[QUOTE=Alf;40061]Yes
[B]LCM[/B]= [B]L[/B]ost [B]C[/B]irculation [B]M[/B]aterial
in its simplest form it is a liquid containing a lot of suspended solid particles. You may have seen and used something similar yourself in your car radiator when it has sprung a water leak. something like “RadSeal”?.. a liquid with bits of cork in it. When the liquid flows around the cooling system, the bits of cork end up in the holes/leak points and hopefully plug the hole from the inside of the pipe/radiator.
Same principle applies to LCM. However, nowadays technology has progressed a bit, and like Araldite, you can have a base fluid and an accelerator which when mixed will set “hard?” after a certain period of time.
Bring onto the stage a recipe like “Formaset”.
LCM is designed to fill holes/voids/cracks and crannies so to speak.
Pass it thru’ the inside bore of a BOP where there are lots of such spaces and where do you think that LCM will collect?
Pass that LCM thru’ a 3" diameter pipe with a choke on the end (ie a choke line and choke manifold) and guess what might happen?
oops. consequences of an inoperable choke?.. if the choke line becomes plugged up, then there is the kill line that could be used.
if the choke manifold and valves and chokes become plugged up… then the only option is to somehow clean them. Trying to do that under well control conditions is not simple and needs to be carefully planned/scrutinized/controlled etc.[/QUOTE]
LCM pill in kill and choke line maybe also caused false pressure readings!