Influence of Curing Time on Oil Well Cement Properties Using Nanoclay

Cement matrix is exposed to several loadings, which can harm its key properties and impede its functions, especially at the early age of forming the cement matrix where its properties are not entirely developed. Nanoclay is a powder material with very fine-grained particles which was used as a secondary additive to enhance the properties of cement. This work evaluates the early-time properties of oil well cement prepared with nanoclay powder and compares it with the properties of the base cement (without nanoclay). Several cement samples were prepared and cured for different times (12, 24, 48 and 72 hours) where the compressive strength, permeability, Poisson's ratio and Young's modulus of each sample were examined. The results indicated that the compressive strength of both cement systems increased with the increase of the curing time and the nanoclay-based sample had higher strength than base cement. The permeability of the cement decreased as the time of curing increased for the two cement systems and nanoclay cement had lower permeability. Moreover, the Poisson's ratio decreased and Young's modulus increased with curing time for both systems and the addition of nanoclay increased its Poisson's ratio and reduced its Young's modulus.