DFX Fluid System

The FluidControl DFX™ high-performance water-based drilling fluids system delivers an aqueous-based solution that offers the performance characteristics of a premium invert emulsion drilling fluid without the associated economic, environmental, and logistical constraints.

In the most demanding deepwater, shelf, and onshore applications, the highly inhibitive and ultra-versatile DFX system provides a consistent, stable wellbore with inhibition, lubricity, and rates of penetration (ROP) similar to an oil- or synthetic-based drilling fluid at a fraction of the cost. The patented DFX system offers the environmental and related economic advantages intrinsic to a water-based drilling fluid.

The heart of the DFX water-based drilling fluid is a uniquely engineered, three-component surfactant package easily customized to meet any borehole condition. The novel and environmentally acceptable additives comprising the DFX surfactant package generate the performance measures essential for a true high-performance water-based drilling fluid:

• ROP: Low molecular weight synthetic oil with ROP enhancing surfactant
• Lubricity: Sulfonated tall oil with ester-blend friction reducer
• Inhibition: Anti-accretion agent that is specially blended and tailored for expected downhole conditions

The DFX system delivers the optimum drilling efficiencies of an invert emulsion fluid but without the associated waste management limitations and costs.

Versatility sets the DFX system apart

The versatility of the DFX water-based drilling fluids system makes it an ideal option for a wide range of applications, including highly reactive deepwater sediments; deep, high-temperature shelf wells; and multi-lateral wellbores typical of many onshore shale plays.

The DFX system is effective in all densities, up to the maximum for an aqueous fluid, and in makeup fluids from fresh water to saturated salt. The DFX system also can be formulated with a wide temperature range and has been shown to remain stable at up to 330 °F. DFX systems run effectively in a nearly nondispersed state when unweighted and all the way up to fully dispersed systems. Extremely tolerant to contaminants, DFX is not wed to a single chloride environment. While typically run at low pH in saturated salt environments, it can be run at high pH with no adverse effects on its rheological profile.

With coefficient of friction values nearly identical to those of a conventional synthetic-based drilling fluid, the DFX system has demonstrated marked reductions in torque and drag, allowing it to drill angles as high as 50° trouble-free.

Ideal for the environment and your AFE

The high-performance DFX system meets all applicable offshore discharge regulations. When used on land, neither the cuttings nor fluids require any special handling. This makes the DFX system the perfect option for sensitive ecosystems and in applications in which the costs of shipping cuttings to shore or trucking to an approved disposal site discourages the use of oil- or synthetic-based drilling fluids. The DFX system also exhibits dilution rates lower than those of conventional water-based drilling fluids, compounding its already impressive environmental and economic benefits.

The system also helps reduce nonproductive time (NPT) spent handling wellbore stability issues or severe, expensive losses of premium synthetic or oil-based fluids.