Preparation of Drilling Mud Components Based on Brown Coals from the Kangalas Deposit

Abstract

The article presents the results of a study on the production of drilling fluid components based on brown coal from the Kangalas deposit. It was demonstrated that mechanical activation of brown coal with the addition of 16–18% alkali provided a drilling reagent with a humic acid content of at least 40% and a solubility of at least 60%. Based on the obtained results, a formulation and technology were proposed for producing a drilling reagent component based on brown coal from the Kangalas deposit. It was established that the resulting reagent had a positive effect on the rheological properties of clay and polymer–clay water-based drilling fluids. It was found that the most significant effect on both clay and polymer–clay drilling fluids was achieved at a reagent content of at least 1.5 kg/m³, at which the yield point of drilling fluids decreased by 52 and 25%, respectively, relative to the drilling fluids without the reagent. Reagents obtained using brown coals from the Kangalas deposit can be used as a viscosity reducer for clay and polymer–clay water-based drilling fluids.