Title: COMPARATIVE EVALUATION OF DRILLING AND COMPLETION POLYMER FLUIDS
Author(s): Shah, Subhash N. and Ogugbue, Chinenye C., Mewbourne School of Petroleum and Geological Engineering, Well Construction Technology Center, The University of Oklahoma
Location: Lima,Peru
Date: October 13-17, 2008
Presentation: VI INGEPET 2008 (EXPL-2-CE-116)
Abstract:
Polymers present non-toxic and degradable fluids suitable for oilfield drilling and completion operations. In this paper, we evaluate and compare the rheological and hydraulic behavior of several polymer solutions (guar gum, xanthan gum, welan gum, PHPA and HEC) through experimental studies. The experimental set-up includes three 200-foot straight tubings with nominal diameters of 1-in., 1½-in., and 2 3/8-in. and a 15-foot ½-in. straight tubing. Clean fluids are investigated at various concentrations, as well as low and high shear applications. Through experimental studies, this work presents methods for achieving optimal fluid performance with polymer viscosifiers. Experimental results show that the amount of friction drag reduction differs significantly among the different types of polymer solutions. Data interpretation and analysis have enabled comparative evaluation of the inherent ability of each polymer to increase carrying capacity, erode cutting bed in highly deviated wells, and reduce drag.
