Nano-Carbohydrate Composites as a Lost Circulation Materials - LCM Origami and Other Drilling Fluid Applications

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2016160106-A1
Application number	US-201314907587-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Sep 4, 2013
Priority date	Sep 4, 2013
Publication date	Jun 9, 2016
Grant date	—

Abstract

A wellbore treatment fluid containing lost circulation materials and methods for using the treatment fluid, the fluid including a carrier fluid and nano-carbohydrate based sheets. The sheets may be folded or rolled into various cross-sectional surface area reducing configurations. The nano-carbohydrate based sheets may contain cellulose and or chitin materials. A method for utilizing the treatment fluid for creation or maintenance of a well includes forming or providing the treatment fluid and introducing the treatment fluid into a borehole.

First claim

1 . A method of treating a formation comprising:
forming or providing a well fluid including nano-carbohydrate based sheets; and introducing the well fluid into a well.

2 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the well fluid is water-based.

3 . The method of claim 1 , wherein said forming or providing comprises forming the well fluid on-site near the well.

4 . The method of claim 3 , wherein said forming the well fluid includes dispersing the nano-carbohydrate based sheets in a tank or flow stream having a carrier fluid.

5 . The method of claim 4 , wherein before said dispersing, the nano-carbohydrate based sheets are folded or rolled to reduce their cross-sectional areas by at least 50%.

6 . The method of claim 5 , wherein the folded or rolled nano-carbohydrate based sheets are folded with an accordion pleating configuration.

7 . The method of claim 5 , wherein the folded or rolled nano-carbohydrate based sheets have cross-sectional areas no more than about 1/16 of their unfolded cross-sections.

8 . The method of claim 5 , wherein the nano-carbohydrate based sheets are backed by a polymer that is configured to expand the nano-carbohydrate based sheets.

9 . The method of claim 8 , wherein the polymer is present as a coating on at least one portion of one side of the nano-carbohydrate based sheets.

10 . The method of claim 8 , wherein the polymer deforms when exposed to the carrier fluid.

11 . The method of claim 8 , wherein the polymer deforms when exposed to a downhole condition including at least one of elevated temperature, pressure, shear, pH, and combinations thereof.

12 . The method of claim 4 , wherein the nano-carbohydrate based sheets are shaped as containers to encapsulate additives for release downhole.

13 . The method of claim 12 , wherein said release is actuated by an elevated shear field in a bit port or other downhole aperture.

14 . The method of claim 4 , wherein said forming includes obtaining said nano-carbohydrate based sheets by disintegrating product bags at the well site.

15 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the nano-carbohydrate based sheets are selected from at least one of a cellulose-based sheet and a chitin-based sheet.

16 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the nano-carbohydrate based sheets are prepared from a material comprising at least one of cellulose nanofibrils, cellulose nanocrystals from cotton, wood chips, wood pulp, vegetable waste, chitin nanofibrils, shell fish waste, and combinations thereof.

17 . The method of claim 16 , wherein the nano-carbohydrate based sheets are prepared by creating a paste of the material, forming a thin sheet of the paste, and drying the sheet.

18 . The method of claim 4 , wherein the nano-carbohydrate based sheets are adapted to crosslink in-situ in the well.

19 . The method of claim 4 , wherein the nano-carbohydrate based sheets are crosslinked prior to the introducing, and wherein the crosslinking of the nano-carbohydrate based sheets is broken after the introducing into the well before a step of flowing back from the well.

20 . The method of claim 2 , wherein the water-based well fluid does not include particulate larger than the nano-carbohydrate based sheets.

21 . A wellbore fluid comprising:
a carrier fluid; and nano-carbohydrate based sheets.

22 . The wellbore fluid of claim 21 , wherein the carrier fluid is water-based.

23 . The wellbore fluid of claim 21 , wherein the carrier fluid is oil-based.

24 . The wellbore fluid of claim 21 , wherein the nano-carbohydrate based sheets are folded or rolled to reduce their cross-sectional areas by at least 50%.

25 . The wellbore fluid of claim 24 , wherein the folded or rolled nano-carbohydrate based sheets are folded with an accordion pleating configuration.

26 . The wellbore fluid of claim 24 , wherein the folded or rolled nano-carbohydrate based sheets have a cross-sectional area no more than about 1/16 of their unfolded cross-sectional areas.

27 . The wellbore fluid of claim 21 , wherein the nano-carbohydrate based sheets are backed by a polymer that swells upon exposure to a water-based fluid to expand the nano-carbohydrate based sheets.

28 . A wellbore treatment system comprising:
a drilling apparatus configured to:
form or provide a well fluid including nano-carbohydrate based sheets; and
introduce the well fluid into a well.

Assignees

• Halliburton Energy Services Inc
• Holliburton Energy Services Inc

Inventors

• Jamison Dale E
• Mcdaniel Cato Russell
• Hall Lee J

Classifications

• E21B33/138

  Plastering the borehole wall; Injecting into the formation · CPC title

• E21B21/003

  Means for stopping loss of drilling fluid (plastering the borehole wall E21B33/138) · CPC title

• C09K2208/10

  Nanoparticle-containing well treatment fluids · CPC title

• C09K8/516 Primary

  characterised by their form or by the form of their components, e.g. encapsulated material · CPC title

• C09K8/514

  of natural origin, e.g. polysaccharides, cellulose (C09K8/512 takes precedence) · CPC title