Lunch & Learn – Calgary Petroleum Club Jan 31, 2024
Western Petroleum Management is excited to have Dr. Dehghanpour come to Calgary to present at the Calgary Petroleum Club on how nano technology has a large effect on a wells production. Contact Mark Schumlick to be added to the list, the lunch is on us!
November 2023 BOE Report
Innovative nano technology demonstrates significant increased hydrocarbon recoveries while lowering CAPEX/ OPEX cost and GHG emissions.
Recent long term well production data demonstrates that negatively charged silica dioxide nano particles are the “go to” technology for the oil and gas industry when it comes to increased production and increased recovery factors. These nano particles, when mixed with a surfactant and pumped during fracking operations, have allowed Operators to realize significant increases in oil recovery over 12-24 months, relative to wells where conventional or “nano liquid” surfactants were pumped.
The oil and gas industry leader in nano particle technology is Nissan Chemical America Corporation (NCAC). Their line of nanoActiv® products is based on a silica dioxide nano particle coated with proprietary technology. Unlike other nano particles, that may form an aggregate when in a static reservoir environment, the nanoActiv® particles continue to repel each other due to their negative charge. These nano particles are smaller than a red blood cell and once in the reservoir they migrate outwards, (process called Brownian Motion), via the tight formation matrix, disjointing and fragmenting oil molecules from the rockface thus allowing less restricted oil flow through the matrix and towards producing fractures.
Figures 1 and 2 are a comparison of oil recovery volumes per cubic meter (M3) of frack fluid pumped. The green bar demonstrates oil recovered with nanoActiv® EFT 4 added to the frack and the blue bar demonstrates oil recovered with a surfactant only added to the frack. As indicated in both Figure 1 and 2 the recovered oil volumes after 12-24 months are anywhere from 20-45% higher when the nanoActiv® EFT 4 is added to the frack. Based on a 12 and 24 month production cycle we can assume that the 30-36 month production forecast will see the ratio continue to increase as higher oil volumes are recovered from nanoActiv® wells versus standalone surfactant wells.
Figure1
Figure 2
A 20-45% increase in oil production per cubic meter of frack fluid pumped is a game changer for our industry. Operators can now realize a higher oil recovery factor without the requirement for larger volume fracks. This not only reduces CAPEX cost but also means lower freshwater requirements to obtain higher overall production volumes and therefore lower OPEX cost per BOE produced.
Western Petroleum Management (WPM) is the exclusive Canadian provider of Nissan Chemical America Corporation line of nanoActiv® products. Mark Schumlick, VP Business Development at WPM stated that it’s taken several years to convince the industry of the relation between increased oil recoveries and NCAC proprietary nano silica dioxide particles. “The investment community especially, was focused on flush production volumes and achieving payout on capital in the first 6-12 months and therefore missed the opportunity nano technology could add to help curtail production decline and increase recoverable reserves over the following months and years”.
Schumlick said, “WPM is continuing to innovate and has recently developed a new enhanced hybrid blend for the Canadian market which we are currently testing at local oil and gas laboratory facilities in the Calgary area”. The enhanced hybrid surfactant has incorporated both a liquid nano emulsion (10-30nm) and Nissan’s proprietary silica dioxide nano particle. The idea behind this hybrid surfactant is to allow nano emulsion droplets to migrate into the near fractured formation matrix during fracking operations and the nano particles (through Brownian Motion) to migrate deep into the formation matrix post frack. The combined effects of both these nano technologies can improve oil recovery during the flush production cycle, (nano emulsion), and increase oil volumes recovered over the ensuing 12-24 months, (nano particles).
Initial performance results from multiple laboratory tests are very promising and Schumlick expects that upon successful completion of these tests the first field trials, (new well frack), will take place in Q1 or 2 of 2024. “As the timeline to determine field success of this hybrid technology is 12+ months we don’t expect to be publishing data until mid-2025”, Schumlick stated. Companies that want to be kept updated or would like to discuss their upcoming frack, waterflood or re-stim projects and product requirements can contact Mark Schumlick directly.
February 2023 BOE Report
Nissan Chemicals NanoActiv® technology has proven to be a game changer for increased oil production in tight light oil formations across the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin.
Manufactured by Nissan Chemical America Corporation, nanoActiv® technology is nano sized, negatively charged particle (silica dioxide) in a colloidal dispersion. These nanoActiv® particles (smaller than a red blood cell) are mixed with water and dispersed through the hydraulically induced fracture network during well fracking operations. When fracking operations are completed these negatively charged nanoActiv® particles repel each other and continue migrating through the tight natural formation matrix utilizing a process called Brownian motion. Once the nanoscopic particles are within the formation they are attracted to oil molecules, disjointing oil droplets from the rock face, fragmenting oil droplets thus liberating hydrocarbons and allowing them to flow more easily into the adjoining man-made fractures, basically, allowing new oil to be recovered via the existing fracture network as observed on the attached production graphs (1 & 2).
Graph #1-Cardium Ferrier HZ Wells
Graph #2 – Montney Pouce Coupe HZ Wells
A local company, Western Petroleum Management, (WPM) is the exclusive provider for Nissan’s line of nanoActiv® products in Canada. WPM, a 100% Indigenous owned company has been involved in the upstream oil and gas industry since 2005. During this time their primary focus has been asset optimization, including production optimization. In discussions with Nissan Chemicals management in early 2019, WPM management quickly realized that this innovative nanoActiv® technology may have real applications in tight oil formations within the western Canadian sedimentary basin. In late 2019, WPM convinced a client to pump its first nanoActiv® product on a vertical Cardium well, and since then, approximately 350,000 liters have been pumped in new fracks on multiple tight formations across western Canada.
In speaking with Bernie Cabot, President, Mark Schumlick, VP Business Development, and Linden Achen, Senior Geologist & Project Manager, they strongly believe this innovative technology will transform the oil and gas fracking industry and allow oil companies to recover more reserves without increasing well length or pumping larger frac volumes. “It’s like putting billions and billions of nano-crowbars into the formation, and prying the oil droplets off the rock face”, Achen said. Cabot said, “for a minimal capital expenditure increase, operators may realize a 20+ percent increase in the first 12 months of oil production, which not only means lower cost per barrel of oil recovered but also a 20% overall reduction in GHG emissions on a per barrel basis. This is a win-win for operators when they can recover more oil and also reduce their environmental footprint with lower per barrel GHG emissions”.
Since deploying nanoActiv® technology to clients in western Canada, WPM has received very positive feedback and a steady increase in orders by repeat users. Schumlick said, “operators like it as there’s really no change in how the well is fracked as the deployment of nanoActiv® product is a straightforward operation mixed in low concentrations (1:1000) with the water used in hydraulic fracturing operations”.
Marketing the nanoActiv® products is managed by WPM’s staff and with additional sales and marketing contracted to Shear Fluids. WPM is expecting significant demand for its products in 2023 and with the current worldwide supply chain issues they’ve contracted extra warehouse space in Alberta and plan to retain a larger product inventory to meet client demands. “We have complete confidence in our supply chain and our ability to deliver on time and when needed,” said Schumlick.
For more information or to place an order for nanoActiv® products, contact Mark Schumlick. Mark has over 30 years of oilfield experience, with 15 years in the fracking industry. For the last 10+ years he has managed business development and logistics with WPM, including all QC and logistics with nanoActiv® products.