Cationic and hydrophobically modified chitosans as additives for water-based drilling fluids

ABSTRACT Water‐soluble chitosan derivatives are synthesized via a two‐step procedure that includes the hydrophobization of chitosan using different acyl chlorides, and then the alkylation of some of the amine groups. Rheology, conventional rolling, and filtration tests are performed to evaluate the effect of the modified polysaccharides on the rheological behavior of the fluid, as well as on the clays cuttings integrity and on the control of fluid loss for the geological formations. The results indicate that the product with C16 segments, 2% (wt/vol) concentration and high molar weight led to aqueous solutions with a pseudoplastic behavior equivalent to the one presented by the commercial rheology modifier used in water‐based drilling fluids. In addition, the hydrophobically modified cationic chitosan shows an excellent capacity for inhibiting the clays reactivity and for keeping the cuttings integrity. The results also show that this product can significantly decrease the volume of filtrate, leading to values comparable to the ones obtained with commercial additives, and therefore suggesting that it could be considered to replace some of the drilling fluid additives commonly used. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2014, 131, 40300.