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Technical Resources & Field Guides

Practical, no-nonsense guides written by Paragon's engineering and field teams — drawn from decades of solids control, waste management and equipment procurement experience.

01Equipment Selection

How to Select the Right Decanter Centrifuge

A practical guide to sizing, bowl geometry, differential speed and materials of construction when specifying a decanter centrifuge for drilling fluids and industrial slurries.

7 min readRead article
02Solids Control

Common Causes of Shale Shaker Performance Problems

Blinding, screen tears, poor conveyance, whole mud loss — a field guide to diagnosing the most common shale shaker issues and fixing them fast.

6 min readRead article
03Drilling Waste

Best Practices for Drilling Waste Management

How leading operators reduce drilling waste volumes, cut haulage and disposal costs, and stay ahead of tightening environmental regulations.

8 min readRead article
04Procurement

OEM vs Aftermarket Oilfield Parts: How to Decide

A balanced look at when OEM spares are worth the premium, when quality aftermarket parts are the smarter choice, and the red flags to avoid.

6 min readRead article
05Drilling Waste

Thermal Desorption for Drill Cuttings

How indirect-fired thermal desorption units strip hydrocarbons from OBM cuttings, recover base oil and produce inert solids for disposal or beneficial reuse.

8 min readRead article
06Drilling Waste

Vertical Cuttings Dryers: Selection and Operation

A practical guide to sizing, operating and maintaining vertical cuttings dryers for OBM drilling waste — feed conditioning, downstream recovery and wear-part strategy.

6 min readRead article
07Equipment Selection

Pump Selection for Solids Control & Dewatering

A practical framework for choosing between centrifugal, progressive cavity and air-operated diaphragm pumps on drilling, dewatering and industrial process duties.

7 min readRead article
08Chemicals

Polymer Selection for Dewatering

Cationic vs anionic, dry vs emulsion, make-up and dosing — how to select and apply the right dewatering polymer on centrifuges, filter presses and belt presses.

6 min readRead article
09Equipment Selection

Filter Press Selection & Operation Guide

Recessed vs membrane, cloth selection, feed pump conditioning and cycle optimisation — how to specify and operate a filter press for reliable high-DS cake production.

7 min readRead article
010Solids Control

Choosing the Right Shaker Screen

A field-tested guide to shaker screen selection — API RP 13C designations, mesh vs cut point, screen construction, and how to match screens to formation and mud programme.

6 min readRead article
011Solids Control

Mud Cleaner vs Desander: Which Do You Actually Need?

The engineering difference between a stand-alone desander and an integrated mud cleaner — cut points, cone counts, drying decks and how to pick between them for real drilling programmes.

5 min readRead article
012Equipment Selection

Mechanical Seals Explained

How mechanical seals actually work, why they fail, and how to specify single, double and API 682 arrangements for centrifugal pumps in abrasive, hot or hazardous service.

6 min readRead article
013Solids Control

Hydrocyclone Wear and Selection

How hydrocyclones wear, when to replace apex and vortex inserts, and how to size cone banks against mud pump rate for reliable solids removal.

5 min readRead article
014Drilling Consumables

How to Select the Right Foam Cleaning Ball for Drilling Operations

A practical field guide to sizing, density, open- vs closed-cell foam and best-practice use of foam cleaning balls (foam pigs) on drill pipe, casing and mud lines.

6 min readRead article

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