Functions of Oil-Based Mud Non-Landing Solids Control System

What is Oil-Based Mud Non-Landing System?

Oil-based mud (OBM) is the complex multiphase system composed of base oil, water, asphalt, drill cuttings, polymers and other additives, widely used in drilling operations for deep wells, shale gas and other complex formations. Traditional solids control equipment can only recover barite and part of the liquid phase. If the residual oil-bearing solid phase is directly discharged, it will cause long-term harm to soil, groundwater and the ecosystem.

"Oil-based Mud Non-Landing System" is an integrated treatment solution combining physical separation, waste liquid recovery and closed-loop control. Its core goal is to achieve harmless treatment of drilling waste and resource recovery of base oil, with focus on the oil content of treated solids and oil recovery efficiency.

1. Cuttings Dryer: Core Volume Reduction Unit

The drilling cuttings dryer (also called vertical cuttings dryer) is the key equipment of the non-discharge system. It uses high-speed centrifugal force to strongly separate the oil-water mixture from the oil-bearing cuttings discharged by the shale shaker. After treatment, the oil content of the solid phase can be reduced to below 5%-8%, significantly reducing harmful emissions and recovering the large amount of reusable oil-based drilling fluid. It is especially suitable for environmental protection treatment of oil-based/synthetic-based mud, serving as the core equipment for source volume reduction.

2. High-Speed Variable Frequency Decanter Centrifuge: Guarantee for Fine Separation

The mud treated by the cuttings dryer still contains fine solid particles. The high-speed drilling fluid decanter centrifuge, driven by the variable frequency motor, achieves adjustable rotational speed and generates the separation factor of over 3000G, further stripping ultra-fine solids from the liquid phase and recovering pure base oil for circulating mud preparation. This equipment can work in coordination with screw pumps and screw conveyors, and is compatible with both oil-based and water-based mud, making it critical unit to ensure the quality of recovered oil meets standards.

3. Skid-Mounted Filter Press: Terminal Equipment for Deep Dewatering

The skid-mounted filter press integrates the filter press system, pump unit and automatic control unit. Adopting the principle of high-pressure extrusion, it can compress the moisture content of the treated mud filter cake to 25%-40%, and supports simultaneous treatment of water-based and oil-based mud. Its modular skid-mounted design enables rapid on-site deployment, greatly reducing the cost of solid phase transportation.

4. Pre-Treatment and Auxiliary Systems

Shale Shaker: As the primary screening equipment, it removes large-particle cuttings to provide stable feed for subsequent drying and centrifugation processes.

Chemical Dosing Unit: Automatically adds demulsifiers, destabilizers and other chemical agents to break the mud colloid structure and improve solid-liquid separation efficiency.

Screw Conveyor: Fully enclosed continuous conveying of cuttings to avoid secondary pollution caused by ground contact.

Cuttings Bin/Mud Storage Tank: Classified storage of treated solid waste and recovered liquid phase for convenient transportation or reuse.

A complete oil-based mud non-landing solids control system, through the multi-stage collaboration of "drying + centrifugation + filtration + chemical conditioning", realizes closed-loop management of drilling waste. As the mud system manufacturer, TR Solids Control provides the full range of non-discharge treatment equipment, helping drilling projects achieve the dual goals of green development and cost reduction & efficiency increase. Choose TR Solids Control for an efficient, compliant one-stop solution for your wellsite.