WO2012054369A2 - A drilling fluid - Google Patents

A drilling fluid Download PDF

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Publication number
WO2012054369A2
WO2012054369A2 PCT/US2011/056509 US2011056509W WO2012054369A2 WO 2012054369 A2 WO2012054369 A2 WO 2012054369A2 US 2011056509 W US2011056509 W US 2011056509W WO 2012054369 A2 WO2012054369 A2 WO 2012054369A2
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WO
WIPO (PCT)
Prior art keywords
drilling fluid
olefins
vinylidene
alpha olefins
internal
Prior art date
Application number
PCT/US2011/056509
Other languages
French (fr)
Other versions
WO2012054369A3 (en
Inventor
Jenny Qinhong Ye
Original Assignee
Shell Oil Company
Shell Internationale Research Maatschappij B.V.
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Shell Oil Company, Shell Internationale Research Maatschappij B.V. filed Critical Shell Oil Company
Publication of WO2012054369A2 publication Critical patent/WO2012054369A2/en
Publication of WO2012054369A3 publication Critical patent/WO2012054369A3/en

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Classifications

    • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
    • C09—DYES; PAINTS; POLISHES; NATURAL RESINS; ADHESIVES; COMPOSITIONS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; APPLICATIONS OF MATERIALS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • C09K—MATERIALS FOR MISCELLANEOUS APPLICATIONS, NOT PROVIDED FOR ELSEWHERE
    • C09K8/00—Compositions for drilling of boreholes or wells; Compositions for treating boreholes or wells, e.g. for completion or for remedial operations
    • C09K8/02—Well-drilling compositions
    • C09K8/32—Non-aqueous well-drilling compositions, e.g. oil-based
    • C09K8/34—Organic liquids

