PATENT CLAIM ANALYSIS

Application Number: 15905352
Application Type: Utility
Filing Date: 2018-02
Publication Date: 2018-08
Patent Classification: ["166", "280100"]

Abstract:
A method of enhancing conductivity within a hydrocarbon-bearing reservoir by building proppant pillars in a spatial arrangement in fractures created or enlarged in the reservoir. Two fluids of differing stability are simultaneously pumped into the reservoir. The fluids may contain identical proppant mixtures which include a first proppant which has an apparent specific gravity less than the apparent specific gravity of a second proppant. The fluids may contain identical proppants mixtures where the average particle size of a first proppant is greater than the average particle size of a second proppant. Vertically extending pillars are created within the formation when the fluids are destabilized and the first proppant is then released from the destabilized fluids. The area between the pillars may be held open by the presence of the second proppant in the remaining fluid. Fluid produced from the hydrocarbon-bearing reservoir is then flowed at least partially through channels between the vertically extending pillars.

Claim (Index 16):
A method of pillar fracturing a hydrocarbon-bearing subterranean formation penetrated by a well, the method comprising:\n (A) after the creation or enlargement of fractures within the subterranean formation, simultaneously pumping into a well penetrating the hydrocarbon-bearing reservoir a first fluid and a second fluid wherein the first fluid is more stable than the second fluid:\n (i) the first fluid and second fluid contain a proppant mixture comprising at least two proppants wherein (i) the first proppant has an apparent specific gravity greater than the apparent specific gravity of the second proppant; and/or (ii) the average particle size of the first proppant is greater than the average particle size of the second proppant; and \n (ii) the first fluid has a volumetric mass density greater than the volumetric mass density of the second fluid or the first fluid is more viscous than the second fluid; \n (B) viscous fingering the first and second fluids within the created or enlarged fracture and developing a placement pattern for the first proppant of the first fluid and the second fluid in the fracture; (C) shutting in the well; (D) releasing the first proppant from the second fluid; (E) consolidating the released first proppant from the second fluid on an upper portion of the first fluid and/or at a pinch point in the width of the fracture; (F) creating at least two vertically extending pillars within the formation from the first proppant released from the second fluid wherein the placement of the at least two vertically extending pillars is determined by the viscous fingering pattern of the first fluid and the second fluid of step (B); (G) degrading the first fluid and building at least two vertically extending pillars from the first proppant released from the first fluid; (H) creating conductive channels within the subterranean formation between the at least two vertically extending pillars; and (I) bracing open the fracture between the at least two vertically extending pillars with the second proppant from the first fluid and/or second fluid.

Metadata:
- Claim Count in Document: 50.0
- Percentile: 88.0
- Lexical Diversity: 2.03797
- Patent Class: 166.0
- Transitional Phrase Type: open
- Component Type: 1
- Foreign Priority: False
- Related Applications: ['15161226', '14494030', '12248773', '13782952', '13491837']

Analysis Scores:
- 35 USC 101 Eligibility (BERT): 0.8052707839557569
- 35 USC 102 Novelty (BERT): 0.6011392247103632
- Combined Prediction Score: 0.7848576280312175
- Mean Citation Score: 392.23339
- Max Citation Score: 555.5139
- Similarity Product: 491.37828346109393

Labels:
- Claim Label 101: 1
- Claim Label 102: 1
- Claim Label 103: 1
- Claim Label 112: 1
- Combined Label: 1
- Label 101 Adjusted: 1

Dataset: test