Environmental Impact of Drilling Fluid Waste and Its Mitigation Techniques

To overcome the demand of energy, there is a rise in the hydrocarbon exploration activities. Different types of drilling fluid are used, in which oil-based drilling fluids are much more effective in terms of efficiency. Used drilling fluid discharges are hazardous to human health and environment due to the presence of potentially harmful substances. Hydrocarbon industries produced a huge amount of used contaminated drilling fluid with different compositions and characteristics depending on formation of drilling operation. Therefore, a remediation technique is required to remove the pollutants from the drilling fluid before disposal. This review paper provides a description of the fundamental elements behind drilling fluids, as well as their roles, sources, characterisation and environmental potential constituents of drilling fluid waste material. Additionally, it draws attention to some environmentally significant elements, such as the various minerals that are present in drilling fluid waste by-product and the remediation techniques, which can be utilised for further processing before disposal to save the environment and human health.