HS&E in Fluids Operations –

Environmental Concerns

Presented by
Samuel O. Osisanya, Ph.D.; P.E.
Associate Professor
The University of Oklahoma
Environmental Concerns

In General:
•Drilling Wastes are Non-Hazardous
(NOW - No hazardous Oilfield Wastes)

•Drilling Fluid Chemicals can be Hazardous

Toxic, Reactive, Ignitable
Environmental Concerns
• Laws
• Legislature
• Rules
• Judiciary
• Regulations
• Bureaucrats
 Regulations

The Bureaucrats determine what is

environmentally acceptable!
Health and Safety
• Potentially Hazardous Chemicals
 Caustics (reactive)

 Acids (reactive)
 Oils (flammable)
 Powders (inhalation)
 Liquids (skin problems)
 Mud Chemicals
• Aluminum Stearate • Para formaldehyde
• Barium Sulfate • Caustic Soda
• Bentonite • Starch
• Causticized Lignite • Glycerin
• Chrome-Free Lignosulfonate • Sodium Asphalt Sulfonate
• Fatty Acid Amines • Diesel Oil
• Lecithin • Calcium Chloride
Potentially Dangerous or Controlled
Chemicals

● Caustic Materials
● Oils
● Acids
● Heavy Metals
● Biocides/Bactericides
Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS)
 Generic Muds

● Developed by US EPA for regulatory

reasons
● 8 Systems
● Used for Toxicity Testing
 Test Procedures
 Marine Organism Toxicity
 Micro-toxicity
 TCLP
 Heavy Metals
 COD/BOD
 Oil Sheen
 Total Suspended Solids
 Chlorides and pH
 Oil and Grease
 Oil Sheen

• Free Oil Visual Observation

• Regulatory Requirement in US
• Procedure For Fluids or Cuttings (< 1hr storage)
– Mix 5 min, add 15 mL or 15 gm
– Test Container - 1,000 cm2 surface
– No more than 30 cm deepwith sea water
– Stir
– Observe the pan from three sides
– Watch for up to one hour
• Results: <50% = no oil; >50% = free oil
Bioassay Test
 Bioassay Test

• Transport Mud Under Controlled Conditions

• 1:9 mud to seawater mixture, stirred, pH adjust
• Settle for one hour
• SPP diluted with 5 or 6 concentrations of seawater
• Tested - range finder, full 96 hour test
 Discharge Limitations in US
Offshore
• Oil Base Mud - prohibited
• Generic Muds - subject to toxicity limit, 30,000 ppm
• Additives - approved lists
• Bioassays - required, end of well
• Free Oil - no discharge based on static sheen test
• Barite - 1 mg/kg Mercury, 1-3 mg/kg Cadmium
• Cuttings Oil - no diesel discharge, no free oil
• Others - no halogenated phenols, chromates, minimum use of
surfactants, dispersants, and detergents
Pending Discharge Limitations in US
Offshore - Nonaqueous Fluids
 No discharge of whole mud
 No Free Oil from Cuttings
 No Formation Oil on cuttings
 Base Fluid on Cuttings < 10.2 wt %
 Maximum polyaromatic content 10 ppm
 Biodegrade at least as fast as C16-C18 internal
olefin
 No more toxic than that olefin in 10-day sediment
toxicity test
Typical Permit Requirements

● Generic Mud System

● Inventory
● Toxicity Monitoring
● General Monitoring/Sampling
● End of Well Monitoring/Sampling
Typical Permit Requirements

Generic Mud System

• Defined in Permit
• Additives ≥ 100,000 ppm LC50
or
• Tested in Generic Mud and LC50 > 30,000 ppm
Typical Permit Requirements

Inventory
• Precise Inventory - Volume, Weight, Date, Time

• Mass Balance Composition Maintained

• Barite/Hemitite Records - Cadmium and Mercury

Typical Permit Requirements

General Monitoring/Sampling
● Volume Discharged Each Day
● Where Discharged
● Static Sheen Test
● Oil Content
Typical Permit Requirements

End-of-Well Monitoring/Sampling
• Sample at Maximum Depth

• 48 hr Verbal Notice Before Discharge

• No Discharge Without Toxicity Confirmation

 Air Emissions
● H2S
● Fugitive Dust
● Volatile Organic Compounds
● Exhausts