Development of Nanofluids Based on Synergistic Effect of MgO Nanoparticles and a Quaternary Amine (CTAB) for the Inhibition of Formation Damage Caused By Fines Migration

Development of Nanofluids based on Synergistic Effect of MgO Nanoparticles and a Quaternary Amine (CTAB) for the Inhibition of Formation Damage Caused by Fines Migration

Rebeka Díez, Farid B. Cortés* and Camilo A. Franco*

Grupo de Investigación en Fenómenos de Superficie – Michael Polanyi, Facultad de Minas, Universidad Nacional de Colombia Sede Medellín, Kra 80 No. 65–223, Medellín, Colombia.

*Corresponding authors

e–mail: fbcortes@unal.edu.co, caafrancoar@unal.edu.co

Abstract

Fines migration is a common problem in the oil and gas industry that causes the decrease of productivity of a well due to the displacement of the mineral solids that adhere to the porous media plugging the pore throats of the formation. The primary objective of this work is to evaluate a nanofluid composed by nanoparticles of MgO and a quaternary amine (Hexadecyltrimethylammonium bromide - CTAB) to enhance the capacity of the porous media for the retention of fines nanoparticles.  MgO nanoparticles were synthesized by the sol-gel method using Mg(NO₃)₂·6H₂O as a precursor. Nanoparticles were characterized by dynamic light scattering, point of zero charge, TGA and FTIR. Different sizes 11,39nm, 42,80nm and 86,20nm were obtained. Nanofluids were prepared by dispersing the nanoparticles in a CTAB-containing aqueous solution. Retention tests were performed using Ottawa sand 20/40 packed beds and fine particles suspensions at concentrations of 2 wt% in deionized water. Individual and combined effects of nanoparticles and CTAB were evaluated in different treatment dosages. Based on the experimental results, the synthesized MgO nanoparticles/CTAB nanofluids showed a higher retention of fines in comparison with the systems treated only with CTAB or with MgO nanoparticles with efficiencies up to 200% higher. Also, was developed a design of experiments aimed to find the optimal concentration for the treatment proposed using the STATGRAPHICS Centurion XVI software (StatPoint Technologies Inc.).  This work proposes a new alternative for the injection of nanofluids as a treatment for the problem of fines migration to optimize the productivity of oil and gas wells.

Keywords. CTAB, Fines Migration, Formation Damage, MgO nanoparticles, Nanofluids.