Patent ID: 6036870
Filing Date: 2000-03-14
Classification: E21B

Abstract:
A method for recovering a component from a wellbore fluid mixture, comprising:mixing the wellbore fluid in a tank to maintain homogeneity,lowering viscosity of the wellbore fluid mixture,feeding the wellbore fluid mixture to a decanting centrifuge, the wellbore fluid mixture containing at least one liquid component and undesirable solids,separating undesirable solids from the wellbore fluid mixture with the decanting centrifuge to produce an intermediate fluid containing the at least one liquid component and a reduced amount of the undesirable solids,feeding the intermediate fluid to a secondary centrifuge to produce a final fluid containing the at least one liquid component and a further reduced amount of the undesirable solids, andfiltering the final fluid, whereby the final fluid is then reusable as wellbore fluid.