Mudcube 

The drilling of wells in the oil and gas industry requires the use of drilling fluids for pressure control, lubrication and cooling of the drilling equipment as well as for transportation of the drill cuttings. 

At the drilling rig surface, the cuttings are separated from the drilling fluid to enable recycling of the fluid. The traditional method of separation is by using shale-shakers, which use great vibrational forces to remove the cuttings from the fluid.

The fluid is forced through a screen by gravitation and inertia by the action of the vibrating screen and it is then returned to storage tanks. 

This separation process generates a great deal of noise and causes high vibration levels as well as high concentrations of oil vapour and oil mist in the working atmosphere. It has previously been difficult to achieve a sufficiently low risk by technical measures alone, and personal protective equipment and organisation of the work have had to be used as barriers.

Since 2005, a new technology for solids removal, Mudcube, has been developed by the Norwegian company Cubility. The Mudcube system applies a vacuum to pull the fluid through a slowly rotating screen. The new device is fully enclosed and, in combination with the vacuum system, oil vapour and oil mist are removed at the emission source.

The noise level from the device is very low and the only noisy equipment, the vacuum pumps, is installed in separate noise enclosures. The Mudcube is expected to significantly improve the working environment in the mud processing units.

StatoilHydro specialists in drilling fluid technology and working environment technology have contributed to the development and technology qualification of the Mudcube. During 2007, StatoilHydro made preparations for the first offshore field testing of the Mudcube on the Sleipner A platform in 2008.

Several StatoilHydro modification projects are now considering the possibility of implementing the Mudcube system as a permanent solution for the removal of solids.