WorldWide Drilling Resource

Hemp Solves Lost Circulation with the Environment in Mind Adapted from Information by Hemp, Inc. A serious problem when drilling a gas or oil well is lost circula- tion, which occurs when drilling fluid flows into one or more geolog- ical formations instead of returning up the annulus. Lost Circulation Materials (LCMs) are the substances added to drilling fluids when drilling fluids are being lost to the formations downhole. Some of the commonly used LCMs are fibrous (tree bark, shredded cane stalks, mineral fibers, and animal hair), flaky (mica flakes, pieces of plastic, and cellophane sheeting), and granular (ground and sized lime- stone, carbonates, marble, wood, nut hulls, formica, corncobs, and cotton seed hulls). Most drilling fluid engineers have an LCM formula which uses a mixture of several materials, even for drilling through rock formations with very few holes, cracks, or porous areas, which results in less fluid loss. Hemp, Inc.’s mission is to provide green solutions which help make the world a better place to live. Hemp products are environmentally friendly, healthy, and can often replace petroleum-based products. The DrillWall™ Lost Circulation Material product works faster to plug the leaks, and is cost competitive with most LCM materials. The drilling fluid additive is insoluble in water, nontoxic, and biodegradable. It acts as a borehole stabilizer and a lubricating agent, while also preventing differential sticking. The product is a mixture of micronized organic cellulose fibers, providing excellent seepage and loss circulation control. DrillWall™ has been field-proven for all types of drilling fluid formulas including water-based, oil-based, synthetic-based, and constant rheology fluids. It has been used in all types of high-loss geology formations including sand, fractured shale, presalt, pea gravel, and other highly porous formations. It can be mixed through the mud hopper or directly into the mud tank at the agitation point. It has also been tested and used by many of the world’s largest gas and oil companies, including Chevron, Aramco, Petrobras, Ultra Petroleum, and others. In a forward-thinking move, Hemp, Inc.’s wholly-owned subsidiary Industrial Hemp Manufacturing, LLC purchased the largest decortication (process of removing the outer covering of a seed or fiber) plant in North America. They have begun the task of moving operations to Spring Hope, North Carolina, where their 70,000-square-foot warehouse is located. When the plant is operational, it will start producing fiber for products. The first products to be produced will be LCMs and oil absorbents from kenaf (a close relative to cotton and okra). Later, the products will be produced from industrial hemp. G&O 41 WorldWide Drilling Resource ® JANUARY 2019