DCS Fluid Solutions -
Case Studies
Drilling fluid solutions play a crucial role in the success of drilling operations, and our case studies offer valuable insights into how our tailored solutions have helped clients achieve their goals. These case studies discuss a variety of drilling and ground conditions that we deal with on a regular basis and the actions taken to insure successful completion of the projects.
Case History
Drilling Permian Basin Clays
The western Permian Basin in Eddy County, New Mexico can be a challenging location for drilling HDD installed pipelines. DCS mud
engineers have worked on dozens of these installations and worked through some of the toughest ground conditions in the region. Our engineers designed and consulted with the HDD contractors to successfully install these projects, utilizing the DCS line of clay additives, and the complete line of additives for silt, sands and gravels, mixed conditions and lost circulation materials (LCMs).
Our experience in this part of the Permian Basin has prepared us and given us the understanding that the wide variations in drilling conditions are the only constant present in the region. One of the most challenging conditions encountered are the extremely reactive clays found in the shallow zones common to HDD. These clays can be treated, but it is best to be prepared by having the right additives on the job at the start. DCS ClayBreaker and DCS TorqBreaker are a potent combination for fighting many of the shallow Permian clays. These are added after treating the make-up water and mixing the bentonite to desired viscosity. If clay is the only material to be drilled, then the viscosity may be kept fairly low. But in the conditions found in the western Permian it is usually not that simple. There may be sands and gravels that overlie clay or vice versa, but you can bet the conditions will be variable. Another reliable DCS clay additive is BallBuster. This mud thinner with a funny name is an excellent choice for the most reactive clays. While many of these types of clay will increase viscosity to intolerable levels, BallBuster will counter this viscosity increase in the pits and treat the clay’s downhole as it is circulated. BallBuster can be added directly to the mud pits through the hopper or down the drill pipe on connection as a sweep.
Although the Permian Basin is a tricky area to drill for HDD, there are other areas in the country that have challenging clay conditions, the gulf coast of Texas and Louisiana come to mind of course. These DCS clay additives will work in all these regions. DCS is committed to working with you to ensure success on any project.
Case History
Pecos River Crossings in Eddy County, New Mexico
The installation of 3 parallel 20” natural gas lines began in Fall 2021, and successfully completed in Spring 2022 by several HDD contractors. These lines were closely spaced with only 15’ distance separating each. The ground conditions had been predicted by the normal geotechnical drilling process using both auger bore method, and some split spoon sampling at shallower depths. The general description of the ground conditions was of sand and gravel in shallow zones on both entry and exit sides of the river. These zones of coarse materials were sampled to approximately 25’ depth.
Deeper zones alternated from various poorly graded sands, to silts and clays of different types. This mix of conditions is quite normal for the Permian Basin in southeast Eddy County and can make for challenging drilling. The driller and mud-pit hands must closely monitor the cuttings returns and alter the drilling fluids additives to match. In this case, the geotechnical bores had accurately described the near surface zone of sand and large gravel on the entry side of the first of the 3 HDD bores, and the mud engineer on-site was able to have the drilling fluid prepared to handle this without issue. The mix included a base mix of AMC gel mixed to 70 seconds / quart viscosity which was then enhanced to 100 vis using DCS FlowPac and DCS SandMaster. The FlowPac increased viscosity while lowering filtrate loss to less than 10ml per 30-minute standard filtrate test. SandMaster increased the suspension characteristics and vis to clear the borehole of the large gravel. The contractor was able to easily drill the gravel section and install casing without issue and advanced the bore to completion.
Case History
New Orleans Levy
DCS Fluid Solutions worked with a number of HDD contractors on more than 30 critical levy bores under the auspices of the Army Corps of Engineers in Louisiana. All of these bores required close coordination with the Army Corps, drilling contractors and engineering firms to insure zero damage was done to the levies during the boring and construction process as these levies protect millions of folks from flood waters. One notable bore was completed in the New Orleans region. At over 8200’ in length this project was drilled under 2 levies. The drilling was performed by Harding Directional at or below the predicted annular pressures worked up by DCS to prevent any damage from inadvertent returns to the surface of the levies.
Case History
Army Corps of Engineers Permit
408 Crossing Near Houma, LA
DCS Fluid Solutions was involved in an HDD crossing of the Intracoastal Waterway near Houma, LA, providing drilling fluid products and engineering services. We provided our anticipated annular pressure (AP) calculations to the contractors for preventative guidance against inadvertent returns to the surface. As with all Permit 408 jobs the acceptable annular pressures for the bore were less than the measured formations pressures, this having a safety factor of 1.5, which calculated to 140psi. The boring contractor, with assistance from the DCS on-location engineer had been able to keep those annular pressures to less than 110psi for the entire bore. However, at a point near the exit pit, drilling fluid was spotted coming to surface by a bridge piling.
