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Section 9 - Proppants
Section 9 - Proppants
Proppants
Table of Contents
Introduction ............................................................................................................................................... 9-3
Topic Areas............................................................................................................................................ 9-3
Learning Objectives ............................................................................................................................... 9-3
Unit A: API Standards............................................................................................................................... 9-3
Roundness and Sphericity...................................................................................................................... 9-4
Specific Gravity ..................................................................................................................................... 9-4
Bulk Density .......................................................................................................................................... 9-4
Sieve Analysis........................................................................................................................................ 9-4
Acid Solubility ....................................................................................................................................... 9-4
Silt and Fine Particles ............................................................................................................................ 9-5
Crush Resistance.................................................................................................................................... 9-5
Clustering............................................................................................................................................... 9-5
Unit A Quiz............................................................................................................................................ 9-6
Unit B: Proppant Types ............................................................................................................................. 9-7
Sand........................................................................................................................................................ 9-7
Resin-Coated Sand................................................................................................................................. 9-7
Sintered Bauxite..................................................................................................................................... 9-8
Ceramics ................................................................................................................................................ 9-9
Unit B Quiz .......................................................................................................................................... 9-10
Unit C: Flow Capacity............................................................................................................................. 9-11
Unit C Quiz: Flow Capacity................................................................................................................. 9-12
Unit D: Proppant Bed Damage ................................................................................................................ 9-13
Unit D Quiz.......................................................................................................................................... 9-15
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Stimulation I
Proppants
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Stimulation I
Proppants
Introduction
Propping agents are the essential part of any
fracturing treatment. Propping agents prop
open the created fracture to conduct reservoir
fluids to the wellbore. The selection of a
propping agent requires information on the
conductivity at stress of any material used.
Sand is a natural material that is used as a
propping agent in many hydraulic fracturing
treatments.
Learning Objectives
Upon completion of this section, you will be able
to:
List API specifications for proppants
Distinguish between different types of
proppants.
Topic Areas
API Standards
Proppant Types
Flow Capacity
Proppant Bed Damage
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Stimulation I
Proppants
Bulk Density
Sieve Analysis
A sieve analysis shows the size distribution
of the sand within the designated size range;
90% of a sample must be within the
designated size range. Not over 0. 1 %
should be larger than the first sieve and not
over 1.0% should be smaller than the last
sieve. Table 9.2 gives U.S. standard mesh
screen sizes.
Specific Gravity
The specific gravity of a proppant is the measure of
the absolute density of individual proppant particles
relative to water. The recommended API maximum
limit is 2.65 for sand.
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U.S.
Series
Mesh
Sieve
Opening (in.)
U.S.
Series
Mesh
Sieve
Opening (in.)
0.187
25
0.0280
0.132
30
0.0232
0.0937
35
0.0197
10
0.0787
40
0.0165
12
0.0661
60
0.0098
14
0.0555
70
0.0083
16
0.0469
100
0.0059
18
0.0394
170
0.0035
20
0.0331
Acid Solubility
The solubility of a proppant in 12% HCl 3% FE acid is an indication of the amount of
contaminants present and of the relative
stability of the proppant in acid. It may also
indicate the tendency of proppants to
dissolve in hot brines. Acid solubility is
measured by percentage by weight. The API
recommended maximum for sand is 2%,
while the limit for resin-coated sand is 7%
maximum.
Stimulation I
Proppants
Crush Resistance
Crush resistance indicates the relative strength of a
proppant by measuring the amount of material
crushed under a given load. It is expressed in units
of percentage of fines. API recommended maximum
limits for sand are:
for 12/20 - 16% at 3000 psi
for 20/40 - 14% at 4000 psi
API recommended maximum limits for high
strength proppants are:
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Clustering
Clustering is measured by percentage by
weight. It indicates the degree of attachment
of individual proppant grains to one another.
During processing, the grains were not
broken apart. The API recommended
maximum is 1 %.
Stimulation I
Proppants
Unit A Quiz
Fill in the blanks with one or more words to check your progress in Unit A.
1. List 6 characteristics of proppants used in hydraulic fracturing that need to be monitored.
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
2. Bulk density is the _________ __________ ___ ________ of proppant
3. ______ True ______ False: The maximum API recommendation for % fines of 12/20 sand
at 3000 psi is 16%.
4. The specific gravity of a proppant in the measure of the ______________ _____________ of
individual proppant particles relative to water.
Now, look up the suggested answers in the Answer Key.
