In compliance with environmental laws and safety rules, oil and gas companies have taken necessary steps to eradicate the use of toxic chemicals conventionally used in drilling muds, thereby promoting biodegradable alternatives. This research was carried out to investigate the effect of two banana stem samples; Raw Banana Stem (RBS) and Delignified Banana Stem (DBS) as potential and proficient viscosifiers and fluid loss control agents in water based mud. The rheological properties evaluated include plastic viscosity (cP), apparent viscosity (cP), yield point (Ib/100ft2) and gel strength (Ib/100ft2) at 10 seconds and 10 minutes. Filtration loss properties evaluated include filter cake thickness (mm) and fluid loss volume (ml). Each drilling mud sample was prepared using 350 ml, 20 g bentonite and varying contents (g) of carboxyl methyl cellulose (CMC), RBS and DBS. A mixer was used to mix the mud homogenously; the rheological properties were calculated using a viscometer while the filtration loss properties were calculated using a filter press. The results and analysis were compared to the effects of commercially available carboxymethyl cellulose to validate its properties. RBS and DBS improved the rheological properties of the mud sample contents of 3 g, 5 g, 7 g and 9 g. At contents of 5 g, 10 g, 15 g and 20 g, RBS and DBS samples provide significant fluid loss control and their results are similar to the results of CMC. RBS has a fluid loss volume increase of 6.84 %, 5.69 %, 17.12 % and 8.06 % from CMC’s results at slightly similar filter cake thickness while DBS has a fluid loss volume increase of 15.59 %, 15.09 %, 27.55 % and 15.35 % from CMC’s result. The data obtained from the experiments showed both banana samples can be used as environmentally friendly viscosifiers and fluid loss control agents.
Key words: Cellulose, Banana stem waste, Water based mud, Rheological properties, Filtration loss properties
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