Hydrate Control in Drilling Mud

This book provides pathways and strategies for mud engineers and drilling students in the future drilling industry. The data on the effect of drilling mud additives on hydrate formation thermodynamics and kinetics are discussed to aid proper additives selection and blending for optimum performance. Practical field operations of hydrate-related drilling are discussed with insights on future drilling operations.

Preface Drilling fluid design is very crucial in all drilling operations. Gas hydrate wells or hydrate sediments are future reservoirs that are believed to produced clean natural gas that will replace the current fossil fuels. Hydrate management has now become a part of the drilling operation and for that matter, relevant knowledge and guidelines of drilling  fluid design for hydrate management in drilling-related operations would help establish a strong foundation for hydrate-related drilling operations.

This book is useful to mud engineers, students, and industries who wish to be drilling fluid authorities in the21st-century energy production industry.

Chapter 1: Introduction

1.      Introduction

2.      Hydrates in Drilling Operations

1.1         Hydrate in offshore drilling

2.1         Hydrates sediments drilling

3. Summary of hydrate studies in drilling mud

4. Hydrate behaviour in drilling mud additives

5. Significance of Managing Hydrate in Drilling

5.1. Safe drilling operation

5.2. Future Energy Production

6. Structure of the book

7. Conclusions

References

Chapter 2: Fundamentals of Hydrates and Drilling Mud

1. Introduction

2. Fundamentals of Hydrates

2.1. Gas hydrate formation process

2.2. Natural occurring hydrates sediments

2.3. Stability of hydrates sediments

2.4. Drilling through hydrate sediments

3. Fundamentals of Drilling Mud

3.1. Functions and operating principles drilling fluid

3.2. Importance of the drilling fluid

3.3. Categories of drilling fluids

3.4. Drilling fluid additives

3.5. Drilling Fluid Components effect on hydrates

4. Conclusions

References

Chapter 3: Testing Drilling Fluid and Hydrate Properties

1. Introduction

2. Drilling Mud Formulation

2.1. Drilling fluid testing apparatus

2.2. Drilling mud testing procedures

3. Hydrate Testing Apparatus

3.1. Thermodynamics of hydrate formation

3.2. Kinetics of hydrate formation

3.3. Kinetics of hydrate dissociation

4. Conclusions

References

Chapter 4: Rheology of Hydrate-Based Drilling Mud

1. Introduction

2. Rheological Data of Drilling Mud for Hydrate Management

3. Rheological Properties of Drilling Mud

3.1. Yield stress

3.2. Viscosity

3.3. Gel properties

3.4. Cutting removal index

3.5. Hydraulic parameters of drilling mud for hydrate management

3.5.1 Flow index

3.5.2 Consistency index.

4. Conclusions

References

Chapter 5: Hydrate Thermodynamic Behaviour in Drilling Mud

1. Introduction

2. Hydrate Thermodynamic Data in Drilling Mud

3. Hydrate Phase Behaviour in Drilling Mud Additive

3.1. Effect of polymers

3.2. Effect of pressure

3.3. Effect of solids

3.4. Concentration effect

4. Conclusions

References

Chapter 6: Hydrate Kinetics Behaviour in Drilling Mud

1. Introduction

2. Hydrate Kinetics Data in Drilling Mud

3. Hydrate Formation Kinetics in Drilling Mud

3.1. Nucleation time

3.2. Hydrate of hydrate formation

3.3. Gas consumed

4. Hydrate Dissociation Kinetics in Drilling Mud

4.1. Hydrate dissociation time

4.2. Amount to gas released

5. Conclusions

References

Chapter 7: Practical Application of Drilling Mud in Hydrate Related Drilling Operations

1. Introduction

2. Hydrate Encounter and Mitigation in Offshore Operation

3. Hydrate Sediment Drilling

4. Conclusions

References

Dr. Bhajan Lal is a senior lecturer in Chemical Engineering Department at the Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS. He is a core research member of the Carbon Dioxide Research Centre in the Institute of Contaminant Management at UTP. After receiving his PhD degree, he worked as a postdoctoral research fellow and Research Scientist in the USA, Canada, South Africa, Turkey, and Malaysia. His main areas of research interests are clathrate hydrates, CO₂ capture and storage, natural gas storage, flow assurance (gas hydrate as well as corrosion), gas hydrate-based wastewater treatment, and water-based drilling fluid. He supervised master, Ph.D., and postdoc students since 2013. He has published 70 peer-reviewed journal papers, 38 conference papers, and 4 book chapters, and a book titled “Chemical Additives for Gas Hydrates”. In addition, as project leader, he has secured 8 gas hydrate-related research projects worth RM 2 million from oil and gas industries, UTP, and the Malaysian Government.

Dr. Titus Ntow Ofei is a PIRE research fellow and the lead researcher on particle sedimentation in oil-based drilling fluids at the Department of Geoscience and Petroleum, Norwegian University of Science and Technology. He has more than 8 years of experience in teaching and research in both Malaysia and Norway. Dr. Ofei formerly worked as a senior lecturer at the Petroleum Engineering Department, University Teknologi PETRONAS from 2014 to 2018. Through international collaborations, he secured and executed 6 research projects, supervised more than 30 students, and published more than 40 scientific papers in peer-reviewed journals, conferences, and book chapters. Dr Ofei holds PhD and MSc. degrees in petroleum engineering and BSc. (Hons) degree in mechanical engineering. His research expertise includes drilling fluid technology, rheology, wellbore hydraulics, cuttings transport, experimental and computational fluid dynamics. Dr. Ofei is a member of the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE).

Mr. Cornelius Borecho Bavoh is a research fellow, a Ph.D. candidate, and a graduate assistant at the Phase Separation Laboratory of the Research Center for CO₂ Capture (RCCO₂C) in the Chemical Engineering Department of Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS (UTP), Seri Iskandar, Perak Darul Ridzuan, Malaysia. He has more than 5 years of experience in tutoring and research at the Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS, Malaysia. He has worked on several industrial and fundamental projects related to drilling, gas hydrate, and CO₂ capture and separation, and published more than 30 scientific papers in peer-reviewed journals, conferences, and book chapters. Mr. Bavoh holds MSc. degrees in chemical engineering and BSc. (Hons) degree in petroleum engineering. His research expertise includes thermodynamics and kinetics of reservoir fluid phase modeling and characterization, gas hydrate in flow assurance, production of naturally deposited methane hydrates, and application of gas hydrate-based technology in CO₂ Capture and natural gas storage and transportation, drilling fluid technology, rheology, and cuttings transport. Mr. Bavoh is a member of the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE).