LAUSR

Abstract The use of nano-additives in improving drilling fluid properties in order to meet the modern drilling process requirement is still being debated till date. In this study, nano bentonite and nano chemical additives are used to improve the rheological and filtration properties of drilling fluid using local and commercial bentonite. In the first part of this work, the feasibility of using Iraqi clay as a source of drilling fluid was investigated at 6, 10, 15 and 20 wt% concentrations and mixed with nano commercial bentonite and nano Iraqi clay at 1, 2, 3, and 4 wt% concentrations. The results showed that this addition did not improve the properties of drilling fluid and its quality in order to meet the API standards. In the second part, a commercial bentonite was used and mixed with nano commercial bentonite and nano chemical materials (MgO, TiO 2, and graphene) at 0.005, 0.01, 0.05, 0.1, 0.2 and 0.4 wt% concentrations. The results showed that nano commercial bentonite gives the same filtration behavior of graphene, whereas, the plastic viscosity, yield point and apparent viscosity were the same when using nano commercial bentonite, TiO 2 and graphene. The best results were obtained with MgO addition, whereby the filter loss decreased to 35% with a higher value of yield point.