Shale hydration inhibition characteristics and mechanism of a new amine-based additive in water-based drilling fluids

In this work, shale hydration Inhibition performance of tallow amine ethoxylate as a shale stabilizer in water based drilling fluid, was investigated through these tests: bentonite hydration inhibition test, bentonite sedimentation test, drill cutting recovery test, dynamic linear swelling test, wettability test, isothermal water adsorption test, and zeta potential test. The results showed that bentonite particles are not capable of being hydrated or dispersed in the mediums containing tallow amine ethoxylate; tallow amine ethoxylate had shown a comparable and competitive inhibition performance with potassium chloride as a common shale stabilizer in drilling industry. Some amine functional groups exist in tallow amine ethoxylate structure which are capable of forming hydrogen bonding with surfaces of bentonite particles. This phenomenon decreased the water adsorption on bentonite particles' surfaces which results in reduction of swelling. Tallow amine ethoxylate is also compatible with other common drilling fluid additives.