There is provided synthetic proppants, and in particular polysilocarb derived ceramic proppants. There is further provided hydraulic fracturing treatments utilizing these proppants, and methods of enhance hydrocarbon recovery.

A composition for enhancing fluid viscosity including a mixture of at least one cationic or cationizable polymer and at least one anionic or anionizable (hydrolysable) polymer. The composition has a zeta potential at 25° C. in the range of 0.5 to 100 mV or −0.5 to −100 mV, typically 1 to 60 mV or −1 to −60 mV, or is a precursor convertible at a temperature of 100 to 250° C. to the composition having a zeta potential at 25° C. of 0.5 to 100 mV or −0.5 to −100 mV, typically 1 to 60 mV or −1 to −60 mV. Typically the compositions exhibit salt tolerance and interaction of both polymers at very high temperatures (>300° F.) such that the system exhibits an increase of viscosity at extreme temperatures. The compositions are useful for hydraulic fracturing, enhanced oil recovery, subterranean acidization, personal care as well as home and industrial cleaners.

The present disclosure relates to a particularly effective well configuration that can be used for heat based oil recovery methods. Fishbone multilateral wells are combined with inline electric heaters and a thermally conductive proppant. Preferably, an array of overlapping fishbone wells cover the pay, allowing more complete production of the pay, and the use of the proppants prevents the open-hole fishbone laterals from collapsing. These methods can be applied in variety of configurations, including traditional vertically spaced well-pairs, laterally spaced well-pairs, producers only, and combinations thereof.

A method for preparing an anionic thermoviscosifying water-soluble polymer includes the following steps: performing an inverse emulsion polymerization by using acrylamide, acrylic acid and Pluronic triblock polymer. The high reactivity of acrylamide and the inverse emulsion polymerization can increase the molecular weight of the thermoviscosifying polymer, and exhibit an obvious thermoviscosifying effect even at a low polymer concentration, which can reduce the application cost. The dissolution rate of the obtained polymer emulsion is significantly higher than the dissolution rate of the dry powder of the polymer. The obtained emulsion-diluted solution has a relatively strong thermoviscosifying behavior after further adding a small amount of reverse demulsifier, and the emulsion-diluted solution exhibits different thermoviscosifying behaviors as the amount of the reverse demulsifier is increased.

A method for increasing the retention of a scale inhibitor within a hydrocarbon producing system is provided. The method includes, the steps of: (i) pre-flushing the system with a liquid; (ii) treating the system with a scale inhibitor; and (iii) over-flushing the system with a composition comprising an ionic polymer and a liquid carrier. The concentration of the ionic polymer in the composition is 5 to 50% wt.

A method for preparing an anionic thermoviscosifying water-soluble polymer includes the following steps: performing an inverse emulsion polymerization by using acrylamide, acrylic acid and Pluronic triblock polymer. The high reactivity of acrylamide and the inverse emulsion polymerization can increase the molecular weight of the thermoviscosifying polymer, and exhibit an obvious thermoviscosifying effect even at a low polymer concentration, which can reduce the application cost. The dissolution rate of the obtained polymer emulsion is significantly higher than the dissolution rate of the dry powder of the polymer. The obtained emulsion-diluted solution has a relatively strong thermoviscosifying behavior after further adding a small amount of reverse demulsifier, and the emulsion-diluted solution exhibits different thermoviscosifying behaviors as the amount of the reverse demulsifier is increased.

Products and processes that are related to phosphonated polysaccharide compositions, including phosphonated polysaccharide gels, having a substituent degree of substitution with a lower limit of 0.02 and an upper limit of 3, and having a weight average molecular weight with an upper limit of 5,000,000 g/mole, as well as to oil field application or fracturing fluid compositions comprising such phosphonated polysaccharide compositions.

A method for replacing glycol-based mutual solvents in an oil field application comprising: obtaining an alternative solvent and solvent blends and replacing all or a portion a glycol-based mutual solvent, which forms a component of an oil field formulation, with the alternative solvent or solvent blends, wherein the oil field formulation can be utilized in an oil field application.

There is provided synthetic proppants, and in particular polysilocarb derived ceramic proppants. There is further provided hydraulic fracturing treatments utilizing these proppants, and methods of enhance hydrocarbon recovery.

Mineral particles may provide for wellbore fluids with tailorable properties and capabilities. Methods of using mineral particles may include circulating a wellbore fluid with a first density of about 7 ppg to about 50 ppg in a wellbore penetrating a subterranean formation, the wellbore fluid comprising a base fluid, a plurality of first mineral particles, and a plurality of second mineral particles such that the first mineral particles and the second mineral particles are present in a first relative ratio, and the first mineral particles and the second mineral particles having a multiparticle specific gravity of about 3 to about 20; and changing the first relative ratio to a second relative ratio on-the-fly so as to yield the wellbore fluid with a second density.