WO2003104607A1 - Appareil et procede pour nettoyer les debris de forage - Google Patents

Appareil et procede pour nettoyer les debris de forage Download PDF

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Publication number
WO2003104607A1
WO2003104607A1 PCT/GB2002/002440 GB0202440W WO03104607A1 WO 2003104607 A1 WO2003104607 A1 WO 2003104607A1 GB 0202440 W GB0202440 W GB 0202440W WO 03104607 A1 WO03104607 A1 WO 03104607A1
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Prior art keywords
drill cuttings
vessel
flow
cleaning
fluid
Prior art date
Application number
PCT/GB2002/002440
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English (en)
Inventor
Martin Mckenzie
Original Assignee
Mckenzie Innovation
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Mckenzie Innovation filed Critical Mckenzie Innovation
Priority to PCT/GB2002/002440 priority Critical patent/WO2003104607A1/fr
Priority to AU2002314292A priority patent/AU2002314292A1/en
Publication of WO2003104607A1 publication Critical patent/WO2003104607A1/fr

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Classifications

    • E—FIXED CONSTRUCTIONS
    • E21—EARTH OR ROCK DRILLING; MINING
    • E21B—EARTH OR ROCK DRILLING; OBTAINING OIL, GAS, WATER, SOLUBLE OR MELTABLE MATERIALS OR A SLURRY OF MINERALS FROM WELLS
    • E21B21/00—Methods or apparatus for flushing boreholes, e.g. by use of exhaust air from motor
    • E21B21/06—Arrangements for treating drilling fluids outside the borehole
    • E21B21/063—Arrangements for treating drilling fluids outside the borehole by separating components
    • E21B21/065—Separating solids from drilling fluids
    • E21B21/066—Separating solids from drilling fluids with further treatment of the solids, e.g. for disposal

Definitions

  • This invention relates to an apparatus and method for cleaning drill cuttings particularly but not exclusively for use on an offshore hydrocarbon drilling platform.
  • drill cuttings waste material in the form of rock chippings, clay and clay stone, known as drill cuttings.
  • drill cuttings may be contaminated with hydrocarbons and chemicals which are considered to adversely affect the environment. Therefore, most territories impose restrictions on the proportion and amount of hydrocarbons which may be discharged into the sea. For example, in the United Kingdom sector of the North Sea, drill cuttings discharged into the sea from an offshore platform may comprise no more than 1% hydrocarbons. These restrictions result in the drill cuttings being transported and treated onshore at treatment plants.
  • a typical sample of contaminated drill cuttings may comprise 50% solids, 30% water, 20% oil on a volumetric basis. It will be understood by those skilled in the art that a significant amount of thermal energy is required to process the material, and in practice the high levels of liquid present with the solids may reduce the efficiency of the treatment plant to as little as 20% of the theoretical design capacity. Therefore, the disposal of drill cuttings results in significant costs to transport the cuttings from the offshore platform onshore, and cleaning the cuttings using thermal energy. Indeed the treating of drill cuttings in this way does not provide a particularly satisfactory environmental solution due to the significant environmental costs incurred in transporting the cuttings, the thermal energy required and the disposal of the cleaned drill cuttings into land fill sites.
  • an apparatus to remove contaminants from drill cuttings comprising a cleaning vessel through which contaminated drill cuttings may flow, the cleaning vessel having a means to restrict the flow of the drill cuttings.
  • the cleaning vessel has an upstream portion and a downstream portion, each portion having a cross sectional area through which the contaminated drill cuttings may pass, wherein the cross sectional area of the downstream portion is smaller than the cross sectional area of the upstream portion in order to restrict the flow of the drill cuttings.
  • the upstream portion is an inlet and the downstream portion is an outlet.
  • the inlet is in the region of 76.2mm in diameter and the outlet is in the region of 24mm in diameter, although the diameters of the inlet and outlet may be varied for differing types of drill cuttings and flow rates.
  • the flow of the contaminated drill cuttings is restricted by, for example, a Venturi jet pump.
  • the cleaning vessel comprises a tubular member having a longitudinal axis such as a pipe or a hose.
  • the outlet of the cleaning vessel is preferably connected to an inlet of a separating vessel, such as a cyclone.
  • the separating vessel has a cylindrical portion and a frusto-conical portion.
  • the top of the separating vessel has a lid with an aperture. More preferably, the aperture has a weir extending circumferentially therearound, the weir being concentric with the separating vessel.
  • the separating vessel may have at least one spray means, which may be in the form of a spray bar, to direct fluid into the separating vessel.
  • a settling means such as a settling tank may further be provided, which may comprise a means to slow the flow of fluid or material therethrough, such slowing means typically being in the form of baffles.
  • the apparatus further comprises a pump means, preferably in the form of a piston pump, for disposing of solids which accumulate at the bottom of the separating vessel.
  • the apparatus further comprises a settling tank to allow low gravity solids to separate over a period of time.
  • the apparatus may further comprise any one, a combination of or all of the following components to further purify or otherwise treat the contaminated drill cuttings: a hydrocyclone/centrifuge filter skid; a rotary vacuum filter; a cleaning centrifuge; a slurring skid; and a dewatering skid.
  • a method to remove contaminants from drill cuttings comprising inserting contaminated drill cuttings into a cleaning vessel; inserting motive fluid into the cleaning vessel; the motive fluid creating a scrubbing action with the drill cuttings which substantially removes the contaminants from the drill cuttings.
  • the method according to the second aspect of the invention is performed using apparatus according to the first aspect of the invention.
  • the contaminated drill cuttings are added to the motive fluid to provide a fluid mixture, prior to being inserted into the cleaning vessel .
  • the motive fluid is inserted into the cleaning vessel through an inlet, typically by means of a pump.
  • the pump is a jet pump or eductor and the contaminated drill cuttings are transferred from a first vessel, such as a hopper, to the cleaning vessel by the flow of the motive fluid.
  • the motive fluid will proceed through the cleaning vessel at a greater speed than the drill cuttings resulting in friction which creates the scrubbing action on the drill cuttings.
