Micromesh Proppant Aggregation for Low-Dust Fracture Placement
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Solution Overview
Problem
Micromesh proppants face challenges in handling, transportation, and deployment due to their small particle size, leading to dust generation, material loss, and health hazards, while their superior performance in hydraulic fracturing is hindered by logistical issues.
Innovation Solution
A micromesh proppant composition that transitions between a micromesh structural state and an aggregated structural state using a temporary binding agent, forming super-particles for improved handling and transportation, which disintegrate into micromesh particles under specific conditions for optimal fracture placement.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If micromesh proppant particles are used in their fine particle state for hydraulic fracturing, then fracture penetration and conductivity are improved, but handling safety and dust generation are worsened
Solution Approach 1:
The proppant is segmented into two structural states: fine micromesh particles for fracture penetration and aggregated super-particles for handling. The aggregation divides the fine particles into bound clusters that can be safely transported, then re-segmented into individual particles for deployment into fractures.
Solution Approach 2:
The physical state parameter of the proppant is changed from a permanent fine particle state to a temporary aggregated state during handling and transportation. This parameter change reduces dust generation while maintaining the ability to revert to the fine particle state for fracture injection.
2Ease of operation
If micromesh proppant particles are aggregated into super-particles for handling, then dust generation is reduced, but the ability to penetrate deep fractures is worsened
Solution Approach 1:
The proppant structure is made dynamic rather than static. The aggregation state is temporary and reversible, allowing the material to transition from an aggregated handling state to a dispersed injection state. This dynamic structural change enables the proppant to optimize for handling safety during transport and for penetration depth during fracture injection.
3Productivity
If temporary binding agents are used to form super-particles, then transportation efficiency is improved, but the complexity of the proppant composition is worsened
Solution Approach 1:
A temporary binding agent acts as an intermediary substance that facilitates the aggregation of micromesh particles into super-particles for handling. This intermediary binds the particles during transport and can be removed or degraded to restore the particles to their individual state for fracture injection, enabling efficient transportation without permanent compositional changes.
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
Enhances handling and transportation safety, reduces dust generation, and ensures precise placement of micromesh proppants in fractures, balancing the advantages of micromesh proppants with practical considerations.
Implementation Method 1
a micromesh structural state in which the micromesh proppant particles are unbounded to each other and an aggregated structural state in which the micromesh proppant particles are formed into agglomerates or super-particles
Implementation Method 2
the temporary binding agent may be dissolvable or degradable (e.g., under wellbore conditions, when exposed to a breaking agent, etc.) such that upon breaking (e.g., dissolution or degradation of the temporary binding agent), the proppant composition may transition from the aggregate structural state back to the micromesh structural state
Implementation Method 3
the temporary binding agent may be dissolvable or degradable (e.g., under wellbore conditions, when exposed to a breaking agent, etc.)
Data Source
AI summary
Improved composition and method for a micromesh proppant with a temporary structural state for improved handling and efficiency. The present disclosure provides a micromesh proppant composition configured to transition between a micromesh structural state and an aggregated structural state. The composition includes a plurality of micromesh proppant particles having a particle size from about 150 mesh to about 635 mesh. In the micromesh structural state, the proppant particles are unbounded and free from each other. In the aggregated structural state, the proppant particles are bound into super-particles by a temporary binding agent, with each super-particle comprising two or more proppant particles. The temporary binding agent is configured to break down under predetermined conditions, allowing the composition to transition from the aggregated structural state back to the micromesh structural state.