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Stimulation I
Proppants
Premium Sand
(Jordan/Ottawa)
Standard Sand
(Hickory/Brady)
12/20
20/40
12/20
20/40
Product Name
Roundness
0.8
0.8
0.7
0.7
Sphericity
0.8
0.8
0.8
0.7
2.65
2.65
2.65
2.65
96
102
100
102
Acid Solubility
1.3
1.2
0.9
1.6
AcFrac SB Prime
2.4
1.8
11.1
11.0
AcFrac SB Excel
Ceramax P
0.3
0.1
0.8
0.3
Properties
Specific Gravity
(% by Weight)
Crush Resistance
(% Fines)
Clustering
(% by Weight)
Description
Product Name
AcFrac CR 4000
Resin-Coated Sand
Description
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Description
Product Name
Tempered LC
Description
Stimulation I
Proppants
Sintered Bauxite
Description
Super LC
Super DC
Super HS
Super TF
OptiProp
MagnaProp
DynaProp
HyperProp
PolarProp
Super HT
AcFrac PR 4000
Ceramix I
Phenolic Resin-Coated
Premium Sand
Ceramix E
Phenolic Resin-Coated
Economy Sand
Product Name
Description
INTERPROP
SINTERED
BAUXITE
Tempered DC
Tempered HS
Tempered TF
EconoFlex
Phenolic Resin-Coated
Economy Ceramic
Product Name
Description
CarboProp
Carbo HSP
Table 9.3 -
Description
SinterLite
SinterProp
SinterBall
Table 9.4
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Proppants
Ceramics
Ceramic are one of the large classes into which all
useful solid materials can be divided, i.e., metals,
organics, and ceramics. Generally, a ceramic is any
non-organic, non-metallic solid formed by high
temperature processing (above 875F). Example
ceramics include glass, refractories, whiteware
(dishes, pottery, etc.), structural products (brick),
abrasives, and cement.
Ceramic proppants are produced in a different
manner than the sintered bauxite proppants using
fluidizing bed processing. The composition of the
ceramic-type proppants shows mostly mullite
(aluminum compound) with some additional silica
compounds. This produces a compound only slightly
denser than sand with specific gravities of
approximately 2.65 to 2.75. These ceramic
proppants have greater strength than sand but less
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Description
CarboLite
EconoProp
Product Name
Description
NAPLITE
VALUPROP
Table 9.5
Stimulation I
Proppants
Unit B Quiz
Fill in the blanks with one or more words to check your progress in Unit B.
1. The four main types of proppant used today are:
1)
2)
3)
4)
2. The three types of resin coated proppants are:
1)
2)
3)
3. Intermediate-strength sintered bauxite is formed from a ________ _________ bauxite ore.
4. Generally, a ceramic is any ______-____________, ______-________ solid formed by
_________ ________________ processing
Now, look up the suggested answers in the Answer Key at the end of this section.
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Stimulation I
Proppants
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Stimulation I
Proppants
3000
Proppant Type
H Brady
H Ottawa
2500
2000
1500
1000
Conductivity (md*ft)
500
0
0
3000
6000
9000
12000
15000
Stress (psi)
Customer:
Well Desc:
Job Date:
Job Type:
Ticket #: 2
Fracture Job
StimWinH v3.1.2
26-May-99 11:45
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Stimulation I
Proppants
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Stimulation I
Proppants
Partial Embedment
2400
2200
2000
BORATE
XLINK
30lb HPG BORATE
w/ persulfate/ XLINK
40lb HPG
amine
breaker w/ persulfate/
amine
breaker
1800
1600
1400
1200
2128
1971
1000
800
600
20/40 Sand
2
Con.=lb/ft
Closure=2000psi
T=100F
808
400
200
0
30
40
50
TI TAN TE
XLINK
40lb HPG
w/ enzyme
breaker
430
10
20
BORATE
XLINK
40lb HPG
w/ enzyme
breaker TI TAN TE
XLINK
ANTI40lb HPG MONA TE
w/ enzyme XLINK
breaker
40lb HPG
w/ enzyme
1500
breaker
1115
60
70
% Conductive Impairment
80
90
100
Figure 9.6
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Stimulation I
Proppants
Unit D Quiz
Fill in the blanks with one or more words or circle the correct answer to check your progress in
Unit D.
1. Name four factors may influence the flow capacity resulting from a bed of proppant under load:
2. The crushing or embedment of proppant particles may cause a fast decline in productivity
because of the reduction in ____________ _______ _____________.
3. The crushing of the formation due to embedment may release formation ________ which could
partially _________ the proppant _______.
4. Gel residue, unbroken gel, and high gel-loading filter cake on the fracture face can reduce the
______ __________ of the proppant pack by as much as ______%.
Now, look up the suggested answers in the Answer Key at the end of this section.
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Stimulation I
Proppants
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Stimulation I
Proppants
Answer Key
Items from Unit A Quiz
Refer to
Page
1. Roundness, Spericity, Specific Gravity, Bulk Density, Sieve Size, Acid Solubility, Silt
and Fine Particles, Crush Resistance, Clustering
2. Volume / mass
9-3
9-4
3. T
9-5
4. Absolute Density
9-4
Refer to
Page
9-9
9-8
3. less pure
9-8
9-9
Refer to
Page
9-11
9-11
3. Screenout / permeability
9-11
Refer to
Page
9-13
9-15
9-13
9-14
Self-Check Test
Refer to
Page
1. Roundness
Sphericity
9-4
9-4
9-4
9-4
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9-11
Stimulation I
Proppants
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9-13
Stimulation I