Composition and method for making a proppant
View Patent ↗The present invention relates to proppants which can be used to prop open subterranean formation fractions. Proppant formulations are further disclosed which use one or more proppants of the present invention. Methods to prop open subterranean formation fractions are further disclosed. In addition, other uses for the proppants of the present invention are further disclosed, as well as methods of making the proppants.
1. A proppant comprising a ceramic material or oxide thereof or a metal oxide with a surface that comprises nanoparticles that are sintered, wherein said proppant is hollow, wherein said proppant has an overall diameter of from about 90 microns to about 1,600 microns.
2. The proppant of claim 1 , wherein said proppant has a crush strength of 3,000 psi or greater.
3. The proppant of claim 1 , wherein said nanoparticles have a primary particle size of from 0.1 nm up to 150 nm.
4. The proppant of claim 1 , wherein said nanoparticles comprise agglomerates alone, or a combination of primary particles and agglomerates.
5. The proppant of claim 1 , wherein said nanoparticles have a combination of primary particles and agglomerates, and wherein said nanoparticles have an average primary particle size of from about 1 nm to about 150 nm and the agglomerates have an average particle size of from about 10 nm to about 350 nm.
6. The proppant of claim 1 , wherein said nanoparticles have a combination of primary particles and agglomerates, and wherein said nanoparticles have a weight ratio of primary particles to agglomerates of from 1:9 to 9:1.
7. The proppant of claim 1 , wherein said proppant has a specific gravity of from 0.6 g/cc to about 2.5 g/cc, and said proppant is spherical and has a sphericity of at least about 0.9.
8. The proppant of claim 1 , wherein said proppant comprises a hollow cenosphere.
9. The proppant of claim 1 , wherein said proppant comprises an aluminate.
10. The proppant of claim 1 , wherein said crush strength is from 5,000 psi to 10,000 psi.
11. The proppant of claim 1 , wherein said average grain size is 0.1 micron to 0.5 micron.
12. The proppant of claim 1 , wherein said surface has a maximum grain size of 1 micron.
13. A method of treating a subterranean producing zone penetrated by a well bore comprising the steps of: (a) preparing or providing a treating fluid that comprises a hydrocarbon or water carrier fluid having the proppant of claim 1 suspended therein, and (b) pumping said treating fluid into said subterranean producing zone whereby proppants are deposited therein.
14. The method of claim 13 , wherein said treating fluid is a fracturing fluid and said proppants are deposited in fractures formed in said subterranean producing zone.
15. A proppant formulation comprising the proppant of claim 1 and a carrier.
16. The proppant formulation of claim 15 , wherein said carrier is water or brine.
17. A method to prop open subterranean formation fractions comprising introducing the proppant formulation of claim 15 into said subterranean formation.
18. The proppant of claim 1 , wherein said proppant is porous.
19. The proppant of claim 1 , wherein said proppant has a wall thickness of from about 25 microns to about 2,000 microns.
20. The proppant of claim 1 , wherein said proppant has a wall thickness of from about 50 microns to about 200 microns.