Hydroxyethyl Cellulose (HEC)

Product Introduction:

Hydroxyethyl cellulose is abbreviated as HEC. It is a water-soluble polymer compound, presenting as white to light yellow fibrous or powder-like solids. It is non-toxic, odorless, tasteless, prone to absorbing moisture, soluble in water, insoluble in most organic solvents, and soluble in a few polar solvents such as formic acid, formaldehyde, dimethyl sulfoxide, dimethylformamide, and dimethylacetamide. It partially dissolves or swells in butanone and acetic acid. HEC does not ionize in water and has good acid and alkali resistance. It does not react with heavy metals to form precipitates. It is stable within the pH range of 6.5 to 8.0.
This product has a relatively small viscosity change within the pH range of 2 to 12, but the viscosity decreases beyond this range. It has properties such as thickening, suspension, adhesion, emulsification, dispersion, moisture retention, and protection of colloids. It can be used to prepare solutions of different viscosity ranges. It is unstable at normal temperature and pressure and should be avoided from moisture, heat, and high temperatures. It has excellent salt solubility in electrolyte solutions and is stable in its aqueous solution even when containing high concentrations of salts.

Main Applications:

It is used as a adhesive, surfactant, colloid protective agent, dispersant, emulsifier, and dispersion stabilizer. It has wide applications in fields such as coatings, inks, fibers, dyeing, papermaking, cosmetics, pesticides, mineral processing, oil extraction, and medicine.
HEC can dissolve quickly in water (including fresh water, salt water, and seawater), significantly increasing the viscosity of drilling fluids. Its unique rheological properties provide excellent low shear rate viscosity for drilling fluids, effectively suspending drill cuttings and weighting materials, preventing them from settling during circulation pauses, and ensuring wellbore cleanliness and operational safety.
HEC is compatible with other commonly used treatment agents in drilling fluid systems (such as clay, polymers, inhibitors). It does not produce residues and causes less damage to the formation, especially suitable for sensitive operation stages such as completion fluids, well servicing fluids, and perforation fluids that require protection of the oil and gas layer.
As a fluid loss reducer, HEC can form a dense and resilient filter cake on the well wall, effectively reducing the loss of free water in the drilling fluid to the formation. This helps stabilize the well wall, prevent shrinkage or collapse due to hydration expansion, and reduce damage to the oil and gas layer.
As a thickening agent and fluid loss reducer for water-based drilling fluids and completion fluids, it has a significant thickening effect in salt water drilling fluids. It can also be used as a fluid loss reducer for oil well cement. It can be cross-linked with multivalent metal ions to form gels.

Product Performance:

1. HEC can dissolve in hot or cold water, does not precipitate even when heated or boiled, and has a wide range of solubility and viscosity characteristics, as well as non-heat gel properties;
2. It is non-ionic and can coexist with a wide range of other water-soluble polymers, surfactants, and salts. It is an excellent colloid thickener for solutions containing high concentrations of electrolytes;
3. Its water retention capacity is twice that of methyl cellulose and has good flow regulation properties;
4. The dispersion ability of HEC is the worst among the recognized methyl cellulose and hydroxypropyl methyl cellulose, but it has the strongest protective colloid ability.

Usage instructions

Add directly during production:

1. Add clean water to a large tank equipped with a high-speed stirring device. 2. Start to stir at a low speed continuously and gradually evenly pour the hydroxyethyl cellulose into the solution. 3. Continue to stir until all the particles are thoroughly wet.
4. Then add the anti-mold agent, alkaline additive, etc. such as pigments, dispersing aids, and ammonia water.
5. Stir until all the hydroxyethyl cellulose is completely dissolved (the viscosity of the solution significantly increases) before adding the other components of the formula and grinding to the finished product.