The Role of Drilled Formation in Filter Cake Properties Utilizing Different Weighting Materials

The filter cake formed during a filtration process plays a vital role in the success of a drilling operation. There are several factors affecting the filter cake build-up such as drilled formation, drilling fluid properties, and well pressure and temperature. The collective impact of these two factors (i.e., formation and the drilling fluid) on the filter cake build-up needs to be fully investigated. In this study, two types of formations represented as limestone and sandstone were used with different weighting materials to assess and compare their impact on the filter cake properties, filtration behavior, and solid invasion. The used weighting materials are manganese tetroxide, ilmenite, barite, and hematite. The filter cake was formed under a temperature of 200 °F and differential pressure of 300 psi. Nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy was employed to explore the pore structure of the used core samples. The results showed that the properties (i.e., shape and dimensions) of the different weighting materials are the dominant factors compared to the formation characteristics in most of the investigated filter cake properties. Nevertheless, the formation properties, namely, the permeability and pore structure, have a somehow higher contribution when it comes to the filter cake porosity and thickness. For solid invasion, there were no clear results about the main factor contributing to this issue.