Analysis of Oil-based Mud Treatment Technology
Conventional oil-based mud treatment technical measures are reinjection and incineration. The process is simple and the cost is relatively low. The reinjection treatment has high requirements on the formation. The incineration treatment method will pollute the environment and is not conducive to the construction of an environmentally friendly and energy-saving society. At present, the oil in the oil-based mud is mainly separated by physical or chemical methods to make it meet the emission requirements.
The incineration treatment method, as the name implies, is to put waste oil-based mud oil-bearing drill cuttings in incineration equipment for pyrolysis and deep oxidation for comprehensive treatment. During the incineration process, the waste drilling fluid and oil in the drill cuttings are consumed, reducing its oil content. This method produces flue gas during incineration and is expensive to process, so this method is rarely used.
The heat treatment method is to load the oil-based mud into a cylindrical distiller. The rotary distiller is fully heated until most of the liquid oil and water evaporate before cooling and collecting. The drill cuttings are discharged directly after the oil content reaches the discharge standard. The processing cost of this method is relatively high. According to estimates, the total cost of processing a well’s cuttings is about 330,000 U.S. dollars.
Centrifugal separation method centrifugal separation of oil-based mud drill cuttings, using oil-based mud treatment-drill cuttings dryer, after centrifugal separation treatment, the water-based and composite oil-based mud separation treatment solid phase water content can be controlled at 8 -10%. The solid phase water content of oil-based mud separation treatment is controlled at 6%, and the oil content is ≤3% and so on.
There are a variety of oil-based mud treatment methods, and operators can choose a suitable drilling sludge treatment method according to relevant legal regulations, cost and environmental protection requirements.