Fluid gelable composition of acrylamide polymers and aqueous solutions of inorganic hydroxides and salts

Claim 1

A FLUID, GELABLE COMPOSITION PREPARED BY REACTING AN INTIMATE MIXTURE OF: COMPONENT (A) AN ANHYDROUS PARTICULATED ACRYLAMIDE POLYMER SELECTED FROM THE CLASS CONSISTING OF (1) LINEAR AND CROSS-LINKED POLYMERIZED ACRYLAMIDE, (2) COPOLYMERS PREPARED BY POLYMERIZING AT LEAST ABOUT 90 PERCENT BY WEIGHT ACRYLAMIDE AND BALANCE AN ETHYLENICALLY UNSATURATED MONOMER COPOLYMERIZABLE THEREWITH, TO MAKE A WATER-DISPERSIBLE COPOLYMER, SELECTED FROM THE CLASS CONSISTING OF ACRYLIC ACID, METHACRYLIC ACID, VINYLSOLFONIC ACID, VINYLBENZYLTRIMETHYLAMMONIUM CHLORIDE, VINYLBENZYLSULFONIC ACID, VINYLBENZENESULFONIC ACID, AND ALKALI AND ALKALINE EARTH METAL SALTS OF SAID ACIDS, AND (3) MIXTURES OF (1) AND (2) AND COMPONENT (B) AN AQUEOUS SOLUTION OF AN INORGANIC COMPOUND SELECTED FROM THE CLASS CONSISTING OF INORGANIC WATER-SOLUBLE HYDROXIDES AND SALTS IN AN AMOUNT SUFFICIENT TO REDUCE THE AQUEOUS TENSION OF PURE WATER TO A POSITIVE FINAL AQUEOUS TENSION VALUE AT THE TEMPERATURE EMPLOYED, WHICH IS BETWEEN THE FREEZING POINT AND THE BOILING POINT OF SAID SOLUTION, OF NOT GREATER THAN ABOUT 10 MILLIMETERS OF MERCURY, WHEREIN THE LINEAR AND CROSS-LINKED POLYACRYLAMIDE POLYMER AND COPOLYMER IS ABOUT 90% UNHYDROLYZED AND TO NOT GREATER THAN ABOUT 20 MILLIMETERS OF MERCURY IN POLYVALENT CATION SOLUTIONS WHERE THE POLYACRYLAMIDE IS ABOUT 60% UNHYDROLYZED, AND NOT IN EXCESS OF THE AMOUNT OF THE INORGANIC COMPOUND NECESSARY TO SATURATE THE WATER AT THE TEMPERATURE EMPLOYED, COMPONENT A BEING EMPLOYED IN AN AMOUNT OF BETWEEN ABOUT 0.5 AND ABOUT 5.0 POUNDS PER GALLON OF TOTAL SLURRY.