Mud Logging
Pumps drilling mud (mixture of water, clay, weighting material and chemicals, used to lift rock cuttings from the drill bit to the surface) under pressure through the kelly, rotary table, drill pipes and drill collars
• pump - sucks mud from the mud pits and pumps it to the drilling apparatus
• pipes and hoses - connects pump to drilling apparatus
• mud-return line - returns mud from hole
• shale shaker - shaker/sieve that separates rock cuttings from the mud
• shale slide - conveys cuttings to the reserve pit
• reserve pit - collects rock cuttings separated from the mud
• mud pits - where drilling mud is mixed and recycled
• mud-mixing hopper - where new mud is mixed and then sent to the mud pits
Drill-mud circulation system
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• Derrick - support structure that holds the drilling apparatus; tall enough to allow new sections of drill pipe to be added to the drilling apparatus as drilling progresses
• Blowout preventer - high-pressure valves (located under the land rig or on the sea floor) that seal the high-pressure drill lines and relieve pressure when necessary to prevent a blowout (uncontrolled gush of gas or oil to the surface, often associated with fire)
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