Effect of hydrophilic silica nanoparticles on hydrate formation: Insight from the experimental study

Invasion of drilling fluid into natural gas hydrate deposits during drilling might damage the reservoir,induce hydrate dissociation and then cause wellbore instability and distortion of the data from well logging. Adding nanoparticles into drilling fluid is an effective method in reducing the invasion of drilling fluid and enhancing borehole stability. However, the addition of nanoparticles might also introduce hydrate formation risk in borehole because they can act as the "seeds" for hydrate nucleation. This paper presents an experimental study of the effect of hydrophilic silica nanoparticle on gas hydrate formation in a dynamic methane/liquid-water system. In the experiment, the ultrapure water with and without1.0 wt%–6.0 wt% concentrations of silica nanoparticles, grain sizes of 20 and 50 nm, were pressurized by methane gas under varied conditions of temperature and pressure. The induction time, the gas consumption, and the average rate of gas consumption in the system were measured and compared to those in ultrapure water. The results show that a concentration of 4.0 wt% hydrophilic SiO_2 particles with a grain size of 50 nm has a relatively strong inhibition effect on hydrate formation when the initial experimental condition is 5.0 °C and 5.0 MPa. Compared to ultrapure water, the hydrophilic nano-SiO_2 fluid increases the induction time for hydrate formation by 194% and decreases the amount and average rate of hydrate formation by 10% and 17%, respectively. This inhibition effect may be attributed to the hydrophilicity,amount and aggregation of silica nanoparticle according to the results of water activity and zeta potential measurements. Our work also elucidates hydrophilic, instead of hydrophobic, nanoparticles can be added to the drilling fluid to maintain wellbore stability and to protect the hydrate reservoir from drilling mud damage, because they exhibit certain degree of hydrate inhibition which can reduce the risk of hydrate reformation and aggregation during gas hydrate or deep water drilling if their concentration can be controlled properly.

Effect of hydrophilic silica nanoparticles on hydrate formation during methane gas migration in a simulated wellbore

Natural gas hydrates are mostly formed in low-permeability and fractured muddy sedimentary formations.Adding suitable nanoparticles to the drilling fluid system can improve its filtrate resistance and fracture plugging,and effectively weaken the invasion of drilling fluid into the reservoir.However,it is likely that nanoparticles promote hydrate formation and accumulation in wellbores which will induce accidents.Therefore,this study investigated the effect of hydrophilic silica nanoparticles with particle sizes of 30 nm,60 nm,and 80 nm and concentrations of 0.5e4.0 wt%on hydrate formation during upward migration of methane gas using a dynamic simulation system for hydrate formation in a wellbore.The experimental results show that under the condition of methane gas migration,hydrophilic silica nanoparticles inhibit hydrate formation.The inhibition effect increased with the growth in the particle size under a constant concentration,whereas it first increased and then decreased with increasing nanoparticle concentration under a constant particle size.The strongest inhibition effect was observed at a hydrophilic silica nanoparticle concentration of 2.0 wt%.The influence of hydrophilic silica nanoparticles on hydrate formation may be mainly determined by their hydrophilic properties,heat and mass transfer,and gas migration in the wellbore.Our research indicates that hydrophilic silica nanoparticles can be added to hydrate drilling fluid systems if their concentration can be properly controlled.