CASE STUDY

Physico-Chemical Characterization of
Aphron-Based Drilling Fluids

N. Bjorndalen, E. Kuru
University of Alberta

layer. The outer layer, which also supports the viscous layer, is hy-
Abstract drophobic outwards and hydrophilic inwards. Since this bubble is
Colloidal gas aphron-based drilling fluids are designed to min- in contact with the bulk water, it is believed that there is another
imize formation damage by blocking the pores of the rock with layer in which the surfactant molecules are hydrophobic inwards
microbubbles, which can later be removed easily when the well and hydrophilic outwards. This indicates that there is a region in
is open for production. between the aphron outer shell and the bulk phase layer where a
Sizing colloidal gas aphron (CGA) bubbles in accordance with hydrophobic globule will be comfortable and, therefore, oil can ad-
the rock pore size distribution is essential for effective sealing here to the gas aphron(3).
of the pores during drilling. The physical properties (i.e. vis- Aphrons are non-coalescing, can be recirculated, and are not
cosity, density, fluid loss, etc.) of the CGA-based drilling fluids affected by fine screen shale shakers. Downhole tools can be uti-
also need to be understood in order to use these fluids more lized with the aphronized drilling fluid system. Aphrons eliminate
effectively. differential sticking by altering the near wellbore pressure drop(6),
In this study, the physical properties of colloidal gas aphron- which, in turn, reduces the need for costly downhole tools in low
based drilling fluids are investigated. The results of rheology,
reservoir pressure applications(7). One of the most important assets
API filtration loss and density measurement tests using various
of the colloidal gas aphrons is that they can resist coalescence be-
CGA-based drilling fluid formulations are presented. The effects
of polymer and surfactant concentration, surfactant type, shear cause they are self-contained. With this system, there is no need for
rate, mixing time and water quality on the CGA bubble size have injection of gases, since aphrons can be produced easily at the sur-
been studied. Results of CGA bubble size characterization exper- face with mixing equipment. As well, unlike aerated mud, aphron
iments are also reported. drilling fluid will not corrode the drill string since most of the air
in the system is encapsulated in the aphron shell(2).
Aphrons are stable in drilling fluids at lower pressures. Above
a critical pressure, the aphrons will collapse. White et al.(4) esti-
Introduction mated a collapse pressure of 3,000 psi when running simulations
Colloidal gas aphron-based drilling fluids have recently been that were used to determine the aphron concentration and bubble
used for drilling at-balance in an attempt to eliminate the problems size with an increase in pressure. Since the aphrons collapse at
associated with overbalanced and underbalanced drilling. In order higher pressures, concerns have been raised as to the widespread
to achieve an at-balance drilling situation, the fluid pressure must application of this system(8), but these systems have been used in
be maintained at a level greater than the formation pressure, but mature fields(9). Visualization tests indicated that aphrons could be
the difference should be kept at a minimum level to avoid inva- maintained at pressures of at least 1,500 psi(10).
sion of the fluid into the formation(1). Colloidal gas aphron drilling
fluid simulates such a situation by building a bridge in front of
the pores of the rock. It is believed that this bridge stabilizes the
rock while allowing minimal damage to the formation. This system
has been successfully implemented in high-angle and horizontal
well drilling in highly depleted reservoirs(2), as well as with ver-
tical wells.
Simply put, aphrons are bubbles, approximately 10 to 100 mi-
crons in diameter. The term colloidal gas aphrons was first used
by Sebba(3). Like regular foams, aphrons are typically composed
of a gaseous (colloidal gas aphrons) or liquid (polyaphron) core.
Unlike foams, however, aphrons have a thin aqueous protective
shell. Aphron stability is determined by the rate of mass transfer
between the viscous water shell and the bulk phase. This transfer is
known as the Marangoni effect(3-5). If the mass transfer rate is high,
aphrons will be unstable. Therefore, the shell fluid is designed to
have certain viscosity to minimize the Marangoni effect. The shell
is composed of an inner layer and an outer layer. Figure 1 illus-
trates a typical aphron. The inner layer consists of surfactant mol-
FIGURE 1: Typical aphron microscope picture.
ecules which supports and separates the air core from the viscous
PEER REVIEWED PAPER PUBLISHED AS A CASE STUDY (“REVIEW AND PUBLICATION PROCESS” CAN BE FOUND ON OUR WEBSITE)
November 2008, Volume 47, No. 11 15
 This paper focuses on the measurement of the physical prop-
erties of colloidal gas aphron-based drilling fluids. Tests on the
effects of polymer and surfactant concentration, surfactant type,
shear rate, mixing time and water quality on the physical proper-
