DEPARTMENT OF PETROLEUM
ENGINEERING
COVENANT UNIVERSITY
PET327
PETROLEUM ENGINEERING
LABORATORY
DENSITY TEST
GROUP G
OLUWATOTAN OLATUNJI
DANIEL
15CN03290
DATE PERFORMED :19-01-2018
DATE SUBMITTED :21-01-2018
ABSTRACT
The mud
density is important to the drilling operation to maintain well control and
also the hydrostatic pressure in the well bore .in petroleum engineering this
is carried out to control not just the hydrostatic pressure but also the influx
. The importance of the mud density test is to know the weight per unit volume
of the drilling mud .The major equipment that would be used in this experiment
will be mud balance . This various test to determine the density would be
expressed in various units which are subjected to different field uses
This
report will explain and show the various steps and processes involved when
carrying out the experiment on the mud balance as well as the results gotten
from this experiment
TABLE OF CONTENT
1
ABSTRACT
2
INTRODUCTION
3
EQUIPMENT AND APPARATUS
4
PROCEDURE
5
RESULTS /ANALYSIS
6
PRECAUTIONS
7
CONCLUSSIONS
8
REFERENCES
INTRODUCTION
The Density of a mud is the weight per unit volume expressed either
in pounds per gallon or pounds per cubic foot. The density of the mud is
important in order to maintain both the hydrostatic pressure as well as the
pressure exerted by the static mud column the hydrostatic pressure is
maintained in order to prevent a kick or ultimately a blow out . the mud weight
is a function of both the density and the depth of the mud . This weight (mud
weight) is what will determine ,with conjunction with the depth ,the pressure
that will be exerted on the formation while drilling this experiment will be
carried out using a mud balance (4 scale metal mud balance)
The ranges
of the scale are:
6.5 -23.0
lbs/gal (ppg)
0.79 -2.72
specific gravity (s.g)
49 – 179
lbs/ft3
340 – 1190
psi/1000ft
EQUIPMENT
/APPARATUS
1)
4
scale mud balance with carrying case
2)
Electric mixer
3)
Weighing balance
4)
Measuring cylinder
5)
Spatula
6)
Beaker
electric mixer
Procedures (sample 1)
1)
Measure 350ml of water in a measuring cylinder
2)
Measure 35g of bentonite on a weighting
balance
3)
Add the 35g of bentonite to the 350ml of
water
4)
Using a mixer ,mix the water and the bentonite
5)
Stop the mixer and pour the mixture into the
4 scale mud balance cup until it is full
6)
Cover the with the lid
7)
Adjust the rider until the mud balance is at
equilibrium
8)
Take readings in ppg ,sg ,lb/ft3 ,psi/1000ft
PROCEDURES (SAMPLE 2)
1)
Measure 10g of barite on the weighing balance
2) Add the 10g of barite to the prepared
sample 1
3) Put it into the mixer to mix the
homogeneous mixture
4) Pour the mixture of sample 2 into the 4 scale mud balance cup until it
is full
5) Cover the cup with the lid
6) Adjust balance until its balance and
then take the readings
7) Take readings in ppg ,sg ,lb/ft3 ,psi
/1000ft
RESULTS AND ANALYSIS
READINGS
(DENSITY)
PPG
S.G
Lb/ft3
Psi/1000ft
SAMPLE 1
8.7
1.04
65
455
SAMPLE 2
8.8
1.06
66
460
DISCUSSION
After the
experiment has been carried out ,and the following results has been obtained
for the experiment to determine the
density we discovered that sample 1
(mixture of bentonite ) our mud had a lower density than sample 2 which is a mixture of the mud and
barite .this is because barite is a weighing agent that is used to increase the
weight of mud ,therefore the sample 2 is to have a higher density as sample 1
because of the presence of barite
CONCLUSION
In conclusion , the mud density test is a very important
test that is carried out to determine the density of mud, from this experiment
we also observed that the density of
sample 2 (mixture of barite bentonite and water )has a heavier density that
sample 1(mixture of bentonite and water ) because of the presence of barite
which acts as a weighing agent and it increses the density
PRECAUTIONS
1)
I avoided error due to parallax by taking my
reading at the lower meniscus
2)
I ensured
that my 4 scale mud balance was calibrated before my measuring commenced
3) I ensured that the cup of mud of the
mud balance was wiped dry before I balanced it on the knife edge
4)I ensured the mixer cup did not come in contact with the blade to
avoid mud from splashing
REFERENCES
Drilling fluid technology by engr .dr.e.e.okoro
Drilling mud manual
by engr seteyeobot ifeanyi