Study of the Effect of Xanthan Gum Based Graft Copolymer on Water Based Drilling Fluid

Abstract

AbstractThis research article consists of the synthesis of xanthan gum (XG)-g-polyacrylamide (PAA) copolymer and its effect in the development of water based drilling fluids. The graft copolymer was synthesized with varying concentration of XG to obtain shear stable and long chain graft copolymer. The obtained graft copolymer was characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and Field emission scanning electron microscopy. The synthesized graft copolymer was then utilized as an additive for the development of water based drilling fluid system. The rheological properties of developed drilling fluids have increased significantly with the increase in graft copolymer concentration and these fluids have the capability to control fluid loss during filtration studies. The fluid loss volume was further reduced to 7 ml after the addition of bridging agent. The filtration and rheological properties of this system were compared with conventional water based drilling fluid system developed using partially hydrolyzed polyacrylamide polymer. It was observed that drilling fluid developed using graft copolymer has better rheological and filtration properties than the drilling fluid formulated using partially hydrolyzed polyacrylamide polymer.Keywords: graft copolymerxanthan gumshaledrilling fluidshear thinning