ties have been carried out. The viscosity, API filtration loss, den-
sity and CGA bubble size have been investigated.
Experimental Procedure
The experimental procedure consists of four steps: 1) prepara-
tion of the base fluid; 2) preparation of the aphronized fluid; 3)
bulk aphronized fluid characterization; and 4) measurement of the
aphron bubble size.
1. Preparation of the Base Fluid
An aqueous Xanthan Gum (XG) solution was used as a base
fluid. The solutions were generated at three different XG concen-
trations (1 lb/bbl, 3lb/bbl and 5 lb/bbl). The Hamilton-Beach over-
head malt mixer was used to mix the fluid at a maximum rate of
10,000 rpm.
Once the base fluid was prepared, it was allowed to cool down
to room temperature, between 20 and 24°C (68 and 75°F). This
was done to avoid destabilization of the aphrons at high tempera-
tures. The aphron system is expected to begin destabilizing at tem-
peratures above 40°C (104°F)(11). In order to ensure that proper
density measurements could be taken, the XG solution was vacu-
umed using a vacuum pump. The density of the XG solution was
found to be 8.4 lb/gal for the 3 lb/bbl XG fluid.
2. Preparation of the Aphronized Fluid
Two types of surfactants have been chosen for this study: hexa-
decyltrimethyl ammonium bromide (HTAB), a cationic surfactant,
and sodium dodecyl benzene sulfonate (DDBS), an anionic surfac-
tant. These surfactants were chosen because they were successfully
used to generate aphrons by previous researchers(12-14).
DDBS or HTAB surfactants were added to the base fluid at con-
centrations of 1 lb/bbl and 2 lb/bbl. The fluid was aphronized by
using a modified Brinkmann Homogenizer Model PT 45/80. A
method for the generation of the aphrons was first described by
Sebba(3) in which a disc is rotated at a speed greater than 4,000
rpm. Since then, several variations of this method have been suc-
cessfully used to generate aphron mixtures(12, 15-22). The homog-
enizer was modified in such a way that a four-baffle system was
attached to the shaft of the generator to assist in the air entrain-
ment. A schematic drawing of the four-baffle system is shown in
Figure 2.
…1q
…6-1/8q
1/2q
thickness
5-1/2q
1/4q
thickness 1q
FIGURE 2: Schematic view of the aphron mixer.
16 Journal of Canadian Petroleum Technology
3. Bulk Aphronized Fluid Characterization
The shear viscosity of the fluid was measured by a Brookfield
DV II Digital Cone/Plate Viscometer. The plastic viscosity, yield
point and apparent viscosity was measured by a Fann Viscometer.
The density of the fluid was measured by using either a mud bal-
ance or, in the case where the density was low, by using a digital
scale and fixed fluid volume. The API filtration loss test was per-
formed by using a standard filter press.
4. Measurement of the Aphron Bubble
Diameter
During the past decade, colloidal gas aphrons have been studied
in the chemical and environmental industries with a focus on the ap-
plications of soil remediation(13, 14, 23, 24) and aqueous separation(12,
25). Through this work, the size of the aphron has been studied by
many methods. Parthasarathy et al.(26) looked at bubble breakup
equations for prediction of aphron diameter. Jauregi et al.(17) used a
light microscope, a CCD camera and image analysis to determine
the size of the aphrons generated. The average diameter recorded
was between 32 and 72 μm. Dai and Deng(18) found a mean diam-
eter of 55.02 μm. Photographic techniques have also been used by
others(27, 28). Roy et al.(12) used a Particle Size Analyzer to deter-
mine the size distribution.
In this study, digital pictures of the aphron bubbles were taken
using a Zeiss microscope and a CCD camera. Care was taken to
ensure that the pictures were obtained immediately following the
aphron generation process. A screen caliper, which has a measure-
ment increment of 1 pixel, was used to measure the diameter of the
individual aphrons in the picture. A scaling factor was then used
to convert the aphron diameter from pixels to the actual length in
microns.
Results and Discussion
Effects of polymer and surfactant concentration, surfactant type,
shear rate, mixing time and water quality on the physical proper-
ties of the aphron drilling fluid were investigated. The density, vis-
cosity and API filtration loss characteristics of aphronized drilling
fluids were measured. The diameter of the aphron bubble was also
determined. DDBS surfactant was used for all tests, excluding
the surfactant-type test where HTAB was used as a comparison
surfactant.
Density
Density of the aphronized drilling fluid decreased from 6.3 ppg
to 5.3 ppg as the surfactant concentration increased from 1 lb/bbl to
2 lb/bbl (Table 1). As shown in Figure 3, as the amount of surfac-
tant increases, the volume of the aphrons also increases. Naturally,
as the volume of the air phase (aphrons) increases, the density of
the fluid will decrease. The aphronized fluid densities reported in
this study were all measured under atmospheric pressure condi-
tions. When it is circulated downhole, however, aphronized fluid
will be exposed to pressures that are much higher than atmospheric
% Volume of Aphrons
14
12
10
8
6
4
2
0
0.5 1 2
Amount of Surfactant (lb/bbl)
FIGURE 3: Effect of surfactant concentration on the % volume of
aphrons in the aphronized drilling fluid.
Table 1: Effect of surfactant concentration on
the physical properties of aphronized drilling fluid
(prepared by using 3 lb/bbl XG base solution).
Amount of Surfactant (lb/bbl)
Properties 0 1 2
Plastic viscosity (cP) 12 15 19
Yield point (lb/100 sq. ft.) 28 44 51
Apparent viscosity (cP) 26 37 45
Density (lb/gal) 8.4 6.2 5.3
LSRV at 0.6 sec-1(cP) 7,450 15,967 22,067
Table 2: Effect of XG concentration on the physical
properties of aphronized drilling fluid (prepared by
using 2 lb/bbl DDBS).
Amount of Xanthan Gum (lb/bbl)
Properties 1 3 5
Plastic viscosity (cP) 7 19 22
Yield point (lb/100 sq. ft.) 20 51 85
Apparent viscosity (cP) 17 45 64
Density (lb/gal) 5.1 5.3 6.6
LSRV at 0.6 sec-1(cP) 2,767 22,067 >31,000
Table 3: Effect of shear rate on the physical properties
of aphronized drilling fluid (prepared by using 2 lb/bbl
DDBS surfactant and 3 lb/bbl xanthan gum)
Shear Rate
Properties Low Med. High
Plastic viscosity (cP) 10 17 19
Yield point (lb/100 sq. ft.) 50 48 51
Apparent viscosity (cP) 35 41 45
Density (lb/gal) 8 6.9 5.3
LSRV at 0.6 sec-1(cP) 18,700 20,233 22,067
pressure. Hence, the aphrons will compress and the density of the
fluid will increase.
As the concentration of xanthan gum increases for a fixed
amount of surfactant, the density of the fluid also increases (Table
2). Essentially, with an increase in XG concentration, the density
of the liquid phase increases; thus, the density of the total fluid
should increase.
The density of the aphron-based fluid decreased as the mixing
rate increased (Table 3), indicating that more aphrons were gener-
ated at higher shear rates.
Results shown in Tables 4 and 5 indicate that the length of the
mixing time interval and the water quality has little effect on the
density of the system.
The densities of aphronized drilling fluids prepared by using
1 lb/bbl DDBS and HTAB concentrations were compared (Table
6). The density of DDBS-based fluid (5.3 lb/gal) was found to be
higher than the density of HTAB-based fluid (4.6 lb/gal). This re-
sult indicates that either more aphrons or larger aphrons can be
generated by using HTAB-type surfactant than the DDBS-type
surfactant.
Shear Stress (dynes/cm2)
200
180 XG, 2 lb/bbl
160
140 XG, aphronized with 1 lb/bbl
120 DDBS
100 XG, aphronized with 2 lb/bbl
80 DDBS
60 XG, aphronized with 1 lb/bbl
40 HTAB
20
0 0
0 2 4 6 8 10
Shear Rate (1/sec)
FIGURE 4: Effect of surfactant types and concentrations on the
rheology of the aphronized drilling fluids.
November 2008, Volume 47, No. 11 17
Table 4: Effect of mixing time on the physical
properties of aphronized drilling fluid (prepared by
using 2 lb/bbl DDBS surfactant and 3 lb/bbl xanthan
gum)
Mixing Time (sec/interval)
Properites 10 20 30
Plastic viscosity (cP) 19 18 17
Yield point (lb/100 sq. ft.) 51 51 50
Apparent viscosity (cP) 45 44 42
Density (lb/gal) 5.3 5.3 5.3
LSRV at 0.6 sec-1(cP) 22,067 21,467 21,600
Table 5: Effect of water type on the physical
properties of aphronized drilling fluid (prepared by
using 2 lb/bbl DDBS surfactant and 3 lb/bbl xanthan
gum).
Water Type
Properties De-ionized Water Tap Water
Plastic viscosity (cP) 19 19
Yield point (lb/100 sq. ft.) 51 58
Apparent viscosity (cP) 45 49
Density(lb/gal) 5.3 5.7
LSRV at 0.6 sec-1(cP) 22,067 21,400
Table 6: Effect of surfactant type on the physical
properties of aphronized drilling fluid (prepared by
using 1 lb/bbl of surfactant and 3 lb/bbl xanthan gum).
Surfactant Type
Properties DDBS HTAB
Plastic viscosity (cP) 15 21
Yield point (lb/100 sq. ft.) 44 37
Apparent viscosity (cP) 37 39
Density (lb/gal) 6.2 4.5
LSRV at 0.6 sec-1(cP) 15,967 1,250
Rheology
Effects of surfactant type and concentration on the rheology of
the aphronized drilling fluids are shown in Figures 4 and 5. Aphro-
nized drilling fluids behave like yield pseudo-plastic type fluids
(Figure 4) with shear thinning characteristics (Figure 5). DDBS-
based fluids have higher shear viscosities than HTAB-based fluids
(Figure 5). Data shown in Figure 5 also illustrates that, as the
amount of surfactant increases, which results in a higher bubble
population, the apparent viscosity of the aphronized drilling fluid
also increases. The experimental results showing the effects of
polymer and surfactant concentration, surfactant type, mixing
(shear) rate, mixing time and water type on the plastic viscosity,
yield point, apparent viscosity and low shear rate viscosity (LSRV)
are summarized in Tables 1 to 6.
An increase in the surfactant concentration (Table 1), and
the xanthan gum concentration (Table 2) increases the plastic
viscosity, yield point, apparent viscosity and LSRV. As the
30,000 XG, 2 lb/bbl
25,000
Viscosity (cP)
XG, aphronized with 1
20,000 lb/bbl DDBS
XG, aphronized with 2
15,000 lb/bbl DDBS
XG, aphronized with 1
10,000
lb/bbl HTAB
5,000
0 2 4 6 8 10
Shear Rate (1/sec)
FIGURE 5: Effects of surfactant types and concentrations on the
apparent viscosity of aphronized drilling fluids.
 Amount of Fluid (cc)

