Incorporation of Fe3O4 Nanoparticles as Drilling Fluid Additives for Improved Drilling Operations

A successful drilling operation requires an effective drilling fluid system. Due to the variety of downhole conditions across the globe, the fluid system should be designed to meet complex challenges such as High-Pressure/High-Temperature (HPHT) environments, while promoting better productivity with a minimum interference for completion operations. This study aims to improve the rheological and fluid loss properties of water-bentonite suspensions by using both commercial (C-NP) and custom-made (CM-NP) iron oxide (Fe3O4) nanoparticles (NP) as drilling fluid additives. Superparamagnetic Fe3O4 NP were synthesized by the coprecipitation method. Both types of nanoparticles were characterized by a High Resolution Transmission Electron Microscope (TEM) and X-ray Diffraction (XRD). Base fluid (BF), made of deionized water and bentonite at 7wt%, was prepared according to American Petroleum Institute (API) procedures and nanoparticles were added at 0.5 wt%. A Couettetype viscometer was used to analyze the rheological characteristics of these fluids at different shear rates and various temperatures (up to 158oF). The rheological parameters were obtained from analysis of viscometric data using non-linear regression. The API Low-Pressure/Low-Temperature (LPLT) and HPHT fluid filtrate volumes were measured, using a standard API LPLT static filter press (100 psi, 77oF) and an API HPHT filter press (300 psi, 250oF). Observation of the porous matrix morphology of the produced filter cakes was done with Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM). TEM showed that the mean diameter of the CM-NP was 7-8 nm, with measured surface ASME International Conference on Offshore Mechanics and Arctic Engineering, Volume 8: Polar and Arctic Sciences and Technology; Petroleum Technology (): V008T11A040. OMAE2016-54071 2016, June Abstract