Definitions

  • the invention relates to a drilling fluid, a process for making the drilling fluid and a method of improving a
  • Drilling fluids are defined as the circulating fluid used in rotary drilling of wells to clean and condition the hole and to counterbalance formation pressure.
  • Oil based drilling fluids are defined as drilling fluids where the continous phase is a water-immiscible fluid.
  • Drilling fluids are typically used with other components in a drilling mud.
  • the drilling mud typically comprises additional components known to those skilled in the art, for example, brine, polymers and other additives.
  • Drilling fluids serve several functions including carrying cuttings from beneath the bit, transporting cuttings up the annulus thus permitting separation at the surface, and cooling, lubricating and cleaning the bit.
  • Internal olefins and alpha olefins can be used as drilling fluids for use in onshore and off-shore oil
  • drilling fluids are described in US 7,081,437 which describes a drilling fluid comprising a mixture of three internal olefin fractions .
  • the invention provides an oil based drilling fluid comprising vinylidene compounds.
  • the invention further provides a process for preparing an oil based drilling fluid comprising: dimerizing one or more even numbered alpha olefins to produce one or more vinylidenes ; and combining the vinylidene with additional components to improve its performance as a drilling fluid.
  • the invention further provides a method of improving the performance of an oil drilling operation comprising applying a drilling fluid comprising at most 90% of a vinylidene component .
  • Figure 1 depicts the pour point of two drilling fluids; one comprising different ratios of C16 vinylidene and an internal olefin mixture comprising C15-C18 internal olefins and one comprising different ratios of C20 vinylidene and the internal olefin mixture.
  • Figure 2 depicts the kinematic viscosity at 40°C of the same drilling fluids as Figure 1.
  • Figure 3 depicts the pour point of two drilling fluids; one comprising different ratios of C16 vinylidene and an alpha olefin mixture comprising C16-C18 alpha olefins and one comprising different ratios of C16 vinylidene and an internal olefin mixture comprising C15-C18 internal olefins.
  • Figure 4 depicts the kinematic viscosity at 40°C of the same drilling fluids as Figure 3.
  • Figure 5 depicts the kinematic viscosity at a series of different temperatures for a C16 vinylidene, a paraffin and an internal olefin mixture of C15-18 internal olefins.
  • a drilling fluid that comprises vinylidenes has physical properties that are superior to other drilling fluids.
  • the drilling fluid may also comprise internal olefins and/or alpha olefins.
  • a process for an oil based drilling fluid comprising vinylidenes is also described.
  • the process comprising dimerizing even numbered alpha olefins to form vinylidenes.
  • These vinylidenes are typically of the general structure 2-alkyl-l-alkene .
  • Even numbered alpha olefins are defined as any alpha olefin having an even number of carbon atoms.
  • the even numbered alpha olefins may include any even numbered alpha olefin with from 4 to 16 carbon atoms.
  • the even numbered alpha olefins preferably comprise even numbered alpha olefins with from 6 to 10 carbon atoms. More preferred even numbered alpha olefins have 6 or 8 carbon atoms.
  • the dimerization may be carried out with a single even numbered alpha olefin or a blend of even numbered alpha olefins.
  • a single even numbered alpha olefin is used, it is preferably a C6, C8, CIO or C12 alpha olefin.
  • a blend of even numbered alpha olefins is used, any combination of even numbered alpha olefins may be used.
  • Some examples of possible blends of even numbered alpha olefins are C4 with C8; C4 with CIO; C4 with C12; C4 with CI 4; C6 with C8; C6 with CIO; C6 with C12; C6 with CI 4; C8 with CIO; and C8 with C12. Further it is possible to envision a blend of more than two even
  • alpha olefins that could be used to produce suitable products .
  • the process will be described below in respect to using a single even numbered alpha olefin, C8, but this process applies equally to the other single even numbered alpha olefins and the blends of alpha olefins described above.
  • the process is to dimerize 1-octene to produce 2-hexyl- 1-decene.
  • the 2-hexyl-l-decene is a vinylidene olefin that may also be referred to as 7-methylene pentadecane.
  • There are a number of processes for carrying out this dimerization for example, the processes described in US 4,658,078; US
  • Dimerization using a metallocene catalyst results in a single vinylidene compound being formed.
  • the product may be distilled, if desired, to remove unreacted monomer and any trimer or higher oligomers that may have formed or the product may be directly used in the next step.
  • the C16 and C20 vinylidene formed can be used as a base oil for a drilling fluid. Further, C16, C20, C22 and C24 vinylidenes can be blended with internal olefins, alpha olefins and/or paraffins for use in an oil based drilling fluid .
  • Suitable internal olefins include any internal olefin having a carbon number of from 10 to 18.
  • the internal olefins may be C15, C16, C17 or C18 internal olefins. These internal olefins may be used singly or in mixture of more than one internal olefins.
  • the interal olefins blended with the vinylidene may comprise a mixture of C15, C16, C17 and C18 internal olefins.
  • Suitable alpha olefins include any alpha olefin having a carbon number of from 10 to 18.
  • the alpha olefins may be C16, C17, or C18 alpha olefins. These alpha olefins may be used singly or in mixture of more than one alpha olefins.
  • the alpha olefins blended with the vinylidene may comprise a mixture of C16, C17 and C18 alpha olefins.
  • Suitable paraffins may be of mineral or synthetic origin. Synthetic paraffins may be formed by any process known to one of skill in the art, for example, a Fischer-Tropsch process. Suitable paraffins have a carbon number of from 10 to 24.
  • the drilling fluid may contain at most 90% of a
  • the drilling fluid may contain at most 80% of a vinylidene component.
  • the drilling fluid may contain at most 80% of a vinylidene component.
  • drilling fluid may contain of from 30 to 75% of a vinylidene component .
  • the amount of vinylidene component may depend on the desired physical properties of the drilling fluid which can be determined once the drilling conditions, such as
  • drilling fluids have physical properties that are especially suited to use under drilling conditions as can be seen in Figures 1-4. These figures depict the pour point and kinematic viscosity of drilling fluids comprising vinylidenes.
  • the kinematic viscosity is shown to be lower for a C16 vinylidene than for a paraffin or an internal olefin mixture by itself in Figure 5.
  • Drilling operations are often carried out under severe conditions, for example at temperatures at, near or even below freezing.
  • the viscosity is a very
  • the Sediment Toxicity Ratio is determined as the relative sediment toxicity with respect to a reference sample of C16-18 internal olefins. The results of these tests are shown in Table 2.
  • Sample A was a C16 vinylidene; sample B was a C20 vinylidene; sample C was a 50/50 mixture of a C16 vinylidene and a C15-18 internal olefin mixture; and sample D was a mixture of a C16

