EVALUATION OF PALM OIL BASED FATTY ACID FOR SYNTHESIS OF EMULSIFIER FOR DRILLING FLUIDS

Achieving greater oilfield efficiency and productivity depends on wellsite operations that cost-effectively maximize recovery of oil and gas reserves, while minimizing the impact on the environment. In recent years, environmental issue on drilling operations always had been hot news. Drilling fluids that discharged to the environment give a big impact to marine life and the Mother Nature. The conventional drilling fluids used are not environmental friendly. Although the drilling fluids comply with certain rules and regulations, their increasing price has been a great concern. In order to tackle the issue, this project proposes the invention of a new emulsifier, which is a plant based to be incorporated into drilling fluids. The nature of plant and vegetable which is non-polluting and non-toxic will provide a better solution to overcome the environmental problem. Besides that, this vegetable based emulsifier is cheap and readily available. This new emulsifier is expected to enhance the lubricating properties and provides better stability at various drilling conditions.