Method of making rod-shaped particles for use as proppant and anti-flowback additive

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11427753-B2
Application number	US-202016786700-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Feb 10, 2020
Priority date	Jul 22, 2016
Publication date	Aug 30, 2022
Grant date	Aug 30, 2022

Abstract

A method for forming rod-shaped particles includes reducing a length of rods derived from a slurry made up of particles and a reactant, wherein the rods are in a stabilized state in which the reactant has been at least partially reacted with a coagulant, but the rods have not been sintered, and subsequently sintering the reduced length stabilized rods. The reducing the length of the stabilized rods includes subjecting the stabilized rods to mechanical vibration applied by a device, or feeding the stabilized rods through a device having a rotating cutting mechanism.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method for forming rod-shaped particles comprising:
reducing a length of pre-sintered continuous rods derived from a slurry comprised of particles and a reactant, wherein, prior to sintering, the rods are in a stabilized state in which the reactant has been at least partially reacted with a coagulant, but the rods have not been sintered; and
subsequently sintering the reduced length stabilized rods.

2. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the reducing the length of the stabilized rods comprises subjecting the stabilized pre-sintered continuous rods to mechanical vibration applied by a device.

3. The method according to claim 2 , wherein the mechanical vibration is applied by a device comprising a vessel, wherein the stabilized pre-sintered continuous rods are loaded into the vessel and vibrational energy is applied to the loaded vessel.

4. The method according to claim 3 , wherein the vessel includes a plurality of protuberances along one or more interior walls of the vessel.

5. The method according to claim 3 , wherein the vessel includes one or more bars extending from at least one interior wall of the vessel and extending partially or fully across an interior of the vessel.

6. The method according to claim 3 , wherein the vessel includes one or more sieves through which the reduced length stabilized pre-sintered rods can pass when the stabilized pre-sintered rods have a desired reduced length.

7. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the reducing the length of the stabilized rods comprises feeding the stabilized pre-sintered continuous rods through a device having a rotating cutting mechanism.

8. The method according to claim 7 , wherein the stabilized pre-sintered continuous rods are dropped vertically through the device and encounter the rotating cutting mechanism as the stabilized rods fall through the device.

9. The method according to claim 7 , wherein the rotating cutting mechanism comprises one or more bars extending from a rotating spine.

10. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the particles are ceramic particles.

11. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the reactant is an alginate and the coagulant comprises a calcium salt.

12. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the reduced length rod-shaped particles have an average length of 0.1 mm to 5 cm, an average diameter of 0.2 mm to 1 cm and an average length to diameter of at least 2:1.

13. The method of claim 10 , wherein the ceramic particles have an alumina content between 5 wt % and 95 wt %.

14. The method of claim 10 , wherein the ceramic particles have an average size smaller than 500 μm.

15. The method of claim 2 , wherein the mechanical vibration has a frequency between 0.01 Hz and 100 Hz.

16. The method of claim 1 , wherein the reactant is present in the slurry at a concentration between 0.01% and 25%.

17. The method of claim 1 , wherein the slurry further comprises one or more solvents.

18. The method of claim 1 , wherein the slurry further comprises one or more lubricants.

19. The method of claim 1 , wherein the slurry further comprises one or more dispersants.

20. The method of claim 1 , wherein the coagulant is present in a solution at a concentration between 0.1% and 25%.

Assignees

• Schlumberger Technology Corp

Inventors

• Ortega Andrade Jose Alberto
• Huang Jiangshui
• Lungwitz Bernhard R

Classifications

• C04B35/1115

  Minute sintered entities, e.g. sintered abrasive grains or shaped particles such as platelets (abrasives C09K3/14) · CPC title

• C04B2235/6023

  Gel casting · CPC title

• C04B35/622

  Forming processes; Processing powders of inorganic compounds preparatory to the manufacturing of ceramic products · CPC title

• C04B2235/449

  Organic acids, e.g. EDTA, citrate, acetate, oxalate · CPC title

• C09K8/92

  characterised by their form or by the form of their components, e.g. encapsulated material (C09K8/70 takes precedence) · CPC title