Multi-stage stimulation (MSS) and hydraulic fracturing are important technological developments that have contributed to the ascendancy of US shale oil production. The US shale industry is under extreme pressure with the combined threats of COVID-19, thus a suppressed demand and oversupply. This has already started taking its toll on smaller US operators with bankruptcies and workforce reductions. The US has always been a forerunner bringing “Game Changing” technologies and improved operational efficiencies to lower the cost of lifting a barrel of shale-oil. The need of the hour is to support our “Shale” industry in this darkest hour by helping to reduce the lifting costs of oil. To help operators navigate the challenging industry environment, DAMORPHE introduces the “PATRIOT”, (Premium Affordable Time Reducing & Intelligent Oilfield Technology), a fully dissolvable premium plug for US MSS market.

Dissolvable MSS plugs with an “Aluminum” matrix often fail to dissolve in the desired time and are extremely difficult to mill out. “Magnesium” alloy-based plugs, with lower modulus, are not much better. The PATRIOT, designed from a dissolvable, a partially vitrified metal matrix composite, a matrix that is neither “Aluminum” nor “Magnesium” with tailored fracture toughness, is easily mill-able. If the operator chooses to dissolve the PATRIOT naturally for a couple of days and mill the remnants to save time and achieve full production, our plug presents an ideal test case. The PATRIOT offers a compelling value proposition:

• Most Favored Nation preferred pricing for US Shale, equivalent to a composite plug for the first customers.
• Novel short plug (around – 5.5 inch Run in Hole (RIH) and 4.5 inches in set position) will allow the MSS industry to practically eliminate coil tubing mill out, other than a preferred clean out run, if at all.
• Eliminates 3 to 5 days rig time and coil on location / operations savings to operators.
• Significantly reduces the lifting costs helping operators to sustain production.

The PATRIOT represents our first generation dissolvable frac plug technology. In our next generation, we plan to roll out amorphous and bulk nanocrystalline dissolvable alloys with an ability to relay information from downhole to surface without conventional telemetry through controlled release of tracers and electronic tags as a signature of location and extent of dissolution. This will provide clients (at no additional cost) much needed information of plugs having dissolved without running a spear or ring downhole to tag remnants.