During acidizing of geothermal wells, the geofluid becomes so acidic as to cause corrosion in low carbon steel pipes, casings, and wellheads, a serious phenomenon that leads to the plugging and abandonment of these wells. In order to recover the drilling costs and offset the concomitant losses, laboratory and bench-scale experiments were undertaken to increase the geofluids to pH values > 3.5 by adding ALBER buffering solutions: a mixture of monochloroacetic acids and their sodium salts. From years of experience in geothermal operations, engineer specialists have found these pH levels to be non-corrosive to low-carbon steel. The laboratory-scale results showed that brine pH > 3.5 could be obtained at 100°C for as low an initial geofluid pH of 1.9, an initial ALBER pH as low as 3.5, an ALBER concentrations as low as 0.35M, and a geofluid/ALBER volume ratio as high as 175. The bench-scale simulations employed higher initial average geofluid pH of 2.5, initial average ALBER pH of 3.45, average ALBER solution temperature of 75°C and at constant ALBER concentration of 0.25 M. Simulations were performed for mass flow rates of ALBER solution at 2.5 gm/sec and 5.0 gm/sec and into columns, 1.5-inch 1.D and 2.0-inch 1.D. The pH of geofluid mixture > 3.5 was attainable in the latter experiments at a mass flow rate of ALBER solution = 5 gm/sec in each of the two columns, 1.5-inch and 2.5-inch diameter, respectively.