Amount of Fluid (cc)

250 API Fluid Loss (cc/30 250
min) API Fluid Loss
(cc/30 min)
200 Spurt Loss (cc) 200
Spurt Loss (cc)
150 150

100 100

50 50

0 0
0 1 2 10 20 30
Amount of Surfactant (lb/bbl) Mixing Time (sec/interval)

FIGURE 6: Effect of surfactant concentration on the API fluid loss FIGURE 9: Effect of mixing time on the API fluid loss and spurt
and spurt loss. loss.

API Fluid
Amount of Fluid (cc)

Amount of Fluid (cc)

250 API Fluid Loss (cc/30 250 Loss (cc/30
min) min)
200 200
Spurt Loss (cc) Spurt Loss
(cc)
150 150

100 100

50 50
0 0
1 3 5 De-ionized Water Tap Water
Amount of Xanthan Gum (lb/bbl) Water Quality

FIGURE 7: Effect of XG concentration on the API fluid loss and FIGURE 10: Effect of water quality on the API fluid loss and spurt
spurt loss. loss.
Amount of Fluid (cc)

250 250
Amount of Fluid (cc)

API Fluid Loss API Fluid Loss

(cc/30 min) 200 (cc/30 min)
200
Spurt Loss (cc) Spurt Loss
150
150 (cc)
100
100
50
50
0
DDBS HTAB
0
low medium high Surfactant Type
Shear Rate
FIGURE 11: Effect of surfactant type on the API fluid loss and
FIGURE 8: Effect of shear rate on API fluid loss and spurt loss. spurt loss.

