Effect of Nanosilica on Rheological Properties of Glycolic Mud: Experimental Study

Nanotechnology is well established in several industries.However, the emergence of its application is recent in the oil and gas industry a fact corroborated by the current surge of publication in literature.Interestingly, advancement in research has shown that nanotechnology can improve the rheological properties of mud.Nanoparticles exhibit extraordinary rheological properties in water and oil. But the most recent and promising successes of nanotechnology in drilling are likely to occur with synthetic nanoparticles, where size, shape, and chemical interactions are carefully controlled. To make desirable Properties of drilling mud during drilling operations, certain chemicals are used. Base fluid of the mud (water, oil and gas) is effective in changing the properties of the mud, but additives determine the ultimate properties of the mud.The main objective of the work reported here was to investigate the effect of nanosilica on rheological properties of drilling mud and fluid loss control. In this work, a drilling fluid recipe has been developed by using nanosilica, to increase the efficiency of drilling operations. Results show that at a range of concentrations flow behavior index increases and consistency index decreases and at a range of concentrations flow behavior index decreases and consistency index increases.

Keywords:

Nanotechnology , rheological properties , mud additive , flow behavior index , consistency index