Lightweight oil and gas well proppants and methods for making and using same
AssigneeNorton-Alcoa Proppants
InventorsDavid S. Rumpf, Paul R. Lemieux
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A lightweight oil and gas well proppant made by simultaneously mixing and compacting a milled calcined kaolin clay powder to form green pellets and then drying, screening and sintering the pellets to form proppant pellets having a specific gravity of 3.0 or less and a conductivity of at least 4,200 millidarci-feet and preferably at least 5,100 md-ft as measured by the Stim-Lab method after 50 hours at 8,000 psi and 275.degree. F. in the presence of deoxygenated aqueous 2% solution of KCl.
Claims23
A method for making a low density, high strength proppant comprising the steps of:
- pelletizing a comminuted powder consisting essentially of kaolin clay by simultaneously mixing and compacting said powder while adding water at a controlled rate and adding additional amounts of said powder while continuing said simultaneous mixing and compacting, to form pellets in a selected size range;
- and
- drying and sintering said pellets to form proppant particles having a dry specific gravity of 3.0 or less.
A method for making a low density high strength proppant comprising the steps of:
- calcining kaolin clay under conditions which prevent the transformation of such kaolin clay to mullite or crystobalite;
- comminuting said calcined kaolin clay to a powder;
- pelletizing said powder by adding water thereto and simultaneously mixing and compacting it to form pellets in a desired size range;
- and
- drying and sintering said pellets.
A method for making a low density, high strength proppant comprising the steps of:
- calcining a clay material containing alumina and silica and less than about 2 w/o iron oxide and about 5 w/o free quartz under conditions which prevent the transformation of such clay material to mullite and crystobalite;
- comminuting said calcined clay material to a powder;
- pelletizing said powder by adding water thereto, and forming pellets in a desired size range;
- and
- drying and sintering said pellets.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.