Nano-laponite/polymer composite as filtration reducer on water-based drilling fluid and mechanism study

In drilling deep complex formations, most drilling fluid additives have insufficient temperature and salt tolerance, resulting in the decline of drilling fluid performance. This study used 2-acrylamide-2-methylpropane sulfonic acid, acrylamide, dimethyl diallyl ammonium chloride, and modified nano-laponite to synthesize a nanocomposite filtrate reducer (ANDP) with excellent temperature and salt resistance, which can maintain the performance of drilling fluid. The structure of ANDP was analyzed by a transmission electron microscope and an infrared spectrometer. The thermal stability of ANDP was studied by thermogravimetric analysis. The performance of ANDP was evaluated in a water-based drilling fluid. The mechanism was analyzed per clay-particle size distribution, Zeta potential, filter cake permeability, and scanning electron microscopy imaging. The results show that ANDP has good thermal stability and expected molecular structure. The filtration of freshwater drilling fluid after aging at 200°C is 10.4 mL and that of saturated brine drilling fluid is 6.4 mL after aging at 150°C. Mechanism analysis suggests that the ANDP increases the thickness of clay particle hydration layer and maintains the colloidal stability of the drilling fluid. ANDP inhibits the agglomeration of clay particles and significantly reduces the filtration by forming dense mud cake.