Patent Title: METHODS AND MATERIALS FOR REFRACTURING A PARTIALLY DEPLETED OIL AND GAS WELL

Number/Link: US2018/0346786

Applicant/Assignee:  Covestro

Publication Date: 6 December 2018

“Gist”: Use of low-reactive, low-viscosity PU systems for oil well sealing

Why it is interesting: It is known that partially depleted fracking wells can be “re-fractured” to increase production. Prior to this operation former perforations in the well casing need to be sealed to prevent furthering of existing fractures, by using a chemical “diverting agent”.  According to this invention, the diverting agent can be a polyurethane system with a long potlife and relatively low viscosity, which is prepared from an unblocked hexamethylene diisocyanate and a polypropyleneoxide triol which is miscible with the isocyanate. In the examples an allophanate-modified HDI is used together with a 450-molecular weight PO triol and a delayed-action tert amine catalyst. The system does not de-mix and has a gel time ranging from 30 to more than 1000 minutes.

Sealing of fracking well