As described in Problem 3.16, a drilling mud is slurry pumped into oil wells being drilled. The mud has several functions: It floats rock cuttings to the top of the well where they can easily be removed; lubricates and cools the drill bit; and keeps loose solids and water from leaking into the borehole. A drilling mud is prepared by blending barite (SG = 4:37) with seawater (SG = 1:03). The seawater has a dissolved salt content of approximately 3.5 wt%. You have been asked to determine the specific gravity of the mud and the wt% barite. You collect a sample of the mud from a blending tank on an oil platform and make the following observations: (i) The mud appears homogeneous, even after standing for 2 days; (ii) the tare mass of the calibrated vessel into which you pour the sample of mud is 118 g; (iii) the volume of the collected sample is 100 mL, and the mass of the collection vessel and sample is 323 g; and (iv) the mass of the vessel and residue remaining after completely evaporating water from the sample is 254 g.

(a) Estimate the specific gravity of the mud and the wt% barite.

(b) What is the practical importance of Observation (i)?