A New Method to Identify Proppant Location in Induced Fractures

A new technique is discussed and tested in this work for proppant placement determination. A high thermal neutron capture<br>compound (HTNCC) is inseparably incorporated into a ceramic proppant during manufacturing in sufficiently low<br>concentration that it does not affect proppant properties. Proppant is detected using standard compensated neutron tools or<br>pulsed neutron tools, with detection based on the high thermal neutron absorptive properties of the compound relative to<br>downhole constituents. Compared to the traditional radioactive tracer (RA) techniques, the new detectable proppant is not<br>radioactive so there are no HSE or regulatory issues. Additionally, since the high thermal neutron absorbing compound is<br>placed in the proppant during the process of manufacturing, there is no requirement for special handling or mixing processes<br>at the well site.