Composition and method for hydraulic fracturing and evaluation and diagnostics of hydraulic fractures using infused porous ceramic proppant
A composition and method for hydraulically fracturing an oil or gas well to improve the production rates and ultimate recovery using a porous ceramic proppant infused with a chemical treatment agent is provided. The chemical treatment agent may be a tracer material that provides diagnostic information about the production performance of a hydraulic fracture stimulation by the use of distinguishable both water soluble and hydrocarbon soluble tracers. The tracer can be a biological marker, such as DNA. The porous ceramic proppant can be coated with a polymer which provides for controlled release of the chemical treatment agent into a fracture or well bore area over a period of time.
1. A method of making coated and infused porous particulates having a cured polymer coating, the method comprising:
providing a plurality of porous particulates, each having an internal interconnected porosity of from about 5% to about 35%;
heating the plurality of porous particulates;
cooling the plurality of porous particulates to a temperature from 430° F. to 440° F.;
contacting the plurality of porous particulates at the temperature of 430° F. to 440° F. with a chemical treatment agent;
cooling the plurality of porous particulates to provide infused porous particulates having a temperature from 410° F. to 420° F.;
contacting the infused porous particulates at the temperature from 410° F. to 420° F. with a phenol formaldehyde polymer to provide an infused porous particulate having a polymer coating; and
reacting the polymer coating with hexamine to crosslink the phenol formaldehyde polymer to provide the coated and infused porous particulates having a cured polymer coating.
2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the cured polymer coating is a semi-permeable substantially non-degradable polymer configured to permit the chemical treatment agent to elute therethrough.
3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the chemical treatment agent comprises a scale inhibitor, a hydrate inhibitor, a hydrogen sulfide scavenging material, a corrosion inhibitor, a paraffin inhibitor, an asphaltene inhibitor, an organic deposition inhibitor, a biocide, a demulsifier, a defoamer, a gel breaker, a salt inhibitor, an oxygen scavenger, an iron sulfide scavenger, an iron scavenger, or a clay stabilizer, or a combination thereof.
4. The composition of claim 1 , wherein the phenol formaldehyde polymer has a viscosity of from about 1100 cps to about 1850 cps at 150° C.
5. The composition of claim 1 , wherein the chemical treatment agent comprises a chemical tracer.
6. The composition of claim 5 , wherein the chemical tracer comprises a biological marker.
7. The composition of claim 6 , wherein the biological marker comprises deoxyribose nucleic acid (DNA).
8. A method of making infused porous particulates having an epoxy resin coating, comprising:
providing a plurality of porous particulates, each having an internal interconnected porosity of from about 5% to about 35%;
heating the plurality of porous particulates;
cooling the plurality of porous particulates to a temperature from 430° F. to 440° F.;
contacting the plurality of porous particulates at the temperature of 430° F. to 440° F. with a hydrocarbon soluble chemical treatment agent;
cooling the plurality of porous particulates to induce capillary action causing the chemical treatment agent to infuse into the internal interconnected porosity of the porous particulates without the use of a solvent to provide infused porous particulates having a temperature from 410° F. to 420° F.; and
contacting the infused porous particulates at the temperature of 410° F. to 420° F. with an epoxy resin, causing the epoxy resin to coat the infused porous particulates to provide the infused porous particulates having the epoxy resin coating.
9. The method of claim 8 , wherein the epoxy resin coating is a semi-permeable substantially non-degradable polymer configured to permit the chemical treatment agent to elute therethrough.
10. The method of claim 9 , wherein the chemical treatment agent comprises a paraffin inhibitor.
11. The method of claim 10 , wherein the chemical treatment agent comprises ethylene vinyl acetate copolymers.
12. The method of claim 11 , wherein chemical treatment agent melts upon contact with the porous particulates at the second temperature to achieve a viscosity of about 1,000 cps to about 5,000 cps prior to infusion into the internal interconnected porosity of the porous particulates.
13. The method of claim 12 , wherein the plurality of porous particulates comprise porous ceramic proppant.