Product Details

Xanthan Gum

1. Product Overview
Xanthan Gum is an anionic polysaccharide polymer produced by microbial fermentation. It features unique rheological properties, excellent water solubility, high temperature and pH resistance, and good compatibility with various salts. As an efficient thickener, suspending agent, emulsifier and stabilizer, it is widely used in more than 20 industries including petroleum, daily chemicals and food.

2. Core Technical Parameters

3. Key Performance Features

3.1 Unique Pseudoplastic Rheology
Xanthan gum solutions exhibit significant shear-thinning behavior: viscosity drops sharply under high shear rates (e.g., drill bit rotation) to reduce flow resistance and save energy; viscosity recovers rapidly at low shear or static conditions, effectively suspending solid particles and stabilizing the wellbore.

3.2 Excellent Water Solubility & Stability
It dissolves rapidly in cold or hot water to form uniform and stable solutions. It features excellent acid/alkali resistance, high temperature resistance and salt tolerance, maintaining stable performance even in high-salinity and high-temperature environments.

3.3 Strong Thickening & Suspending Capacity
It achieves efficient thickening at low concentrations and provides excellent suspending capacity, preventing cuttings settlement in drilling fluids and serving as a suspension stabilizer in daily chemical and food systems.

3.4 Good Compatibility
It has excellent compatibility with various drilling fluid additives and industrial auxiliaries, and can be directly added to different systems.

4. Product Application

4.1 Petroleum Drilling Industry
Low-concentration (0.5%) aqueous solutions adjust drilling fluid rheology and viscosity, achieving shear-thinning effect to reduce bit rotation resistance and save power. It maintains high viscosity at rest to suspend cuttings, prevent wellbore collapse and stabilize the well. With excellent salt and heat resistance, it is suitable for offshore drilling and high-salinity/high-temperature formations. It can also be used as an oil recovery displacement agent to improve reservoir flooding efficiency, reduce dead oil zones and enhance crude oil recovery.

4.2 Daily Chemical & Food Industry
Used as a thickener, stabilizer and emulsifier in cosmetics, personal care products, beverages, sauces and other products to improve stability and texture.

4.3 Other Industrial Fields
Widely used in agriculture, coatings, papermaking, textiles and other industries as a suspending agent, thickener and rheology modifier.

5. Packaging Specification
Standard: 25kg/bag in composite paper bags. Customizable packaging is available according to customer requirements.

6. Storage & Transportation
Store in a cool, dry and ventilated place, protected from moisture, direct sunlight and rain. Keep away from fire sources and strong oxidizing agents to avoid contamination.

7. Precautions
Wear protective gloves and masks during use to avoid dust inhalation and direct skin contact. In case of accidental contact with eyes or skin, rinse immediately with plenty of clean water and seek medical attention if necessary. Do not store together with highly corrosive substances such as strong acids and strong alkalis.

8. Disclaimer & Technical Support
All specifications and descriptions in this document are for reference only. The product shall be used in accordance with the customer’s actual working conditions and technical requirements. Customized formulations and solutions are available upon request.

Application Cases of Xanthan Gum for Drilling Fluids

1. Efficient Thickening and Cuttings Carrying Case for Low-temperature Shallow Wells

Case Background: In northern low-temperature oilfield blocks, shallow formation temperature is low all year round. Conventional thickeners have poor low-temperature activity, difficult hydration and insufficient gel strength, resulting in weak drilling fluid suspension and cuttings carrying capacity. It is easy to cause bottom hole sand settling, cuttings accumulation and poor wellbore cleaning, which leads to tripping resistance increase and restricts rapid drilling of shallow wells.

Application Formula & Dosage: On the basis of conventional water-based drilling fluid system, 0.2%–0.4% xanthan gum was added as the main low-temperature thickener and rheology regulator. It is compounded with a small amount of bentonite to build a high-efficiency suspension and cutting-carrying drilling fluid system.

