Gilsonite® uintaite controls fluid loss without damaging the formation

April 14, 2021

Gilsonite® reduces formation damage
Lab tests show that Gilsonite® uintaite used as a fluid loss control additive in synthetic-based drilling mud (SBM) causes negligible formation damage. Third-party lab testing indicated that mud with Gilsonite® uintaite reduced damage to the hydrocarbon-bearing formation compared to synthetic-based mud alone.

Low-tier “black powder” additive damages the formation, reduces permeability
Testing shows that aminated lignite (a black powder additive) causes significant formation damage as measured by decreased return permeability.

Filtrate measurements indicated that Gilsonite® uintaite had negligible impact while mud filtrate containing the black powder additive showed a 15.7% decrease in return permeability. Measurements made without removing the mudcake again showed that Gilsonite® additive caused no formation damage while the black powder additive caused a 26.9% decrease in return permeability.

“It appears that Gilsonite® creates a good seal in the exposed formation, and therefore avoids causing formation damage,” stated Dario Montes, technical director for American Gilsonite Company.

Gilsonite® preserves production potential
Because Gilsonite® uintaite controls fluid loss while minimizing reservoir formation damage, it enables faster and safer drilling operations as it preserves the production potential and helps to optimize the value of an operator’s asset. Gilsonite® is the only drilling fluid additive that prevents lost circulation while increasing wellbore stability and minimizing differential sticking. Contact us today to learn more about the world’s only true source of Gilsonite® and how our high-performance drilling fluid additives can benefit your company.

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