Application of Bionic Technologies on the Fracturing Plug.

Lin Chen,Xinzhong Wang,Ran Wei,Songbo Wei

doi:10.3390/biomimetics4040078

Lin Chen, Xinzhong Wang + Show 2 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/biomimetics4040078

Copy DOI

Abstract

The dissolvable bridge plug is one of the most important tools for multi-stage hydraulic fracturing in the field of oil/gas development. The plug provides zonal isolation to realize staged stimulation and, after fracturing, the plug is fully dissolved in produced liquids. A bionic surface was introduced to improve the performance of the plug. Surface dimples in the micron dimension were prepared on the dissolvable materials of the plug. The experimental results showed that the surface dimples changed the hydrophilic and hydrophobic properties of the dissolvable materials. The dissolution rate has a great relation with the parameters of the dimples and can be controlled by choosing the dimples’ parameters to some degree.

Highlights

The rapid development of unconventional oil/gas has been led to tremendous changes in the global energy industry
That of the sample without Dimple Surface Textures (DST), respectively. This suggests that when the DST layer was destroyed by dissolution, the dissolution rates of the samples with DST began to approach that of the sample without DST
The experimental results showed that the DST could increase the water contact angle

Summary

Introduction

The rapid development of unconventional oil/gas has been led to tremendous changes in the global energy industry. Energy Outlook 2016, the production of unconventional gases, including tight gas, shale gas, and coal bed methane, will increase from 0.8227 trillion cubic meters in 2015 to 2.48 trillion cubic meters in 2040. The production of unconventional oil, including tight oil, shale oil, extra-heavy oil, field condensate, and bitumen, will increase from 0.480 billion tons to 1 billion tons [1]. As one of the key technologies used in unconventional oil/gas development, multi-stage hydraulic fracturing technology of horizontal wells can effectively increase production. The plug is pumped down and set on the first target position, and the perforating and fracturing processes are carried out successively. Conventional drillable plugs are widely used today, but the drilling of conventional plugs is time-consuming, expensive, and high risk [1]

Methods

Results

Conclusion