Application Effect: Xanthan gum has excellent low-temperature hydration activity and unique shear-thinning properties. It can efficiently improve the low-speed viscosity and gel strength of drilling fluid at low temperature, significantly enhance static suspension and dynamic cutting carrying capacity. It thoroughly solves the problem of poor wellbore cleaning in low-temperature shallow wells, keeps the drilling fluid low-viscosity during circulation to reduce pump pressure, and maintains high viscosity statically to prevent sand settling. The whole drilling process is stable and efficient.

2. Anti-salt Rheology Stabilization and Suspension Case for High-salt Formations

Case Background: Brackish water and salt-bearing formations have high salinity and strong ion interference. Conventional polymer thickeners are prone to molecular chain degradation and performance failure under salt pollution, resulting in sharp drop of drilling fluid viscosity, poor suspension performance, serious settlement of weighting materials and cuttings, and unstable downhole working conditions, which seriously affect safe drilling of salt formations.

Application Method & Dosage: 0.25%–0.5% high salt resistant xanthan gum was applied in saturated brine drilling fluid systems. It is used for rheology optimization

Application Effect: Xanthan gum has outstanding electrolyte resistance and salt tolerance, stable molecular structure without performance attenuation under full salinity pollution. It can stably maintain the low-speed shear viscosity of high-salt drilling fluid, effectively avoid barite settlement and cuttings deposition, ensure long-term uniform and stable system performance, and solve the technical problem of easy system failure in high-salt drilling fluid systems.

3. Low-resistance Cuttings Carrying and Well Stabilization Case for Extended-reach Horizontal Wells

Case Background: Extended-reach horizontal wells have ultra-long horizontal sections, large drilling friction torque and strict requirements on drilling fluid rheology. Conventional thickeners lead to high circulating viscosity and excessive pump pressure, which easily cause poor cuttings transportation and cuttings bed accumulation in horizontal sections, resulting in increased tripping resistance and stuck pipe risks.

Application Dosage: 0.2%–0.35% xanthan gum was added to horizontal well drilling fluid systems, relying on its shear-thinning characteristics to realize low circulation resistance and high suspension performance.

Application Effect: The product has unique shear-thinning rheological properties. It maintains low viscosity and low friction during high-speed circulation to reduce pump pressure and downhole torque; it forms stable gel structure at low shear or static state to carry cuttings efficiently and prevent cuttings bed formation. It ensures long-distance clean transportation of cuttings in horizontal sections, significantly reduces downhole complex risks, and improves the construction efficiency of extended-reach horizontal wells.

4. Offshore Environment-friendly Non-fluorescent Low-damage Drilling Case

Case Background: Offshore drilling and logging evaluation wells have strict requirements for environmental protection, zero fluorescence and low reservoir damage. Conventional synthetic rheology modifiers have high fluorescence and poor degradability, which interfere with logging interpretation and cause residual damage to reservoirs, failing to meet offshore green drilling standards.

Application Method & Effect: Xanthan gum was applied at 0.2%–0.4% in offshore environmental-friendly drilling fluid systems. It is a natural microbial polysaccharide product, non-toxic, non-fluorescent and fully biodegradable. It can stably adjust drilling fluid rheology, optimize suspension and carrying performance, do not interfere with logging and reservoir evaluation, and meet offshore environmental protection and low-damage drilling requirements.

5.  Long-term System Stabilization and Anti-settlement Case for Long-time Shutdown Drilling

Case Background: In complex block drilling, frequent shutdown, tripping and logging operations lead to long static standing time of drilling fluid. Conventional rheology modifiers have poor static gel stability, which easily causes rapid settlement of weighting materials and solid particles, system delamination and performance deterioration, resulting in poor wellbore stability and repeated mud conditioning.

Application Method & Effect: The conventional dosage is 0.25%–0.4%. Xanthan gum can form a reversible and stable three-dimensional network gel structure in the drilling fluid. During long-term static standing, it can effectively lock solid particles to prevent settlement and delamination. During circulating startup, the gel structure is rapidly sheared and broken with low startup pressure. It realizes long-cycle stable storage of drilling fluid, reduces mud conditioning times, and improves overall drilling construction efficiency.