Method of treating produced or flowback water with nucleophilic agent to deactivate breaker

1. A method comprising:

(a) mixing produced water or flowback water from an underground reservoir with a sulfur or phosphorus containing nucleophilic agent wherein the produced water or flowback water comprises a viscosifying polymer or a remnant thereof and a breaker selected from the group consisting of a vitamin B 1 breaker, ylide breaker or both a vitamin B 1 breaker and ylide breaker;

(b) deactivating the vitamin B 1 breaker, ylide breaker or both vitamin B 1 breaker and ylide breaker with the sulfur or phosphorus containing nucleophilic agent to render recyclable water; and

(c) pumping the recyclable water into the underground reservoir;

wherein at least one of the following prevails:

(i) the produced water or flowback water further comprises a crosslinking agent;

(ii) the ylide breaker, when selected, is a phosphonium ylide, sulfonium ylide, sulfoxonium ylide, carbonyl ylide, oxonium ylide, a nitrogen-based ylide, or a halonium ylide;

(iii) the vitamin B1, when selected, contains an ylide functional group; or

(iv) the nucleophilic agent is dissolved in a solvent.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the nucleophilic agent is dissolved in a solvent.

3. The method of claim 2 , wherein the solvent is water, brine or an alcohol.

4. The method of claim 2 , wherein the nucleophilic agent is dissolved in a solvent thereby forming a solution and the pH of the solution is from about 3.9 to about 5.2.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the nucleophilic agent is a phosphite, phosphate or a thiol.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the produced water or flowback water comprises a ylide breaker wherein the ylide breaker is a phosphonium ylide, sulfonium ylide, sulfoxonium ylide, carbonyl ylide, oxonium ylide, a nitrogen-based ylide, a halonium ylide or a vitamin B 1 containing an ylide functional group or a combination thereof.

7. The method of claim 6 , wherein the produced water or flowback water comprises a ylide breaker and wherein the ylide breaker is in a multiple bond form in a ylene resonance structure and of the formula R 1 R 2 C═O + C − R 3 R 4 ; an azomethine ylide of the formula R 1 R 2 ═NR 5+ C − R 3 R 4 ; an oxonium ylide of the formula R 1 R 2 C—O + C − R 3 R 4 ; or a phosphonium ylide of the formula R 1 R 2 R 3 P + C − R 4 R 5 ; and wherein R 1 , R 2 , R 3 , R 4 and R 5 are independently selected from the group consisting of hydrogen, a C 1 -C 8 alkyl or substituted alkyl group, and a C 6 -C 14 aryl group or substituted aryl group.

8. The method of claim 1 , wherein the underground reservoir is a gas well, an oil well or a geothermal well.

9. A method of treating a fluid after a subterranean formation penetrated by a well has been fractured in a hydraulic fracturing operation using a fracturing fluid, the fracturing fluid comprising a viscosifying polymer and a vitamin B 1 breaker, an ylide breaker or both a vitamin B 1 breaker and ylide breaker, the method comprising:

(a) reducing the viscosity of the fracturing fluid by at least partially degrading the viscosifying polymer with the vitamin B 1 , ylide or both vitamin B 1 and ylide to provide a fluid with reduced viscosity; and

(b) deactivating the vitamin B 1 , ylide or both vitamin B 1 and ylide within the fluid of reduced viscosity by adding to the fluid of reduced viscosity a sulfur or phosphorus containing nucleophilic agent;

wherein at least one of the following prevails:

(i) the vitamin B 1 breaker, ylide breaker or both vitamin B 1 breaker and ylide breaker hydrolyze the viscosifying polymer at a temperature between 75° F. and 300° F.;

(ii) the fracturing fluid further comprises a crosslinking agent; or

(iii) the vitamin B 1 breaker, ylide breaker or both vitamin B 1 breaker and ylide breaker hydrolyze the viscosifying polymer over a pH from about 8.0 to about 12.0.

10. The method of claim 9 , wherein the sulfur or phosphorus containing nucleophilic agent has a lone pair of electrons.

11. The method of claim 9 , wherein the fracturing fluid further comprises a crosslinking agent.

12. The method of claim 11 , wherein the crosslinking agent is a borate ion releasing compound, an organometallic and organic complexed metal compound, or a polymer with metal ions.

13. The method of claim 9 , wherein the vitamin B 1 breaker, ylide breaker or both vitamin B 1 breaker and ylide breaker hydrolyzes the viscosifying polymer over a pH from about 8.0 to about 12.0.

14. The method of claim 13 , wherein the vitamin B 1 breaker, ylide breaker or both vitamin B 1 breaker and ylide breaker hydrolyze the viscosifying polymer at a pH from about 10.0 to about 11.5.

15. A method of treating produced or flowback water comprising partially degraded or fully degraded viscosifying polymer, the method comprising

(a) adding vitamin B 1 , an ylide or both vitamin B 1 and an ylide to the produced or flowback water and reducing the viscosity of the produced or flowback water with the vitamin B 1 , ylide or both vitamin B 1 and ylide; and

(b) adding a sulfur or phosphorus containing nucleophilic agent to the produced or flowback water of reduced viscosity to deactivate the vitamin B 1 , ylide or both vitamin B 1 and ylide.

16. The method of claim 15 , wherein the produced water or flowback water is removed from a well prior to deactivation of vitamin B 1 , ylide or both vitamin B 1 and ylide with the sulfur or phosphorus containing nucleophilic agent.

17. The method of claim 15 , wherein the vitamin B 1 , ylide or both vitamin B 1 and ylide and nucleophilic agent are added to the produced or flowback water simultaneously.

18. The method of claim 17 , wherein vitamin B 1 is added to the produced or flowback water.

19. The method of claim 15 , wherein the sulfur or phosphorus containing nucleophilic agent has a lone pair of electrons.

20. The method of claim 15 , wherein the sulfur or phosphorus containing nucleophilic agent added to the produced or flowback water is dissolved in a solvent.