Abstract
In the case of fracturing of the reservoirs using fracturing fluids, the size of damage to the proppant conductivity caused by treatment fluids is significant, which greatly influence the effective execution of hydraulic fracturing operations. The fracturing fluid should be characterized by the minimum damage to the conductivity of a fracture filled with proppant. A laboratory research procedure has been developed to study the damage effect caused by foamed and non-foamed fracturing fluids in the fractures filled with proppant material. The paper discusses the results for high quality foamed guar-based linear gels, which is an innovative aspect of the work compared to the non-foamed frac described in most of the studies and simulations. The tests were performed for the fracturing fluid based on a linear polymer (HPG—hydroxypropyl guar, in liquid and powder form). The rheology of nitrogen foamed-based fracturing fluids (FF) with a quality of 70% was investigated. The quartz sand and ceramic light proppant LCP proppant was placed between two Ohio sandstone rock slabs and subjected to a given compressive stress of 4000–6000 psi, at a temperature of 60 °C for 5 h. A significant reduction in damage to the quartz proppant was observed for the foamed fluid compared to that damaged by the 7.5 L/m3 natural polymer-based non-foamed linear fluid. The damage was 72.3% for the non-foamed fluid and 31.5% for the 70% foamed fluid, which are superior to the guar gum non-foamed fracturing fluid system. For tests based on a polymer concentration of 4.88 g/L, the damage to the fracture conductivity by the non-foamed fluid was 64.8%, and 26.3% for the foamed fluid. These results lead to the conclusion that foamed fluids could damage the fracture filled with proppant much less during hydraulic fracturing treatment. At the same time, when using foamed fluids, the viscosity coefficient increases a few times compared to the use of non-foamed fluids, which is necessary for proppant carrying capacities and properly conducted stimulation treatment. The research results can be beneficial for optimizing the type and performance of fracturing fluid for hydraulic fracturing in tight gas formations.
Highlights
Hydraulic fracturing together with horizontal drilling is a commonly used enhancement technology to stimulate hydrocarbon production by creating a network of highly conductive fractures in the area surrounding a wellbore
The data showed that an increase viscosity is visible for both foamed fluids FF1B and FF2B
The viscosity of the non-foamed fluids at different shear rates was similar for FF1A
Summary
Hydraulic fracturing together with horizontal drilling is a commonly used enhancement technology to stimulate hydrocarbon production by creating a network of highly conductive fractures in the area surrounding a wellbore. The basic intention of the hydraulic fracturing process is to increase the productivity of the stimulated well by maximizing the surface contact with the reservoir and creating high conductivity fractures [5,6,7]. An ideal proppant material should have the following characteristics: have adequate uniaxial compressive strength, do not deform, be chemically inert to the fracturing fluid containing various chemical compounds, have a low density, be accessible and cheap, prevent flowback, and not be pressed into the rock (embedment) [12,13]
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