surfactant concentration increases, the bubble population also in-
creases, which, in turn, should increase the viscosity of the system.
As the XG concentration increases, the viscosity of the base fluid
also increases, which will increase the overall viscosity of the
system.
Increasing the mixing rate of aphronized drilling fluid also in-
creases the plastic viscosity, apparent viscosity and LSRV (Table
3), indicating that more bubbles are created at higher mixing rates.
The yield point, however, was not greatly influenced by the in-
creasing mixing rate.
The data showing the effect of the mixing time interval and the
type of water used for preparing the base fluid on the fluid prop-
erties are presented in Tables 4 and 5, respectively. Results have
shown that the mixing time length and the water type did not alter
the aphronized drilling fluid properties significantly.
Experimental results showing the effects of surfactant type on
the physical properties of drilling fluids are summarized in Table 6.
Plastic viscosity of the HTAB-based fluid (21 cP) was found to be
higher than the DDBS-based fluid (15 cP). The yield point of the
HTAB-based fluid (37 lb/100 ft2), however, was lower than that of
the DDBS-based fluid (44 lb/100 ft2). The apparent viscosity of a
fluid reflects the combined effect of change in plastic viscosity and
the yield point. The apparent viscosity of the HTAB-based fluid
(39 cP) was found to be slightly higher than that of the DDBS-
based fluid (37 cP). There was a drastic difference between the
LSRV of the HTAB-based fluid (1,250 cP) and the DDBS-based
fluid (15,967 cP). The low shear rate viscosity value strongly in-
fluences the solids transport capacity of the drilling fluids.
18 Journal of Canadian Petroleum Technology
Therefore, a significant difference between the LSRV values im-
plies that DDBS-based fluids might have better solids transport ca-
pacity than the HTAB-based fluids.
API Filtration Loss
The filtration loss and spurt loss decreases with increasing sur-
factant concentration (Figure 6). Increasing surfactant concentra-
tion allows more microbubbles to be generated, which means more
bubbles will be available to form a bridge in front of the pore struc-
ture, and/or alternatively, form an internal cake and, hence, limit
the filtration of fluid into the formation.
Figure 7 illustrates that both the filtration loss and the spurt loss
decrease with increasing XG concentration. This is expected since
higher XG concentrations yield higher fluid viscosity, which, in
turn, increases resistance of fluid to flow through porous media
and, therefore, reduces fluid loss into the formation.
The fluid loss and spurt loss were not greatly affected by the
mixing rate (Figure 8). There was a slight increase in the fluid loss
and spurt loss as the mixing time increased (Figure 9). In reality,
mixing time can be a very important factor since the fluid’s tem-
perature will rise during mixing and the generation of aphrons is
temperature dependant.
The type of water used for preparing aphronized drilling fluid
did not influence the filtration loss and spurt loss values signifi-
cantly (Figure 10).
The filtration loss and the spurt loss were significantly lower
for HTAB-based fluids than for the DDBS-based fluids (Figure 11).
 FIGURE 12: Comparison between microscopic pictures of aphrons made with DDBS (a) and HTAB (b).

However, some solid precipitates were observed when HTAB was

used with a water-XG solution to form the aphronized drilling
fluid. Therefore, reduction in filtration loss in the case of an HTAB-
based fluid can not be attributed solely to the presence of more mi-
crobubbles. Some of the reduction of filtration loss and spurt loss
was most likely due to the presence of this precipitate rather than
aphron blockage. Microscopic pictures of aphrons generated by
using DDBS and HTAB surfactants are shown in Figure 12. For-
mation of a white, long hair-like precipitate was observed in the
HTAB-based aphronized fluid (Figure 12b), indicating a possible
chemical reaction between HTAB surfactant and the base fluid pre-
pared by mixing water and XG.
Aphron Bubble Diameter
Sizing of the aphron bubble is very important as it is one of the
main factors that influence formation pore blockage. Figures 13 to
18 illustrate results of the bubble size measurements from various
experiments. The figures depict the average bubble size as well as
d90, d50 and d10 values. The values for d90, d50 and d10 are defined
as the diameter in which 90%, 50%, and 10%, respectively, of the
bubble population are less than that diameter.
Figure 13 shows the effect of surfactant concentration on the
bubble size. DDBS concentrations of 1 lb/bbl and 2 lb/bbl were

100
Ave 90 Ave
Diameter (microns)

100
Diameter (microns)
Average Aphron

90 d90
Average Aphron

d90 80
80 70 d50
70 d50
60 d10 60 d10
50 50
40 40
30
30
20
10 20
0 10
1 2 0
Amount of Surfactant (lb/bbl) 10 20 30
Mixing Time (sec/interval)
FIGURE 13: Effect of surfactant concentration on the aphron
diameter. FIGURE 16: Effect of mixing time on the aphron diameter.

100
Diameter (micons)
Average Aphron

90 Ave
Diameter (microns)

100 80
Average Aphron

d90
90 Ave 70
80 60 d50
70 d90
60 50 d10
50 d50 40
40 d10 30
30 20
20 10
10 0
0
1 3 5 De-ionized Water Tap Water

Amount of XG Concentration (lb/bbl) Water Type

FIGURE 14: Effect of XG concentration on the aphron diameter. FIGURE 17: Effect of water type on the aphron diameter.

100
160
Ave
Diameter (microns)

90
Diameter (microns)

Ave
Average Aphron

80 d90 140
Average Aphron

120 d90
70 d50
60 100 d50
d10
50 80 d10
40 60
30
40
20
10 20
0 0
low medium high DDBS HTAB

Shear Rate Surfactant Type

FIGURE 15: Effect of shear rate on the aphron diameter. FIGURE 18: Effect of surfactant type on the aphron diameter.

