Corrosion Preventing Composition Pump Additive for Cement and Method of Pumping Cement

Abstract

A concrete additive, which provides superior pump component protection, reduction of corrosion including wear and damage on pump components, and increased lifespan of the components in a concrete pump system. As concrete slurry mixes in the pump barrel of a ready mix cement truck, the concrete slurry blends directly with the pump additive and converges with the concrete pump components as the concrete blend mixes. This direct contact allows the pump additive to lubricate the component parts, which provides a corrosion inhibitor that protects the component parts from the harsh side effects of the aggregate rubbing against the liners, pistons and pump component parts thereby significantly extending the life of the component parts of the concrete pumping system. The cement additive compositions and methods of the present invention may be used in well bore drilling, cement production and delivery systems, and fracking operations.

Claims

1. A method of lubricating the component parts of a concrete pump system comprising: a. Providing a vessel or container holding a concrete composition; b. Mixing the concrete composition with a liquid additive composition comprising monoethanolamine, triethanolamine, and Monbutyl ether; c. Pumping the lubricating composition blend through the concrete pump system.

2. The method of claim 1, where the mixing occurs in the mixing barrel of a concrete truck.

3. The method of claim 1, where the composition of concrete composition is Portland cement.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the said monoethanolamine comprises 1-10% total weight of the composition.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the said triethanolamine comprises 1-10% total weight of the composition.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the said Monbutyl ether comprises 1-30% total weight of the composition.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the liquid additive composition is prepared as a mixture of a range of one to twenty parts concrete composition.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the mixing occurs in the mixing barrel of a concrete truck.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the liquid additive composition has a pH within a range of from pH 9.5 to pH 10.1.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the concrete pump system comprises a range of from one hundred to three hundred feet of conduit.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the liquid additive composition is biodegradable.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the cement blend composition includes aggregate to increase the overall density of the composition.

13. A cement composition preparable by mixing components comprising: a. a cement blend composition; b. liquid additive composition comprising monoethanolamine, triethanolamine, and Monbutyl ether.

14. The composition of claim 13 further comprising said monoethanolamine comprises 1-10% total weight of the composition.

15. The composition of claim 13, wherein the said triethanolamine comprises 1-10% total weight of the composition.

16. The composition of claim 13, wherein the said Monbutyl ether comprises 1-30% total weight of the composition.

17. The composition of claim 13, wherein the liquid additive composition is biodegradable.

18. The composition of claim 13, wherein the liquid additive composition is prepared as a mixture of a range of one to twenty parts concrete composition.

19. The composition of claim 13, wherein the mixing occurs in the mixing barrel of a concrete truck.

20. The composition of claim 13, wherein the liquid additive composition has a pH within a range of from pH 9.5 to pH 10.1.

21. The composition of claim 13, wherein the cement blend composition includes aggregate to increase the density of the composition.

22. A liquid additive composition preparable by mixing components comprising monoethanolamine, triethanolamine, and Monbutyl ether.

23. The composition of claim 22, further comprising said monoethanolamine comprises 1-10% total weight of the composition.

24. The composition of claim 22, wherein the said triethanolamine comprises 1-10% total weight of the composition.

25. The composition of claim 22, wherein the said Monbutyl ether comprises 1-30% total weight of the composition.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0033] A complete understanding of the present invention may be obtained by reference to the acentitying drawings, when considered in conjunction with the subsequent, detailed description, in which:

[0034] FIG. 1 is a plot of hours of pump operation as a function of the percent of increased pump liner life according to an embodiment of the invention.

[0035] FIG. 2 shows a chart view of the results of an embodiment of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0036] The following detailed description is not intended to be understood in a limiting sense, but to be an example of the invention presented solely for illustration thereof.

[0037] The cement additive compositions and methods of the present invention may be used in well bore drilling, cement production and delivery systems, and fracking operations for example. The cement additive composition and methods of invention involve the use of the following components.

[0038] Cement pump additive is a fully synthetic additive involving monoethanolamine, triethanolamine and Monbutyl ether. The present invention is a blue water soluble liquid with a pH of 10.1. When the additive is diluted, the pH may be in the range of 10.1 to 9.5. The odor associated with the additive is bland. The additive is stable and room temperature in closed containers under normal storage and handling conditions. The composition comprises Monoethanolamine as 1-10 percent based on the total weight of the composition. The compositions comprises Triethanolamine as 1-10 percent based on the total weight of the composition. The composition comprises Monbutyl ether as 1-30 percent based on the total weight of the composition.

[0039] The present invention contains the latest synthetic technology that provides a coolant, corrosion inhibitor, and a lubricity cement additive all in one cement pump additive. The present invention provides the combination of cooling and rust protection with a low foaming additive package. This additive is formulated to protect and extend the life of pump components. The additive also has a high cleaning action but does not have any foaming issues. The recommended concentration of the solution is 1 part to 20 parts cement slurry.

[0040] The present invention mixes directly with the cement slurry in the cement pump of the ready mix truck or any other mixing vessel used for preparing cement slurry. The cementitious materials can comprise Portland cement, slags, fume silica, fly ash, colloidal silica and mixtures thereof. The cement aggregate can also contain particulate materials and solids used to control slurry density.

[0041] The present invention coats the liners and piston. First, it drops the temperature of the liners and piston, and second, it coats the components and adds a coating of lubricity to make the liners and pistons last longer. Since the cement in well bores are not designed to carry structural loads and is designed to seal the well casing pipe to the well bore, adding an additive does not hurt the integrity of the cement.