  • the cleaning vessel comprises a tubular member such as a pipe or a hose and the motive fluid will proceed substantially through the centre of the tubular member and the drill cuttings proceed substantially through the annulus between the flow of the motive fluid and the inner surface of the tubular member.
  • the decontaminated drill cuttings/motive fluid mixture is adapted to enter the separating vessel at a tangent to a longitudinal axis of the separating vessel and flow around an inner surface of the separating vessel.
  • the decontaminated drill cuttings/motive fluid mixture will be separated by the action of gravity and by cyclonic separation.
  • the decontaminated drill cuttings will fall by the action of gravity to the bottom of the separating vessel whereas the hydrocarbon/motive fluid mixture will rise to the top of the separating vessel.
  • the contaminants and low gravity solids flow through the aperture in the lid, over the weir and collect between the weir and inner surface of the separating vessel .
  • Water or any other suitable fluid may be sprayed into the separating vessel to encourage the contaminated solids and oil to rise to the top of the separating vessel .
  • the contaminated fines and contaminants are moved for example by pumping action to a settling tank where the relatively heavy fines settle in the bottom of a tank and the relatively light solids and oil float to the top of the tank over a period of time.
  • the mixture may be further processed by using any one, a combination of or all of the following components: a hydrocyclone/centrifuge filter skid; a rotary vacuum filter; a cleaning centrifuge; a slurring skid; and a dewatering skid.
  • Surfactant or mild acid may be added to the mixture to encourage separation of the mixture.
  • the cuttings which fall to the bottom of the separating vessel may be removed therefrom by a high pressure pump.
  • This may be a piston pump such as a Wykes pump.
  • the drill cuttings which fall to the bottom of a separating vessel can be removed by a conveyor or any other suitable means.
  • the motive fluid may be fresh or salt water or any other suitable liquid.
  • Fig. 1 is a front view of apparatus in accordance with the invention including a hopper, hose, tower and piston pump;
  • Fig. 2 is an enlarged front view of the hopper, hose and part of the tower;
  • Fig. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the hose showing the movement of drill cutting particles and separate streams of fluid through the hose;
  • Fig. 4 is an enlarged front view of the tower;
  • Fig. 5a is a sectional plan view of a connector which connects the hose to the tower;
  • Fig. 5b is a sectional plan view of the connector and a portion of the tower;
  • Fig. 6a is a side view of a lower portion of the tower;
  • Fig. 1 is a front view of apparatus in accordance with the invention including a hopper, hose, tower and piston pump;
  • Fig. 2 is an enlarged front view of the hopper, hose and part of the tower;
  • Fig. 3 is a cross-sectional view of
  • FIG. 6b is a front view of the lower portion of the tower and a conveyor belt
  • Fig. 7 is a schematic diagram of the apparatus showing the interconnections between various components of the apparatus
  • Fig. 8a is a side cross-sectional view of a settling tank used to separate fines and oil
  • Fig. 8b is an end view of the settling tank showing an attached distribution manifold
  • Fig. 8c is an end view of the distribution manifold
  • Fig. 9 is a schematic diagram of some components of the apparatus showing the position of various valves, locks and gauges and the interconnection of different components of the apparatus
  • Fig. 10a is a side view of a skid loaded with the apparatus
  • Fig. 10b is a front view of the skid loaded with the apparatus
  • FIG. 11a - lid are a series of views of a suitable conventional rotary drum vacuum filter used in conjunction with the present invention
  • FIG. 12 is a schematic diagram of a second embodiment of the apparatus showing the interconnections between various components of the apparatus
  • Fig. 13 is a schematic diagram showing flow patterns within a cleaning vessel used with the second embodiment of the apparatus.
  • a first and preferred embodiment of an apparatus to clean contaminated drill cuttings is shown in Fig. 1 and comprises a feed hopper 4, a hose 22, a tower 7 and a positive displacement piston pump 8.
  • the hose 22 is connected at a first end to a Venturi jet pump or eductor 5 (not shown in Fig. 1 but shown in Fig. 2) and at a second, opposite, end to the tower 7.
  • the piston pump 8 is provided at the bottom of the tower 7.
  • the hopper 4 is connected to the jet pump 5 and is of a funnel shape to allow contaminated drill cuttings to be placed therein through the upper end thereof and direct the contaminated drill cuttings towards the jet pump 5 below through the lower end thereof.
  • the apparatus is normally used on an offshore platform (not shown) .
  • An advantage of certain embodiments is that the drill cuttings can be cleaned and dumped overboard without transporting and treating them onshore.
  • the jet pump 5, shown best in Fig. 2 has a nozzle 24 and a tubular portion 25 which connects to an inlet 23 of the hose 22.
