Enhancing Lost Circulation Control: Synergistic Effects of Cedar Fiber, Nutshell, and Sweeps on Filtration of Water-based Drilling Fluids

Abstract

The effective management of lost circulation remains a critical challenge in drilling operations, necessitating the development of advanced strategies to minimize fluid loss and enhance wellbore stability. This study investigates the synergistic effects of various Lost Circulation Materials (LCMs) on fluid loss control and sealing efficiency.The study further demonstrates the efficacy of specific LCM combinations, such as cedar fiber, nutshell, and sweeps, in reducing filtration volume over time. The baseline for the experiments was drilling mud containing water, bentonite, nutshell, sweeps, and cedar fiber. Experiments were conducted by varying the concentrations of one of LCM components while maintaining the concentration of the other LCMs to assess the individual impact on filtration rates. The filtration tests were conducted using a permeability plugger tester (PPT). When the concentrations of each LCM have been increased the filtration volume significantly dropped down. Comparatively when cedar fiber concentration increased maximum (50%) reduction in filtration was obtained while the minimum (30%) filtration reduction was observed with sweeps addition. The smaller cedar particles were more effective in plugging the disk slot compared to nutshell and sweeps particles. Additionally, the results showed that cedar fiber reduced the filtration volume more efficiently than the other LCMs at all tested concentration.