Powder Technology, Vol.373, 109-117, 2020
Determination of the effect of resin-coating on ceramic proppant settlement for optimal hydraulic fracturing applications
Resin-coated ceramic particles are a new type of proppants being tested in hydraulic fracturing operations, and this study investigates the drag coefficients of resin-coated ceramic particles in water. Eight resin-coated ceramic particles with diameters between 450 and 924 mu m are selected in the tests. Using the high-resolution images obtained from a computer tomography (CT) scan, we measure the bulk volume, mean diameter, and volumetric fractions of three constituents making up each particle (resin coating, ceramic body, and air pockets). Compared to other methods, CT scan method leads to the minimum discrepancy between the estimated densities and the ideal particle densities. We measure the settling velocity of resin-coated ceramic particles in water in order to determine the drag coefficients, finding that the Roos and Willmarth's correlation (1971) is more appropriate for calculating the drag coefficients of resin-coated ceramic particles than the other four correlations. (C) 2020 Published by Elsevier B.V.
Keywords:Drag coefficient;Non-spherial particles;Resin-coated ceramic particle;Computer tomography scan