Development of a Highly Elastic Composite Gel through Novel Intercalated Crosslinking Method for Wellbore Temporary Plugging in High-Temperature Reservoirs

Summary Effective mitigation of fluid loss and prevention of formation damage are substantial concerns during well completion and workover in low-pressure, high-permeability, and/or fractured reservoirs, especially with high temperature (HT). In this paper, a highly elastic composite gel is developed on the basis of the solution blending for “intercalated crosslinking.” The mechanism is the intercalation of polymer and crosslinker into layered silicate material (LSM) using a specific procedure. The gel is composed of HT resistant copolymer, crosslinker polyethyleneimine (PEI), LSM, and antioxidant in freshwater. The effects of main variables on the gelation performance are investigated. The mature composite gel strength is noticeably improved with increasing temperature. The elastic modulus (G′) of the mature composite gel prepared at 160°C can reach up to 15 000 Pa, while only a value of 6000 Pa is obtained for the gel at 130°C. The composite gel remains robust after aging 10 days at 160°C. The pressure-bearing capacity and rigidity of the mature composite gel are noticeably improved with increasing layered silicate concentration. This unique feature can benefit stress buffering when the sealing operation is conducted under high differential pressure such as the case with a long hydrostatic column. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) is used to further reveal the intercalated crosslinking mechanism of the composite gel. A temporary plugging experiment for a fractured limestone core also supports the gel's high-pressure (HP) resistance and low adsorption and retention to alleviate formation damage. The composite gel is promising for fluid loss mitigation that could be extended to other related near-wellbore operations in HT wells.