RE: Enhancement of Local Clays for Drilling Fluids Applications

Good analysis, I am really glad to find this publication, since my articles are related to the oil industry, but sometimes I feel that it did not manage to impact the steemit audience as I would like, perhaps because I have not come across any colleagues who share the same content as me.

You have really gone for a part of the content in the branch of petroleum engineering very important as it is the drilling fluid, because depending on how the drilling fluid is, to that extent you can build and drill the oil well.

My question is: How deep are most of the oilfields in Nigeria? And I ask you the question because I see that you were interested in investigating the economic feasibility of being able to work with local bentonite clay, or suddenly, as the research study shows, evaluate the possibility of continuing to export. Since at least we here in Venezuela only drill mostly oil wells that are only drilled with bentonite water gel muds up to approximately 7000 feet, so our biggest concern is oil based drilling muds.

Observing your dedication to studying the feasibility of using local clays for drilling mud, I wonder: Are the wells in Nigeria being drilled to shallow depths?

One last question I have, according to what I read in this article, the research you carried out determined that the local clay needs to have a series of chemical elements added to it to improve the performance of certain properties such as the gel property, the yield point, the viscosity, and in short the properties that the mud must have to fulfill the functions of the drilling mud.

However, I do not know if you have investigated that if other elements were added, a drilling mud with local clay could be used instead of imported clay, but my other doubt is: and if the other additives are added, perhaps the drilling costs can be economically higher? or have the calculations been made, and still it is better to use local clay?

The question is because you know that in drilling everything has to be economically feasible, and as far as you can see, with all the elements that are going to be added to the local clay suddenly it is necessary to evaluate the costs based on the cost of the imported clay, so that based on better performance and low costs the best option can be selected.

I am fascinated by your article, since it shows the study and research to evaluate a national product, as it is in your case the local clay, greetings @tomlee, we continue reading, I hope to see more of your publications soon.