Solidification of water based muds

• US 5,058,679 A
• Filed: 03/19/1991
• Issued: 10/22/1991
• Est. Priority Date: 01/16/1991
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Shell Oil Company (Shell Plc)
• Original Assignee: Shell Oil Company (Shell Plc)
• Inventors: Hale, Arthur H., Cowan, Kenneth M.
• Primary Examiner(s): Suchfield, George A.
• Application Number:
  US07/671,627
• Time in Patent Office: 217 Days
• Field of Search: 166/292, 166/293, 175/65, 175/66, 252/8.51, 252/8.514
• US Class Current: 166/293
• CPC Class Codes: C04B 14/06 Quartz; Sand
• CPC Class Codes: C04B 14/104 Bentonite, e.g. montmorillonite
• CPC Class Codes: C04B 14/368 Baryte
• CPC Class Codes: C04B 18/049 Wastes from oil or other wells, e.g. drilling mud
• CPC Class Codes: C04B 22/062 of the alkali or alkaline-earth metals
• CPC Class Codes: C04B 22/064 of the alkaline-earth metals
• CPC Class Codes: C04B 22/10 containing carbon in the anion
• CPC Class Codes: C04B 24/02 Alcohols; Phenols; Ethers
• CPC Class Codes: C04B 24/10 Carbohydrates or derivatives thereof
• CPC Class Codes: C04B 24/38 Polysaccharides or derivatives thereof C04B24/243 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: C04B 28/08 Slag cements
• CPC Class Codes: C04B 7/153 Mixtures thereof with other inorganic cementitious materials or other activators
• CPC Class Codes: C04B 7/1535 with alkali metal containing activators, e.g. sodium hydroxide or waterglass
• CPC Class Codes: C09K 8/46 containing inorganic binders, e.g. Portland cement
• CPC Class Codes: E21B 33/13 Methods or devices for cementing, for plugging holes, crevices or the like
• CPC Class Codes: Y02P 40/10 Production of cement, e.g. improving or optimising the production methods; Cement grinding
• CPC Class Codes: Y02W 30/91 Use of waste materials as fillers for mortars or concrete

Abstract

A drilling mud is converted in-situ to a cement by addition of blast furnace slag.

Claims

1. A method for solidifying an aqueous drilling fluid in a borehole comprising:

admixing blast furnace slag with the drilling fluid;

displacing the drilling fluid to a preselected location in the borehole; and

allowing the drilling fluid to solidify in-situ.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the drilling fluid is a lime mud.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the drilling fluid is a non-lime mud.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the drilling fluid is a non-lime mud which has been converted to a lime mud.

5. The method of claim 4 the non-lime mud is converted to a lime mud by addition of lime and a viscosity reducer prior to the addition of said blast furnace slag.

6. The method of claim 2 or 5 wherein the lime mud is treated with at least one of (1) sodium carbonate, and (2) zinc carbonate prior to the addition of said blast furnace slag.

7. The method of claim 3 wherein the non-lime mud is treated with at least one of (1) sodium hydroxide, and (2) potassium hydroxide prior to the addition of said blast furnace slag.

8. The method of claim 2 wherein the mud comprises lime, salt, and alcohol.

9. The method of claim 8 wherein the alcohol is an acyclic polyol.

10. The method of claim 8 wherein the alcohol is a cyclicetherpolyol.

11. The method of claim 8 wherein the alcohol is a monocyclicdietherdiol.

12. The method of claim 8 wherein the alcohol is a polycyclicpolyetherpolyol.

13. The method of claim 12 wherein the polycyclicpolyetherpolyol which is characterized by binodal molecular weight distribution, M_w in excess of 50,000, said M_w being determined in a three-column gel permeation chromatography, and being 0.5 to 10% w epoxy structures.

14. The method of claim 13 wherein the polycyclicpolyetherpolyol is further characterized by molecular structures which are no more than 20% free of associated cyclic formations.