Oil recovery by surfactant waterflooding
A waterflooding process is described for the recovery of oil from a subterranean oil reservoir. The process involves the injection into the reservoir of an aqueous solution of an aliphatic substituted succinimido aryl hydroxy sulfonate or its corresponding succintamic acid derivative. This surfactant functions to reduce the oil-water interfacial tension and also functions in the presence of divalent metal ions, such as calcium or magnesium, as a thickeining agent to increase the viscosity of the injected water. In performing the process in oil reservoirs in which the connate waters exhibit a divalent metal ion concentration of at least 0.2% by weight, the surfactant may be injected in a relatively fresh water which exhibits a divalent metal ion concentration less than that of the reservoir water. Thus, as the surfactant solution mixes with the reservoir water, the divalent metal ion concentration of the solution is increased with an attendant increase in its viscosity. 27 claims.
- Assignee:
- Mobil Oil Corp.
- Patent Number(s):
- US 4113632
- OSTI ID:
- 6170540
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Oil recovery by surfactant waterflooding
Oil recovery by surfactant waterflooding