The need for environmentally friendly alternatives to water-based drilling fluids has prompted an investigation into the effects of Dioscorea villosa starch as a natural additive in the petroleum and gas industry. In this study, a design of experiments approach utilizing Response Surface Methodology (RSM) through Box-Behnken design (BBD) was employed to optimize the extraction of starch from wild yam (Dioscorea villosa) and formulate drilling muds. The regression model was used to determine the optimized parameters for starch extraction and the results showed a close agreement between the experimental and predicted values with a difference of only 1.295%. The responses considered in the design were plastic viscosity, yield point, apparent viscosity, filtrate volume, and filtercake thickness, with three factors being considered: bentonite, Dioscorea villosa starch, and temperature. The properties of the formulated water-based drilling muds enhanced with Dioscorea villosa starch were analyzed using ANOVA, and linear models were selected based on their significance. The findings suggest that the addition of Dioscorea villosa starch improves the filtration and rheological properties of the drilling muds, with optimal concentrations of 16.92g of bentonite, 3.85g of Dioscorea villosa starch, and a temperature of 81.90°F. Overall, the study demonstrates the potential of Dioscorea villosa starch as a natural additive in water-based drilling fluids, providing an eco-friendly alternative to chemical additives and offering potential environmental benefits.
Key words: Water based drilling mud, RSM, Dioscorea Villosa Starch, ANOVA analysis, Mud Rheology.
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