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US 11,078,409 B2Granted
Electrically conductive proppant coating and related methods
AssigneeConocoPhillips Company
InventorJoe D. Allison
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An electrically conductive proppant coating and a method for applying the coating to the proppant, whereby the coated electrically conductive proppant can determine formation characteristics, such as dimensions, orientation, and conductivity.
Claims18
A method for determining geometry of a fracture in a subterranean formation, the method comprising:
- a. injecting a coated proppant into the fracture to cause the fracture to function as an emitting antenna while opening the fracture or holding the fracture open, the coated proppant including a proppant suspended in an electrically-conductive coating, the electrically-conductive coating (i) deposited on a proppant surface of the proppant, (ii) stabilized with an oxidizing agent, and (iii) including a mixture of carbon residue forming material and a solvent, the coated proppant carbonized and graphitized, the carbon residue forming material being petroleum pitch, the solvent being toluene, xylene, quinoline, tetrahydrofuran, tetralin, or naphthalene;
- b. sending, via electrical connections, a time-varying electrical signal into the fracture to charge the coated proppant, the time-varying electrical signal generated at a top surface above the fracture;
- c. detecting, via a plurality of surface antennas at the top surface, the time-varying electrical signal, the plurality of surface antennas spaced from each other over an area above the fracture;
- and
- d. determining the geometry of the fracture based on the time-varying electrical signal detected by the plurality of surface antennas.
2 more elements
A method for determining geometry of a fracture in a subterranean formation, the method comprising:
- a. injecting a coated proppant into the fracture, the coated proppant including a proppant suspended in an electrically-conductive coating material deposited on a surface of the proppant and stabilized with an oxidizing agent, the coated proppant carbonized and graphitized;
- b. sending a time-varying electrical signal into the fracture to charge the coated proppant;
- c. detecting, via a plurality of surface antennas, the time-varying electrical signal, the plurality of surface antennas spaced from each other over an area above the fracture;
- and
- d. determining the geometry of the fracture based on the time-varying electrical signal detected by the plurality of surface antennas.
2 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.