China Petroleum Network News (Reporter Wang Xinxin, Correspondent Liang Tiancheng, Ding Fei) Recently, the international standard ISO13503-2:2024 "Petroleum and natural gas industries, including low-carbon energy - Completion fluids and materials - Part 2: Performance testing methods for proppants used in hydraulic fracturing and gravel filling operations" revised by China Petroleum Exploration and Development Research Institute was officially released. The release of this standard has promoted technological exchange and progress in the proppant industry, contributed Chinese wisdom and strength to the high-quality development of fracturing materials, and is of great significance for promoting the standardized application and economic trade of proppant products worldwide.
Proppant is a granular material used in hydraulic fracturing and gravel filling operations to support fractured fractures with a certain strength, mainly including natural quartz sand, ceramic particles, and film covering. The standardization of the performance and quality of proppants is an important guarantee for the efficient development of oil and gas wells. The large-scale development of unconventional oil and gas reservoirs has put forward higher requirements for the testing methods of proppant performance.
In November 2021, the Exploration Institute arranged two experts to serve as conveners and leaders, forming a standard working group consisting of more than 20 experts from countries such as China, the United States, the United Kingdom, Brazil, and Saudi Arabia. Multiple units including the Exploration Institute, Daqing Oilfield, and Engineering Technology Research Institute jointly participated in the revision of the standards. Among them, the Exploration Institute has independently developed a sample placement device for crushing rate testing, which has accumulated rich experience in a series of testing methods such as proppant sampling, sieve analysis, and crushing rate, greatly reducing the influence of human factors on proppant performance testing results and significantly improving the accuracy and reliability of testing data. On this basis, the working group conducted large-scale professional laboratory comparative experiments and obtained detailed and convincing experimental data. After 3 years of voting, the Draft International Standard (FDIS) was unanimously approved and released.