Solidification and utilization of water-based drill cuttings to prepare ceramsite proppant with low-density and high performance

Abstract

Water-based drill cuttings (WBDC) and bauxite are used as raw materials to prepare proppants with low density and high performance. The effects of sintering temperature, sintering period, mixture ratios of materials, doping with iron oxide, and acid modification of WBDC on the properties of proppants are discussed. The proppant performance is evaluated according to the national standard SY/T5108-2014. The morphology of the proppant is analyzed using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The crystal phase structure of the proppant is studied using X-ray diffraction (XRD). Thermal analysis of the proppant sintering process is performed using thermogravimetry (TG). Proppant Z-23 completely satisfied the SY/T5108 -2014 standard. This study provides a new perspective for the resource utilization of water-based drill cuttings and preparation of low-density proppants.