Surfactants for EOR: Olefin sulfonate behavior at high temperature and hardness

Journal Article · Sun May 01 04:00:00 EDT 1988 · SPE (Society of Petroleum Engineers) Reserv. Eng.; (United States)

DOI:https://doi.org/10.2118/14933-PA· OSTI ID:6919919

Baviere, M; Bazin, B; Noik, C

The surfactant properties usually required for EOR are investigated with alpha-olefin sulfonates (AOS's), particularly at high temperature, salinity, and hardness, together with their solubility in brine, chemical stability, phase behavior, and adsorption. The use of a cosolvent enables aqueous solutions to be prepared with concentrated brine, even at high divalent cation levels. But the chemical stability of some solutions can be affected by their sensitivity to the oxidation of unsaturated components, resulting in a decrease of the pH. Precautionary measures to stabilize the solutions are stressed-i.e., aneorobic environment, maintenance of an alkaline pH, or addition of alcohol. As already shown, these surfactants provide low interfacial tensions (IFT's) and high solubilization parameters at high salinity and divalent cation content. Properties of optimal formulations have been investigated as a function of surfactant and cosolvent molecular weight and brine composition. Adsorption data on Na/sup -/ and Ca/sup -/ kaolinite are presented. In NaCl solutions, the amount of sulfonate adsorbed increases slightly with salinity. Preliminary measurements in hard water are shown to bring out the specific effect of calcium ions. According to the results concerning properties validly considered as screening criteria, we conclude that this family of sulfonates appears to be a potential candidate for EOR.

• Research Organization: Inst. Francais du Petrole (FR)
• OSTI ID: 6919919
• Journal Information: SPE (Society of Petroleum Engineers) Reserv. Eng.; (United States), Journal Name: SPE (Society of Petroleum Engineers) Reserv. Eng.; (United States) Vol. 3:2; ISSN SREEE
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

02 PETROLEUM
020300* -- Petroleum-- Drilling & Production
ADSORPTION
ALKALI METAL COMPOUNDS
ALKENES
ALUMINIUM COMPOUNDS
ALUMINIUM SILICATES
AQUEOUS SOLUTIONS
CHEMICAL COMPOSITION
CHLORIDES
CHLORINE COMPOUNDS
DISPERSIONS
DISPLACEMENT FLUIDS
ENHANCED RECOVERY
FLUID INJECTION
FLUIDS
HALIDES
HALOGEN COMPOUNDS
HYDROCARBONS
KAOLINITE
MINERALS
MIXTURES
OIL WELLS
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
ORGANIC SULFUR COMPOUNDS
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
PH VALUE
RECOVERY
RESERVOIR ROCK
ROCK-FLUID INTERACTIONS
SALINITY
SILICATE MINERALS
SILICATES
SILICON COMPOUNDS
SODIUM CHLORIDES
SODIUM COMPOUNDS
SOLUTIONS
SORPTION
STIMULATION
SULFONATES
SURFACE PROPERTIES
SURFACE TENSION
SURFACTANTS
WATERFLOODING
WELL STIMULATION
WELLS