Evaluation of Aqueous-Foam Surfactants for Geothermal Drilling Fluids

摘要

Aqueous foams are potentially useful drilling and cleanout fluids for geothermal applications. Successful use of foams requires surfactants (foaming agents) that can survive in the high-temperature geothermal environment. In this study, solutions of aqueous-foam-forming surfactants have been exposed to 260 exp 0 C (500 exp 0 F) and 310 exp 0 C (590 exp 0 F) in various chemical environments to determine if they can survive and make foams after exposure. Comparison of foams before and after exposure and the change in solution pH were used to evaluate their performance. Controlled liquid-volume-fraction foams, made in a packed-bed foam generator, were used for all tests. These tests have shown that many commercially available surfactants can survive short high-temperature cycles in mild acids, mild bases, and salt solutions as evidenced by their ability to make foams after exposure to high temperatures. (ERA citation 08:048933)