmentally sensitive locations and applications.

Cargill offers xanthan gum products that readily disperse and can be mixed into water under
low shear conditions without the formation of lumps and “fisheyes” often seen with non-
dispersible polymers, improving utility and efficiency.

In oilfield applications xanthan gum provides excellent rheological control for water-based
drilling, completion and work-over fluids in a wide range of brines. High viscosity at low
concentrations and efficient solids transport in high viscosity/low shear conditions bring
several benefits to drilling and oilfield applications, including

• Minimized pumping friction in lime, freshwater and saltwater muds

• Maximized drill bit penetration

• Accelerated drilling rates in low viscosity/high shear conditions

• Decreased solids build-up in drilling fluids

• Handling high gravel concentrations

• Stabilization of hole-cleaning fluids

• Decreased damage to oil formation

• Decreased maintenance expense

• Lower total cost of operation

• Stabilizes uniform suspension of pigments

• Reduced suspension time

• Provides thixotropic properties

• Controls syneresis during storage and application

• Provides microbiological stability in water-based formulations

24

HOLLOW GLASS SPHERES (HGS)

Drilling in low-pressure reservoirs has always been a challenge for the drilling industry. Low
pressured with low permeability and depleted zones are hard to drill with respect to technical
issues as well as higher cost. Many drilling systems use water-based mud in pressure-depleted
reservoirs subjected to high overbalance pressure due to drilling fluid density greater than the
density of water. Hence the necessity for lightweight drilling fluids emerges for that reason.

The most important function of the drilling fluid is to form hydrostatic pressure to balance
formation pressure. However, having more hydrostatic pressure than the formation pressure
may cause serious problems depending upon the formation drilled. The most expected problem
would be lost circulation. Lost circulation has always cost higher mud costs. It also leads to
problems such as wellbore instability, stuck pipe, and poor cement jobs. Besides these technical
and economic issues, it may result in loss of well control, and even blows out may occur.

Drilling low-pressure reservoirs with low permeabilities and depleted wells require lower
density fluids. Mud densities higher than stated limits could cause partial or total losses of the
drilling fluid, increase in drilling cost due to extended drilling time, fracturing the formation,
and possible formation damage.

Hollow glass spheres are added to the drilling fluid to reduce the density of the drilling mud
and make it lighter. The material is stable, incompressible, and virtually insoluble in water or
oil. These are unicellular hollow spheres that have a composition of white-colored Pyrex-like
soda-lime-borosilicate glass.

It has a high strength to weight ratio which helps them survive at high pressure in downhole
conditions. HGS’s density differs from 0.38g/cc to 0.42g/cc depending upon its pressure
resistance and particle size changes between 15μm to 135μm. It has softening temperature of
600℃.

The practice of using HGS to reduce the density has become more important due to the
increasing demand for “hydrostatic pressure management” with high-performance low-density
fluids.

HGS is convenient to mix up with any type of drilling mud by 50% volume calculation.
Economic and environmental issues make water-based with HGS a good alternative for low-
weight drill-in fluids. Below represented the mixture of HGS with drilling mud.
25

HGS is divided into various categories depending upon its pressure resistance. For example,
HGS8000 represents that it has a pressure resistance of 8000psi. There are HGS that have
pressure strength from 250 psi to 18000 psi.

Besides lowering the density of the mud, it has certain advantages such as -

➔ Higher penetration rates.

➔ Elimination of differential sticking.
➔ Minimization or elimination of lost circulation.
➔ Decrease in the formation damage.
Loss circulation is one of the most critical problems in low-pressure reservoirs especially when
there is gas present in it. It makes it harder to control the well.

As practiced in the offshore field of Mumbai High, India region HGS based lightweight drilling
fluid decreased the rate of loss circulation from 100bbl/hr to 6-8bbl/hr. By using HGS4000 (in
this case HGS which has a maximum pressure strength of 4000psi) mud density is decreased
from 8.6-8.8ppg to 7.2-7.9ppg.

