Systems and methods for coated salts

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2018058186-A1
Application number	US-201615252639-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Aug 31, 2016
Priority date	Aug 31, 2016
Publication date	Mar 1, 2018
Grant date	—

Abstract

A method in one embodiment includes obtaining produced water from at least one of drilling, completion, or hydrocarbon production. The method also includes separating the produced water into desalinated water and produced salt. Further, the method includes coating the produced salt with resin to provide coated produced salt.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . A method comprising:
obtaining produced water from at least one of drilling, completion or hydrocarbon production; separating the produced water into desalinated water and produced salt; and coating the produced salt with resin to provide coated produced salt.

2 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the resin is coated on the produced salt by at least one of spray coating, vapor deposition, or mixing.

3 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising mixing the coated produced salt with at least one of sand, resin coated sand, or a ceramic material to provide a proppant for hydraulic fracturing.

4 . The method of claim 3 , further comprising mixing the proppant with water to provide a fracturing fluid, and injecting the fracturing fluid into a well to hydraulically fracture a portion of a formation.

5 . The method of claim 4 , wherein the produced salt originates from the formation.

6 . The method of claim 4 , further comprising:
drying and sizing the produced salt into a first group having a first size, a second group having a second size that is larger than the first size, and a third group having a third size that is larger than the second size before coating the produced salt, wherein coating the produced salt provides a first coated group corresponding to the first size, a second coated group corresponding to the second size, and a third coated group corresponding to the third size; separately mixing the first coated group, second coated group, and third coated group with proppant and water to provide a corresponding first fracturing fluid, second fracturing fluid, and third fracturing fluid; injecting the first fracturing fluid into a well; injecting the second fracturing fluid into the well after the first fracturing fluid; and injecting the third fracturing fluid into the well after the second fracturing fluid.

7 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising using the coated produced salt to provide cement.

8 . The method of claim 7 , further comprising injecting the cement to fill a gap between a well-bore and an installation site.

9 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising using the coated produced salt to provide a drilling mud.

10 . The method of claim 9 , further comprising injecting the drilling mud into a well during drilling.

11 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising using the coated produced salt for alloy quenching.

12 . A method comprising:
obtaining a coated produced salt, the coated produced salt comprising a resin coating a produced salt originating from at least one of an initial drilling process, an initial completion process, or an initial hydrocarbon production process; using the coated produced salt for at least one of a subsequent drilling process, subsequent completion process, or a subsequent hydrocarbon production process being performed in at least one of a same formation, site, or facility as the at least one of the initial drilling process, initial completion process, or the initial hydrocarbon production process.

13 . The method of claim 12 , further comprising:
mixing the coated produced salt with at least one of sand, resin coated sand, or a ceramic material to provide a proppant for hydraulic fracturing; mixing the proppant with water to provide a fracturing fluid; and injecting the fracturing fluid into a well.

14 . The method of claim 13 , wherein the coated produced salt comprises a first coated group having a first size, a second coated group having a second size that is larger than the first size, and a third coated group having a third size that is larger than the second size, the method further comprising:
separately mixing the first coated group, second coated group, and third coated group with the proppant and the water to provide a corresponding first fracturing fluid, second fracturing fluid, and third fracturing fluid; injecting the first fracturing fluid into the well; injecting the second fracturing fluid into the well after the first fracturing fluid; and injecting the third fracturing fluid into the well after the second fracturing fluid.

15 . The method of claim 12 , further comprising:
using the coated produced salt to provide cement; and injecting the cement to fill a gap between a well-bore and an installation site.

16 . The method of claim 12 , further comprising:
using the coated produced salt to provide a drilling mud; and injecting the drilling mud into a well during drilling.

17 . A system comprising:
a desalination unit configured to receive produced water from at least one of drilling, completion, or hydrocarbon production and to separate the produced water into desalinated water and produced salt; a water storage tank for storing the desalinated water; a salt storage tank for storing the produced salt; and a coating unit configured to apply a resin coating to the produced salt to provide coated produced salt, wherein the desalination unit and the coating unit are disposed at at least one of a common site or facility.

18 . The system of claim 17 , further comprising a proppant mixer configured to mix the coated produced salt with water and at least one of sand, resin coated sand, or ceramic to provide a fracturing fluid for hydraulic fracturing.

19 . The system of claim 18 , further comprising a pump configured to inject the fracturing fluid into a well.

20 . The system of claim 17 , further comprising a filtering unit configured to separate the produced salt into two or more groups based on size before the resin coating is applied.

Assignees

• Gen Electric

Inventors

• Joshi Mahendra L
• Antle Ryan
• James Catherine
• Steele Edward
• Rovelli Brian

Classifications

• C02F1/04

  by distillation or evaporation · CPC title

• C02F2001/5218

  Crystallization · CPC title

• C02F1/52

  by flocculation or precipitation of suspended impurities {(C02F1/463 takes precedence)} · CPC title

• E21B21/06

  Arrangements for treating drilling fluids outside the borehole · CPC title

• E21B43/267

  reinforcing fractures by propping · CPC title