Rheological Study of Oil Palm Trunk Waste as Viscosifier Agent for Water-Based Mud

Abstract

The cellulose obtained from Oil Palm Trunk (OPT) is used to determine its potential as a viscosifier agent for the Water-Based Mud (WBM). The cellulose was extracted by using two methods which are Method 1 (Chlorination-Bleaching Process and Mercerization Method) and Method 2 (Dewaxed-Alkaline-Delignification Method). The characterization of OPT cellulose is defined by FTIR while the content of the cellulose product is determined by the Weighting Method. The mud samples were formulated by the presence of different weight of cellulose applied. The rheological properties analysis was conducted on the viscosity (PV), gel strength, yield point (YP) and, filtrate volume. FTIR Spectrometry results showed that Method 2 mimicked the behavior of HEC cellulose (commercial product). Method 2 produced cellulose which has a similar functional group that appears at the same spectral peaks with HEC cellulose. On the yield percentage, Method 2 yields more cellulose by 43.05% while Method 1 only yields 37.63% of cellulose. While the results from the rheological analysis summarized that cellulose obtained from Method 2 portrays a good range of results as it met the standard range of PV for the WBM by API Recommended Practice 13B-1. In conclusion, the cellulose extracted from Method 2 has the potential to be commercialized as a viscosifier agent for WBM.