Influence of size and surface acidity of silica nanoparticles on inhibition of the formation damage by bentonite-free water-based drilling fluids. Part II: dynamic filtration

Abstract

Although the application of nanoparticles in drilling fluid has been reported under static test by our research group, understanding inhibition formation of damage by filtration volume reduction in porous media under dynamic conditions is still a crucial issue. In this research, synthesised silica nanoparticles modified with acid treatment (Si11A) evaluated in previous results in the bentonite-free water-based drilling fluid (BFWBM) in static tests were analysed in the coreflooding test under dynamic and reservoir conditions. Si11A nanoparticles were evaluated by permeability return tests under reservoir conditions overburden, pore, and overbalance pressures, and temperatures of 3000 psi, 1700 psi, 1200 psi, and 87 °C, respectively. Coreflooding test with a concentration of 0.1 wt% Si11A nanoparticles based on our previous work showed a reduction in the filtration volume by 77%, decreasing the formation damage by 51% compared to the drilling fluid without nanoparticles. Also, the oil recovery obtained with the best design fluid using the Si11A nanoparticles was 10% higher than the baseline. Additionally, the effluents of crude oil obtained from permeability return test were evaluated at reservoir temperature using a rotational rheometer at shear rates varying between 1 and 100 s −1 , obtaining a reduction of the viscosity up to 28% during nine pore volume injected using the BFWBM with S11A nanoparticles. The role of the nanoparticles in the drilling fluid is the rapid deposition in the mudcake to enhance the properties, the subsequent filtration volume reduction, and the enhancement of the petrophysics properties may be described by dynamic filtration curves, effective oil permeability and relative permeability curves.

Theoretical and Experimental Approach for Understanding the Interactions Among SiO2Nanoparticles, CaCO3, and Xanthan Gum Components of Water-Based Mud

“…NP content ≥0.3 wt % likely promoted NP aggregation, which, in turn, generated a thick filter cake, as reported in Table , allowing large filtrate volume through. This effect had been observed through experiments in previous studies that had been experimentally demonstrated by our research group . NP content up to 0.1 wt % reduced the filter cake thickness by ∼35% and permeability by ∼70%, relative to the base BFWBM.…”

“…Subsequently, a low-permeability and porosity filter cake is observed . Moreover, lower filtrate volume through porous media under dynamic filtration has been reported in the presence of SiO 2 NPs . However, the exact mechanism through which the SiO 2 NPs help promoting the filtration properties of BFWBM was not investigated.…”

Field Applications of Nanotechnology in the Oil and Gas Industry: Recent Advances and Perspectives

“…The oil and gas industry is aware of the potential of nanotechnology, with an increasing number of publications in specialized literature focused on experimental and simulation developments of nanomaterials and nanofluids for application in different areas. These relevant areas include drilling, − completion, improved oil recovery (IOR), enhanced oil recovery (EOR), − formation damage, , and wastewater treatment, , among others. Nevertheless, different challenges arise for the scaling up of the different developments.…”

Dialysis Diffusion Kinetics in Polymer Purification

“…However, the solvent needs to be compatible with the membrane . In particular, in the formulation process of polymeric nanoparticles, dialysis is a frequently applied technique. , Such particles can be labile against forced movements for, e.g., by applying pressure or vacuum for filtration. , Therefore, diffusion based dialysis is an ideal technique to gently purify nanoparticles.…”

“…22,23 Such particles can be labile against forced movements for, e.g., by applying pressure or vacuum for filtration. 19,24 Therefore, diffusion based dialysis is an ideal technique to gently purify nanoparticles.…”