Salinity tolerant surfactant oil recovery process

Patent · Tue Jan 03 04:00:00 EST 1978

OSTI ID:6620271

Carlin, J T; Ware, J W; Mills, Jr, M E; Wells, J A

Primary anionic surfactants, such as organic sulfonates are effective for recovering oil from subterranean formations only if the salinity and hardness of the formation water are relatively low. In petroleum formations containing high salinity, or hard water, either the high-salinity water must be displaced by a preflush or the primary anionic surfactant must be used in conjunction with an effective solubilizing cosurfactant, such as ethoxylated alcohols or alkyl phenols, or alkyl or alkylaryl thiols, as well as sulfated, ethoxylated alcohols oralkyl phenols. Optimum performance is achieved if 2 or more samples of petroleum sulfonate having different equivalent weight ranges and distributions are blended in a ratio which requires the minimum amount of solubilizing cosurfactant to achieve a condition of borderline solubility in the particular formation water in which the surfactants are to be employed. This ratio may be identified by preparing a number of blended petroleum sulfonate samples in the formation water using different ratios of total primary surfactant concentration to solubilizing cosurfactant concentration, and determining whether borderline solubility is achieved.(23 claims)

• Assignee: Texaco Inc.
• Patent Number(s): US 4066124
• OSTI ID: 6620271
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

02 PETROLEUM
020300* -- Petroleum-- Drilling & Production
ADDITIVES
ENERGY SOURCES
ENHANCED RECOVERY
FLUID INJECTION
FOSSIL FUELS
FUELS
GROUND WATER
HYDROGEN COMPOUNDS
INTERSTITIAL WATER
OIL WELLS
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
ORGANIC SULFUR COMPOUNDS
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
PETROLEUM
RECOVERY
SALINITY
STIMULATION
SULFONATES
SURFACTANTS
WATER
WATERFLOODING
WELL STIMULATION
WELLS