November 2008, Volume 47, No. 11 19

used together with 3 lb/bbl XG for comparison. The average
bubble diameter, as well as the d90, d50 and d10 values, remained
fairly constant with a change in the surfactant concentration. The
average bubble diameter for both tests was 60 μm. This contra-
dicts the data presented by Chaphalkar et al.(20) who stated that an
increase in the amount of surfactant should decrease the bubble
diameter. However, it is very difficult to compare the results of
Chaphalkar et al.(20) to the ones found in this study because the
base fluid is xanthan gum. The addition of XG to the base fluid can
change the nature of the aphron bubble. Moreover, the concentra-
tion of the surfactant is well above the Critical Micellar Concentra-
tion (CMC). Bjorndalen and Kuru(29) found that when the DDBS
concentration is below the CMC, the bubble diameter is larger than
when the surfactant concentration is above the CMC.
The effect of XG concentration of the base fluid on the aphron
size is presented in Figure 14. Results show that aphron bubble di-
ameter did not change significantly as the polymer concentration
was increased.
Figure 15 illustrates the effect of mixing (shear) rate on the
aphron diameter. The aphron diameter increases significantly as
the mixing (shear) rate increases from 48 to 60 μm. Since larger
bubbles are more advantageous in pore blockage, a low shear rate
is not as efficient in mixing the aphrons as the higher shear rate.
The effect of mixing time on the aphron size is shown in Figure
16. Aphron bubble diameter increased from 60 to 72 μm as the
mixing time was increased from 10 to 20 seconds. Increasing
mixing time from 20 to 30 seconds, however, did not change the
bubble size significantly. With an increase in mixing time, the
temperature of the solution will increase. Since aphrons are not
stable at higher temperatures, it is advantageous to limit the mixing
time.
The effects of using de-ionized water as compared to tap water
on the aphron size development were investigated. As shown in
Figure 17, aphron size did not change significantly depending on
the type of water used. Since de-ionized water is not readily avail-
able in the field, these results indicate that one can use regular tap
water as the base for the drilling mud.
The effect of surfactant type on the aphron bubble size was in-
vestigated (Figure 18). The bubble size distribution of aphrons
generated by using 1 lb/bbl DDBS and HTAB surfactants were
compared. The average diameter of the HTAB-based aphrons (90
μm) was found to be significantly larger than that of the DDBS-
based aphrons (60 μm). Microscopic pictures of aphrons generated
by using DDBS and HTAB surfactants are shown in Figure 12.
The aphrons in the DDBS-based fluid seem to have outer shells
thinner than the aphrons in the HTAB-based fluid. An important
implication of this result is that aphrons prepared using HTAB-
type surfactants might be more stable than the ones prepared with a
DDBS-type surfactant. Further verification of this needs to be pro-
vided, perhaps by using some standard aphron stability tests.
Conclusions
• Physico-chemical properties of aphronized fluids formed by
mixing water, xanthan gum and anionic or cationic surfac-
tants have been investigated.
• The aphronized drilling fluids can be classified as yield
pseudo-plastic type fluids.
• Overall, the addition of the aphron microbubbles to the
system increased the viscosity and the API filtration loss, but
decreased the density of the drilling fluid.
• The size of the aphron bubbles was not influenced by the
level of the polymer and surfactant concentrations studied in
this investigation.
• As the polymer concentration increased, the viscosity and
density of the aphronized drilling fluid also increased while
the volume of filtration loss decreased.
• An increase in the surfactant concentration also decreased the
filtration loss while increasing the viscosity of the aphronized
drilling fluid.
• Larger aphron microbubbles were created when the fluid
was mixed at higher mixing (shear) rates. Higher shear rates
20 Journal of Canadian Petroleum Technology
also increased the viscosity while reducing the density of the
aphronized drilling fluid. Increasing shear rate, however, did
not cause any significant change to the filtration loss.
• Aphron bubble sizes seemed to be increasing as the mixing