  • the nozzle 24 can direct a jet of motive fluid, normally water, from the jet pump 5 through the tubular portion 25 and into the hose 22.
  • An insert 26 extends radially inwardly from the tubular portion 25 to reduce the diameter thereof.
  • the hose 22 length and diameter can be varied as required, but in this embodiment they are 3" (76.2mm) in diameter and 6 metres long.
  • the two ends of the hose 22 are vertically displaced from oneanother, with the end attached to the inlet 23 being lower than the other end. For the arrangement shown in Fig. 1, this vertical displacement is 4568.58mm but this distance may be varied depending upon the dimensions and layout of the hopper 4 and the tower 7.
  • the hose 22 connects to a connector 76 of the tower 7 as shown in Fig. 5b.
  • the connector 76 comprises a back pressure nozzle 6 so as to direct the contents of the hose 22 through the connector 76, through the nozzle 6 and into the tower 7 at a tangent to the longitudinal axis of the tower 7.
  • the diameter of the inlet 23 of the hose 22 is typically 3" (76.2mm) whereas the diameter of the nozzle 6 of the connector 76 is typically 24mm.
  • the upper end of the tower 7, best shown in Fig. 4, is of a cylindrical shape which tapers inwardly at its lower end and so comprises a cylindrical portion 71 and frusto-conical portion 72.
  • the tower 7 extends upright with the frusto-conical portion 72 proximate to the ground and the cylindrical portion 71 distant from the ground.
  • Spray bars 74 are provided to direct water or any other fluid into the tower to assist the separation of the drill cuttings mixture as will be described later.
  • a hose 22 is connected to each of the tower connectors 76, each hose 22 having an attached jet pump 5 and hopper 4 as previously described.
  • a chimney 75 comprising a lid 77 with an aperture 78 and a weir 79 is provided at the top of the tower 7.
  • the weir 79 extends upwardly from the edge of the aperture 78 so that it is concentric with the tower 7. Fluid within the tower 7 may rise through the aperture 78, over the top of the weir 79 and collect between the lid 77, weir 79 and an edge of the tower 7.
  • An upper outlet 80 is provided at the top of the tower 7 at the portion of the tower 7 where the fluid settles, i.e. immediately above the lid 77 in order to remove this fluid from the tower 7.
  • the frusto-conical portion 72 of the tower 7 has an lower open end 82 which serves as a lower outlet for solids within the tower 7.
  • the lower outlet 82 of the tower 7 is optionally connected to a tubular portion 81 (not shown in Fig. 4 but shown in Fig. 1) which in turn connects to the piston pump 8.
  • the lower outlet 82 may be connected directly to the piston pump 8.
  • the lower outlet 82 of the tower 7 is connected (via the tubular portion 81) to the piston pump 8 which comprises a piston (not shown) and a cylinder 84.
  • the diameter of the cylinder 84 may be from 8" to 36" but in this embodiment is 12" .
  • the cylinder 84 extends from the tubular portion 81 to a further tube 86.
  • the diameter of the tube 86 can be smaller than that of the cylinder 84, for example in the region of 8" in order to compress the solid material being forced therethrough by the piston, as will be described later.
  • the piston 5 may be replaced by a conveyor belt 40 as shown in Fig. 6b.
  • the solids which fall to the bottom of the tower 7 collect in the conveyor belt 40 which transports them upwards and onwards to the next stage in the processing, described below.
  • the upper outlet 80 of the tower 7 is connected via a conduit 83 (which may comprise a 4" diameter) to a series of further known processing units as is schematically shown in Fig. 7.
  • processing units include a settling tank 1, a hydrocyclone/centrifuge 9, a rotary vacuum filter 10, a cleaning centrifuge 11, a slurrying skid 12 and a dewatering centrifuge 13 and are described in more detail below.
  • the contaminated drill cuttings are fed into the hopper 4.
  • the jet pump 5 propels a stream of water at relatively high pressure (typically in the region of 8 BAR and at relatively high rate of flow (typically in the region of 17m 3 /h from the nozzle 24 through the tubular portion 25 and inserts 26 into the hose 22.
  • the relatively high pressure and fast flowing water generates a vacuum at the lower end of the hopper 4 which causes the contaminated drill cuttings in the hopper 4 to be pulled into the jet pump 5 and directed past the inserts 26 and into the hose 22.
  • a mixture of water and contaminated drill cuttings flows through the hose 22.
  • Fig. 3 shows the flow of the mixture within the hose 22.
  • the jet of water 30 tends to flow through the centre of the hose 22 whereas the contaminated drill cuttings tend to flow in the annulus 32 between the water stream 30 and the edge of the hose 22.
  • This is, in part, due to the smaller diameter of the outlet nozzle 6 when compared to the inlet 23 which restricts the flow through the hose 22 and also due, in part, to the water being injected into the centre of the hose 22 at a high speed whereas the contaminated drill cuttings flow under action of the current of the water stream 30.