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  • Chemical & Material Sciences (AREA)
  • Oil, Petroleum & Natural Gas (AREA)
  • Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
  • General Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Materials Engineering (AREA)
  • Organic Chemistry (AREA)
  • Lubricants (AREA)

Abstract

An oil based drilling fluid comprising vinylidene compounds is described. A process for preparing an oil based drilling fluid comprising: dimerizing one or more even numbered alpha olefins to produce one or more vinylidenes; and combining the vinylidene with additional components to improve its performance as a drilling fluid; and a method of improving the performance of an oil drilling operation comprising applying a drilling fluid comprising at most 90% of a vinylidene component are also described.

Description

A DRILLING FLUID
Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a drilling fluid, a process for making the drilling fluid and a method of improving a
drilling operation.
Background
Drilling fluids are defined as the circulating fluid used in rotary drilling of wells to clean and condition the hole and to counterbalance formation pressure. Oil based drilling fluids are defined as drilling fluids where the continous phase is a water-immiscible fluid. Drilling fluids are typically used with other components in a drilling mud. The drilling mud typically comprises additional components known to those skilled in the art, for example, brine, polymers and other additives.
Drilling fluids serve several functions including carrying cuttings from beneath the bit, transporting cuttings up the annulus thus permitting separation at the surface, and cooling, lubricating and cleaning the bit.
Internal olefins and alpha olefins can be used as drilling fluids for use in onshore and off-shore oil
exploration and drilling applications. Examples of drilling fluids are described in US 7,081,437 which describes a drilling fluid comprising a mixture of three internal olefin fractions .
It would be advantageous to produce a drilling fluid that had improved physical properties especially under the conditions required in different drilling applications. Summary of the Invention
The invention provides an oil based drilling fluid comprising vinylidene compounds.
The invention further provides a process for preparing an oil based drilling fluid comprising: dimerizing one or more even numbered alpha olefins to produce one or more vinylidenes ; and combining the vinylidene with additional components to improve its performance as a drilling fluid.
The invention further provides a method of improving the performance of an oil drilling operation comprising applying a drilling fluid comprising at most 90% of a vinylidene component .
Brief Description of the Drawings
Figure 1 depicts the pour point of two drilling fluids; one comprising different ratios of C16 vinylidene and an internal olefin mixture comprising C15-C18 internal olefins and one comprising different ratios of C20 vinylidene and the internal olefin mixture.
Figure 2 depicts the kinematic viscosity at 40°C of the same drilling fluids as Figure 1.
Figure 3 depicts the pour point of two drilling fluids; one comprising different ratios of C16 vinylidene and an alpha olefin mixture comprising C16-C18 alpha olefins and one comprising different ratios of C16 vinylidene and an internal olefin mixture comprising C15-C18 internal olefins.
Figure 4 depicts the kinematic viscosity at 40°C of the same drilling fluids as Figure 3.
Figure 5 depicts the kinematic viscosity at a series of different temperatures for a C16 vinylidene, a paraffin and an internal olefin mixture of C15-18 internal olefins.
Detailed Description of the Invention
A drilling fluid that comprises vinylidenes has physical properties that are superior to other drilling fluids. The drilling fluid may also comprise internal olefins and/or alpha olefins. A process for an oil based drilling fluid comprising vinylidenes is also described.
The process comprising dimerizing even numbered alpha olefins to form vinylidenes. These vinylidenes are typically of the general structure 2-alkyl-l-alkene . Even numbered alpha olefins are defined as any alpha olefin having an even number of carbon atoms. The even numbered alpha olefins may include any even numbered alpha olefin with from 4 to 16 carbon atoms. The even numbered alpha olefins preferably comprise even numbered alpha olefins with from 6 to 10 carbon atoms. More preferred even numbered alpha olefins have 6 or 8 carbon atoms.
The dimerization may be carried out with a single even numbered alpha olefin or a blend of even numbered alpha olefins. When a single even numbered alpha olefin is used, it is preferably a C6, C8, CIO or C12 alpha olefin. When a blend of even numbered alpha olefins is used, any combination of even numbered alpha olefins may be used.
