US Patent Issued to Saudi Arabian Oil on Nov. 3 for "Drilling with water-based mud including multiple clays" (Texas Inventor)

ALEXANDRIA, Va., Nov. 3 -- United States Patent no. 12,781,117, issued on Nov. 3, was assigned to Saudi Arabian Oil Co. (Dhahran, Saudi Arabia).

"Drilling with water-based mud including multiple clays" was invented by Ashok Santra (Woodlands, Texas).

According to the abstract* released by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office: "An aqueous drilling fluid is flowed from a surface location through a drill string and into a wellbore formed in a subterranean formation. The aqueous drilling fluid includes bentonite and a synthetic clay. While flowing the aqueous drilling fluid, a drill bit coupled to the drill string is rotated within the wellbore, thereby cutting into the subterranean formation and elongating the wellbore. The drilling fluid from...