Patent ID: 7337860
Filing Date: 2008-03-04
Classification: E21B,F26B,Y10S

Abstract:
1. A method for removing drilling fluid from wet drill cuttings, comprising: providing a processor having a fixed chamber containing already partly dried, heated drill cuttings; adding wet drill cuttings into the chamber, said wet drill cuttings being colder than the heated drill cuttings; introducing a flow of hot gas into the chamber; mechanically back-mixing added wet drill cuttings with heated drill cuttings to promote conductive heat transfer therebetween and simultaneously advancing and directly heating the mixture of drill cuttings with the hot gas, so that sufficient drilling fluid is evaporated from the drill cuttings, as they are heated, to produce drill cuttings that have been dried to a pre-determined drilling fluid content; separately removing produced vapors and gas from the vessel chamber; and separately removing the dried drill cuttings from the vessel chamber.