Oil well brines – calcium bromide & sodium bromide

Calcium Bromide Solution

OIL WELL BRINES – CALCIUM BROMIDE & SODIUM BROMIDE Drilling and completion fluids are essential consumables for conducting any oil exploration activities like avoid friction, provide lubrication, cool the wellbore, and transport rock cuttings to the surface. Such fluids use different types of base fluids amongst which, oil well brines like calcium bromide and sodium bromide have marked their presence in oil field drilling and exploration schemes because of their high densities, ability to mix well with other brines, and thermal and chemical stability.

Calcium Bromide Powder

Oil well Brines play an important part in oil and gas exploration. These clear brines, used for completion and work over applications are pure solutions of dissolved salt in water and must be stable at surface and down hole conditions. They are used in the preparation of the well equipment for production including insertion of liners, screens, packers, and other equipment. Among these, bromide fluids have become a popular choice because of their unique high density property, which is suitable for deepwater production and allow for well pressure control, and help to protect the formation. Bromide fluids are also used for deepwater fracturing operations in order to provide the necessary pressure in the well to successfully fracture the geological formation area that supplies oil and gas to the wellbore so that higher volumes flow to the production piping.

Calcium Bromide

A clear brine fluid, Calcium Bromide (CaBr2) solution is used as single salt brine in densities ranging from 11.7 lbs/gal to 15.1 lbs/gal. It is used as a completion, work over, gravel pack, and packer fluid.

It can also be used as a spike fluid to increase density in fluids up to 14.2 lb/gal. Due to its inhibitive properties, CaBr2 can help reduce formation damage induced by clay swelling and dispersion. CaBr2is becoming a popular choice in oil and gas drilling, it is, in fact preferred over many other fluids because it mixes easily with all the major zinc and calcium based brines, adjusts the density of other brine systems, is chemically and thermally stable, and is absolutely non-damaging to formation.

Sodium Bromide

Sodium Bromide (NaBr), a salt is used alone or in a combination with sodium chloride or zinc bromide to form clear workaround and drilling fluids with densities of 8.4-12.5 lbs/gal. Non-damaging to the formation, it can be blended with other solutions of bromide and chlorides. It is especially useful when used in formations that are known to have calcium sensitivity. When chloride ion is not desirable and when calcium may not be the preferred choice. It is extensively used in situations where formation of waters contains high levels of sulfate or carbonate that may precipitate with the calcium ion.

While Calcium Bromide is the largest volume bromide salt in use, Sodium Bromide is used in specialized situations where calcium or zinc brines could cause a minimal amount of swelling or in carbon dioxide-containing strata where there is a danger of calcium carbonate precipitation. These bromides based Completion Fluids are used in both offshore and onshore drilling operations. Recent expansion in drilling activity like deep, high pressure wells have contributed to the rapid growth in this market, accounting to an expected growth from $10.86 billion in 2013 to $18.37 billion by 2020, with a CAGR of 7.8 percent.

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