The hollow glass sphere is a flyer chemical unlike other free-flowing chemicals, it needs special
handling. Since it has a higher volume therefore it needs more area for its storage. Also, one
should wear proper protection while handling the chemical as it is a dust-generating chemical.
26

Preparation of drilling fluid with HGS –

There are two common ways of mixing HGS in drilling fluid: -

1. Using gravity feed direct to the hopper tank: In this method, HGS is mixed with the
fluid with the help of adding a fluid stream and causing a siphon effect as seen in Figure.
It also lowers the dusting of the chemical.

2. Another method is pulling HGS from the bulk bag using a suction wand and mixing it
straight to the hopper tank with the help of a diaphragm pump as seen in Figure. In this
method, the pump must be kept clean and worked properly.

Basically, it is necessary to have a homogeneous mixture of the chemicals. HGS has a lower
density with respect to water so it tends to float on the surface. Therefore, mixing equipment
should work properly to keep the mixture homogeneous. Proper working pits, air pumps,
subsurface guns, and centrifugal pumps in the premix tank are needed to mix HGS to the
drilling fluid effectively.
27

CALCIUM CARBONATE
Traditionally, the Barite (Specific Gravity of about 4.2-4.7) has been using as the weighting
agent in conventional drilling fluid. But, the drilling of oil and gas wells from surface to the
pay-zone with conventional drilling fluids may damage the producing interval. The formation
plugging by drilling fluid’s compositional solids, drilled cuttings and polymers’ particles;
hydration of clay envelops around pay zone particles by filtrate; formation of scales due to
chemical reaction between formation fluid and mud filtrate are the most common damage
mechanisms attributed to drilling fluid. So, to counter the damage, an ideal mud should not use
of non-degradable compositional fine solids; must have minimum drilled fine solids; should
reduce the filtration loss; and should generate inhibitive filtrate. Effective field development
needs high quality drilling fluid to minimize formation damage and maximize productivity.
This paper discusses the development of least damaging drilling fluid basically for
development wells in the Upper Assam Basin of India. The idea behind the development of
drilling fluid was to avoid fines and polymer plugging by optimizing the Particle Size
Distribution (PSD) of fine and medium sized particles of calcium carbonate. The laboratory
results have shown the effectiveness of sized particles of CaCo3 in Non-Damaging Drilling
Fluid (NDDF) to bridge the pore throat on the formation surface to build an external filter cake
which is much easier to be removed than an internal filter cake based on the Particle Size
Distribution of CaCo3 and Pore-throat diameter study of the sandstone reservoirs of some
oilfields of Upper Assam Basin. CaCo3(Specific Gravity of about 2.7-2.8) is also used as the
weighting agent in NDDF which is acid soluble and can be removed easily later on. The
optimum composition of CaCo3also designed based on the interpretation of the mud properties
of laboratory formulated NDDF and required mud properties for successful drilling and
completion in the study areas.

Calcium carbonate, such as limestone, marble or oyster shells, that has a specified minimum
and maximum range of particle sizes and may also have a specified distribution of sizes. It is
used as a bridging agent in drill-in, workover and completion fluids to positively
seal permeable zones by plugging pores at the wellbore face. It has the additional advantage
that it can be dissolved by acid treatment to clean up the zone afterwards.

The NDDF using Medium Coarse CaCo3 and Micronized CaCo3 as the weighting and bridging
material can be removed clearly by using acid job after completing the drilling of the wells.
The ratio of 60% Micronized CaCo3 and 40 % Medium Coarse CaCo3 in the total CaCo3
mixture is the optimum ratio for effective bridging and the best mud parameters.
28

Calcium carbonate (CaCO3) was selected as bridging material for NDDF for the following
reasons:

• CaCO3 can be chemically removed either by acids or by chelating agents.

• Calcium carbonate is commercially available in a broad range of particle sizes. This

facilitates the selection of a blend that will efficiently bridge formation pore throats
and form a totally external ultra-low permeability filter cake on the surface of the
exposed pay zone. This aids in reducing fluid loss rate and prevents solids invasion
into the formation.

• The minimum concentration of Calcium carbonate was fixed 5 to 7% (w/v), which

was sufficient to bridge formation pore and ensure a thin high quality filter cake. The
concentration of Calcium carbonate can be increased to adjust the required specific
gravity up to 1.34 comfortably.

• The blend of Calcium carbonate products such as medium, fine and micronized
grades can be used to fit the purpose w.r.t. the pore size distribution of the reservoir
rock.

