Formulação de fluidos de perfuração sintético leves empregando esferas ocas de vidro

Abstract

Brazil is a leading oil and gas producer in Latin America, with vast reserves and a welldeveloped infrastructure. The advancement of offshore exploration in increasingly deep waters necessitates the development of drilling fluids with enhanced properties. These fluids must be capable of balancing the pressure differential between the hydrostatic column of seawater and the geological formation while minimizing environmental impact. With the gradual depletion of reservoirs at shallow and medium depths, drilling in ultradeep water has become crucial for continued production. However, these operations demand high-performance fluids that can withstand high pressures and temperatures, in addition to complex geological formations. In this context, hollow glass microspheres (HGMs) are being studied as promising additives for drilling fluids, enabling the viability of wells with narrow pressure windows. Due to their incompressibility, these microspheres allow for a reduction in fluid density without compromising their essential rheological properties. In this study, a Central Composite Design (CCD) was conducted to evaluate the influence of key variables—such as HGM concentration, viscosifier concentration, and oil-to-water ratio (%O/W)—on the properties of synthetic drilling fluid. The properties studied included L600, L300, L200, L100, L6, L3, fluid loss, and density. The filtration mechanism of an ultra lightweight, 6.2 ppg, 100% olefinic fluid containing HGMs was also investigated. The results demonstrated the viability of applying HGMs, highlighting their potential for formulating drilling fluids in geologically complex environments.