# US 12,359,116 B2 · Particles for carriers and tracers

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- Number: US 12,359,116 B2
- Document ID: US12359116B2
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B2
- Application number: 18/435,424
- Filed: 2024-02-07
- Published: 2024-07-25
- Granted: 2025-07-15
- Earliest claimed: 2021-08-27
- Assignees: Alchemy Sciences, Inc.
- Applicants: Alchemy Sciences, Inc.
- Inventors: Erick Acosta; Luchao Jin; Shashidhar Rajagopalan
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US12359116B2

## CPC

- C09K 8/92: characterised by their form or by the form of their components, e.g. encapsulated material (C09K8/70 takes precedence)
- C09K 8/72: Eroding chemicals, e.g. acids
- C09K 8/845: {containing inorganic compounds}
- C09K 8/882: {obtained by reactions only involving carbon-to-carbon unsaturated bonds}
- C09K 8/885: {obtained otherwise than by reactions only involving carbon-to-carbon unsaturated bonds}
- E21B 49/00: Testing the nature of borehole walls; Formation testing; Methods or apparatus for obtaining samples of soil or well fluids, specially adapted to earth drilling or wells
- E21B 49/008: {by injection test; by analysing pressure variations in an injection or production test, e.g. for estimating the skin factor (measuring pressure E21B47/06)}
- G01V 3/26: operating with magnetic or electric fields produced or modified either by the surrounding earth formation or by the detecting device (with electromagnetic waves G01V3/30)
- E21B 47/11: using tracers; using radioactivity
- C09K: MATERIALS FOR MISCELLANEOUS APPLICATIONS, NOT PROVIDED FOR ELSEWHERE
- E21B: EARTH OR ROCK DRILLING; OBTAINING OIL, GAS, WATER, SOLUBLE OR MELTABLE MATERIALS OR A SLURRY OF MINERALS FROM WELLS
- G01V: GEOPHYSICS; GRAVITATIONAL MEASUREMENTS; DETECTING MASSES OR OBJECTS; TAGS (means for indicating the location of accidentally buried, e.g. snow-buried, persons A63B29/02)

## Abstract

A process for forming a particle carrier system includes supplying a particle carrier, the particle carrier having a surface and modifying the particle carrier surface to include a first ionic functional group. The process also includes chemically binding the first ionic functional group on the particle carrier surface to a first ionic molecule.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A process for forming a particle carrier system comprising: supplying a particle carrier, the particle carrier having a surface, wherein the particle carrier is mesoporous, the particle carrier having pore sizes between 2 and 50 nm; modifying the particle carrier surface to include a first ionic functional group; modifying the pores of the particle carrier to include a second ionic functional group; chemically binding the first ionic functional group on the particle carrier surface to a first ionic molecule; and binding a second ionic molecule to the pores of the particle carrier.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The process of claim 1, wherein the first ionic functional group and the second ionic function group are different.

### Claim 3 (depends on 1)

The process of claim 1, wherein the first ionic functional group is a carboxylate, sulfate, phosphate, phenolic, ammonium, or phosphonium functional group.

### Claim 4 (depends on 1)

The process of claim 1 wherein the particle carrier is encapsulated by a particle coating.

### Claim 5 (depends on 4)

The process of claim 4, wherein the particle coating is a paraffin wax, a polymer, or a mineral coating.

### Claim 6 (depends on 5)

The process of claim 5, wherein the particle coating is a polymer, wherein the polymer is a polystyrene, polybutylene, polyvinyl alcohol, polyurethane, polyester, polyamide, polyethylene, polycarbonate, polypropylene, polyvinyl chloride, polyisoprene, polyisobutylene, butadiene/styrene copolymers, polytetrafluoroethylene, polyglycol, polylactic acid, a polyacrylate, or polyacrylamide.

### Claim 7 (depends on 5)

The process of claim 5, wherein the particle coating is a mineral, wherein the mineral is a carbonate or silicate.