Recycling Base Oil from Spent Drilling Fluids via Frictional Heating
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Solution Overview
Problem
Spent invert emulsion drilling fluids pose challenges in recycling due to low solids content, which makes traditional high-temperature heating methods inefficient and prone to oil degradation, and existing methods for removing cuttings are ineffective, leading to energy-intensive disposal processes.
Innovation Solution
The method involves thermal desorption using hammer mill technology to frictionally heat spent drilling fluids with low solids content, evaporating oil and water at a temperature below the atmospheric boiling point, thereby mitigating oil cracking and allowing for the separation and recovery of base oils for reuse.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of substance
If high temperature calcination is used to vaporize and recover oil from spent drilling fluid, then oil recovery is achieved, but energy consumption increases and oil degradation occurs
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the temperature parameter from high temperature calcination to lower temperature flash evaporation, enabling oil recovery while reducing energy consumption and avoiding oil degradation through controlled temperature parameters
Solution Approach 2:
The patent utilizes phase transition (evaporation) of oil and water at controlled temperatures to separate and recover oil from spent drilling fluid, replacing the high-temperature calcination process with a more efficient phase change-based separation
2Quantity of substance
If high temperature heating is used to evaporate fluid from spent drilling fluid, then fluid evaporation is achieved, but oil cracking and degradation occur
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the temperature parameter from high temperature to lower temperature flash evaporation, enabling complete fluid evaporation while preserving oil quality and avoiding cracking through controlled temperature parameters
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the thermal degradation mechanism with a controlled flash evaporation process that uses rapid heating and cooling to evaporate water and light hydrocarbons while condensing and recovering heavier oil components without degradation
3Quantity of substance
If traditional mechanical filtration is used to remove cuttings from drilling fluid, then large cuttings are removed, but small particles remain and require ineffective gravity or centrifugal methods
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and removes all solid cuttings from the drilling fluid through mechanical filtration and centrifugal separation before the flash evaporation process, ensuring that only liquid components remain for evaporation and that solids do not interfere with the recovery process or contaminate the recovered oil
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This approach effectively recycles base oils from spent drilling fluids with low solids content, reducing energy consumption and preserving oil quality, and allows for the reuse of recovered oil in new drilling fluids, while also managing low gravity solids for efficient processing.
Implementation Method 1
frictionally heating spent drilling fluids with low solids content
Implementation Method 2
evaporating oil and water at a temperature below the atmospheric boiling point
Implementation Method 3
thermal desorption using hammer mill technology
Implementation Method 4
the vaporized fluid that can then be condensed and recovered
Data Source
AI summary
Methods and processes for recycling base oils from spent invert emulsion drilling fluids may include frictionally heating a spent drilling fluid that comprises an invert emulsion and solids, wherein the solids are at about 50% or less by volume of the spent drilling fluid; and simultaneously evaporating oil and water from the invert emulsion at a temperature lower than an atmospheric boiling point for the oil.