The Fluid Loss can be decreases further by increasing the composition of CaCo3 more than
7.5%, but it may have negative effect on the rate of penetration (ROP) and Mud Cake
Thickness. High ROP is one of the important criteria for NDDF, which will result in low
exposed time of the mud to the formation and low degradation of the mud due to low bio-
degradation of the polymers used in NDDF. Thus, for low density mud or high ROP required
for the reservoir section drilling, CaCo3works excellently as the bridging and the weighting
control agent in NDDF.

The mixture of Medium Coarse CaCo3 and Micronized CaCo3 shows very good Particle Size
Distribution. It fulfils all the various guidelines/thumb rules used in the industry for effective
bridging in relation to the formation pore openings of the major producing oilfields of Upper
Assam Basin to form a surface bridge/external filter cake on the formation surface to minimize
formation damage.
29

CAUSTIC SODA
The caustic soda is known as the sodium hydroxide (NaOH). It is considered as a strong
corrosive substance and a strong alkali. It has many types depending on its quality such as:

• Crystalline caustic soda contains 70% to 75% of (NaOH).

• Caustic soda anhydrous contains more than 95% of (NaOH).

The caustic soda has different shapes like:

• White crystalline powder

• White spherical shapes, flaxes or white powder.

It is colourless and transparent. It reacts with various acids such as hydrochloric acid generating
considerable exothermic heat of neutralization. It corrodes metals such as aluminium. It can be
delivered in 48% solution (liquid caustic soda) and 98% in solid form of flake caustic soda.

Oil and gas industry uses caustic soda in many operations such as the exploration, production
and the processing operations of the petroleum and the natural gas. It is used to remove acidic
materials from hydrocarbons and off-gas, as it adsorbs carbon dioxide in light petroleum
fractions. It is used as a cleaning element, as it is used as anti-corrosion device in the pipeline
system. it also used as a treatment step in the removal of various sulfur compounds, as for the
poor-quality crude oil, the caustic soda can be used to remove sulphurous impurities in a
process known as caustic washing. As mentioned before, the (NaOH) reacts with weak acids
such as H2S to give non-volatile sodium salts which can be removed. The caustic soda
dissolves in water solution so it is used as a cleaning agent because it can easily absorb gases
like H2S and CO2.

The caustic soda is also used in the production operation as an additive in the drilling mud
which is the main concern of this study in order to increase the alkalinity in bentonite the mud
systems and to increase the mud viscosity to neutralize any acid gas like H2S or CO2.

Advantages

• Widely available and an economic source of hydroxyl ions to control pH

• Concentrated chemical and very effective at small treatment levels
• Increases pH which reduces corrosion of steel exposed to drilling fluids
• Can be used in most drilling fluids
30

APPLICATIONS

Caustic Soda is used to maintain or increase pH. Increasing pH with caustic soda precipitates
magnesium (Mg2+) and suppresses calcium (Ca2+) in high-hardness waters such as seawater,
reduces corrosion, and neutralizes acid gases such as carbon dioxide (CO2) and hydrogen
sulfide (H2S).

Typical concentrations range from 0.25 to 4 lbm/bbl [0.7 to 11.4 kg/m3] with treatments
depending on water chemistry and type of drilling fluid. In seawater and waters containing
buffering salts, a higher concentration of caustic soda is required. Gulf of Mexico seawater
requires 1.5 to 2 lbm/bbl [4.3 to 5.7 kg/m3] to precipitate all magnesium then convert the
calcium to lime.

When treating muds with lignosulfonate or lignite, which have low pH (±4), typical usage is
one sack of caustic soda for every four sacks of lignosulfonate or lignite product.
31

A STUDY ON THE ROLE OF PRE-GELATINIZED

STARCH (PGS) IN THE NON-DAMAGING DRILLING
FLUID (NDDF) FOR THE TIPAM SAND OF GELEKI
OILFIELD OF UPPER ASSAM BASIN

Geleki field was discovered in 1968 and was put to trial production in August, 1970. The
commercial production started in August, 1974. The field has been divided into twenty-three
blocks by faults. All the twenty-three blocks are oil/gas producers.

