Baker Hughes Corporation

Baker Hughes, a Ge Compnay, LLC

Baker Hughes Holdings LLC

Tianping Huang

James B Crews

John Robert Willingham

Gaurav Agrawal

Prahlad Kumar Yadav

Pranjal Sarmah

Allen Dale Gabrysch

Richard YingQing Xu

James H Treadway

Othon Rego Monteiro

Shiv Shankar Sangaru

Christopher K Belcher

James R Pace

Paul M McElfresh

William Russell Wood

Kushal Seth

Paul Joseph

Patrick Arthur Kelly

Richard Mitchell

Michael H Johnson

Songhua Chen

Bennett M Richard

Martin Paul Coronado

Edward O'Malley

Aaron Hammer

Naima Bestaoui-Spurr

David E Clark

Ying Qing Xu

Robert S Hurt

Brian A Evans

Mohammed Al-Rabah

Hyunil Jo

Rick M Jeffrey

Min Huang

Robert Samuel Hurt

Gurav Agrawal

A treatment fluid comprises: a base fluid; a viscoelastic surfactant gelling agent and hydrophobic nanoparticles comprising metallic nanoparticles that are surface modified with Caliphatic groups. The treatment fluid is a fracturing fluid, a completion fluid, a gravel pack fluid, a fluid loss pill, a lost circulation pill, a diverter fluid, a foamed fluid, a stimulation fluid and the like.

Hydrophobized nanoparticles as breaker for viscoelastic surfactant gelled fluids

Nanoparticle-treated particle packs, such as sand beds, may effectively filter and purify liquids such as waste water. When tiny contaminant particles in waste water flow through the particle pack, the nanoparticles will capture and hold the tiny contaminant particles within the pack due to the nanoparticles' surface forces, including, but not necessarily limited to van der Waals and electrostatic forces. Coating agents may help apply the nanoparticles to the particle surfaces in the filter beds or packs.

Wastewater purification with nanoparticle-treated bed

A method of breaking the viscosity of a treatment fluid comprises: adding hydrophobic nanoparticles to a treatment fluid comprising a base fluid and a viscoelastic surfactant gelling agent, the hydrophobic nanoparticles comprising metallic nanoparticles that are surface modified with Caliphatic groups, wherein the hydrophobic nanoparticles are added in an amount effective to decrease the viscosity of the treatment fluid as compared to a treatment fluid absent the hydrophobic nanoparticles.

Improving the knowledge about how hydraulic fracture networks are generated in subsurface shale volumes in unconventional wellbores may be accomplished with various configurations of at least one diagnostic lateral wellbore using at least one diagnostic device disposed in the diagnostic lateral wellbore. By extending diagnostic lateral wellbores from adjacent lateral wellbores and/or separately drilling diagnostic lateral wellbores, and analyzing signals received by diagnostic devices placed in the diagnostic lateral wellbores, knowledge about fracture networks, the parameters that control fracture geometry and reservoir production and how reservoirs react to refracturing techniques may be greatly improved. Additionally, such diagnostic lateral wellbores can provide quicker location of sweet-spot horizons in reservoirs.

Diagnostic lateral wellbores and methods of use

A method of treating a subterranean formation penetrated by a well comprises combining an aqueous base fluid, a viscoelastic surfactant gelling agent, two or more types of the following nanoparticles: an alkaline earth metal oxide; an alkaline earth metal hydroxide; a transition metal oxide; or a transition metal hydroxide to form a treatment fluid, and pumping the treatment fluid into the well, wherein the weight ratio of the two or more types of the nanoparticles is selected such that the treatment fluid has an improved fluid efficiency as compared to an otherwise identical reference fluid except for comprising only one type of the nanoparticles selected from an alkaline earth metal oxide; an alkaline earth metal hydroxide; a transition metal oxide; and a transition metal hydroxide.

Fluid efficiency for viscoelastic surfactant based fluids with nanoparticles

A formulation for use as a lost circulation preventive material is a cement-forming aqueous fluid comprising water, at least one viscoelastic surfactant (VES), at least one monovalent or multivalent salt, at least one magnesium powder, and at least one retarder. The formulation is used in a method of drilling into a subterranean formation that includes introducing into a wellbore passing at least partially through the subterranean formation the cement-forming aqueous fluid, and further increasing the viscosity of the aqueous fluid by the action of the VES forming elongated micelles; where the at least one monovalent salt is present in an amount effective to pseudo-crosslink the elongated VES micelles to further increase the viscosity of the aqueous fluid. The formulation further forms a cement by reacting the at least one magnesium powder and the water which reaction is retarded by the retarder. The water may be saline water.

