What are the types of drilling mud?

There are three main types of drilling mud: water-based, oil-based and synthetic-based.

Why is oil based mud used?

Oil-based muds have become more widely used because of their distinct advantages over water-based muds. Boyd el al. list (1) thermal stability in deep, high-temperature wells, (2) increased lubricity in deviated offshore wells, and (3) hole stability in thick, water-sensitive shales as advantages of oil-based muds.

What is synthetic based mud?

1. n. [Drilling Fluids] Nonaqueous, water-internal (invert) emulsion muds in which the external phase is a synthetic fluid rather than an oil. This and other more minor changes in formulations have made synthetic fluids in muds more environmentally acceptable for offshore use.

What is synthetic mud?

Synthetic based fluid is a mud where the base fluid is a synthetic oil. This is most often used on offshore rigs because it has the properties of an oil-based mud, but the toxicity of the fluid fumes are much less than an oil-based mud.

What are the disadvantages for using oil based mud in the drilling operation?

Disadvantages of Oil Muds

• The initial cost of oil mud is high, especially formulations based on mineral or synthetic fluids.
• Kick detection is reduced when using oil muds (compared to that of water-based muds) due to high gas solubility in oil muds.
• Oil muds are costly when lost circulation occurs.

What is synthetic based drilling fluids?

Synthetic-based drilling muds (SBMs) are often used during drilling of deep water and directional wells. The brine is dispersed into the organic phase to form a water-in-organic emulsion which is very stable, as emulsifiers are used to keep water droplets down to less than 1 micron in diameter.

Does synthetic oil contain oil?

Synthetic oil is a man-made lubricant that consists of artificially made chemical compounds. Synthetic oils are typically created from chemically modified materials such as petroleum components, but the base material is almost always distilled crude oil.

What are the types of oil drilling?

Five Most Common Drilling Methods Used in Oil and Gas Exploration

• Percussion or Cable Drilling.
• Rotary Drilling.
• Dual-Wall Reverse-Circulation Drilling.
• Electro-Drilling.
• Directional Drilling.