In the Upper Assam basin, following producing horizons have been identified (top to bottom):
a) Tipam Sand

b) Barail Sand

c) Kopili

d) Sylhet

e) Basal Sandstone

f) Basement

In Geleki-field, the main horizons are Tipam and Barail main sand. In addition, few wells are
producing within Barail coal-shale unit. The geological age of the Barail main sand and Barail
coal-shale is Oligocene and that of Tipam is Miocene. The corresponding depth range of Barail
main sand and Barail coal-shale is about 3420 - 4070 meters. Tipam main sand, comprising of
TS-3A, TS-4B, TS-5A, TS-5B & TS-5C, is at an average total depth of about 2300-3400
meters. The average total thickness of Barail main sand is about 70 - 80 meters, Barail coal-
shale unit about 400 - 500 meters, and that of Tipam, TS-3A is about 20 - 30 meters, TS-4B is
about 10 - 30 meters, TS-5A is about 10 - 40 meters, & TS-5B is about 10 - 20 meters, of oil-
bearing rock.

To study the effect of PGS, the NDDF is prepared by properly mixing of XC-Polymer: 0.4%,
PAC (LVG): 0.5%, PAC (RG): 0.3%, Biocide: 0.1%, NaOH: 0.025%, KCl: 5%, Limestone
powder: 3.5%, MCC: 6%, and varying composition of PGS in gm /100ml basis.
 32

0(Zero)-Day

Mud Properties
Composition of PGS, gm/100ml

pH (Hydrogen Ion Concentration)

Gel Strength, lb/100ft2
Funnel Viscosity, Seconds

Mud Cake Thickness, mm

Density of mud, kg/m3
Apparent Viscosity, CP

Yield Point, lb/100ft2

Plastic Viscosity, CP

Temperature, oC
Fluid Loss, ml
Salinity, psu
θ600

θ300

Gel10
Gelo

0 50 64 47 32 17 11.9 17 30 1070 9.5 0.01 8.4 0.29 29

0.5 55 68.5 50 34.3 18.5 12.8 17.5 31.5 1068 9.46 0.01 7.5 0.29 31

1 58 75 54 37.5 21 13.6 17.9 33 1067 9.43 0.01 6.9 0.3 31

1.5 66 78 56 39 22 13.8 18.2 34 1064 9.4 0.01 6.6 0.3 30

2 70 81 58 40.5 23 14.9 18.6 35 1061 9.35 0.01 6.4 0.31 29.5

2.5 77 85 61 42.5 24 15.2 19.3 37 1059 9.31 0.01 6.3 0.31 31

3 79 92 67 46 25 15.5 20.5 42 1058 9.25 0.01 6.25 0.32 29

3.5 90 104 77 52 27 16.5 22 50 1056 9.23 0.01 6.2 0.33 30

4 96 110 82 55 28 16.7 22 54 1055 9.19 0.01 6.2 0.33 30.5

4.5 101 114 85 57 29 17.5 23 56 1054 9.19 0.01 6.1 0.34 29

TABLE - Properties of the formulated mud at the day of formulation (Zero-day) with
change in PGS composition.

Fig. 1: Funnel Viscosity vs. Composition of PGS

33

Fig. 2: Apparent Viscosity and Plastic Viscosity vs. Composition of PGS

Fig. 3: Gel Strength vs. Composition of PGS

34

Fig. 4: Yield Point vs. Composition of PGS

Fig. 5: Density of mud vs. Composition of PGS

35

Fig. 6: pH vs. Composition of PGS

Fig. 7: Fluid Loss vs. Composition of PGS

36

Fig. 8: Mud Cake Thickness vs. Composition of PGS

In the Figure 07, we can notice that the fluid loss decreases with the increasing composition of
PGS. But the fluid loss is almost same for the PGS range of 2.5-3.5 gm/100 ml. And, from the
below Table , the actual average API Fluid Loss (FL) for the Tipam Sand of Geleki field 6.34.
In the Figure 09, we can see that the composition of PGS against FL 6.34 ml is about 2.52
gm/100 ml. So, by considering the laboratory result and field experience we can choose the
optimum composition range of PGS for the successful drilling of Tipam Sand as 2.5-3.5
gm/100 ml. Higher compositions of PGS can decreases the fluid loss, but which may have the
detrimental effect on Viscosity, Gel strength, Yield point, Density and pH. From the Figure
(02-04), we can investigate that the Viscosity, Gel strength and Yield point increases with
increasing the composition of PGS. We should start the formulation of NDDF with the
composition of PGS as 2.5 gm/100 ml and gradually increase the percentage upto 3.5 gm/100
ml for the compensation of bio-degradation of PGS.

