There are impressive efforts in conjunction with improving rheological and filtration properties of Water-Based Drilling Fluids (WBDFs) employing Nano-Particles (NPs). However, NPs’ performance in the presence of different salts has not been well assessed. This study intends to investigate the effect of Fe3O4 NPs on rheological and filtration properties of bentonite-water drilling fluids exposed to NaCl, CaCl2, and MgCl2 salts. To reach the goal specified for this study, three 0.5, 1 and 2 wt% NP concentrations, separately, were added into a salt-free and three salt-contaminated bentonite-water drilling fluids (four base fluids). So, 16 different drilling fluids were prepared for this research. The rheological models obtained by six shear rates, apparent viscosity, plastic viscosity, yield point, gel strength, and cutting carrying ability of all the drilling fluids are described in the paper. Moreover, API fluid losses (under 100 psi differential pressure), the cakes’ thickness, and the cakes’ permeability compared to the same as the salt-free base fluid, are interpreted to evaluate the NPs’ performance on filtration control ability of all the drilling fluids. The results showed that the salts weaken the rheological and filtration properties of the salt-free base fluid, while Fe3O4 NPs sustain and improve the rheological properties of salt-free and salty drilling fluids, significantly. Nano-sized Fe3O4 weakens the filtration properties of the salt-free WBDF, but it is a suitable filtration control agent for salt-contaminated drilling fluids. In a sentence, nano-Fe3O4 is a suitable additive to enhance salty-WBDFs’ performance.
During the past decade, researchers have used different Nano-Particles (NPs) due to their unique characteristics for improving formulation of Oil-Based Drilling Fluids (OBDFs). This study is the first research that investigates the effect of a Modified Nano Clay (MNC), namely CLOISITE 5 and non-functionalized Nano Graphene (NG) on rheology, electrical/emulsion stability, and filtration control ability, as the main properties of OBDFs. Initially, five concentrations of both NPs (0.25, 0.5, 1, 1.5, and 2 wt%) were added separately into an NP-free OBDF (the base fluid). Then, rheological properties and electrical stability of all prepared fluids were measured at three 90, 140, and 180 °F temperatures. Moreover, filtration test was carried out under 500 psi (3447 kPa) differential pressure and exposed to 300 °F temperature for all fluids. Since experimentally measured shear stresses followed well both Herschel Bulkley (shear-thinning) and Bingham Plastic models, effects of temperature and the NPs concentration on both model parameters are investigated more deeply in the paper. Activation energies calculated from Arrhenius model showed that MNC is more effective than NG on reducing the dependency of apparent and plastic viscosities of the base fluid on temperature. MNC, due to its amphiphilic structure, significantly stabilizes water-in-oil emulsion at all temperatures and concentrations, but NG with high electrical conductivity reduces the emulsion stability. The nanofluids containing 0.5 wt% MNC and 0.25 wt% NG which have respectively 32.6% and 43.5% fewer filtrate volumes than the base fluid, were considered as the optimal nanofluids from controlling filtration into formation aspect. Finally, MNC is applicable to enhance the formulation of the OBDF through supporting its commercial viscosifier, emulsifiers, and fluid loss control agent, but the negative effect of NG on emulsion stability limits its application.
Summary
Lost circulation is one of the most challenging problems during drilling of oil and gas wells. This issue leads to significant loss of drilling fluid, increase of nonproductive time as well as dictating additional costs to drilling companies. Lost circulation may also lead to other consequences, including stuck pipe, poor hole cleaning, and well control issues. How to efficiently control lost circulation have been traditionally depending on the type of the used lost circulation material (LCM). Injection of commonly available materials (without any further process on their chemical properties) into the thief zone is a common method of lost circulation control. These nonmodified materials are named as conventional LCMs against the unconventional LCMs which are designed/produced just for fluid lost control.
The objective of this paper is to comparatively investigate the performance of cane, oak shell, wheat, and mica as LCM of water-based drilling fluid exposed to fractured formations. These materials were chosen because of their low cost, easy access, and compatibility with the environment. The sealing efficiency of these materials was assessed at different particle-size distributions (PSDs) for proper treatment of loss circulation. To do so, an experimental setup containing a cell with adjustable fracture size was designed.
Among the LCM formulations made of each of the materials, oak shell formulations are better than the others, followed by mica and cane blends, respectively. The results reveal that combining the materials together is a better treatment than the separate use of them. As it will be seen in detail later, high diversity in particle size (broad PSD) causes more efficient control of fluid loss. Also, to reduce the dependency of sealing ability of LCM formulation on fracture size, mixing of the materials with different particle sizes and shapes is recommended.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.