Characterization of silicate gels for profile control

Silicate gels have been used in well completions as grouting agents in water shut-off treatments. Typical usages employed 10 up to 20% SiO 2 dissolved in alkaline solutions. Silicate gels made with such high SiO 2 concentrations are impermeable and quite durable. However, they tend to gel within a few hours, which limits their applications to wellbore or very-near wellbore treatments