Ecofriendly lubricating additives for water-based wellbore drilling fluids

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9834718-B2
Application number	US-201414270815-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	May 6, 2014
Priority date	May 6, 2014
Publication date	Dec 5, 2017
Grant date	Dec 5, 2017

Abstract

Some examples of producing water-based drilling fluids including ecofriendly lubricating additives are described. A raw material oil including fatty acids with a short chain alcohol is esterified in the presence of a catalyst to produce alkyl ester products and triglycerides. The alkyl ester products are washed and heated to remove any residual water or the short chain alcohol. A first quantity of the alkyl ester products is mixed with a second quantity of a water-based wellbore drilling fluid.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method for producing water-based wellbore drilling fluids, the method comprising:
esterifying a raw material oil comprising fatty acids with a short chain alcohol in the presence of a catalyst to produce alkyl ester products and triglycerides;
washing the alkyl ester products;
heating the alkyl ester products to remove any residual water or the short chain alcohol; and
mixing a first quantity of the alkyl ester products with a second quantity of a water-based wellbore drilling fluid, wherein the first quantity is substantially between 1.5% and 3.4% by volume of a sum of the first quantity and the second quantity.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the first quantity is substantially between 6 cc and 12 cc, and the second quantity is 350 cc.

3. The method of claim 1 , further comprising separating the alkyl ester products and the triglycerides before washing the alkyl ester products.

4. The method of claim 1 , further comprising removing impurities from the raw material oil prior to esterifying the raw material oil.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein removing the impurities from the raw material oil comprises filtering the raw material oil at a pressure ranging substantially between 5 psi and 10 psi.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the raw material oil comprises processed vegetable oil.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the fatty acids comprise molecules averaging substantially from 16 carbon atoms to less than 20 carbon atoms.

8. The method of claim 1 , wherein the short chain alcohol comprises at least one or more of methanol, ethanol, propanol, or butanol.

9. The method of claim 1 , wherein a plastic viscosity of the raw material oil is greater than substantially 50 cP.

10. The method of claim 1 , wherein the catalyst comprises at least one of sodium hydroxide, potassium hydroxide, sodium alkoxides, or potassium alkoxides.

11. The method of claim 1 , further comprising, before washing the alkyl ester products, breaking emulsions formed in the alkyl ester products and triglycerides in response to the esterifying.

12. The method of claim 11 , breaking the emulsions formed in the alkyl ester products and triglycerides in response to the esterifying comprises adding a quantity of acetic acid to the alkyl ester products and triglycerides.

Assignees

• Saudi Arabian Oil Co

Inventors

• Amanullah Md
• Bubshait Abdulaziz S
• Fuwaires Omar A

Classifications

• C10N2030/06

  Oiliness; Film-strength; Anti-wear; Resistance to extreme pressure · CPC title

• C10N2070/00

  Specific manufacturing methods for lubricant compositions · CPC title

• C10M2207/281

  of (cyclo)aliphatic monocarboxylic acids · CPC title

• C09K8/035 Primary

  Organic additives · CPC title

• C11C3/003

  by esterification of fatty acids with alcohols (C11C3/02 takes precedence) · CPC title