Proppant particulates formed from polyaromatic hydrocarbons

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11566170-B2
Application number	US-201916683156-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 13, 2019
Priority date	Dec 26, 2018
Publication date	Jan 31, 2023
Grant date	Jan 31, 2023

Abstract

Proppant particulates are commonly used in hydraulic fracturing operations to maintain one or more fractures in an opened state following the release of hydraulic pressure. In complex fracture networks, it can be difficult to deposit proppant particulates fully within the fractures. In addition, low crush strengths may result in problematic fines formation. Polyaromatic hydrocarbons, commonly encountered in various refinery process streams, may serve as an advantageous precursor to proppant particulates. Polyaromatic hydrocarbons may undergo crosslinking under acid-catalyzed conditions in an aqueous solvent in the presence of a surfactant to form substantially spherical particulates that may serve as effective proppant particulates during fracturing operations. In situ formation of the proppant particulates may take place in some cases.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A solid composition comprising:
substantially spherical particulates, the substantially spherical particulates each comprising at least one polymer having at least one C9-C15 aromatic hydrocarbon unit and at least one crosslinking group having a phenyl group and two C2 groups bonded to the phenyl group, wherein the at least one C9-C15 aromatic hydrocarbon unit and the at least one crosslinking group are crosslinked by a C2 group of the two C2 groups bonded directly to an aromatic ring of the at least one C9-C15 aromatic hydrocarbon unit and bonded directly to the phenyl group of the crosslinker unit crosslinking group.

2. The solid composition of claim 1 , wherein the substantially spherical particulates have a particle size ranging from about 10 microns to about 3 mm.

3. The solid composition of claim 1 , wherein C9-C15 aromatic hydrocarbon used to form the at least one C9-C15 aromatic hydrocarbon unit is obtained from a refinery process stream.

4. The solid composition of claim 3 , wherein the refinery process stream is selected from the group consisting of steam cracked tar, main column bottoms, vacuum residue, asphaltenes, bitumen, lube extracts, and any combination thereof.

5. The solid composition of claim 1 , wherein the polymer comprises one or more oxidized aromatic rings.

6. The solid composition of claim 5 , wherein the one or more oxidized aromatic rings are selected from the group consisting of catechol, quinone, epoxide substituted aromatic ring, and combinations thereof.

7. The solid composition of claim 1 , wherein the at least one polymer has a plurality of C9-C15 aromatic hydrocarbon units and a plurality of crosslinking groups, each of the crosslinking groups having a phenyl group and two C2 groups bonded to the phenyl group, wherein each of the C9-C15 aromatic hydrocarbon units is crosslinked to an aromatic hydrocarbon crosslinking group of the plurality of crosslinking groups by a C2 group of the two C2 groups, the C2 group bonded directly to an aromatic ring of a C9-C15 aromatic hydrocarbon unit of the plurality of the C9-C15 aromatic hydrocarbon units and bonded directly to a phenyl group of a crosslinking group of the plurality of crosslinking groups.

8. The solid composition of claim 7 , wherein the C9-C15 aromatic hydrocarbon units are independently selected from the group consisting of anthracene, indane, indene, tetralin, and combinations thereof.

9. The solid composition of claim 7 , wherein the C9-C15 aromatic hydrocarbon units are unsubstituted C9-C15 aromatic hydrocarbon units.

10. The solid composition of claim 7 , wherein each of the phenyl rings of the crosslinking groups is ortho substituted with:
a first C2 group of the two C2 groups, and
a second C2 group of the two C2 groups.

11. The solid composition of claim 7 , wherein each of the phenyl rings of the crosslinking groups is meta substituted with:
a first C2 group of the two C2 groups, and
a second C2 group of the two C2 groups.

12. The solid composition of claim 7 , wherein each of the phenyl rings of the crosslinking groups is para substituted with:
a first C2 group of the two C2 groups, and
a second C2 group of the two C2 groups.

13. The solid composition of claim 7 , wherein each of the substantially spherical particulates has about zero weight percent of fines at a stress level up to 5,000 psi in accordance with ISO 13503-2.

14. The solid composition of claim 1 , wherein the C2 group is formed from CHCH 2 .

15. A solid composition comprising:
substantially spherical particulates, the substantially spherical particulates each having a particle size of about 100 microns to about 1 mm and comprising at least one polymer having at least one C9-C15 aromatic hydrocarbon unit and at least one crosslinker unit crosslinking group having a phenyl group and two C2 groups bonded to the phenyl group, wherein:
the at least one C9-C15 aromatic hydrocarbon unit and the at least one crosslinking group are crosslinked by a C2 group of the two C2 groups, the C2 group bonded directly to an aromatic ring of the at least one C9-C15 aromatic hydrocarbon unit and bonded directly to the phenyl group of the at least one crosslinker unit crosslinking group.

16. The solid composition of claim 15 , wherein the at least one polymer has a plurality of C9-C15 aromatic hydrocarbon units and a plurality of crosslinking groups, each of the crosslinking groups having a phenyl group and two C2 groups bonded to the phenyl group, wherein:
each of the C9-C15 aromatic hydrocarbon units is crosslinked to a crosslinking group of the plurality of aromatic hydrocarbon crosslinking groups by a C2 group of the two C2 groups, the C2 group bonded directly to an aromatic ring of a C9-C15 aromatic hydrocarbon unit of the plurality of the C9-C15 aromatic hydrocarbon units and bonded directly to a phenyl group of a crosslinking group of the plurality of crosslinking groups.

17. The solid composition of claim 16 , wherein each of the C9-C15 aromatic hydrocarbon units are unsubstituted.

18. The solid composition of claim 16 , wherein the phenyl group of each of the crosslinking groups is unsubstituted.

19. The solid composition of claim 16 , wherein each of the C2 groups is formed from CHCH 2 .

Assignees

• Exxonmobil Technology & Engineering Company

Inventors

• Gordon Peter A
• Zhou Huaxing Daniel

Classifications

• E21B43/267

  reinforcing fractures by propping · CPC title

• C09K8/685 Primary

  containing cross-linking agents · CPC title

• C09K8/80 Primary

  Compositions for reinforcing fractures, e.g. compositions of proppants used to keep the fractures open · CPC title

• C09K8/885

  obtained otherwise than by reactions only involving carbon-to-carbon unsaturated bonds · CPC title

• C09K8/887

  containing cross-linking agents · CPC title