Physical properties of the final product are typically impacted by the starting materials selected, so the use of some even numbered alpha olefins will result in more
preferred final products. Some examples of possible blends of even numbered alpha olefins are C4 with C8; C4 with CIO; C4 with C12; C4 with CI 4; C6 with C8; C6 with CIO; C6 with C12; C6 with CI 4; C8 with CIO; and C8 with C12. Further it is possible to envision a blend of more than two even
numbered alpha olefins that could be used to produce suitable products .
The process will be described below in respect to using a single even numbered alpha olefin, C8, but this process applies equally to the other single even numbered alpha olefins and the blends of alpha olefins described above. The process is to dimerize 1-octene to produce 2-hexyl- 1-decene. The 2-hexyl-l-decene is a vinylidene olefin that may also be referred to as 7-methylene pentadecane. There are a number of processes for carrying out this dimerization; for example, the processes described in US 4,658,078; US
4,973,788; and US 7,129,197, which are herein incorporated by reference. Dimerization using a metallocene catalyst results in a single vinylidene compound being formed. The product may be distilled, if desired, to remove unreacted monomer and any trimer or higher oligomers that may have formed or the product may be directly used in the next step.
The C16 and C20 vinylidene formed can be used as a base oil for a drilling fluid. Further, C16, C20, C22 and C24 vinylidenes can be blended with internal olefins, alpha olefins and/or paraffins for use in an oil based drilling fluid .
Suitable internal olefins include any internal olefin having a carbon number of from 10 to 18. For example, the internal olefins may be C15, C16, C17 or C18 internal olefins. These internal olefins may be used singly or in mixture of more than one internal olefins. For example, the interal olefins blended with the vinylidene may comprise a mixture of C15, C16, C17 and C18 internal olefins.
Suitable alpha olefins include any alpha olefin having a carbon number of from 10 to 18. For example, the alpha olefins may be C16, C17, or C18 alpha olefins. These alpha olefins may be used singly or in mixture of more than one alpha olefins. For example, the alpha olefins blended with the vinylidene may comprise a mixture of C16, C17 and C18 alpha olefins.
Suitable paraffins may be of mineral or synthetic origin. Synthetic paraffins may be formed by any process known to one of skill in the art, for example, a Fischer-Tropsch process. Suitable paraffins have a carbon number of from 10 to 24.
The drilling fluid may contain at most 90% of a
vinylidene component. The drilling fluid may contain at most 80% of a vinylidene component. The drilling fluid may
contain from 20 to 85% of a vinylidene component. The
drilling fluid may contain of from 30 to 75% of a vinylidene component .
The amount of vinylidene component may depend on the desired physical properties of the drilling fluid which can be determined once the drilling conditions, such as
temperature, are known.
These drilling fluids have physical properties that are especially suited to use under drilling conditions as can be seen in Figures 1-4. These figures depict the pour point and kinematic viscosity of drilling fluids comprising vinylidenes.
The kinematic viscosity is shown to be lower for a C16 vinylidene than for a paraffin or an internal olefin mixture by itself in Figure 5.
Other physical properties of C16 and C20 vinylidenes are described in Table 1.
Table 1
Figure imgf000006_0001
These physical properties of the C16 and C20 vinylidene olefins show that they would be useful as drilling fluids.
Drilling operations are often carried out under severe conditions, for example at temperatures at, near or even below freezing. In addition, the viscosity is a very
important property in a drilling fluid and these oils satisfy the requirements for flat rheology at a broad temperature range.
Further, these vinylidene components have been tested for sediment toxicity. The Sediment Toxicity Ratio is determined as the relative sediment toxicity with respect to a reference sample of C16-18 internal olefins. The results of these tests are shown in Table 2. Sample A was a C16 vinylidene; sample B was a C20 vinylidene; sample C was a 50/50 mixture of a C16 vinylidene and a C15-18 internal olefin mixture; and sample D was a mixture of a C16
vinylidene and a C16-18 alpha olefin mixture. The tests were carried out according to the 10 days LC-50 procedure, which is required and specified in the US EPA Region 6 Gulf of Mexico general permit (GMG 290000) .
The described samples were also tested for Polynuclear Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAH) by EPA method 1654A as defined in the Region 6 Gulf of Mexico general permit. All of the samples have a PAH content of less than the method reporting limit of 5 mg/kg. These results meet the stock limitation criteria of less than or equal to 10 mg/kg. Table 2
Figure imgf000007_0001

