Reclamation of components of wellbore cuttings material

• US 20080083566A1
• Filed: 10/04/2006
• Published: 04/10/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 10/04/2006
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Varco I/P Incorporated (NOV, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Varco I/P Incorporated (NOV, Inc.)
• Inventors: Burnett, George Alexander
• Application Number:
  US11/543,301
• Publication Number:
  US 20080083566A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 175/66
• CPC Class Codes: E21B 21/066 with further treatment of the solids, e.g. for disposal
• CPC Class Codes: F26B 7/00 Drying solid materials or objects by processes using a combination of processes not covered by a single one of groups F26B3/00 and F26B5/00 F26B1/005, F26B5/04, F26B23/026 take precedence

Abstract

A method for reclaiming component materials from a drill cuttings mixture of drilling fluid and cuttings material, the method including flowing a drill cuttings mixture of drilling fluid and cuttings material to a dryer, producing with the dryer dry cuttings material, and conveying with a conveyor system the dry cuttings material to a secondary system, the conveyor system including a positive pressure pneumatic conveying apparatus for conveying the dry cuttings material to the secondary system.

Claims

1. A method for reclaiming component materials from a drill cuttings mixture of drilling fluid and cuttings material, the method comprising

flowing a drill cuttings mixture of drilling fluid and cuttings material to a dryer,

producing with the dryer dry cuttings material, and

conveying with a conveyor system the dry cuttings material to a secondary system, the conveyor system including a positive pressure pneumatic conveying apparatus for conveying the dry cuttings material to the secondary system.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the secondary system is a cuttings reinjection system, the method further comprising

reinjecting the dry cuttings material into a wellbore using the cuttings reinjection system.

3. The method of claim 1 further comprising

sensing moisture content of the dry cuttings material.

4. The method of claim 3 further comprising

if the moisture content indicates that the dry cuttings material will impede conveyance by the conveyor system, diverting the dry cuttings material away from the positive pressure pneumatic conveying apparatus.

5. The method of claim 1 further comprising

producing with the dryer a drilling fluid mixture with some solids from the drill cuttings mixture, and

flowing the produced drilling fluid mixture from the dryer with some solids to a holding system.

6. The method of claim 5 further comprising

flowing the drilling fluid mixture from the holding system to a rig mud system.

7. The method of claim 5 further comprising

flowing drilling fluid mixture from the holding system to a centrifuge for processing by the centrifuge to produce centrifuged solids and centrifuged drilling fluid.

9. The method of claim 1 further comprising

the conveyor system comprising a reversible conveyor, the method further comprising

reversing the reversible conveyor to prevent dry drill solids from the dryer from flowing to the positive pressure conveying apparatus.

10. The method of claim 1 wherein the secondary system is a thermal treatment system, the method further comprising

treating the dry cuttings material with the thermal treatment system.

11. The method of claim 1 further comprising

dosing material from the positive pressure pneumatic conveying apparatus to the secondary system.

12. The method of claim 2 wherein a primary control system controls operations of the system and a secondary control system controls the cuttings reinjection system, the secondary control system in communication with the primary control system, the method further comprising

adjusting using the primary control system a rate of feed of material to a mixer, and

feeding material from the mixer to the cuttings reinjection system.

13. The method of claim 12 wherein the secondary control system provides density measurements from a density meter to the primary control system, the primary control system taking said measurements into account in said adjusting.

14. The method of claim 1 wherein the cuttings material includes pieces of material, each piece having a size, the method further comprising

the dryer reducing the size of said pieces.

15. The method of claim 14 wherein the dryer reduces the pieces to powder.

8. The method of claim 8 further comprising

flowing the centrifuged drilling fluid to the holding system.

16. A method for reclaiming component materials from a drill cuttings mixture of drilling fluid and cuttings material, the method comprising

flowing a drill cuttings mixture of drilling fluid and cuttings material to a dryer,

producing with the dryer dry cuttings material,

conveying with a conveyor system the dry cuttings material to a reinjection system, the conveyor system including a positive pressure pneumatic conveying apparatus for conveying the dry cuttings material,

reinjecting the dry cuttings material into a wellbore using the reinjection system,

sensing moisture content of the dry cuttings material,

the conveyor system comprising a reversible conveyor, the method further comprising

if the moisture content of the dry cuttings material is of such a level that conveyance by the conveyor system would be impeded, reversing the reversible conveyor to prevent dry cuttings material from the dryer from flowing to the positive pressure conveying apparatus.

17. A system for separating drilling mixture components and for reinjecting cuttings material into a wellbore, the system comprising

a dryer for producing dry cuttings material from a cuttings mixture of drilling fluid and cuttings material,

a conveying system for conveying the dry cuttings material to a reinjection apparatus, the conveying system comprising positive pressure pneumatic conveying apparatus, and

a reinjection apparatus for reinjecting the dry cuttings material into a wellbore.

18. The system of claim 17 further comprising

a moisture sensor for sensing moisture content of the dry cuttings material, and

the conveyor system further comprising a reversible conveyor, the reversible conveyor for feeding the dry cuttings material to the positive pressure pneumatic conveying apparatus and for reversing, if the moisture content of the dry cuttings material is such that conveyance by the positive pressure pneumatic conveying apparatus would be impeded, so that the dry cuttings material do not flow to the positive pressure pneumatic conveying apparatus.

19. The system of claim 17 further comprising

a centrifuge for receiving a drilling fluid stream from the dryer, the drilling fluid stream containing reclaimable drilling fluid, and

the centrifuge for processing the drilling fluid stream from the dryer producing reusable drilling fluid.

20. The system of claim 17 wherein the dryer is for reducing in size pieces of cuttings material.