Nanoparticle-based Magnetic Induced Heating for Oil Well Cement Slurries: Experimental Study and Modelling Development

Abstract

This paper presents an experimental campaign and a numerical model that describe a potential application of magnetic nanoparticles (MNP) in oil well cementing pastes. MNP, when subjected to an oscillating magnetic field, can generate a heating effect, which accelerates the cement hydration reaction through thermal activation. This, in turn, reduces the downtime during expensive oil well cementing operations. An experimental campaign was conducted to verify the heating potential of MNP in cement pastes. The obtained results were used to calibrate and validate a numerical model implemented in an optimized computer code, which takes into account the thermo-chemical coupling of the hydration reaction. The early application of the numerical model successfully reproduced the thermal behavior of MNP-blended cement pastes exposed to inductive heating. Furthermore, it has the potential to be extended for simulating the behavior of cement pastes in oil wells during the early ages when the effects of hydration are crucial to consider.