Drilling and cementing with blast furnace slag/soluble/insoluble alcohol

• US 5,358,044 A
• Filed: 05/27/1993
• Issued: 10/25/1994
• Est. Priority Date: 05/27/1993
• 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:
  US08/068,330
• Time in Patent Office: 516 Days
• Field of Search: 507/136, 507/138, 507/140, 507/145, 166/293, 175/65, 106/790
• US Class Current: 166/293
• CPC Class Codes: C04B 18/049 Wastes from oil or other wells, e.g. drilling mud
• CPC Class Codes: C09K 8/16 characterised by the inorganic compounds other than clay
• CPC Class Codes: C09K 8/22 Synthetic organic compounds
• 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: Y02W 30/91 Use of waste materials as fillers for mortars or concrete

Abstract

A composition suitable for drilling and cementing comprising blast furnace slag, water, a soluble polyalcohol and an insoluble polyalcohol, the components of the drilling fluid being chosen so as to have a dual functionality in promoting the drilling fluid and thereafter in being functional constituents of a cementitious slurry.

Claims

1. A method for drilling and cementing, comprising:

drilling a wellbore with a drill string comprising a drill pipe utilizing a drilling fluid comprising water, blast furnace slag, a water soluble polyalcohol component and a water insoluble alcohol component;

circulating said drilling fluid down said drill pipe and up an annulus between said drill pipe and walls of said borehole, thus laying down a filter cake on said walls of said borehole during said drilling and producing a used drilling fluid;

withdrawing said drill string and inserting a pipe, thus creating an annulus between said pipe and said walls of said borehole;

incorporating an activator system into a portion of said used drilling fluid to produce a cementitious slurry; and

displacing said cementitious slurry into at least a portion of said annulus between said pipe and said walls of said borehole.

2. A method according to claim 1 wherein said activator system comprises at least one of lithium hydroxide, lithium carbonate, sodium silicate, sodium fluoride, sodium silicofluoride, magnesium hydroxide, magnesium oxide, magnesium silicofluoride, zinc carbonate, zinc silicofluoride, zinc oxide, sodium carbonate, sodium bicarbonate, titanium carbonate, potassium carbonate, potassium bicarbonate, sodium hydroxide, potassium hydroxide, potassium sulfate, potassium nitrate, potassium nitrite, sodium or potassium aluminate, calcium hydroxide, sodium sulfate, copper sulfate, calcium oxide, calcium sulfate, calcium nitrate and calcium nitrite.

3. A method according to claim 1 wherein said cementitious slurry is produced by also incorporating a solid component selected from pozzolan or Portland cement into said used drilling fluid.

4. A method according to claim 1 wherein said activator system comprises a mixture of 2 to 6 lbs/bbl of sodium hydroxide in conjunction with 7 to 21 lbs/bbl of sodium carbonate and wherein additional blast furnace slag is added in addition to said sodium hydroxide and sodium carbonate so as to give a total blast furnace slag concentration in said cementitious slurry within the range of 100 to 300 lbs/bbl.

5. A method according to claim 1 wherein, after said circulating of said drilling fluid, said drilling fluid is displaced and a fluid containing an activator system circulated through said annulus between said drill pipe and said borehole wall to set said filter cake;

said fluid containing said activator system is displaced with drilling fluid; and

additional drilling is carried out prior to said withdrawing of said drill string.

6. A method according to claim 1 wherein said drilling fluid comprises in addition, a viscosifier selected from the group consisting of biopolymers, silicates and starch.

7. A method according to claim 6 wherein said viscosifier comprises a biopolymer, said drilling fluid comprises, in addition, lime, and wherein said biopolymer is added after said lime.

8. A method according to claim 6 wherein said viscosifier comprises sodium silicate.

9. A method according to claim 1 wherein said drilling fluid comprises, in addition, a secondary fluid loss additive, a secondary weight material, a secondary shale stabilizer, and a biopolymer viscosifier.

10. A method according to claim 9 wherein said secondary fluid loss additive is selected from the group consisting of synthetic polymers, starch and bentonite clay, said secondary weight material is barite and said secondary shale stabilizer is selected from the group consisting of sodium silicate and lime.

11. A method according to claim 1 wherein said water contains dissolved salts.

12. A method according to claim 1 wherein said drilling fluid comprises, in addition, lime.

13. A method according to claim 1 wherein said drilling fluid is a high lime salt lime drilling fluid.

14. A method according to claim 1 wherein said drilling fluid comprises, in addition, clay.

15. A method according to claim 1 wherein said drilling fluid comprises, in addition, a silicate and a secondary fluid loss additive selected from biopolymers, starch and mixtures thereof.

16. A method according to claim 1 wherein said drilling with said drilling fluid is carried out for greater than one day before said activator system is incorporated.