The oil and gas drilling operations are primarily dependent on the shale inhibition features of the drilling mud. Our current study describes the consequence of polyacrylamide modified nanosilica (PAM-SiO2NPs) on the swelling inhibition of clay and rheological properties of the drilling mud. Large surface area, effective functionalization of SiO2NPs and low toxicity make PAM-SiO2NPs very appropriate as the low cost and effective additive for the water-based mud. The drilling mud was hot-rolled at 212oF and 500 Psi for 16 h, later on, apparent viscosity, plastic viscosity, yield point, and gel strength of the water-based drilling mud were studied. water-based the inhibition properties the dispersion test, shale inhibition durability test, and linear swelling test were conducted. The results demonstrate that PAM-SiO2NPs modified water-based mud (PAM-SiO2NPs-WBM) shows an improvement in the rheological properties. Moreover, the shale cutting treated with PAM-SiO2NPs-WBM displays the highest % recovery (87 %) as compared to KCl (50 %) or the commercial inhibitor modified mud (72%) in the dispersion test. The shale inhibition stability of shale treated in PAM-SiO2NPs-WBM demonstrates higher stability for up to 2 days. Additionally, PAM-SiO2NPs prominently control the swelling rate to 33% as compared to 87% in water, 41% in the unmodified drilling mud and 37.5 % in the commercial shale inhibitor. The PAM-SiO2NPs adsorption on the surface of the shale and its inhibition mechanism was explored by different characterization techniques such as FT-IR analysis, TGA, SEM, and EDX. The outcomes disclosed that PAM-SiO2NPs plug the pores on the shale surface that cause a prominent decrease in the clay swelling. The proposed inhibition mechanism of the PAM-SiO2NPs demonstrates that the PAM-SiO2NPs carry functional groups that can disrupt the hydrogen bonding between water and clay surface. Consequently, the clay surface is being protected against the water-reactive action. We report PAM-SiO2NPs as novel and efficient shale inhibitor that successfully binds to the clay surface. The unique characteristics of the PAM were combined with nano-silica to get the nanocomposite that modifies the drilling mud rheology and inhibits the clay swelling.

Hydrophobic polymer-modified nanosilica as effective environment-friendly shale inhibitor for water-based drilling mud

Macromolecular Chemistry: The Second Century

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ACS Spring 2020 National Meeting & Expo

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.