  • This also results in the two streams of fluid 30, 32 flowing through the hose 22 moving at different speeds relative to each other.
  • the water stream 30 from the jet pump flows relatively quickly through the centre of the hose 22 as its exit is not restricted whereas the contaminated drill cuttings 32 flow at a relatively low speed through the hose 22 because their exit is restricted by the smaller outlet nozzle 6.
  • the amount of cleaning can be varied depending on the type of drill cuttings, degree of contamination or for other reasons.
  • the water steam pressure, the hose length or the outlet nozzle diameter may be varied in order to vary the amount of cleaning of the drill cuttings.
  • the nozzle 6 directs the two streams of fluid into the tower 7 at a tangent to the longitudinal axis of the tower 7 and the mixture is spun around within the tower 7 to promote cyclonic separation thereof.
  • Water is injected into the tower 7 via the spray bars 74 to encourage this separation.
  • the light solids, called fines, along with the hydrocarbons rise up through the aperture 78 in the chimney 75 over the weir 79 to collect between the weir 79 and an edge of the tower 7.
  • the fines/oil mixture proceeds through the upper outlet 80 to the settling tank 1 where further segregation of relatively light and heavy fines takes place.
  • the heavy, solid and clean drill cuttings fall to the bottom of the tower 7 and proceed through the tubular portion 81 into the cylinder 84 of the piston pump 8.
  • the piston of the piston pump 8 rams the solid drill cuttings and pushes them into the further tube 86 in doing so compressing them further due to the smaller diameter of the tube 86 compared with the cylinder 84.
  • These clean solids which will typically now be in the form of clay, may be discharged overboard or processed further by slurrifying them, as described below.
  • a settling tank 1, shown in Fig. 8a, receives the hydrocarbon/fines mixture from the upper outlet 80 of the tower 7 via an inlet 101.
  • the low gravity fines and hydrocarbons in the mixture rise to the top of the settling tank 1 where they may be skimmed off or removed by other means e.g. by suction apparatus and directed to the hydrocyclone/centrifuge 13 or alternatively depending on the size and degree of contamination of these solids, they may bypass the hydrocyclone/centrifuge 13 and proceed directly to the rotary vacuum filter 10.
  • the high gravity fines fall to the bottom of the separating tank 1 where they are removed by an outlet (not shown) and directed to the hydro cyclone/centrifuge 9.
  • the settling tank 1 comprises a series of baffles 102 which aid separation of the mixture.
  • An outlet 106 removes clear water from the tank 1 and directs it to a manifold 3.
  • a suitable example of a hydrocyclone is a known system available from Axsia Mozley of Cornwall, United Kingdom and a suitable example of a centrifuge is a known system available from Westfalia Separator Limited of Milton Keynes, United Kingdom, the hydrocyclone and centrifuge 9 combining to remove the majority of fines from the mixture.
  • the fines removed by the hydrocyclone/centrifuge 9 are directed to the cleaning centrifuge 11 whereas the remaining water/smaller fines are directed to the rotary vacuum filter 10.
  • the rotary drum vacuum filter 10 is also a known system and a suitable example is available from Filtration Services Limited of Macclesfield, Cheshire, UK under the Trade Mark ROTAVAC .
  • the rotary drum vacuum filter 10 is designed to remove particles of a smaller size than those removed by the hydrocyclone/centrifuge 9. It receives mixtures of water/particles directly from the settling tank 1 or after processing through the hydrocyclone/centrifuge 9 and a cleaning centrifuge 11. The particles are discharged to the cleaning centrifuge and the clean water can be supplied to the tower 7 or the slurry skid 12.
  • the cleaning centrifuge 11 is used to remove the hydrocarbons from the fine solids. It is also a known system and a suitable example can be obtained from Westfalia Separator Limited of Milton Keynes, United Kingdom. Surfactant or mild acid is added to the mixture to remove the hydrocarbons therefrom. The hydrocarbons discharged may be reused and the clean fine solids may be discharged overboard or pumped on to the dewatering centrifuge 13, back to the vacuum filter 10 or to the slurry skid 12.
  • the slurry skid 12 is used to mix a solid material such as cleaned drill cuttings with water to produce a slurry if required and adding surfactant or acid to remove any residual hydrocarbons. This causes the hydrocarbons to move to the surface of the mixture where they may be removed. The slurry could then be discharged overboard, transported onshore or directed to the dewatering centrifuge 13 to remove the water before being discharged overboard.
  • the clean drill cuttings will be transported onshore for disposal.
  • Forming a slurry with drill cuttings which have not been decontaminated exacerbates the problems associated with decontaminating the drill cuttings onshore.