Claims

C L A I M S
An oil based drilling fluid comprising vinylidene compounds .
The drilling fluid of claim 1 comprising at most 90% of vinylidene compounds.
The drilling fluid of claim 1 further comprising one or more internal olefins or one or more alpha olefins.
The drilling fluid of claim 3 comprising from 5 to 90% of vinylidene compounds and 10 to 95% of an internal olefin, alpha olefin or paraffin.
The drilling fluid of claim 3 further comprising
additional components.
A process for preparing an oil based drilling fluid comprising :
a. dimerizing one or more even numbered alpha olefins to produce one or more vinylidenes ; and
b. combining the vinylidene with additional components to improve its performance as a drilling fluid.
A process as claimed in claim 6 wherein the even
numbered alpha olefins comprise alpha olefins having from 4 to 16 carbon atoms.
A process as claimed in claim 6 wherein the even
numbered alpha olefins comprise alpha olefins having from 6 to 10 carbon atoms.
A process as claimed in claim 1 where the additional components comprise internal olefins or alpha olefins. A process as claimed in claim 9 wherein the internal olefins or alpha olefins comprise one or more olefins having from 10 to 18 carbon atoms.
A process as claimed in claim 6 wherein the additional component comprises a mixture of internal olefins having 15, 16, 17 and 18 carbon atoms.
12. A process as claimed in claim 6 wherein the additional component comprises a mixture of alpha olefins having 16, 17 and 18 carbon atoms.
13. A method of improving the performance of an oil drilling operation comprising applying a drilling fluid
comprising at most 90% of a vinylidene component.
PCT/US2011/056509 2010-10-19 2011-10-17 A drilling fluid WO2012054369A2 (en)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
US39444110P 2010-10-19 2010-10-19
US61/394,441 2010-10-19

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WO2012054369A2 true WO2012054369A2 (en) 2012-04-26
WO2012054369A3 WO2012054369A3 (en) 2012-06-28

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Cited By (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US11319474B2 (en) 2017-02-03 2022-05-03 Saudi Arabian Oil Company Oil-based fluid compositions for hydrocarbon recovery applications

Citations (5)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US5096883A (en) * 1989-09-29 1992-03-17 Union Oil Company Of California Oil-base drilling fluid comprising branched chain paraffins such as the dimer of 1-decene
US5498596A (en) * 1993-09-29 1996-03-12 Mobil Oil Corporation Non toxic, biodegradable well fluids
EP1029908A2 (en) * 1990-03-30 2000-08-23 M-I L.L.C. Oil based synthetic hydrocarbon drilling fluid
WO2001002512A1 (en) * 1999-07-06 2001-01-11 Sasol Technology (Pty) Ltd. Use of dimerized fischer-tropsch process products and vinylidene derivatives thereof
WO2010058769A1 (en) * 2008-11-18 2010-05-27 出光興産株式会社 Base oil for oil drilling fluid and oil drilling fluid composition

Patent Citations (5)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US5096883A (en) * 1989-09-29 1992-03-17 Union Oil Company Of California Oil-base drilling fluid comprising branched chain paraffins such as the dimer of 1-decene
EP1029908A2 (en) * 1990-03-30 2000-08-23 M-I L.L.C. Oil based synthetic hydrocarbon drilling fluid
US5498596A (en) * 1993-09-29 1996-03-12 Mobil Oil Corporation Non toxic, biodegradable well fluids
WO2001002512A1 (en) * 1999-07-06 2001-01-11 Sasol Technology (Pty) Ltd. Use of dimerized fischer-tropsch process products and vinylidene derivatives thereof
WO2010058769A1 (en) * 2008-11-18 2010-05-27 出光興産株式会社 Base oil for oil drilling fluid and oil drilling fluid composition

Cited By (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US11319474B2 (en) 2017-02-03 2022-05-03 Saudi Arabian Oil Company Oil-based fluid compositions for hydrocarbon recovery applications

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