Gulf of Mexico Frac-and-Pack Treatments Using a New Fracturing Fluid System

Powell, Ronald J.; McCabe,; Slabaugh, B.; Terracina, J.M.; McPike, Tim

doi:10.2118/39897-ms

Cited by 12 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 5 publications

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“…Meanwhile, for the Zr cross-linker zirconium oxychloride, acetic acid and triethanolamine can be mixed together to make the Zr cross-linking agent. At high temperatures, this cross-linker can make the substance thicker, thus taking a longer time to break. ,− …”

Section: Breakers Effects On Seawater Fluidmentioning

confidence: 99%

Seawater-Based Fracturing Fluid: A Review

Budiman,

Alajmei

2023

ACS Omega

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Hydraulic fracturing uses a large amount of fresh water for its operation; conventional wells can consume up to 200 000 gallons of water, while unconventional wells could consume up to 16 million gallons. However, the world's fresh water supply is rapidly depleting, making this a critical and growing problem. Freshwater shortages during large-scale hydraulic fracturing in regions that lack water, such as the Arabian Peninsula and offshore operations, need to be addressed. One of the ways to address this problem is to substitute fresh water with seawater, which is a sustainable, cheap, and technically sufficient fluid that can be utilized as a fracturing fluid. However, its high salinity caused by the multitude of ions in it could induce several problems, such as scaling and precipitation. This, in turn, could potentially affect the viscosity and rheology of the fluid. There are a variety of additives that can be used to lessen the effects of the various ions found in seawater. This review explains the mechanisms of different additives (e.g., polymers, surfactants, chelating agents, cross-linkers, scale inhibitors, gel stabilizers, and foams), how they interact with seawater, and the related implications in order to address the above challenges and develop a sustainable and compatible seawater-based fracturing fluid. This review also describes several previous technologies and works that have treated seawater in order to produce a fluid that is stable at higher temperatures, that has a considerably reduced scaling propensity, and that has utilized a stable polymer network to efficiently carry proppant downhole. In addition, some of these previous works included field testing to evaluate the performance of the seawater-based fracturing fluid.

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Section: Breakers Effects On Seawater Fluidmentioning

confidence: 99%

Seawater-Based Fracturing Fluid: A Review

Budiman,

Alajmei

2023

ACS Omega

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High Pressure Testing of Borate Crosslinked Fracturing Fluids

et al. 2012

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Successful hydraulic fracturing requires proper proppant placement within an adequate fracture length. To accomplish this, one must design a fracturing fluid that can achieve effective proppant placement and retain desirable fluid properties under hydraulic fracturing conditions within the reservoir. Recently, there have been reports that increased pressure on the fluid may reduce the viscosity of borate-crosslinked fracturing fluids. Depending on fluid composition and operating temperature, the effects of applied pressure vary from slightly influencing to completely reducing the viscosity of the crosslinked sample to its un-crosslinked state (linear gel). Thus, a good understanding of the impact of applied pressure on viscosity of fracturing fluids in the laboratory is critical to designing and tailoring fluid formulations. This work describes the equipment and experimental procedures for high pressure rheology testing of selected seawater and higher density brine-based borate crosslinked fracturing fluids in the shear rate range of 20 to 80 s-1, up to 20,000 psi and 180°F.

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A Comparison of Freshwater- and Seawater-Based Borate-Crosslinked Fracturing Fluids

Harris

Batenburg

1999

SPE International Symposium on Oilfield Chemistry

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This paper discusses the chemical factors that operators must address to successfully substitute seawater for fresh water in borate-crosslinked guar fracturing fluids. Seawater contains cations and anions that affect the performance of the fracturing fluid's components, as well as the fluid's interaction with the formation. Because seawater has high ionic strength, it lowers the viscosity obtained from borate-crosslinked guar. High magnesium in the water consumes hydroxide ions and affects pH control, which in turn affects the equilibrium borate-ion concentration. This paper addresses these problems and provides guidelines for borate fluid formulation to offset seawater characteristics for temperatures as high as 300°F. Borate fluids from seawater can control fluid loss (FL) as well as freshwater borate fluids. Chemical gel breakers for offshore environments have been developed to help control the viscosity reductions in fracturing fluids. Conductivity values with seawater fluids are equal to or better than freshwater fluids. The presence of divalent cations in the seawater fluid caused no harm to the FL properties or the retained conductivity with borate seawater fluids.

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Gulf of Mexico Frac-and-Pack Treatments Using a New Fracturing Fluid System

Cited by 12 publications

References 5 publications

Seawater-Based Fracturing Fluid: A Review

Seawater-Based Fracturing Fluid: A Review

High Pressure Testing of Borate Crosslinked Fracturing Fluids

A Comparison of Freshwater- and Seawater-Based Borate-Crosslinked Fracturing Fluids

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