barite | Oilfield Glossary
2. n. [Drilling Fluids] A dense mineral comprising barium sulfate [BaSO 4].Commonly used as a weighting agent for all types of drilling fluids, barites are mined in many areas worldwide and shipped as ore to grinding plants in strategic locations, where API specifies grinding to a particle size of 3 to74 microns. Pure barium sulfate has a specific gravity of g/cm 3, but drillinggrade