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Introduction
In oil and gas extraction, time is money and everything. If you are also engaged in mining in this area, you must understand this. Then you will definitely know that there is an unsung hero when drilling, which can not only save operation time and costs, but also make the oil well run smoothly. This unsung hero is polyacrylamide, so how is it made? The following will introduce it to you in detail.
What is Polyacrylamide?
What exactly is polyacrylamide? Previously, we only knew polyacrylamide as a chemical commonly used in water treatment. In fact, polyacrylamide can not only be used in the water treatment industry, but is also a leader in drilling. Whether it is used for lubrication or viscosity control, polyacrylamide performs very well.
Step-by-Step: How Polyacrylamide Optimizes Drilling
1. Preparing the Drill Site: Viscosity Control
You can probably get a sense of how important PAM is by drawing up a plan, also known as an implementation plan, before drilling.
- Drilling fluid is needed, the viscosity of the drilling fluid is very important, neither too viscous nor too thin, too viscous may make the circulation become very slow, affecting the efficiency of the operation; Too thin to be useful. At this time, the role of PAM is highlighted.
Actionable Tip:When adding PAM, since it is not yet certain what the appropriate dosage of PAM is, it should be added in small amounts and multiple times to prevent imbalance in the proportion, which will require more costs to adjust later.
2. Drilling the Well: Efficient Cuttings Removal
After the drilling operation begins, a large amount of rock cuttings will be generated in the borehole. If these rock cuttings are not cleaned in time, the borehole will gradually become blocked and the drilling operation will not be able to proceed.
In order to deal with these rock cuttings, the drilling operation must be suspended once in a while to clean these rock cuttings.
Using PAM can perfectly solve this problem. Adding PAM agents to the borehole can enhance the suspension capacity of the drilling fluid, and can also transport the rock cuttings generated during the drilling process to the surface with the PAM agent to avoid wellbore blockage and keep it unobstructed.
Actionable Tip: It is necessary to monitor the situation of the on-site operation at all times and adjust the dosage of PAM at any time to ensure that it does not affect the speed and efficiency of drilling.
3.Controlling Filtration: Preventing Fluid Loss
During drilling operations, there is a major challenge – fluid loss. Once the fluid is lost to the surrounding formations, it will cause serious damage to the surrounding formations and the integrity of the oil field will be greatly reduced. This not only requires timely compensation, but also greatly increases the cost.
PAM can play a vital role at this time. By using PAM, a filter cake can be formed on the wall of the cylinder. This filter cake is very thin but impermeable, which can effectively reduce the flow of fluid into the formation, reduce losses, and protect the formation from being affected.
Actionable Tip: It should be noted that during the operation, the thickness and quality of the filter cake need to be checked regularly. As long as the filter cake can be guaranteed to be intact and effective, the loss of fluid can be greatly reduced and the formation will not be damaged.
4.Stabilizing Shale: Preventing Formation Collapse
The rock formation itself is stable. If you want to drill it, then there is a possibility of collapse, and the same is true for drilling in shale. Once a collapse occurs, it will first cause life safety to the operators, and secondly, it will destroy the equipment, and the previous work will be wasted. The consequences of these are that operations are interrupted and costs are greatly increased.
To solve this problem, PAM has once again become a key “weapon”. Adding PAM agents to the drilling fluid can enhance the viscosity between clay particles in the shale, thereby increasing its stability and reducing the risk of expansion and collapse.
Actionable Tip: If you happen to be drilling shale, it is best to add a higher concentration of PAM agents to the drilling fluid at the beginning, so as to minimize the risk.
5.Enhancing Lubrication: Reducing Friction
Drilling operations are ultimately about using a drill bit to dig into the stratum. The hard bottom layer is not easy to drill, and greater friction accompanies the entire process of the operation. Perhaps friction is inevitable and will not cause any major problems, but for long-term operations, the impact of friction should not be underestimated.
Long-term high friction will cause wear on the equipment and reduce the drilling speed, which will greatly increase the cost, which is not a good thing for the company.
If PAM can be used, the impact will be greatly reduced. The viscosity of PAM agents makes it lubricating. It acts as a lubricant to reduce the friction between the equipment and the wellbore, thereby reducing the wear of the equipment, speeding up the drilling speed, and greatly saving costs.
Actionable Tip:It should be noted that it is necessary to survey the terrain in advance, determine whether PAM agents are needed, and prepare them in advance to ensure that the work is foolproof.
Why You Should Be Using Polyacrylamide？
1. Reduce work difficulty: Effective use of PAM agents in drilling work can greatly reduce the difficulty of the operation and bring convenience to the operation.
2. Improve efficiency: Appropriate use of PAM can save working time and improve work efficiency.
3. Reduce costs: PAM agents can not only act as lubricants, reduce equipment loss, but also improve work efficiency, all of which can reduce costs and bring greater profit margins to enterprises.
4. Protect the environment: PAM as a filter cake can effectively reduce the amount of fluid flowing into other formations, protect the environment, and meet the international call for environmentally friendly development direction.
Conclusion
Polyacrylamide can not only be used in the water treatment industry, but also is a necessity for drilling operations. From the steps of drilling operations we analyzed above, we can understand that PAM agents can play a very important role in drilling operations and bring a lot of benefits. The reasonable use of PAM agents in drilling operations can greatly save time, improve efficiency, and reduce costs. It is a good choice for enterprises.
Do you understand the benefits that PAM will bring to your business operations? Contact us now to bring these benefits to your business, and we will serve you sincerely.