time increased from 10 to 20 seconds. However, bubble
sizes did not change significantly after, indicating that there
might be an optimum mixing time period to obtain maximum
bubble size.
• Type of water did not influence the physical properties of
the aphronized drilling fluids. Since the water quality showed
little effect on all parameters, tap water can readily be used
for preparing the base fluid.
• Physical properties of aphronized drilling fluids were strongly
controlled by the type of surfactant used for the aphroniza-
tion process. Cationic surfactants (HTAB) seem to be more
effective than anionic (DDBS) surfactants in terms of gener-
ating more microbubbles for the same amount of surfactant
used.
• Aphron bubble sizes generated by using cationic surfactants
were larger than the ones generated by using anionic surfac-
tants. Aphronized drilling fluids generated by using cationic
surfactants have lower filtration volumes, as compared to
fluids generated by using anionic surfactants.
Acknowledgements
The authors would like to thank the Natural Sciences and En-
gineering Research Council (NSERC) of Canada for supporting
this research.
Nomenclature
CGA = colloidal gas aphron
CMC = critical micellar concentration
DDBS = sodium dodecyl benzene sulfonate
HTAB = hexadecyltrimethyl ammonium bromide
LSRV = low shear rate viscosity
XG = xanthan gum
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NOURIS, R., Aphron-based Drilling Fluid: Novel Technology for
Drilling Depleted Formations in the North Sea; paper SPE 79840
presented at the SPE/IADC Drilling Conference, Amsterdam, Neth-
erlands, 19-21 February 2003.
5. SCRIVEN, L.E. and STERNLING, C.V., The Marangoni Effects;
Nature, Vol. 187, No. 4733, pp. 186-188, July 1960.
6. REA, A.B., ALVIS, E.C., PAIUK, B.P., CLIMACO, J.M., VALLEJO,
M., LEON, E. and INOJOSA, J., Application of Aphrons Technology
in Drilling Depleted Mature Fields; paper SPE 81082 presented at
the SPE Latin American and Caribbean Petroleum Engineering Con-
ference, Port-of-Spain, Trinidad and Tobago, 27-30 April 2003.
7. OYATOMIRI, C., ORELLAN, S., ALVAREZ, R. and ROJANI, R.,
Application of Drilling Fluid System Based on Air Microbubbles
as an Alternative to Underbalanced Drilling Technique in Reservoir
B-6-X.100 Tia Juana, Lake Maracaibo; World Drilling Conference,
International Association of Drilling Contractors, Madrid, Spain, 5-6
June 2002.
8. REID, P. and SANTOS, H., Novel Drilling, Completion and Work-
over Fluids for Depleted Zones: Avoiding Losses, Formation Damage
and Stuck Pipe; paper SPE 85326 presented at the SPE/IADC Middle
East Drilling Technology Conference and Exhibition, Abu Dhabi,
UAE, 20-22 October 2003.
9. RAMIREZ, F., GREAVES, R. and MONTILVA, J., Experience
Using Microbubbles-Aphron Drilling Fluid in Mature Reservoirs of
Lake Maracaibo; paper SPE 73710 presented at the International
 Symposium and Exhibition on Formation Damage Control, Lafay-
ette, LA, 20-21 February 2002. Provenance—Original Petroleum Society manuscript, Physico-Chemical
10. IVAN, C.D., GROWCOCK, F.B. and FRIEDHEIM, J.E., Chem- Characterization of Aphron Based Drilling Fluids (2005-050CS), first
ical and Physical Characterization of Aphron-Based Drilling Fluids; presented at the 6th Canadian International Petroleum Conference (the 56th
paper SPE 77445 presented at the SPE Annual Technical Conference Annual Technical Meeting of the Petroleum Society), June 7-9, 2005, in
and Exhibition, San Antonio, TX, 29 September-2 October 2002. Calgary, Alberta. Abstract submitted for review December 3, 2004; edi-
11. LONGE, T.A., Colloidal Gas Aphrons: Generation, Flow Character- torial comments sent to the author(s) April 14, 2008; revised manuscript
ization and Application in Soil and Groundwater Decontamination; received May 14, 2008; paper approved for pre-press May 15, 2008; final
Ph.D. dissertation, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State Univer- approval October 27, 2008.
sity, Blacksburg, VA, 1989.
12. ROY, D., VALSARAJ, K.T. and KOTTAI, S.A., Separation of Organic
Dyes from Wastewater by Using Colloidal Gas Aphrons; Separation
Authors’ Biographies
Science and Technology, Vol. 27, No. 5, pp. 573-588, 1992. Nancy Bjorndalen is a Ph.D. candidate in
13. ROY, D., KONGARA, S. and VALSARAJ, K.T., Application of Sur- petroleum engineering at the University of
factant Solutions and Colloidal Gas Aphron Suspensions in Flushing
Alberta. She received her B.A.Sc. degree
