Patent ID: 7741251

Claim:
A method of stabilizing a subterranean formation that comprises shale comprising: contacting the subterranean formation that comprises the shale with a fluid, the fluid comprising: a base fluid, and a water soluble hydrophobically modified polymer formed from a reaction comprising a hydrophilic polymer and a hydrophobic compound, wherein the hydrophobically modified polymer formed from the reaction has a molecular weight in the range of about 100,000 to about 10,000,000, and comprises a polymer backbone that comprises polar heteroatoms and a hydrophobic branch that comprises an alkyl chain of about 4 to about 22 carbons without any intervening heteroatoms, wherein the hydrophobically modified polymer does not comprise polyoxyethylene, wherein the hydrophobic compound comprises an alkyl halide, a sulfonate, a sulfate, or an organic acid derivative and wherein the hydrophobically modified polymer contains reactive amino groups as pendant groups or in the polymer backbone.