Hydration kinetics of oil well cement in the temperature range between 5 and 30°C

Abstract

Modeling the hydration kinetics of oil well cement as a function of temperature is critical for offshore cementing projects related to natural gas hydrates. During this study, the heat release of oil well cement hydration in the temperature range between 5 and 30°C was monitored by isothermal calorimetry. The influence of the source of cement, water-to-cement (w/c) ratio, and CaCl2 on hydration kinetics was evaluated in great detail. Results indicated the temperature effect on cement hydration kinetics can be modeled by a scale factor derived from the apparent activation energy (Ea) of the cement reaction. Ea showed moderate dependence on the cement source and relatively little dependence on the w/c ratio and CaCl2 addition. By combining with previous experimental data, a function correlating Ea and temperature in a wide temperature range (5–87°C) was obtained.