A gas separator, gas separation system, and method for separating gas from drilling cuttings by actively maintaining a liquid seal of liquid in a lower portion of a separation vessel by controlling an introduced amount of the liquid admitted to the separation vessel as a removed amount of the liquid is removed from the separation vessel and by promoting agitation of the drilling cuttings in the liquid in an agitation chamber within the lower portion of the separation vessel to aid removal of the drilling cuttings along with the removed amount of the liquid.

A system and method of wellbore operations that uses an eductor unit for introducing additives into a moving fluid stream to form a mixture. The mixture is used as a completion drilling fluid for drilling through plugs installed in a wellbore. Example additives include polymers, such as friction reducers, viscosifiers, potassium chloride, polysaccharide, polyacrylamide, biocides, lubricants, long chain polymer molecules, and the like. The fluid is primarily fresh water and/or brine water, and acts as a motive fluid in the eductor unit for drawing the additive into the eductor unit. Forming the mixture in the eductor unit which is injected into the wellbore.

A syringe assembly for a hydraulic fracturing system includes a syringe having a material chamber, a base fluid chamber, and a piston. The material chamber is configured to be fluidly connected to a fluid conduit. The piston retracts to draw material into the material chamber. The piston extends to push the material into the fluid conduit. The syringe assembly includes a diverter fluidly connected to the base fluid chamber and moveable between first and second positions. The first position of the diverter fluidly connects the base fluid chamber to a base fluid reservoir of the hydraulic fracturing system and fluidly disconnects the base fluid chamber from an outlet of a frac pump of the hydraulic fracturing system. The second position of the diverter fluidly connects the base fluid chamber to the outlet of the frac pump and fluidly disconnects the base fluid chamber from the base fluid reservoir.

An object is to provide a dispersion of ultrafine cellulose fibers having a high thickening effect and a gelling function. There is provided a subterranean formation processing composition comprising ultrafine cellulose fibers, which has a haze value of 1.0% to 50%, when the composition is suspended in water such that the solid concentration of cellulose fibers is 0.2% by mass. The composition of the present invention can be used as an additive to the fluid at the time of the processing of subterranean formation, especially the processing of the well. The present invention provides also various fluids which are used in well processing. The present invention provides a method for processing a subterranean formation, for example, drilling of an exploratory well or a wildcat, an appraisal well, an exploratory well or an exploration well, a delineation well, a development well, a production well, an injection well, an observation well, and a service well; cementing; fracturing; and a method for producing petroleum resources.

A monitoring system operable to monitor an oilfield additive system having multiple components. The oilfield additive system is operable to transfer an additive-containing substance for injection into a wellbore. The monitoring system includes sensors each associated with, and operable to generate information related to an operational parameter of, a corresponding one of the oilfield additive system components. The monitoring system also includes a monitoring device in communication with the sensors and operable to record the information generated by the sensors to generate a database. The database includes information indicative of maintenance aspects of the oil-field additive system and/or the oilfield additive system components.

A process for producing a base oil composition particularly adapted for use in oil-base drilling mud compositions. The process includes contacting drilling waste containing an oil-base mud phase with a solvent to produce a mixture of liquids and solids, separating the two phases, partially evaporating the liquids phase to produce an oil base composition substantially lacking low molecular weight carbon chain compounds and also lacking significant concentrations of benzene, toluene, xylene, and/or ethyl benzene, and having increased closed-cup flashpoint when compared to the oil-base mud phase in the drilling waste. The resulting base oil has enhanced health and safety characteristics for workers interacting with and otherwise exposed to the oil base composition during transporting, conditioning or using such compositions. The base oil produced and drilling methods using the recovered and recycled mud are also described.

The invention is directed to a novel and useful fluid-tight, metal-to-metal, annular seal which can be repeatedly cycled in a high temperature, high pressure environment. More specifically, the invention provides a metal-to-metal, annular, seal on a radially expandable sliding sleeve which moves longitudinally from a reduced ID section of a bore to an enlarged section of the bore. The seal is disengaged at the enlarged bore section resulting in rapid fluid flow and pressure equalization which would destroy many traditional elastomer seals.

Viscosity and other properties are determined at desired temperatures in drilling mud and other fluids by using a versatile cavitation device which, operating in the cavitation mode, mixes and heats the fluid to a specified temperature, and, operating in the shear mode, acts as a spindle for application of Couette principles to determine viscosity as a function of shear stress and shear rate. The invention obviates the practice of adjusting rheology of a drilling fluid by passing it through the drill bit. Drilling fluid may be managed by a “straight-through” method to the well, or by placing the cavitation device in a loop which isolates an aliquot of known volume and circulating the fluid through the loop including the cavitation device. A controller may be programmed to manage the viscosity and other properties at various temperatures by controlling the power input and angular rotation of the “spindle” (which has cavities on its cylindrical surface), and feeding viscosity-adjusting agents and other additives to the fluid. Data may be collected from the loop and used in the “straight-through” mode until it is determined that conditions require a new set of data, or the loop may be used continuously. The system may be used with a supplemental viscometer, density meter, and other instruments.

Method for increasing lubricity of a wellbore fluid comprising the following steps: i) preparing a water in oil microemulsion that contains insoluble particles of metal hydroxides and/or metal oxides in the inner aqueous phase, the insoluble particles being synthesized from their salt precursors in the water droplets of the microemulsion; ii) adding to the wellbore fluid the water in oil microemulsion; iii) injecting the wellbore fluid into a subterranean formation and iv) performing the drilling, completion or coiled tubing operations in the subterranean formation.

A system includes a skip, a first sensor and a conveying section. The skip includes a hollow interior to store solids therein. The skip further includes an inlet and an outlet. The first sensor is located adjacent the inlet to indicate that the interior is filled with solids up to a predetermined level. The conveying section is located downstream of the outlet and is in solids communication with the interior. After the first sensor indicates that the interior is filled with solids up to the predetermined level, the conveying section conveys solids away from the skip and the skip is emptied. A method of using the aforementioned system is also disclosed.