ON-SITE ENVIRONMENTAL TREATMENT FOR WASTE DRILLING MUDS

THE OIL INDUSTRY GENERATES LARGE VOLUMES OF DRILLING MUD WASTES THAT CONSTITUTE AN ENVIRONMENTAL PROBLEM. CURRENT PRACTICES INVOLVE RETAINING SUCH WASTES IN PITS, OR DISPOSING THEM BY REMOVING AND TRANSPORTING THEM TO ANOTHER LOCATION FOR TREATMENT. THE TECHNOLOGY STUDIED IN THIS PROJECT IS TREATING THE MUD ON-SITE, REDUCING ITS VOLUME, AND ALLOWING THE SEPARATION OF SELECTIVE MUD COMPONENTS FOR REUSE OR MORE EFFECTIVE REMEDIAL TREATMENT. THE TECHNOLOGY INVOLVES TREATING THE DRILLING FLUIDS WITH ENZYMES THAT RAPIDLY (WITHIN MINUTES) DEGRADE THE ORGANIC POLYMER VISCOSIFIERS IN THE MUD SYSTEMS AND RELEASE THE SOLIDS BY BREAKING THE SUSPENDING CHARACTERISTICS OF THE MUD. NO ADDED EQUIPMENT IS NEEDED, AND THE DRIED CRUDE ENZYME FORMULATIONS CAN BE TAILORED TO DECOMPOSE THE DESIRED MUD COMPONENT. THE LOW COST, COMMERCIALLY AVAILABLE ENZYMES THAT FUNCTION IN THE MUD SYSTEM ARE NONTOXIC, NONHAZARDOUS, AND ARE ENVIRONMENTALLY ACCEPTABLE. THE MUD VOLUMES ARE REDUCED BY SEPARATING THE SOLIDS FROM THE WATER AND OIL COMPONENTS OF THE MUDS. EACH SEPARATED FRACTION CAN BE REUSED OR EASILY HANDLED. THESE ADVANTAGES FOR A NOVEL AND RAPID ON-SITE WASTE REDUCTION TECHNOLOGY WILL BENEFIT BOTH THE DRILLER AND THE ENVIRONMENT. THE PHASE I RESEARCH IS EXAMINING COMMERCIALLY AVAILABLE ENZYME FORMULATIONS THAT ARE MOST EFFECTIVE IN DEGRADING ORGANIC POLYMERS USED IN DRILLING MUDS.