  • the drill cuttings are to be conventionally decontaminated by using thermal energy then adding water to form a slurry to transport the drill cuttings will significantly increase the amount of thermal energy required to treat the drill cuttings. Therefore, certain embodiments of the invention allow drill cuttings to be conveniently transported onshore, in the form of a slurry, as they have been decontaminated before transportation.
  • the slurry skid typically has a slurry pump (not shown) such as a slurry pump available from Transfer Systems International Limited of Inverurie, United Kingdom.
  • the dewatering centrifuge 13 is a known system and a suitable example is available from Westfalia Separator Limited of Milton Keynes, United Kingdom. This removes the water from the mixture and typically receives the slurried mixture from the slurry skid 12. Fines removed by the cleaning centrifuge 11 may be blended in with the fines in the mixture. The dewatered fines can be disposed of overboard or transported onshore.
  • a distribution manifold 3 is normally mounted on the end of the settling tank 1 as shown in Fig. 8b.
  • the manifold comprises a 3" inlet 50 which receives water from the settling tank via a motive fluid pump 2 (shown in Fig. 7) .
  • a 2" outlet 52 feeds the jet pump 5 with water
  • a 1" outlet 54 feeds the hopper 4 with wash down water in order to ensure that the drill cuttings will move to the lower end of the hopper 4
  • a further 1" outlet 56 feeds the spray bars 74 of the tower 7.
  • a relief outlet 59 is provided to bleed excess water off back to the settling tank 1.
  • the pressure inside the manifold should be at least 4 bar for the apparatus to function adequately but should not exceed the maximum pressure that the apparatus can safely handle.
  • the pump 2 will be set to operate at a constant rate and the outlet 59 is used to regulate the pressure within the manifold 3.
  • a safety valve (not shown) in the manifold 3 will trip and bleed excess water off via the outlet 59 to the settling tank 1 should the pressure within the manifold exceed a pre-set amount.
  • a spare outlet 58 is also provided. Each outlet is provided with a corresponding valve V and the outlets 52, 54, 56, 58 and the manifold 3 also have a pressure gauge P.
  • a schematic representation of the distribution manifold 3, various valves, locks and gauges is shown in Fig . 9.
  • Certain embodiments of the invention are water self sufficient because of the recalculation of water within the system and so provide a benefit in that water is not wasted.
  • Figs. 10a and 10b show the apparatus when loaded into a skid. It is estimated that the transport weight of the apparatus will be around 10 tonnes and the operating weight will be around 27 tonnes. For certain alternative embodiments of the invention more than one tower 7 may be used.
  • Hydrocarbons are frequently absorbed into the surface of drill cuttings making them more difficult to remove by known techniques.
  • An advantage of certain embodiments of the invention is that the surface of the drill cuttings is removed.
  • FIG. 12 and 13 An alternative embodiment is shown in Figs. 12 and 13 and uses an apparatus 200.
  • the apparatus 200 comprises a container 202 for the contaminated drill cuttings which is connected to a cleaning vessel 208.
  • the cleaning vessel 208 comprises a Venturi mixer 209, a deflector plate 210, a spray bar 212 and a baffle plate 213.
  • a conveyor belt 214 is used to transport clean drill cuttings away from the cleaning vessel 208 into a container 215.
  • the contaminated drill cuttings 201 are contained in the container 202.
  • Process water is transferred from storage tank 203 by pump 204 and conduit 205 to a jet pump 206 which may be, by way of example, a Type 224 Water Jet Sand and Mud Eductor from Schutte & Koerting of Bensalem, Pennsylvania in the United States of America.
  • the flow of water into the jet pump 206 causes the contaminated drill cuttings 201 to be entrained with the water and the water/contaminated drill cuttings mixture flows along a conduit 207 into the cleaning vessel 208.
  • the water/contaminated drill cuttings mixture is released into the centre of the Venturi mixer 209 which may be, by way of example, a Type 268 Tank Mixing Eductor from Schutte & Koerting of Bensalem, Pennsylvania in the United States of America.
  • the Venturi mixer 209 may be, by way of example, a Type 268 Tank Mixing Eductor from Schutte & Koerting of Bensalem, Pennsylvania in the United States of America.
  • conduit 207 acts in a similar manner to the hose 22 of the previous embodiment, in that the water will tend to pass through the middle of the conduit 207, and the drill cuttings will tend to pass through the annulus created between the water and the inner surface of the conduit 207, since the Venturi mixer 209 will act to create a back pressure in the conduit 207. In this manner, the conduit 207 will act to clean the contaminated drill cuttings 201.
  • Figure 13 shows the flow patterns created within the cleaning vessel 208.
  • the flow of water/contaminated drill cuttings into the Venturi mixer 209 restricts the flow of liquid within the cleaning vessel and results in thorough mixing and scrubbing of the contaminated drill cuttings in the Venturi mixer 209, transferring hydrocarbons from the drill cuttings to the process water.
