Surface modification agents (SMAs) and their coating onto proppant have been used in thousands of wells in the past 10 years resulting in significant improvement in productivity in terms of production rates and duration. In a recent field study1  involving more than 100 well stimulations, these SMAs were found to dramatically enhance the recovery of aqueous-based fracturing fluids during well cleanup following the fracturing treatments. This paper describes how a simple modification to proppant surfaces resulted in these dramatic post-frac well cleanups and subsequent well productivity. A comparison of laboratory results along with actual case histories will help explain the significant improvement in hydrocarbon production observed in fracture stimulated wells using SMA-coated proppant.

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