Drilling was halted while all the involved parties including the pipeline owners, DCS and the drilling contractor and the Army Corps of Engineers conferred to determine the best course of action for completing the bore. The decision was made to further lower the acceptable annular pressure to 90psi. At this point DCS calculations of AP indicated that if the standard bentonite-based drilling fluid was used, the pressures would not stay below the new standard of 90psi. DCS SandMaster (an ultra-low solids drilling fluid) was presented as an alternative drilling fluid available that would keep the drilling fluid parameters, including PV:YP at an acceptable level to control AP. DCS SandMaster is a cost effective, easy to mix additive that creates optimal fluid properties and is very contamination resistant. Our engineer was familiar with this alternative drilling fluid system and built it for the drilling contractor and trained the crew on it’s use. We also recommended a regimen of regular bottoms-up circulation to ensure that he bore-hole was clean, and cuttings were not collecting in the annulus or on the drill pipe. Following the implementation of this system the annular pressures remained below 70psi for the duration of the boring operations. No further IRs occurred, and the HDD pipeline installation was completed on time and under budget.
Case History
Make-Up Water Issues – Causes and Cures
Over the years and working for a number of different drilling fluid companies we have heard a particular question more often than any other. That question is: Why is my mud not mixing or why is it not staying mixed? The answer is usually pretty simple; it’s the water. Most city water supplies are suitable for use as make -up water because the calcium hardness and chloride (salts) content are controlled. It is a rare occasion when municipal water supplies need further treatment for use in drilling fluid. However, when not using city water, hardness and/or chloride issues are common and especially so in certain regions of the country. One that comes immediately to mind is the Permian Basin of Texas and New Mexico, although this is certainly not the only area I can think of with hardness or salt contaminated natural water.
Bearing that in mind, let’s discuss what is seen when water quality issues are affecting the drilling fluids. Depending on the severity of the contamination, the bentonite gel may not mix and hydrate well and does not create viscosity as it should. Or, if the gel seems to mix well enough through the hopper, over time it separates from the water leaving a layer of water visible at the top of the pit or tank. Chemical additives can also work far less effectively in hard or salty water. This means that it requires higher doses of important fluid additives to create the properties needed for the bore.
So, the question becomes, how do we determine what the cause is for this problem. DCS drilling fluid engineers are trained in how to test the make-up water and mud for hardness and chloride contamination. If on-location we regularly test the water to determine its suitability for use and what additional treatment might be required. Generally speaking, we will use Soda Ash to treat out the hardness and we can determine from our tests the amount of soda ash that will be needed to fix the issue. The soda ash should be added to the make-up water prior to mixing the drilling fluid if possible, however Soda Ash will cure the problem even after the mud is mixed. In fact, it is quite remarkable to see separated or flocculated mud come back together with the proper amount of soda ash applied. (Flocculation can make the mud appear to be very thick. But when the viscosity is checked it turns out to be low). For chlorides/salts contaminations the best answer is dilution, that is add more water if your system has the volume capacity. However, Soda Ash can be used to “mask” the effects of the chlorides. This is because often the chlorides are directly associated with the hardness and additional treatments of soda ash, while precipitating out the hardness it also pulls out some of the salt. The soda ash also raises the pH high enough that the bentonite and additive can react as they should.
Sometimes finding a new water source is a last resort due to distance or cost, but there are instances and locations where this is the best solution to the issues. Keep your water source in mind when setting up on rural locations. DCS will be happy to check a water sample for drilling fluid make-up standards. Give us a call and we can discuss the situation and let you know the best way to send us a water sample. We need 6 ounces in a tightly sealed container if you want to send it to our office for testing. If you prefer that we come to your location for consultation, again just give us a call so we can arrange the site visit.
Case History
Hardrock Intercept / Kemah, TX
One of the longest horizontal bores at the time, Hardrock Directional Drilling counted on DCS to provide the fluid additives and the engineering to complete an 11,328 foot long bore. As with many of the bores we are involved with, DCS provided accurate predictive Annular Pressure calculations to prevent inadvertent returns to surface, which proved very effective in preventing frac-outs and lost returns. Our on-site engineering services kept the drilling fluid in peak condition, in this case utilizing DCS HDD Lube to improve the reaming process and control pull pressures.
Case History
Rover Pipeline Project
Over the course of 7 months in 2017-18, DCS participated in the successful drilling for 24 individual bores totaling more than 43,000 feet of 42″ pipeline installation.
We provided drilling fluid additives conforming to the strict standards required by the project owner and state and federal regulatory agencies
DCS drilling fluid engineers were instrumental in supervising fluid additive usage and mixing, analyzing ground conditions for additive decisions and providing borehole pressure data planning.