Application of Surfactants in the Drilling Fluids to Mitigate the Shale Hydration and Swelling

This chapter is divided into eight different sections. The first three sections describes the introduction of drilling fluid in general and drilling fluid types along with the major drilling fluid additives, major problems of drilling fluids (related to the shale swelling and hydration), Solution of shale swelling and hydration (emphasis on the use of surfactants). It also discusses about the classification and synthesis of surfactants that are used in the formulation of drilling fluids and potential application for shale inhibitions. The next three of this chapter discusses about the impact of surfactants on rheology and filtration properties, and the evaluation of shale inhibition characteristics with surfactant which has explained all the techniques involved in characterizing drilling fluids for shale inhibition. The last two sections of this chapter discusses about the field applications, recommendations and challenges of surfactants for shale inhibition.