Lobestar® ShearMixer Evaluation by MI Drilling Fluids

In March 2003, the Lobestar® Shear/Mixer was installed on Mix 5 by MI Drilling Fluids, which is used to mix OBM Premix. The volume mixed for each batch was 375 bbls. The time to mix this premix before the installation of the Lobestar was 4 to 5 hours with an Electrical Stability reading of 30 to 60. After the installation the mix time was reduced to 2.5 (50% of prior) hours and an Electrical Stability reading of 200. With the use of the Lobestar mixer, MI Drilling Fluids doubled their output of premix, tightened the emulsion, and used less chemical to do the job, in less time.

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Vortex Hopper Test by Newpark Drilling Fluids, Inc.

To evaluate the Vortex Hopper, in July 2009, Newpark Drilling Fluids, Inc. built 450 bbls of 11.0 ppg PHPA fluid and recorded the time required along each step of the process. The warehousemen added the materials at a rate designed to ensure that they did not plug the hopper. Four sacks of DynaSoar were cut and dumped as fast as they could to evaluate the hopper’s ability to handle rapid additions and large volumes of polymer. The hopper handled the four sacks per minute rate without difficulty and without fisheyes.

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Fluid design, mixing reduces screen blinding for Conoco.

The use of brine-base systems throughout the deepwater Gulf of Mexico has been documented. However, until this well was drilled, blinding of the shaker screen potentially could result in severe mud losses, thereby negating many of the benefits of the system. Using a new Vortex Shearing Hopper and new mixing procedure, the blinding problem was eliminated on the Magnolia exploration well, thus confirming that the fluid losses encountered on previous wells could be avoided.

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Lobestar® Hopper excels on the Shell Mars Prospect.

When deciding to install the Lobestar® Hopper on the Shell Mars Prospect in October of 2000, two questions arose for MI Drilling Fluids. 1) What benefit will the Lobestar Hopper have on the Mud System and 2) How to measure the efficiency of the Lobestar? The conclusion: The mud engineers had only positive things to say about the performance of the Lobestar Hopper. They cited little to no maintenance, ease of mixing chemicals and barite, and the ability to mix dry polymer to the hopper without stopping up or flow back.

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Lobestar® Shearing Evaluation Test at Schlumberger Dowell facility.

A shearing device evaluation test was conducted April 1, 1999 at the Schlumberger Dowell facility in Berwick, Louisiana. Samples were taken a 1) half-shear and 2) full shear and tested for; a) rheology, Fann 35 and Brookfield, b) API 30 minute fluid loss,c) visual filter cake quality and d) filter cake weight after drying. The conclusions: Fish-eyes were not visible in the Lobestar sample or on the filter cake, fluid loss for the Lobestar was considerably less than the competitor, and after the full shear the Lobestar Shear/Mixer's viscosity were approximately 35% greater than the competition.

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Lobestar® Shear Mixer Test at Baroid’s Berwick Facility.

A shearing hopper evaluation test was conducted February 1, 2000 at Baroid’s Facility in Berwick, Louisiana. Baroid’s standard mud hopper and Vortex Ventures’ Lobestar® Shear/Mixer were compared using identical mixing and testing procedures. Samples were taken initially and after 30-minutes; and the rheology tested after each interval. Results showed that some large fish-eyes were visible in the Baroid’s regular hopper sample, but no Fish-eyes were in any of the Lobestar shear samples. Low shear rate rheologies for the Lobestar Hopper decreased after each shearing phase, but not from the Baroid Hopper. In addition, after full shear, the Lobestar Hopper gel strengths were 33% higher than that of the Baroid Hopper gel strengths and the yield point was found to be .08 higher for the Lobestar Hopper.

After weighting up, each batch to 12.5 ppg, the Baroid Hopper yield point increased by 45% and the Lobestar Hopper increased by 55%.

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