The Effect of Temperature on the Flow Properties of Clay-Water Drilling Muds

Abstract

Introduction In the past few years the hydraulic aspects of rotary drilling have received considerable attention. It is generally recognized that accurate prediction of circulating pressures is desirable, particularly in those areas where a delicate pressure balance is necessary to prevent both blowouts and lost circulation. For calculation purposes the standard hydraulic equations for the pipeline flow of Newtonian fluids have been altered to facilitate similar calculations for non-Newtonian or plastic fluids. This latter classification includes most colloidal types of drilling muds. Two properties: plastic viscosity, and Bingham yield value, are commonly used to define the flow characteristics of a plastic fluid. These are commonly obtained with multispeed viscosimeters such as the Fann V-G meter: Normally these measurements are obtained at some surface temperature, and are not corrected to circulating temperatures for calculation purposes. This may result in considerable error, particularly in the laminar flow calculations which commonly apply to the drill pipe-borehole annulus. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of temperature on the flow properties of some water-base muds. Experimental Procedure A laboratory model Fann V-G meter was used for measurement of viscosities, yield values and gel strengths. An aluminum water jacket with O-ring seals was machined to fit around the mud cup of the Fann meter. All mud samples were prepared by thorough mixing in a Hobart mixer. Viscosity and gel strength measurements were made with the Fann meter using standard procedures. Flow properties of muds were studied at 80, 120, 160 and 180°F. The compositions of the test samples are given in Table 1. Results Effect of Temperature on Flow Properties The typical effect of temperature on the flow properties of these drilling muds is illustrated by Fig. 1. It was found that plastic viscosity and apparent viscosity decreased with an increase of temperature. However, the curves were not linear, and did not appear to follow any definite trends or patterns. Yield point data showed much more scattering. Since a usable method for predicting drilling mud flow behavior with temperature was desired, an attempt was made to find a simple relationship between these variables.