Organic Acid Waterflooding for Emulsion Destabilization
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods for enhanced oil recovery do not fully explain the mechanisms of wettability alteration and water-in-oil emulsion stability, leading to challenges in forming mobilized fluids with improved connectivity in porous media.
Innovation Solution
The use of organic acids such as naphthenic acids, cycloalkane carboxylic acids, and L-proline, combined with polymers and crosslinkers, to form treatment fluids that destabilize emulsions and re-establish connectivity in reservoirs, enhancing oil recovery through fluid-fluid interactions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If low-salinity brine is injected to improve oil recovery through wettability alteration, then oil recovery is improved, but the mechanism is not fully understood and requires extended aging periods
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by pre-forming water-in-oil emulsions with specific interfacial viscoelasticity properties before injection. This pre-prepared emulsion structure eliminates the need for extended aging periods required by conventional low-salinity brine methods, as the wettability alteration mechanism is already activated in the injected fluid rather than requiring in-situ development over weeks.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the physical-chemical parameters of the injection fluid by creating emulsions with controlled interfacial viscoelasticity (G' and G''). By adjusting the elastic and viscous moduli of the emulsion interface, the patent achieves rapid wettability alteration without time-dependent aging, fundamentally changing the mechanism from time-based to property-based enhancement.
2Productivity
If stable water-in-oil emulsions are formed to delay snap-off and increase connectivity, then fluid mobility is improved, but emulsion stability becomes problematic for phase separation
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by creating emulsions with specific localized interfacial properties (controlled viscoelasticity) at the oil-water interface while maintaining bulk phase separability. The emulsion droplets have stabilized interfaces that provide connectivity benefits, yet the overall system remains capable of phase separation through standard separation equipment, achieving both mobility improvement and operational feasibility.
3Productivity
If organic acids and polymers are used to destabilize emulsions and re-establish connectivity, then oil recovery is enhanced, but the complexity of the treatment fluid increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies composite materials by combining organic acids (naphthenic acids, cycloalkane carboxylic acids, L-proline) with polymers and crosslinkers to create a multi-component treatment fluid system. This composite approach leverages the synergistic effects of different materials: organic acids for interfacial activity, polymers for viscosity control and connectivity, and crosslinkers for structural stability, achieving enhanced oil recovery through coordinated material functions rather than single-substance approaches.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The method achieves incremental oil recovery of 5% or higher by destabilizing emulsions and re-establishing connectivity, improving the efficiency and economy of oil recovery systems in both elastic and non-elastic reservoirs.
Implementation Method 1
Water-in-oil emulsion's stability, another element in improved recovery, can be dictated by the formation of a viscoelastic interfacial film. Stable emulsions can be problematic because emulsions represent one species trapped in another, and therefore inhibit attempts to separate into two individual phases.
Implementation Method 2
Injection of low-salinity brine, regardless of whether the brine is the connate or the injection water, has been shown to improve oil recovery in sandstone reservoirs. Several mechanisms for this improvement have been suggested, but in large part, the observed wettability alteration towards more water-wetness is credited for the enhancement in oil recovery.
Implementation Method 3
Water-in-oil emulsion's stability, another element in improved recovery, can be dictated by the formation of a viscoelastic interfacial film. Viscoelasticity increases generally correlate with a delay in snap-off and an increase in emulsion coalescence in porous media.
Data Source
AI summary
In an embodiment, a hydrocarbon recovery material includes an organic acid and a water material, the organic acid including a naphthenic acid, L-proline, or combinations thereof. In another embodiment, an oil recovery method includes injecting a treatment fluid into a reservoir under reservoir conditions, the reservoir containing hydrocarbons, and the treatment fluid includes an organic acid and a water material. In another embodiment, an oil recovery method includes injecting a treatment fluid into a reservoir containing hydrocarbons, the treatment fluid comprising an organic acid in one or more of an oil-in-water emulsion, a resin dispersion, or a polymer capsule.