Month: December 2025

In modern deep drilling—whether for oil, gas, or geothermal energy—high formation temperatures are a critical challenge. As depth increases, circulating mud temperatures surge, leading to fluid degradation, equipment failure, and safety hazards. A professional Drilling Fluid Cooling System is no longer optional; it is essential for safe and efficient operations.

Why is Mud Cooling System Mandatory?

High temperatures create a cascade of operational risks:

• Property Degradation: High heat breaks down chemical additives and polymers, causing uncontrolled fluid rheology.
• Equipment Damage: Excessive heat accelerates wear on shale shaker screens, centrifuge seals, and downhole tools.
• Safety Risks: Overheated mud increases wellbore instability and worsens the working environment for the crew.

How It Works: Precision Heat Exchange

The system operates on the principle of thermal exchange. High-temperature mud passes through a Heat Exchanger (plate or coaxial), transferring heat to a cooling medium (air, water, or refrigerant).

• Key Components: Heat exchanger, refrigeration/cooling unit, circulation pumps, and an intelligent control system for real-time temperature monitoring.

Tailored Mud Cooling Solutions

Depending on the environment, different configurations are utilized:

• Air-Cooled Systems: Ideal for water-scarce regions.
• Water-Cooled Systems: High-efficiency cooling using towers or external water sources.
• Integrated/Hybrid Systems: Combines both technologies for maximum flexibility.

Summary

The drilling fluid cooling system is a vital safeguard for deep-well integrity. By preserving mud properties and extending equipment life, it ensures the success of complex drilling projects.

Partner with an industry expert like KOSUN to get a customized, energy-efficient cooling solution tailored to your specific rig site challenges.

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Currently, stringent environmental regulations and rising operational costs make efficient Oil-Based Mud (OBM) management critical. An advanced OBM Drilling Waste Treatment System provides a “closed-loop” solution that ensures regulatory compliance while significantly recovering valuable drilling fluids.

Ensuring Environmental Compliance

Modern OBM treatment systems utilize a “treat-while-drilling” approach to achieve Zero Discharge.

• Oil Content Control: Systems can reduce oil on cuttings (OOC) to ≤5%, meeting international standards for safe disposal or resource reuse (e.g., road paving).
• Eco-Protection: Closed-loop processing prevents soil and groundwater contamination, eliminating the legal risks of illegal disposal.

Maximizing Economic Benefits

Oil-based mud is a high-value asset. Our system utilizes Vertical Cuttings Dryers (VCD) and Decanter Centrifuges to turn waste into profit.

• 90%+ Recovery Rate: Efficiently recovers base oil for immediate reuse in mud formulation, drastically cutting material costs.
• Volume Reduction: Lowering oil and liquid content reduces waste volume, leading to significant savings in transportation and third-party disposal fees.
• Footprint Optimization: Eliminates the need for traditional mud pits, simplifying site layout and accelerating rig moves.

Technical Reliability and Efficiency

Designed for high-density, high-solids OBM, our modular systems are built for continuous heavy-load operations.

• Core Components: High-quality screw conveyors, cuttings dryers, and centrifuges ensure stable performance in harsh environments.
• High Throughput: Processing speeds are synchronized with drilling progress to ensure no operational downtime.
• Customization: Skid-mounted and modular designs allow for rapid deployment and flexible configuration based on well-site requirements.

Advanced Operation and Maintenance

• Automation: PLC-integrated control systems monitor torque, temperature, and runtime in real-time with automatic safety alarms.
• Easy Relocation: Modular assembly ensures fast installation and seamless transition between well sites.
• Low Upkeep: Wear-resistant components and dedicated technical support minimize long-term maintenance expenses.

Conclusion

The OBM Drilling Waste Treatment System is a vital investment for sustainable oil and gas operations. By integrating mature technology with automated control, companies can achieve peak economic efficiency while fulfilling their 2026 environmental mandates.

During drilling operations, the generation of large quantities of waste mud and solid-containing waste liquids poses a significant challenge to on-site environmental disposal. Untreated drilling waste mud often contains a high concentration of suspended solids, fine particles, and emulsified oils, which not only affects the stability of the mud circulation system but also potentially contaminates the environment. Backed by years of expertise in solids control and waste mud treatment technology, Xi’an Kosun has introduced a highly efficient drilling mud decanter centrifuge system, providing users with comprehensive solutions for the reduction and harmless disposal of drilling waste.

I. Precise Separation, Enhanced Liquid Recovery Rate

Kosun’s drilling sludge decanter centrifuges generate a powerful centrifugal force field through high-speed, or even ultra-high-speed, rotation, effectively separating substances of different densities. Larger suspended particles in the waste liquid are rapidly propelled towards the outer wall of the rotating bowl by the centrifugal force and are discharged as they slide along the inner wall; while the lighter liquid phase accumulates in the central area and is discharged from the upper outlet, achieving the goal of solid-liquid separation. This process not only effectively removes emulsified oils, fibers, and sediments from the waste liquid but also significantly improves the clarity of the liquid, creating conditions for mud reuse or compliant discharge.

II. Stable Operation, Convenient Maintenance

The design of Xi’an Kosun’s decanting centrifuges emphasizes structural stability and balanced operation, utilizing wear-resistant bowl materials and high-strength main shafts to ensure excellent separation performance even under prolonged high-speed operation. The equipment is also equipped with intelligent control and automatic protection functions, allowing for real-time monitoring of operating status, simple maintenance, and easy operation by personnel.

III. Wide Range of Applications, Significant Environmental Benefits

These devices are suitable not only for waste mud minimization at drilling sites but also for applications in oilfield drilling fluid circulation, chemical wastewater pretreatment, municipal sludge dewatering, and other fields. By achieving clear liquid recovery through mechanical separation, the equipment reduces the volume of waste discharge, effectively lowers treatment costs, and helps meet environmental regulatory requirements.

Xi’an Kosun is committed to providing efficient and reliable solids control and waste treatment equipment for the energy and environmental sectors. With advanced manufacturing processes and extensive field experience, Kosun’s decanter separator have become core equipment in numerous domestic and international drilling projects, ensuring that waste mud treatment is no longer a challenge.

Oil sludge is a complex substance composed of a mixture of oil, water, and solid particles. Without professional treatment, it not only results in resource wastage but also causes serious environmental pollution. To achieve effective separation of oil, water, and solids, and enable resource reuse, Xi’an KOSUN has long focused on the R&D of oil sludge treatment technologies and equipment manufacturing. We have introduced a series of efficient and energy-saving sludge treatment equipment and systems, helping clients minimize disposal costs while maximizing oil recovery.

In terms of sources, oil sludge is primarily categorized into three types:
First, waste oil sludge and oil sand are generated during crude oil tank cleaning operations;
Second, waste oil sludge produced during refinery processes;
Third, waste oil sludge and drill cuttings from drilling operations.
Targeting oil sludge with different properties and from different sources, Xi’an KOSUN can provide customized treatment solutions according to client requirements, ensuring optimal separation results and compliance with environmental standards.

Regarding equipment configuration, Xi’an KOSUN provides a complete set of treatment equipment:
Firstly, the shale shaker is used for the preliminary separation of coarser solid materials. It can be optionally equipped with a spray system and anti-splash sealing structure, effectively removing oil attached to the surface of large particles.
Secondly, the horizontal decanter centrifuge is utilized for the fine separation of fine solids from the oil-water mixture. Featuring high-strength alloy materials and imported bearings, it ensures stable and reliable operation, long service life, and convenient maintenance.
Finally, the oil-water separator can be optionally configured with air flotation or ultrasonic oil-water separation devices depending on specific working conditions, ensuring high separation efficiency, standard-compliant effluent discharge, and superior recovered oil quality.
Leveraging rich industry experience and advanced technical expertise, Xi’an KOSUN has provided mature oil sludge treatment system solutions for numerous petroleum, chemical, and environmental protection enterprises, helping clients achieve the treatment goals of “reduction, harmlessness, and resource utilization.” Choosing Xi’an KOSUN means choosing professionalism, efficiency, and reliability.

