Amino Amide Salt Emulsifier for Drilling Mud Stability
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing emulsions, particularly in drilling muds, face challenges in maintaining stability with high water content while ensuring ecological and economic viability, as they tend to be thermodynamically unstable and prone to breaking, which affects their longevity and effectiveness in drilling processes.
Innovation Solution
The development of oil-in-water or water-in-oil emulsions containing specific weight percentages of hydrocarbons, water or aqueous solutions, and a salt of an amino amide of a fatty acid, which acts as an emulsifier to enhance stability and allow for adjustable water content, thereby improving the emulsion's ecological and economic advantages.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Object-affected harmful factors
If water content is increased in oil-in-water or water-in-oil emulsions, then ecological safety and cost-effectiveness are improved, but emulsion stability deteriorates and the emulsion breaks
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the chemical parameters of the emulsion system by introducing a specific emulsifier composition comprising a carboxylic acid or sulfonic acid and its salt, along with a polyol or polyol ester. This chemical parameter change enables the system to maintain stability while accommodating higher water content (5-50 wt%), thereby resolving the contradiction between ecological safety and emulsion stability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs a composite emulsifier system combining multiple components: a carboxylic acid or sulfonic acid ( Component A), its salt (Component B), and a polyol or polyol ester (Component C). This composite material approach creates synergistic effects that enhance emulsion stability even with high water content, allowing the system to achieve both ecological safety and stability simultaneously.
2Ease of manufacture
If water content is increased in drilling sludges, then economic viability is improved due to lower cost, but emulsion stability deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent modifies the chemical composition parameters of drilling sludges by incorporating a specific emulsifier package (carboxylic acid/sulfonic acid, its salt, and polyol/polyol ester). This parameter change allows the formulation to accept higher water content (5-50 wt%) while maintaining stability, thereby improving economic viability without sacrificing emulsion stability in drilling applications.
Solution Approach 2:
The emulsifier composition acts as an intermediary substance that mediates between the hydrocarbon phase and the aqueous phase in drilling sludges. This intermediary enables the system to incorporate more water (reducing cost) while maintaining the necessary stability for drilling operations, thus resolving the economic viability versus stability contradiction.
3Stability of the object's composition
If suitable emulsifiers are introduced to maintain stability with high water content, then emulsion stability is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent optimizes the concentration ranges of emulsifier components to achieve effective stability with moderate amounts: Component A (carboxylic acid or sulfonic acid) at 0.1-10 wt%, Component B (salt) at 0.1-10 wt%, and Component C (polyol or polyol ester) at 1-20 wt%. These controlled parameter changes provide the necessary stability without excessive formulation complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The emulsifier composition serves multiple functions simultaneously: Component A and B provide primary emulsification and electrostatic stabilization, while Component C provides steric stabilization and viscosity control. This multi-functionality reduces the need for additional separate additives, thereby improving stability without proportionally increasing formulation complexity.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The proposed emulsions achieve high stability and water content, making them suitable for drilling, cosmetics, and other applications, while being cost-effective and environmentally safer, with improved filtration properties and enhanced safety features.
Implementation Method 1
An emulsion is a finely distributed mixture of two liquids which normally cannot be mixed. Emulsions are thermodynamically unstable. To stabilize the fine distribution, boundary-surface-active substances are used, namely so-called compatibility promoters or emulsifiers (surfactants) without the emulsion disintegrating rapidly.
Implementation Method 2
The emulsifiers prevent breaking of the emulsion and stabilize it at least for a limited time. The disintegration is also designated as breaking of the emulsion.
Data Source
AI summary
The invention relates to an emulsion containing or consisting of(A) 40.00 to 97.98 wt. % of at least one hydrocarbon,(B) 2.00 to 59.98 wt. % of water or an aqueous solution of a salt which does not fall under the following definition according to (C) and(C) 0.02 to 8.00 wt. % of a salt of an amino amide of a fatty acid, containing at least one primary, secondary or tertiary amino group, and an acid component of general formula (I)in whichR1 is a linear or branched, saturated or mono-unsaturated or poly-unsaturated hydrocarbon radical with 1 to 40 C atoms,R2 is an alkylene radical or arylalkylene radical with 2 to 20 C atoms andX is a radical which contains at least one acid group,m=0 or 1,n=1 to 30,wherein the weight proportions of components (A), (B) and (C) relate to the sum of the masses of these components and this is 100 wt. %. The invention also relates to a method for the production of the emulsion, to an oil-based drilling mud and to a method for creating and stabilizing a drill hole.