  • the flow from the Venturi mixer 209 outlet is redirected by the deflector plate 210 to produce an annular flow around the outside of the Venturi mixer 209 which can re-enter the Venturi mixer 209 through the annular space around the water/contaminated drill cuttings inlet nozzle.
  • Fluid may be introduced into the cleaning vessel 208 through a jetting ring 212 located within the cleaning vessel 208.
  • Such fluid may be, by way of example, cold water, hot water, air, steam, or other appropriate fluid to assist separation.
  • the jetting ring 212 may take the form of a conduit which may be a complete ring or an incomplete ring with the ends sealed.
  • the jetting ring 212 contains a plurality of orifices through which the fluid can enter the cleaning vessel 208. Each orifice may be fitted with a means to prevent the fluid within the cleaning vessel 208 from entering the jetting ring 212.
  • Fluid from the orifices in the jetting ring 212 creates an annular upward current around the downward current created by the deflector plate 210.
  • the interface between the two flow patterns assists with the removal of hydrocarbons and fine particles from the drill cuttings, which fall to the bottom of the cleaning vessel 208. This flow interface may further be enhanced by the use of adjustable flow diverter plates (not shown) .
  • Solids can accumulate at the bottom 231 of the cleaning vessel 208. These are removed by an outlet conduit or by a conveyor means 214, which may be a screw conveyor. Such conveyor means 214 is sealed to prevent fluid escaping from the cleaning vessel 208, until such time as sufficient accumulation of solids has built up in the cleaning vessel 208 to permit removal of the solids without high levels of associated fluid.
  • the solids accumulation is transferred by the conveyor means 214 into the container 215 for disposal or further processing, for example in a drill cuttings treatment plant or to a slurry skid as described for the first embodiment .
  • the fluid which passes through the baffle plate 213 in the cleaning vessel 208 is allowed to separate by differential density.
  • the means of separation may be, by way of example, a fixed weir 216, a floating weir, or some other means.
  • the least dense fluid which is predominantly hydrocarbon, flows over the weir 216 and out of the cleaning vessel 208 by means of a conduit 217 into a storage vessel 18.
  • the more dense fluid which is predominantly water contaminated with fine solid particles, is drawn out of the cleaning vessel 208 by means of a conduit 219 and a pump 220.
  • the flow through the conduit 219 may be adjusted, by means of a variable speed electric motor driving the pump 220, by means of a variable orifice at the end of conduit 219 within the cleaning vessel, or by other means, to balance the flow out of the cleaning vessel 208 with the flow into the cleaning vessel 208 from the jet pump 206.
  • the flow of contaminated water from pump 220 enters a classification means which may be, by way of example, a hydrocyclone 221 which separates the solid particles from the liquid.
  • the solid particles are deposited from the classification means 221 into a container 222 for disposal or further processing, for example in a drill cuttings treatment plant.
  • the liquid is returned from the classification means 221 through a conduit 223 to the storage tank 203.
  • the fluid stored in container 218 which is predominantly hydrocarbons, and the fluid in the storage tank 203 which is predominantly water, may be further refined by being passed through an hydrocarbons/water separator 224.
  • An example of a suitable example of a hydrocarbons/water separator 224 is the Hydrocarbonsspin AV offered by Serck Baker of Gloucester in the United Kingdom.
  • the (predominantly hydrocarbons) fluid from container 218 is transferred by conduit 225 and pump 226 to the hydrocarbons/water separator 224.
  • the hydrocarbons are separated into container 227.
  • the clean water may be returned to the storage tank 203 through conduit 228 or discharged from the process, for example by a drain 229.
  • the (predominantly water) fluid from storage tank 203 is transferred by pump 204 and conduit 230 to the hydrocarbons/water separator 224.
  • the hydrocarbons are separated into container 227.
  • the clean water may be returned to the storage tank 203 through conduit 228 or discharged from the process, for example by a drain 229.
  • a plurality of valves are installed within the system described above to provide control of flow in the conduits.
  • process water means water circulated through the system as described and may include seawater, freshwater, waste water from another process, water which has been previously used to clean drill cuttings and may therefore itself contain small levels of contaminants, and any other fluid deemed suitable for the operation of the process.
  • a great advantage of the embodiments described herein is that the dimensions of the various components such as hose 22, nozzle 24 and the flow restrictions 26, 6 can be varied for use with different types of drill cuttings to permit cleaning thereof .