Tailings (fine residues in the form of sludge from mining) have traditionally been stored in large sedimentation ponds, creating a significant environmental burden and wasting valuable process water. Under increasingly strict environmental standards, traditional wet stacking methods are no longer sustainable.

Kosun offers modern dewatering solutions to treat mining residues economically, recover process water, and achieve the multiple goals of saving space, reducing costs, and protecting the environment. This article highlights how Kosun uses its core technology—the decanter centrifuge—to address industry pain points and support sustainable mine development.

I. The Challenges and Necessity of Tailings Treatment System

Traditional wet stacking of tailings faces multiple challenges:

Environmental Pollution: Harmful substances can seep into the groundwater.

Safety Hazards: Tailings ponds pose a risk of dam failure, especially in unstable geological regions.

Resource Waste: Process water is difficult to recover, consuming large amounts of fresh water resources.

An efficient and reliable tailings treatment system has become essential infrastructure for modern mines.

II. Kosun Tailings Solution: Core Technology and Process

Addressing the difficulties in tailings slurry treatment, Kosun has developed a comprehensive solution centered on the decanter centrifuge, reducing waste volume and enabling water resource recycling.

Core Equipment:

Decanter Centrifuge: Generates centrifugal force through high-speed rotation to efficiently and continuously separate solid particles from liquid.

Supporting Equipment: Includes screening equipment (for pre-treatment), dosing systems (to improve efficiency), and belt conveyors (to transport the filter cake).

Process Flow:

The system uses a “screening + centrifugal dewatering and dry stacking” process:

Pre-treatment and Separation: Tailings slurry is screened, then pumped to the Kosundecanter centrifuge for solid-liquid separation.

Water Resource Reuse: The separated liquid phase (clean water) is fully returned to the mine’s production processes for recirculation.

Dry Stacking: The solid phase (dry cake) is transported for safe, dry stacking.

III. Key Advantages of the Kosun Tailings Treatment System

The Kosun solution complies with regulatory requirements and provides significant environmental and economic benefits:

Environmental Friendliness: Reduces wastewater volume and pressure on dam walls, minimizing environmental risks.

Cost Savings: Recovers process water, significantly lowering operational costs and fresh water demand.

Continuous Stability: The screw centrifuge runs continuously without filter cloths, ensuring stable, round-the-clock dewatering.

Small Footprint, Easy Installation: Equipment is compact and can be fixed in place or used as a mobile containerized solution.

The Kosun tailings treatment system is a crucial solution for modern mines aiming for safe, environmentally responsible, and efficient operations. We help mining companies minimize environmental risks, achieve water recycling, and ensure long-term stable production capacity. Contact us today for a tailor-made tailings treatment solution!

Driven by increasingly stringent environmental regulations globally, “mud non-landing” has become an indispensable part of modern drilling operations. Faced with the two mainstream mud non-landing options, oil-based mud (OBM) and water-based mud (WBM), many companies still have questions: What are the differences between them? How to make the best choice based on project needs? This article will provide you with a deep analysis from multiple dimensions such as processing difficulty, cost, core equipment, and environmental benefits to help you achieve efficient and green drilling operations.

I. What is Zero-Discharge Technology?

Zero discharge is not a single piece of equipment, but a systematic concept of drilling waste management. It uses a series of devices to collect, treat, and recycle the mud and cuttings generated during the drilling process, avoiding the direct discharge of waste into mud pits or onto the surface as in traditional methods, thereby minimizing environmental pollution. This technology is a crucial cornerstone for achieving green, environmentally friendly, and sustainable development in the drilling industry.

