Novel Surfactant for Spacer-Less Cementing Compatible with Non Aqueous Fluids
Abstract A novel, non-ionic surfactant is presented that alters typical cement incompatibility with non-aqueous fluids, effectively removing synthetic/oil-based mud (SOBM) from the wellbore and changing wettability of casing and formation from oil-wet to water-wet. The change in wettability eliminates the need for cement spacers conventionally deployed between the preceding non-aqueous fluid and the ensuing cement slurry. The entirety of spacer fluid interface can therefore be removed from operation, improving operational safety and efficiency, reduce waste and simplify wellsite logistics. The paper discusses the selection and evaluation of the proprietary surfactant in various laboratory testing. The main characteristics of the surfactant is its non-foaming, non-retarding, compatible with SOBM, ability to change oil-wet surface to water-wet, stable while minimizing environmentally impact. Scaling up, a yard test and a field trial in an offshore rig was successfully performed to evaluate the mixing, compatibility and pumpability using rig equipment.