Abstract
Migration of fine particulates and/or scale formation is known to plug up etched channels or pore spaces in proppant packs, causing production decline in wells that have been acidized or completed with high-rate water packs or frac-packs. The removal of such damage caused by plugging is only a temporary solution if the source of the plugging material is not mitigated. This paper presents the results of a series of laboratory tests aimed at demonstrating and quantifying the performance of a treatment fluid for stabilizing formation fines, inhibiting scale formation, and keeping flow channels open through damaged proppant packs after production has been restored.
Packed beds of proppant and formation sands were used to simulate frac-pack conditions before and after remedial treatments. The treatment fluid was comprised of a salt-free, aqueous-based solution containing an environmental friendly clay-swelling inhibitor and a water-based agglomerating agent (WBAA). The results show that this WBAA system is applicable to most types of formations, including sandstones, carbonates, and coals. Once injected into the proppant pack and formation matrix, WBAA forms a thin film on the particulates, covering and anchoring them in place, without plugging pore throats. This thin coating does not harden, but remains flexible, allowing the treated formation to withstand high shear stress during high production flow rates. WBAA coating forms hydrophobic film-encapsulating particulate surfaces, inhibiting chemical reactions that lead to scale formation in the pack matrix.
The experimental results show that WBAA treatments effectively mitigate the buildup of scale in various sand packs and successfully control the migration of formation fines into proppant packs to maintain well production.
