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Drill
Mud Additives
Drill
mud additives serve a variety of purposes during drilling
and are adjusted or used as a situation arises. Our concern
isn't so much how a drill mud additive is used as to what
it contains; certain types of additives, such as biocides,
tend to use toxic chemicals.
Aldacide
G
Aldacide G is a biocide made by Halliburton
and its Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) can
be viewed or downloaded. All of Halliburton's drill mud
additives' MSDSs, in addition to other information about additives,
can be seen at their site (choose Fluid Services).
Material
Safety Data Sheets are used by companies and their workers
so that they can handle chemicals and compounds safely. Chemicals
of concern are indicated along with a percentage or amount
in the product. Hazards are listed along with recommended
safety devices or gear needed for handling (gloves, goggles,
etc.). Drill mud additive MDSDs that we've seen generally
offer very little information. Companies are not required
to provide information about "proprietary" substances
in the product.
Aldacide
G has one chemical listed on its MSDS -- glutaraldehyde. Is
this chemical dangerous? The MSDS gives some indications but
generally a person must look elsewhere for the answer.
The
Endocrine Disruption Exchange
The
Endocrine Disruption Exchange (TEDX) has examined a large
number of MSDSs for drill mud additives and some fracturing
products and has organized data by their use in individual
wells (Washington's McBride 28-13 and Wyoming's Crosby 25-3)
or in states (Colorado, Montana and New Mexico). Their analysis
shows broadly the health effects according to chemicals and
for specific additives. More useful are their Excel spreadsheets
where they pack a lot of information about each chemical or
additive according to its characteristics and known and suspected
health effects including causing cancer.
To
find the spreadsheets and analyses at The Endocrine Disruption
Exchange's website, select Chemicals and Natural Gas.
Petroleum
Services Association of Canada
The Petroleum Services Association of Canada has their own
drill
mud additive list which shows toxicity. In Canada, drill
waste must be tested for biologic toxicity unless the driller
tailors their additives and quantities so there will be no
toxicity. We would like to see something like this done in
this state.
A
confusing aspect of the PSAC list is that values of 75% or
more are considered non-toxic (in the Initial EC50(15%) column).
So the lower the value, then the more acutely toxic. Some
additives like Aldacide G have a specific value. Use above
this quantity automatically requires a toxicity test of the
waste.
Crosby
25-3 Well in Wyoming
A well where Aldacide G was used and for which a large amount
of information is available is the Crosby 25-3 well in Wyoming
where there was a blowout causing extensive ground surface
and aquifer contamination. The operator has a public
website with documents, and MSDSs for the drill mud additives
used, related to the environmental remediation.
Generally,
the additives that caused most concern were those that contained
petroleum products (kerosene) and the biocide Aldacide G.
Unfortunately there isn't a way to test for glutaraldehyde,
not the same way that hydrocarbons like kerosene can be tested
for in universally accepted methods.
One
remediation report
for the Crosby well does publish quantities of additives used;
the first we've seen of this. In the Crosby well Terracon
estimates that the concentration of glutaraldehyde -- 350
gallons were used -- "ranged from approximately 93 ppm
up to 270 ppm."
There
are more environmentally friendly alternatives to many of
the really toxic additives and industry needs to be encouraged
to use them.
Finally,
some of the additives' chemicals can be found in the NIOSH
Pocket Guide which is downloadable. Or, chemicals can
be searched
for on the NIOSH database.
Summary
The
Petroleum Services Association of Canada's mudlist
Halliburton's
website
The
Endocrine Disruption Exchange website
We've found their Crosby
25-3 and Colorado
Excel spreadsheets the most useful. Note that the Wyoming
well used products not on the Colorado spreadsheet. No list
is exhaustive. The website has a
useful list of definitions of the different types of mud
additives and some of the materials used in fracturing.
Windsor
Energy Crosby 25-3 website
The
Crosby 25-3 mudlist with links to MSDSs
Remedial
Investigation Work Plan
-- Final in Appendix B lists the drill mud additives used,
their chemicals and quantities. Highlighted additives/chemicals
were those of concern.
NIOSH
Pocket Guide
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