II. Oil-Based Mud (OBM) Zero Discharge: Technology-Driven High-Standard Processing

Oil-Based Mud (OBM) zero-discharge technology is typically applied in deep, high-difficulty wells and other complex formations with extremely high requirements. Its core characteristics include:

• High processing difficulty and demanding equipment requirements: OBM has strong adhesion to cuttings, and the base oil is a contaminant. Processing requires precision equipment like vertical cuttings dryers (VCDs), utilizing powerful centrifugal force to thoroughly remove the oil, ensuring the final oil content meets strict standards.
• Base oil recovery provides significant economic benefits: A major advantage of OBM zero-discharge systems is the ability to recover expensive base oil for reuse, significantly reducing drilling costs.
• Strict solids disposal and controllable risk: After treatment, the residual oil in the cuttings is extremely low, allowing for safe disposal via landfill, roadbed use, or incineration. Pollution is minimized through an efficient closed-loop system and strict equipment control.

III. Water-Based Mud (WBM) Zero Discharge: A Cost-Effective and Widely Applicable Solution

Water-Based Mud (WBM) zero-discharge technology is currently the most widely used and cost-effective mud solution. Its advantages are mainly reflected in:

• Low processing difficulty, simple and efficient equipment: The main component of WBM is water, which is easy to separate from cuttings. Core equipment includes drying shakers, horizontal centrifuges, and filter presses, primarily used for efficient solid-liquid separation and dewatering.
• Recovery of water and usable mud, saving resources: The recovered clean water or mud can be reused, reducing the demand for fresh water and lowering mud costs, making it particularly suitable for areas with water shortages.
• Simple solid-phase treatment, low disposal costs: The solid mud cake formed after pressure filtration and dewatering has low water content and can be directly solidified or used as roadbed material. Its environmental disposal cost is far lower than that of oil-based cuttings.

IV. Objective Comparison

Oil-Based Mud (OBM) Zero Discharge:
The base fluid is oil as the continuous phase (including mineral oil, synthetic oil, diesel, etc.). Processing difficulty is high due to strong adhesion to cuttings and the oil component being a contaminant; oil must be efficiently separated and recovered to meet environmental standards. Core equipment includes cuttings dryers (vertical centrifuges), high-temperature pyrolysis equipment, etc., aiming to thoroughly separate the oil to recover valuable base oil and reduce costs. Solid phase (cuttings) residual oil content must meet strict environmental standards before disposal. Costs are higher; typically applied in deep wells, highly deviated wells, horizontal wells, and complex geological operations with extremely high requirements.

Water-Based Mud (WBM) Zero Discharge:
The base fluid is water as the continuous phase (including clay, polymer additives, etc.). Processing difficulty is relatively low; separation from cuttings is easy, and core goals are dewatering and solidification. Core equipment includes drying shakers, horizontal centrifuges, filter presses, etc., mainly used for efficient solid-liquid separation and recovery of water and reusable mud to lower preparation costs. Solid phase (mud cake) has low water content after dewatering and can be directly solidified, landfilled, or used as roadbed material, resulting in lower disposal costs. Costs are lower; widely applied in shallow and conventional wells, it is the most common drilling fluid system.

V. How to Choose

Choosing a solution isn’t about which is better, but a comprehensive decision based on project conditions.

• Primary considerations: Formation and engineering needs. If operations require OBM for safety/efficiency, OBM zero discharge is the only option. For conventional/shallow wells with lower requirements, WBM zero discharge is more cost-effective.
• Cost-Benefit Analysis: Determine if base oil recovery savings offset higher OBM system costs. For short-term or cost-sensitive projects, WBM is usually more economical.
• Regulations and Location: Meeting local environmental standards is mandatory. In areas with strict rules and high base oil costs, OBM offers greater long-term economic and environmental advantages via recovery.

Conclusion

Both OBM and WBM zero discharge represent the drilling industry’s environmental commitment. Understanding the differences and choosing wisely based on needs is key to green drilling and competitiveness. We offer customized solutions to balance environmental protection and efficiency.

Contact us to begin your green drilling journey!