From Figure 08, we can investigate that with the increasing composition of PGS, the mud cake
thickness also directly increases. But we know that for the smooth or problem free drilling
operation, optimum mud cake thickness is necessary. Low mud thickness can result in high
fluid loss and in turn high formation damage; high mud thickness results in sloughing or
breaking and dropping of the cake which again results unstable hole, high fluid loss and
formation damage. Our objective is to forming high quality low permeable thin Mud Cake
which can resist the further fluid and particle invasion into the formation without rupturing and
dropping into the hole. Since the Cake thickness increases with increasing composition of PGS,
the higher composition of PGS than the optimum will be detrimental for drilling.
37

So, from these studies, we can recommend that we will start the formulation of mud in the
drilling rig with the PGS composition of 2.5 gm/100 ml and we will investigate the functions
of the mud while drilling. We will investigate whether the cuttings are properly carrying out of
the hole or not; drilling rate is satisfactory or not; mud solids are properly suspended or not at
the rest of the mud, solid control equipments are properly working or not, etc. as well as
continuous testing of the mud parameters e.g., Density, Rheological properties, Fluid Loss,
Mud Cake, pH, Salinity, etc. If we have the problem free drilling operations are going on, we
will continue the drilling with the same composition and otherwise we may slightly increase
the composition of PGS up to 3.5 gm/100 ml investigating the functions.

Table: NDDF parameters of 10 successfully drilled wells in Tipam Sand of Geleki field
of Upper Assam Basin
38

CONCLUSION

Non-Damaging Drilling Fluid (NDDF)is a clay and barite free environmental friendly polymer
mud. We can dispose this mud anywhere because the components of this mud are degradable
and environmental friendly. It is clear that the NDDF is giving almost same or better
rheological properties as the conventional drilling fluid. So, we can get the all the properties of
conventional drilling mud by varying the composition of components of non-damaging drilling
fluid. We can use biocides like formaldehyde to limit the bacterial action on the mud, so that
the deviation in rheological properties will be reduced. The NDDF with biocide can be used
for a large span of time, while conventional drilling fluids can use only once because its
components will decompose faster. We can say that the non-damaging drilling fluids are
efficient, environmental friendly, cost effective and easily decomposable. Use of this mud can
save our earth from a huge pollution.

All the reservoirs in the world are heterogeneous. The properties and characteristics are
different in different location in the reservoir. Therefore, the composition of any component or
the value of any properties of NDDF to serve any function will not be fixed.

The rheological properties e. g. Plastic Viscosity, Funnel Viscosity, Yield Point, Gel Strength
etc. and the Fluid Loss characteristics of NDDF are basically responsible for the presence of
the Polymers and Starch. But we have seen that the Polymers and Starch are highly degradable
by the bacterial activities and in turn adversely effects on fluid loss and rheological properties
of the NDDF. A rapid degradation happens in the NDDF without biocide and makes the mud
unsuitable for drilling operation. Therefore, we must have to decreases the biodegradation rate
of the mud during the drilling using NDDF. The biocide has a great role in NDDF to decrease
the degradation rate of the Polymers and Starch and retain the mud properties within their
optimum ranges. Even a very small composition e.g., 0.05% of Biocide has a great effect on
the biodegradation rate.

Intensive care of the mud and the circulation system is needed during drilling the pay zone
section. All the solid control equipments e.g., Shale shaker, De-Sander, De-Silter, Mud
Cleaner, etc. should be working properly during the drilling to control the solid particles in
mud. Continuous investigation of the properties and functions of the mud, whether they are
fulfilling the requirements or not, is necessary and if required we may have to change the
composition of the mud during drilling.
39

REFRENCES

• Bikoor S.O. Fattah K.A. (2013) The Influence of XC-Polymer on Drilling Fluid Filter
Cake Properties and Formation Damage, Journal of Petroleum & Environmental
Biotechnology, 4(5)
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