Nanoemulsions
AssigneeBaker Hughes Incorporated
InventorsLirio Quintero, David E. Clark, Alexander John McKellar
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Nanoemulsions have been discovered to be useful to the oil field. More particularly water-in-oil (W/O), oil-in-water (O/W) and other classes of nanoemulsions have found beneficial application in drilling, completion, well remediation and other oil and gas industry related operations. Additionally, nanoemulsions may reduce friction pressure losses, as well as reduce subsidence of solid weight material during oil and gas operations. New preparation methods for nanoemulsions have also been discovered.
Claims13
A method comprising:
- introducing a thermodynamically unstable nanoemulsion into a wellbore
- where the nanoemulsion comprises:
- (1) a non-polar based continuous phase,
- (2) a polar based discontinuous phase with a mean droplet size of less than 1000 nm, and
- (3) a surfactant;
- and
- a further procedure selected from the group consisting of:
- drilling a wellbore using a fluid comprising the thermodynamically unstable nanoemulsion;
- completing a well using a fluid comprising the thermodynamically unstable nanoemulsion;
- remediating a subterranean formation, other than by acidizing, using a fluid comprising the thermodynamically unstable nanoemulsion;
- acidizing a subterranean formation using a fluid comprising the thermodynamically unstable nanoemulsion;
- fracturing a subterranean formation using a fluid comprising the thermodynamically unstable nanoemulsion;
- and
- combinations thereof.
A method comprising drilling a wellbore using a drilling fluid comprising a thermodynamically unstable nanoemulsion where the thermodynamically unstable nanoemulsion comprises:
- (1) a non-polar based continuous phase,
- (2) a polar based discontinuous phase with a mean droplet size between 400 nm and 700 nm, and
- (3) a surfactant,
- (4) a solid weighting agent.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.