Abstract
Chemical flooding is one of enhanced oil recovery (EOR) methods. The primary mechanism of EOR of chemical flooding is interfacial tension reduction, mobility ratio improvement and wettability changes. Recent studies showed that enhancing emulsification performance was beneficial to improve oil displacement efficiency. The formation of Pickering emulsion by nanoparticles could greatly improve the emulsifying performance. Using nanoparticles stabilized emulsions for chemical EOR application is a novel method.
In this study, six different types of nanoparticles were selected, including hydrophilic nano silica, modified nano silica, carbon nanotubes and bentonite, etc. The nanoparticle combine with petroleum sulfonate could form a stable emulsion. Particle wettability were measured by using contact angle measurement (OCA20). Emulsifying intensity index was measured for different nanoparticle-stabilized emulsions. The mechanisms of nanoparticle-stabilized emulsions and relationship between emulsion stability have been investigated. The influence of dispersant on nanoparticle-stabilized emulsions also has been investigated.
Nanoparticles mainly play a role in improving the stability of emulsions while surfactant play a major role in enhancing the emulsifying dispersion. The wettability of solid particles was one of the most important factors that affects the stability of emulsions. Partial hydrophobic nanoparticles were much easier to form stable emulsions than hydrophilic nanoparticles. Nanoparticles could form a three-dimensional network structure, thereby the stability of the emulsion was improved. Use of surfactant to disperse nanoparticles could further improve the emulsion stability. Finally, three nanoparticles stabilized emulsion formulations were developed for chemical flooding EOR.
Nanoparticle-stabilized emulsions could improve oil displacement efficiency in chemical combination flooding. This research was used to optimize chemical combination flooding formulation and has a guidance function for application of nanoparticles in chemical flooding EOR.
Changes of flooding reagents' properties under simulated high temperature/pressure conditions in oil reservoirs and their impact on emulsion stability