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  • Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
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  • Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
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  • Cleaning In General (AREA)

Abstract

L'appareil concerne un procédé et un appareil pour décontaminer les débris de forage (32; 210). L'appareil comprend un récipient de nettoyage (22, 7; 207, 208) muni d'un moyen (26, 22, 6, 7; 207, 209, 210) pour agiter les flux d'un mélange de débris de forage / de fluides mobiles (30, 32; 201). Dans un mode de réalisation préféré, l'entrée (26) du récipient de nettoyage (22) est plus large que la sortie (6), ce qui permet aux fluides mobiles (30) de s'écouler plus rapidement à travers le récipient de nettoyage (22) que le flux de débris de forage (32). Le frottement entre les flux de fluides mobiles (30) et de débris de forage (32) produit un effet de grattage sur les débris de forage (32), ce qui permet d'en enlever une grande partie de contaminants. L'avantage de certains nombre modes de réalisation consiste en ce que l'appareil peut être utilisé sur une plate-forme au large, et les débris de forage nettoyés (32) peuvent être jetés par-dessus bord, ce qui rend superflu tout transport ultérieur de débris de forage sur la côte et permet de faire des économies sur le traitement de décontamination ultérieur (qui utilise souvent des procédés thermiques).
PCT/GB2002/002440 2002-06-11 2002-06-11 Appareil et procede pour nettoyer les debris de forage WO2003104607A1 (fr)

Priority Applications (2)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
PCT/GB2002/002440 WO2003104607A1 (fr) 2002-06-11 2002-06-11 Appareil et procede pour nettoyer les debris de forage
AU2002314292A AU2002314292A1 (en) 2002-06-11 2002-06-11 Apparatus and method for cleaning drill cuttings

Applications Claiming Priority (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
PCT/GB2002/002440 WO2003104607A1 (fr) 2002-06-11 2002-06-11 Appareil et procede pour nettoyer les debris de forage

Publications (1)

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WO2003104607A1 true WO2003104607A1 (fr) 2003-12-18

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AU (1) AU2002314292A1 (fr)
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Citations (5)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US3693733A (en) * 1971-03-08 1972-09-26 Texaco Inc Method and apparatus for avoiding water pollution at an offshore drilling site
US4546783A (en) * 1983-05-02 1985-10-15 Flo Trend Shares, Inc. Apparatus for washing drill cuttings
US5755892A (en) * 1992-01-13 1998-05-26 Henkel Kommanditgesellschaft Auf Aktien Waste disposal of contaminated drill cuttings from geological drilling using drilling fluid systems containing mineral oil
US6079508A (en) * 1995-07-05 2000-06-27 Advanced Assured Homes 17 Public Limited Company Ultrasonic processors
US6170667B1 (en) * 1997-08-22 2001-01-09 Terralog Technologies U.S.A. Inc. Apparatus and method for preparation of liquid/solid slurries

Patent Citations (5)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US3693733A (en) * 1971-03-08 1972-09-26 Texaco Inc Method and apparatus for avoiding water pollution at an offshore drilling site
US4546783A (en) * 1983-05-02 1985-10-15 Flo Trend Shares, Inc. Apparatus for washing drill cuttings
US5755892A (en) * 1992-01-13 1998-05-26 Henkel Kommanditgesellschaft Auf Aktien Waste disposal of contaminated drill cuttings from geological drilling using drilling fluid systems containing mineral oil
US6079508A (en) * 1995-07-05 2000-06-27 Advanced Assured Homes 17 Public Limited Company Ultrasonic processors
US6170667B1 (en) * 1997-08-22 2001-01-09 Terralog Technologies U.S.A. Inc. Apparatus and method for preparation of liquid/solid slurries

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
AU2002314292A1 (en) 2003-12-22

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