POTENTIAL USE OF BASALTIC SOIL FOR DRILLING FLUID

Abstract - Drilling fluid or drilling mud is a critical component in the drilling process, where it provides the gel to efficiently lift cuttings, maintain stable wellbore and produce sufficient hydrostatic pressure that could prevent the influx of formation fluids into the wellbore. For over eight decades, drilling grade barite remains to be the most profound weight material used to adjust drilling mud densities around the world. However, barite resources globally are depleting especially in terms of its quality, economical viability and attainability – thus making it more expensive. Understanding problems during drilling operations including loss of circulation material (LCM) and differential sticking could reveal more beneficial application of utilizing basaltic soil in this field as other existing remedy substances are expensive. Basaltic clay soil is seen as a potential alternative to be utilized in drilling fluids additive and also as barite substitute for the weighting agent. Based on literature reviews the significance of using basaltic soil is that is has the gel characteristics to lift up drilled cuttings, produces suitable mud weight and economically inexpensive for its abundance. Understanding the mineral constituent and alterations in weathered basaltic rock is also important in order to select the depth zone of basaltic soil with the desired compositions. Development of prototype drilling fluids using basaltic soil shall be tested using standard variations of mud tests on its rheological properties to determine basaltic soil’s most suitable application to be used in drilling operations. Based on the laboratory tests, the basaltic soil collected from Kuantan region exhibits the primary properties of lost circulation materials. However comparing to calcium carbonates, the low specific gravity of basaltic soil does not significantly affect mud weight if added into the mud to control loss circulation and differential sticking. True to the fact that basaltic soil and rocks are in abundance and can be cheaply produced, basaltic soil could be a potential loss circulation material additive in drilling fluids especially in drilling deepwater and ultra deep wells.

Keywords: Kuantan basalt, lost circulation material, basaltic soil, drilling fluid