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US 2014/0190686 A1Published application
Electrically Conductive Proppant and Methods for Detecting, Locating and Characterizing the Electrically Conductive Proppant
AssigneesCarbo Ceramics Inc., Sandia Corporation
InventorsChad Cannan, Lewis Bartel, Terry Palisch, David Aldridge
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Abstract
Electrically conductive sintered, substantially round and spherical particles and methods for producing such electrically conductive sintered, substantially round and spherical particles from an alumina-containing raw material. Methods for using such electrically conductive sintered, substantially round and spherical particles in hydraulic fracturing operations.
Claims8
A proppant pack comprising:
- a plurality of sintered, substantially round and spherical particles, each said particle, comprising a substantially uniform coating of an electrically conductive material having a thickness of at least 500 nm.
A method of fracturing a subterranean formation and detecting, locating and characterizing a proppant used in the fracturing, comprising:
- injecting a hydraulic fluid into a wellbore extending into the subterranean formation at a rate and pressure sufficient to open a fracture therein;
- injecting into the fracture a fluid containing electrically conductive sintered, substantially round and spherical particles;
- electrically energizing the earth at or near the fracture;
- and
- measuring the three dimensional (x, y, and z) components of the electric and magnetic field responses at the surface or in an adjacent wellbore.
2 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.