[0042] The pump additive is mixed directly with the cement slurry and does not require a separate priming-mixing step in order to use the additive. No additional equipment is necessary, no dumping site is necessary, and the pump additive does not adversely affect the composite strength of the cement. The present invention solves the prior art problems of priming additives waste issues, equipment issues, cost issues, time issues and wear on the equipment problems. The simplicity of use and method of mixing with cement slurry dramatically improves the previous methods.

[0043] When the cement mixing equipment blends the cement slurry, the pump additive is added directly to the mixing barrel containing the cement slurry. As the barrel turns, churns and mixes the cement slurry, the additive blends into the cement slurry. The additive solution may be checked by using an American Optical Refractometer before adding to the blended cement mixture. The refractometer multiplier is 4.0 to obtain the correct concentration.

[0044] As the cement slurry mixes with the pump additive in the pump barrel, the cement slurry blended comes into direct contact with the cement pump components. This contact allows the pump additive to lubricate all of the component parts in the mixing process. The conduit that delivers the cement slurry to the end use location also comes into direct contact with the cement slurry pump additive blend when the cement slurry mixture is pumped to its final destination. No priming step is necessary. The standard mixing activities used in preparing the concrete slurry, prepare and blend the pump additive mixture without any additional equipment, steps, or wasteful byproduct. This pump additive concrete slurry mixture contains lubrication that provides a corrosion inhibitor that protects the component parts from the harsh side effects of the aggregate rubbing against the liners, pistons and pump component parts.

[0045] The components of the pump additive also acts as a coolant. The cement slurry mixture coats the liners and piston. First, it drops the temperature of the liners and piston, and second, it coats the components and adds a coating of lubricity to make the liners and pistons last longer.

[0046] The following example is provided to illustrate the practice of the invention as well as certain preferred embodiments. The example provided should not be viewed as a limitation in any way. The spirit or scope of the invention is not limited to the following example in any way, shape, or form.

[0047] A cement service and supplier entity tested the present invention in their fleet of cementing trucks. The service entity was not using any cement additives geared towards protecting their pumps or component parts in their standard operations. The cement was mixed per standard protocol in their standard business operation. The cement was then blended with the addition of the novel cement pumping additive of the present invention.

[0048] Typically the testing entity needs to replace the component pump parts including liners or sleeves in their pump systems after around forty hours of pump time. By in large, forty hours of pump time occurs every two to four weeks during an average production schedule for the concrete entity. To replace the component parts of the pumping system including the liners, the concrete trucks are pulled from service and replacement parts are fitted onto the truck. This maintenance step includes several steps that cost the concrete entity a signification amount of time and replace costs for the parts themselves. The cost of replacing the liners in and of itself is a tremendously costly maintenance problem. Any improvement in liner lifespan would vastly improve the efficacy of the pumping system.

[0049] The testing entity used the cement pump additive in company owned ready mix trucks to evaluate the performance of our additive. They used fifteen gallons of the cement pump additive to each load of cement before pumping downhole to cement the casing into the wellbore. After four months of pumping cement through the test pump, they dismantled the pump for inspection and decided not to replace the liners. Upon inspection, the liner was still in serviceable condition so the technician put the existing component parts back on the equipment for additional use. They then continued to use the test pump, and continued to pump cement for almost two more months before the liners had to be replaced. This test resulted in the test pump component parts efficient working almost six months before the liners had to be replaced instead of every week to two weeks without the addition of the novel pump additive in the present invention.

[0050] After several months of testing the present invention, the service entity pulled the liners and component parts to evaluate their corrosion and overall general condition. On average, the liner or sleeve replacement intervals were extended to a minimum of three hundred percent extended liner life. On the most successful end, the life of the liners and sleeves were extended by almost seven hundred percent.

[0051] FIG. 1 demonstrates the percent of increase pump liner life based on the hours of pump operation the liners were useable prior to maintenance or required replacement. The hours of operation begins at forty, which is the average liner life without the present invention.

[0052] FIG. 2 charts the results of the months of testing of the present invention. The baseline liner replacement is on average required every forty hours. The cement slurry mixed with the present invention achieved a mean liner replacement of one hundred twenty hours. Obviously, this dramatic increase in the hours of extended liner life is a monumental improvement over the current liner lifer without the cement additive. The mean liner life increase was three hundred percent with the cement additive. The maximum liner life achieved was two hundred and seventy nine hours. This maximum liner life increase over the standard forty-hour life is six hundred ninety eight percent.

[0053] The resulting mixture of cement slurry blended with the novel pump additive exhibited superior lubrication and protection characteristics such as high impact resistant liner lifespan, a great degree of protection for continuous use of liner and component parts that greatly exceeds the average lifespan of the component parts without the novel additive, and superior increase in overall efficacy including substantial cost and time savings by utilizing the present invention in concrete pumping systems.

[0054] This present invention also works well when mixed and added to drilling mud, and will protect the liners in a large drilling mud pump as well. Additionally, the product will protect the liners in a pump used to pump fluids and proponents when fracking a well, too.

[0055] The foregoing detailed description and examples are given for clarity only. No unnecessary limitations are to be understood therefrom. The present invention is not limited to any specific details shown or described.

[0056] It should be noted and understood that various changes and modifications to the described preferred embodiments herein will be evident to those skilled in the art. Such changes and modifications can be made without deserting from the spirit and scope of the present invention and without weakening its intended advantages. It is therefore intended that such changes and modifications be enclosed by the appended claims.

[0057] Any element in a claim that does not explicitly state means for performing a specified function, or step for performing a specific function, is not to be interpreted as a means or step clause as specified in 35 U.S.C. 112, 6. In particular, the use of step of in the claims herein is not intended to invoke the provisions of 35 U.S.C. 112, 6.