Measurement of interfacial tension by use of pendant drop video techniques

Technical Report · Wed Sep 01 00:00:00 EDT 1993

DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/10192746· OSTI ID:10192746

Herd, M D; Thomas, C P; Bala, G A; Lassahn, G D

This report describes an instrument to measure the interfacial tension (IFT) of aqueous surfactant solutions and crude oil. The method involves injection of a drop of fluid (such as crude oil) into a second immiscible phase to determine the IFT between the two phases. The instrument is composed of an AT-class computer, optical cell, illumination, video camera and lens, video frame digitizer board, monitor, and software. The camera displays an image of the pendant drop on the monitor, which is then processed by the frame digitizer board and non-proprietary software to determine the IFT. Several binary and ternary phase systems were taken from the literature and used to measure the precision and accuracy of the instrument in determining IFTs. A copy of the software program is included in the report. A copy of the program on diskette can be obtained from the Energy Science and Technology Software Center, P.O. Box 1020, Oak Ridge, TN 37831-1020. The accuracy and precision of the technique and apparatus presented is very good for measurement of IFTs in the range from 72 to 10{sup {minus}2} mN/m, which is adequate for many EOR applications. With modifications to the equipment and the numerical techniques, measurements of ultralow IFTs (<10{sup {minus}3} mN/m) should be possible as well as measurements at reservoir temperature and pressure conditions. The instrument has been used at the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory to support the research program on microbial enhanced oil recovery. Measurements of IFTs for several bacterial supernatants and unfractionated acid precipitates of microbial cultures containing biosurfactants against medium to heavy crude oils are reported. These experiments demonstrate that the use of automated video imaging of pendant drops is a simple and fast method to reliably determine interfacial tension between two immiscible liquid phases, or between a gas and a liquid phase.

• Research Organization: EG and G Idaho, Inc., Idaho Falls, ID (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE, Washington, DC (United States)
• DOE Contract Number: AC07-76ID01570
• OSTI ID: 10192746
• Report Number(s): DOE/ID/01570-T170; ON: DE93000168
• Resource Relation: Other Information: PBD: Sep 1993
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

02 PETROLEUM
37 INORGANIC
ORGANIC
PHYSICAL AND ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY
99 GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS//MATHEMATICS, COMPUTING, AND INFORMATION SCIENCE
SURFACTANTS
SURFACE TENSION
PETROLEUM
MEASURING INSTRUMENTS
MEASURING METHODS
COMPUTER PROGRAM DOCUMENTATION
AQUEOUS SOLUTIONS
INTERFACES
ACCURACY
BACTERIA
MICROBIAL EOR
DROPLETS
PROGRAMMING
CAMERAS
COMPUTERS
020300
400201
990200
DRILLING AND PRODUCTION
CHEMICAL AND PHYSICOCHEMICAL PROPERTIES
MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTERS