Experimental investigations of clathrate hydrate inhibition in water based drilling fluid using green inhibitor

Formation of hydrate plugs in drilling fluid is a serious problem in oil and gas industries. Recently, interest in the development of green hydrate inhibitors increased which can be used as substitutes for available low dosage hydrate inhibitors (LDHIs). In this research paper the effect of porcine pancreatic lipase on the formation of tetrahydrofuran (THF) clathrate hydrate was studied by determining the time for nucleation of hydrate crystals (induction time). Pancreatic lipase inhibits the formation of clathrate hydrate and its growth by adsorbing to different hydrate crystal faces. The ability of pancreatic lipase to eliminate or extends the "memory effect" was also studied and compared with polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP). Pancreatic lipase found to be a better inhibitor than PVP and also suppresses the "memory effect" more efficiently. The effect of pancreatic lipase on the rheology of drilling fluid was studied as rheological characteristics of drilling fluid are most crucial for safe drilling operations. It was found that drilling fluid performs satisfactorily in terms of rheology at different concentrations of pancreatic lipase. This research paper shows that pancreatic lipase can be effectively used in drilling fluid as a green hydrate inhibitor. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.