Green additives effectiveness in water-based drilling mud performance: A study of pistachio shell powder, magnesium oxide, and carbon black particles
10 affiliations
- 1Department of Chemical Engineering, School of Advanced Engineering, UPES, Dehradun, India
- 2Department of Industrial Engineering, Universitas Tarumanagara, Jakarta, Indonesia
- 3Department of Aeronautical Engineering, KIT-Kalaignarkarunanidhi Institute of Technology, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, India
- 4Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering, Academy of Maritime Education and Training (AMET) Deemed University, East Coast Road, Kanathur, Chennai, India
- 5Department of Mechanical Engineering, Inderprastha Engineering College (IPEC), Ghaziabad, India
- 6Universiti Kuala Lumpur, Malaysian Institute of Aviation Technology (UniKL MIAT), Lot Jalan Jenderam Hulu, Dengkil, Selangor, Malaysia
- 7Department of Mechanical Engineering, Saveetha School of Engineering, SIMATS, Saveetha University, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India
- 8Additive Manufacturing Research and Innovation Center (AMRIC), Mechanical Engineering Department, College of Engineering, Prince Mohammad Bin Fahd University, Al-Khobar, Saudi Arabia
- 9Centre for Research Impact & Outcome, Chitkara University Institute of Engineering and Technology, Chitkara University, Rajpura, Punjab, India
- 10Division of Research and Development, Lovely Professional University, Phagwara, India
Abstract
Drilling fluid performance is critical for wellbore stability, cuttings transport, and minimizing formation damage, but conventional additives often raise environmental concerns. This study evaluates the effectiveness of three additives, pistachio shell powder (PSP), magnesium oxide (MgO) nanoparticles, and carbon black (CB), in enhancing the rheological and filtration properties of water‑based drilling muds (WBMs). Ten mud formulations with varying additive concentrations (1–5 g) were prepared, and key parameters including density, pH, plastic viscosity, yield point, gel strength, API fluid loss, and shear‑dependent viscosity were systematically characterized. Results show that PSP significantly improved rheological performance, increasing yield point to 0.771 kg/m² and gel strength to 19.6 lb/100 ft², while maintaining stable density (9.82–9.88 ppg) and pH (8.0–8.2). In filtration tests, PSP achieved an API filtrate volume of 22 mL, superior to CB (26–27 mL) and comparable to MgO, owing to the formation of a thin, low‑permeability filter cake. All muds exhibited non‑Newtonian shear‑thinning behaviour, with PSP offering an optimal balance between viscosity for cuttings suspension and flowability during circulation. As an agricultural waste‑derived additive, PSP demonstrates technical performance on par with MgO nanoparticles while being cost‑effective and environmentally suitable. The main goal of this research is to comparatively study the effects of pistachio shell powder (PSP), magnesium oxide (MgO) nanoparticles, and carbon black (CB) on the rheological and filtration characteristics of water-based drilling muds under similar experimental conditions, and to identify a sustainable and economical drilling fluid additive.
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BibTeX
@article{kudapa2026green,
title = {{Green additives effectiveness in water-based drilling mud performance: A study of pistachio shell powder, magnesium oxide, and carbon black particles}},
author = {Vamsi Krishna Kudapa and Wilson Kosasih and A.R. Saravanan and Amaleswari Rajulapati and K. Kumar and Vijayakumar Sivasundar and Din Bandhu and Ankit Sharma and Ashish Kumar and Najihah Mohd Tamyis},
journal = {PLOS One},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.1371/journal.pone.0357783},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0357783},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Green additives effectiveness in water-based drilling mud performance: A study of pistachio shell powder, magnesium oxide, and carbon black particles
AU - Vamsi Krishna Kudapa
AU - Wilson Kosasih
AU - A.R. Saravanan
AU - Amaleswari Rajulapati
AU - K. Kumar
AU - Vijayakumar Sivasundar
AU - Din Bandhu
AU - Ankit Sharma
AU - Ashish Kumar
AU - Najihah Mohd Tamyis
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/21
JO - PLOS One
DO - 10.1371/journal.pone.0357783
UR - https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0357783
AB - Drilling fluid performance is critical for wellbore stability, cuttings transport, and minimizing formation damage, but conventional additives often raise environmental concerns. This study evaluates the effectiveness of three additives, pistachio shell powder (PSP), magnesium oxide (MgO) nanoparticles, and carbon black (CB), in enhancing the rheological and filtration properties of water‑based drilling muds (WBMs). Ten mud formulations with varying additive concentrations (1–5 g) were prepared, and key parameters including density, pH, plastic viscosity, yield point, gel strength, API fluid loss, and shear‑dependent viscosity were systematically characterized. Results show that PSP significantly improved rheological performance, increasing yield point to 0.771 kg/m² and gel strength to 19.6 lb/100 ft², while maintaining stable density (9.82–9.88 ppg) and pH (8.0–8.2). In filtration tests, PSP achieved an API filtrate volume of 22 mL, superior to CB (26–27 mL) and comparable to MgO, owing to the formation of a thin, low‑permeability filter cake. All muds exhibited non‑Newtonian shear‑thinning behaviour, with PSP offering an optimal balance between viscosity for cuttings suspension and flowability during circulation. As an agricultural waste‑derived additive, PSP demonstrates technical performance on par with MgO nanoparticles while being cost‑effective and environmentally suitable. The main goal of this research is to comparatively study the effects of pistachio shell powder (PSP), magnesium oxide (MgO) nanoparticles, and carbon black (CB) on the rheological and filtration characteristics of water-based drilling muds under similar experimental conditions, and to identify a sustainable and economical drilling fluid additive.
SN - 1932-6203
ER -