High strength, operationally robust lost circulation preventative pseudo-crosslinked material

Dual-function nano-sized particles or nanoparticles may be effective at fixating or reducing fines migration and they may facilitate identification of a particular zone in a well having more than one zone. In some embodiments the dual-function nanoparticles are tagged with a detectable material that is distinguishable from the composition of the primary nanoparticle component. In these embodiments, the taggant material rather than the primary component of the nanoparticles may be used to enable identification of a particular zone. The nanoparticles (with or without taggant) may be added to a treatment fluid containing carrier particles such as proppant. The treatment fluid is pumped downhole to one of the zones; each zone receiving its own unique or uniquely-tagged nanoparticles. Should one of the zones fail, the composition of the nanoparticles (or its taggant) produced on the carrier particles may be correlated to the zone from which it was received, and hence produced.

Dual-function nano-sized particles

A formulation for use as a lost circulation preventive material is a cement-forming aqueous fluid comprising water, a viscoelastic surfactant (VES), a monovalent or multivalent salt, a magnesium powder, a retarder, a weighting material, and a dispersant. The formulation is used in a method of drilling into a subterranean formation that includes introducing into a wellbore passing at least partially through the subterranean formation the cement-forming aqueous fluid, and further increasing the viscosity of the aqueous fluid with the VES; where the monovalent salt is present in an amount effective to pseudo-crosslink the elongated VES micelles to further increase the viscosity of fluid. The formulation further forms a cement by reacting the magnesium powder and the water which reaction is retarded by the retarder. The water may be saline water. When the fluid density is greater than 14 pounds per gallon, a dispersant is required, such as a sulfonated copolymer.

Drilling method using high density, high strength, acid soluble pseudo-crosslinked, lost circulation preventative material

Nano-sized clay minerals enhance the viscosity of aqueous fluids that have increased viscosity due to the presence of viscoelastic surfactants (VESs). In one non-limiting theory, the nano-sized phyllosilicate mineral viscosity enhancers associate, link, connect, or relate the VES elongated micelles into associations thereby increasing the viscosity of the fluid, possibly by mechanisms involving chemisorption or surface charge attractions. The nano-sized phyllosilicate mineral particles, also called clay mineral nanoparticles, may have irregular surface charges. The higher fluid viscosity is beneficial to crack the formation rock during a fracturing operation, to reduce fluid leakoff, and to carry high loading proppants to maintain the high conductivity of fractures.

Use of nano-sized phyllosilicate minerals in viscoelastic surfactant fluids

A formulation for use as a lost circulation preventive material is a cement-forming aqueous fluid comprising water, a viscoelastic surfactant (VES), a monovalent or multivalent salt, a magnesium powder, a retarder, a weighting material, and a dispersant. The formulation is used in a method of drilling into a subterranean formation that includes introducing into a wellbore passing at least partially through the subterranean formation the cement-forming aqueous fluid, and further increasing the viscosity of the aqueous fluid with the VES, where the monovalent salt is present in an amount effective to pseudo-crosslink the elongated VES micelles to further increase the viscosity of fluid. The formulation further forms a cement by reacting the magnesium powder and the water which reaction is retarded by the retarder. The water may be saline water. When the fluid density is greater than 14 pounds per gallon, a dispersant is required, such as a sulfonated copolymer.

High density, high strength, acid soluble pseudo-crosslinked, lost circulation preventative material

A fracturing fluid, gravel pack fluid and/or frac pack fluid containing particles such as proppants, gravel and/.or sand, may contain an effective amount of a nano-sized particulate additive to fixate or reduce fines migration, where the particulate additive is an alkaline earth metal oxide, alkaline earth metal hydroxide, alkali metal oxides, alkali metal hydroxides transition metal oxides, transition metal hydroxides, post-transition metal oxides, post-transition metal hydroxides piezoelectric crystals and pyroelectric crystals. The nano-sized particulate additive is optionally bound to the particles with a coating agent such as an oil, alcohol, glycol, glycol ethers, ketones, terpenes, etc. The particle size of the magnesium oxide or other agent may be nanometer scale but may be a larger scale than nanometer but still relatively small, which scale may provide unique particle charges that help fixate the formation fines. The carrier fluid used in the treating fluid may be aqueous, brine, alcoholic or hydrocarbon-based.

Nano-sized particle-coated proppants for formation fines fixation in proppant packs

An aqueous, viscoelastic fluid gelled with a viscoelastic surfactant (VES) may suspend solids such as proppants, gravel, drilling debris, waste solids and the like with an effective amount of a nano-sized additive including, but not necessarily limited to alkaline earth metal oxides, alkaline earth metal hydroxides, alkali metal oxides, alkali metal hydroxides, transition metal oxides, transition metal hydroxides, post-transition metal oxides, and post-transition metal hydroxides. The additives may also reduce the amount of VES required to maintain a given viscosity. These viscoelastic surfactant gelled aqueous fluids may be used as treatment fluids for subterranean hydrocarbon formations, such as in hydraulic fracturing, gravel packing and the like. The magnesium oxide, zinc oxide or other nanometer scale-sized additives are at a scale that may provide unique particle charges that use chemisorption, crosslinking and/or other chemistries to associate the micelles and suspend the solids.

Solids suspension with nanoparticle-associated viscoelastic surfactant micellar fluids

Growing community of inventors

Spring, TX, United States of America

Tianping Huang