Naphthalene from a Contaminated Soil Matrix; Journal of Hazardous
Materials, Vol. 42, No. 3, pp. 247-263, August 1995.
from the University of Regina in indus-
14. JACKSON, A., KOMMALAPATI, R., ROY, D. and PARDUE, J., trial systems engineering with a focus on
Enhanced Transport of Bacteria Through a Soil Matrix Using Col- petroleum systems, and her M.A.Sc. from
loidal Gas Aphron Suspensions; Journal of Environmental Science Dalhousie University in civil engineering
and Health. Part A: Environmental Science and Engineering, Vol. 33, (petroleum). She is currently employed at
No. 3, pp. 369-384, 1998. the Alberta Research Council in the Heavy
15. WAN, J., TOKUNAGA, T.K. and GADELLE, F., Sorption of Col- Oil and Oil Sands Business Unit. Her re-
loids, Organics, and Metals onto Gas-Water Interfaces: Transport search interests include formation damage
Processes and Potential Remediation Technology; Final Report, U.S. and drilling fluids. She is a member of SPE and the Petroleum
Department of Energy, 55396-CA, 1999. Society.
16. JAUREGI, P., GILMOUR, S. and VARLEY, J., Characterisation of
Colloidal Gas Aphrons for Subsequent Use for Protein Recovery; Dr. Ergun Kuru is Professor of petroleum
Chemical Engineering Journal, Vol. 65, No. 1, pp. 1-11, January
engineering at the University of Alberta. He
1997.
17. JAUREGI, P., MITCHELL, G.R. and VARLEY, J., Colloidal Gas received his B.Sc. degree from the Middle
Aphrons (CGA): Dispersion and Structural Features; AIChE Journal, East Technical University, and M.Sc. and
Vol. 46, No. 1, pp. 24-36, 2000. Ph.D. degrees from Louisiana State Uni-
18. DAI, Y. and DENG, T., Stabilization and Characterization of Col- versity, all in petroleum engineering. His
loidal Gas Aphron Dispersions; Journal of Colloidal and Interface research interests include drilling optimiza-
Science, Vol. 261, No. 2, pp. 360-365, 2003. tion, managed pressure drilling, multiphase
19. SAVE, S.V. and PANGARKAR, V.G., Characterisation of Colloidal solid-liquid transport in pipelines and for-
Gas Aphrons; Chemical Engineering Communications, Vol. 127, No. mation damage. Dr. Kuru is a member of
1, pp. 35-54, 1994. SPE and the Petroleum Society.
20. CHAPHALKAR, P.G., VALSARAJ, K.T. and ROY, D., A Study of
the Size Distribution and Stability of Colloidal Gas Aphrons Using a
Particle Size Analyzer; Separation Science and Technology, Vol. 28,
No. 6, pp. 1287-1302, 1993.
21. ROY, D., VALSARAJ, K.T., CONSTANT, W.D. and DARJI, M.,
Removal of Hazardous Oily Waste From a Soil Matrix Using Surfac-
tants and Colloidal Gas Aphron Suspensions Under Different Flow
Conditions; Journal of Hazardous Materials, Vol. 38, No. 1, pp. 127-
144, July 1994.
22. AMIRI, M.C. and WOODBURN, E.T., A Method for the Charac-
terization of Colloidal Gas Aphron Dispersions; Transactions of the
Institute of Chemical Engineers, Vol. 68, Part A, pp. 154-160, March
1990.
23. ROY, D., TAMAYO, A. and VALSARAJ, K.T., Comparison of Soil
Washing Using Conventional Surfactant Solutions and Colloidal Gas
Aphron Suspensions; Separation Science and Technology, Vol. 27,
No. 12, pp. 1555-1568, 1992.
24. ROY, D., KOMMALAPATI, R.R., VALSARAJ, K.T. and CON-
STANT, W.D., Soil Flushing of Residual Transmission Fluid:
Application of Colloidal Gas Aphron Suspensions and Conventional
Surfactant Solutions; Water Research, Vol. 29, No. 2, pp. 589-595,
1995.
25. HASHIM, M.A., SENGUPTA, B. and SUBRAMANIAM, B., Inves-
tigations on the Flotation of Yeast Cells by Colloidal Gas Aphrons
(CGA) Dispersion; Bioseparation, Vol. 5, pp. 167-173, 1995.
26. PARTHASARATHY, R., JAMESON, G.J. and AHMED, N., Bubble
Breakup in Stirred Vessels, Predicting the Sauter Mean Diameter;
Chemical Engineering Research and Design, Vol. 69, No. A4, pp.
295-301, 1991.
27. BASU, S. and MALPANI, P.R., Removal of Methyl Orange and
Methylene Blue Dye from Water Using Colloidal Gas Aphron – Ef-
fect of Processes Parameters; Separation Science and Technology,
Vol. 36, No. 13, pp. 2997-3013, 2001.
28. BEE, R.D., CLEMENTS, A. and PRINS, A., Behaviour of an Aer-
ated Food Model; in Food Emulsions and Foams, Dickinson, E. (ed.)
Special Publication No. 57, Royal Society of Chemistry, London, UK,
1986.
29. BJORNDALEN, N. and KURU, E., Stability of Microbubble-Based
Drilling Fluids Under Downhole Conditions; Journal of Canadian
Petroleum Technology, Vol. 47, No. 6, pp. 40-47, June 2008.
November 2008, Volume 47, No. 11 21