Studies of nonequilibrium behavior in surfactant systems using videomicroscopy and diffusion path analysis

Thesis/Dissertation · Wed Jan 01 04:00:00 EST 1986

OSTI ID:7040691

Raney, K H

A petroleum sulfonate system typical of those used in surfactant flooding of oil reservoirs was examined to determine salinity effects on nonequilibrium phenomena. Microemulsions and/or brine phases formed as intermediate layers at all salinities. Diffusion paths calculated for a model system match the experimental results with regard to the number and rate of formation of the intermediate phases. Contacting experiments were performed between an oil phase containing oleic acid and caustic brine solutions of varying salinity and pH. Interfacial turbulence and liquid crystal formation were commonplace. Spontaneous emulsification of water in the oil was observed when the surfactant was oil-soluble. Oil-in-water emulsions formed spontaneously when the surfactant was hydrophilic. Hydrocarbons were contacted with aqueous solutions of pure ethyoxylated alcohol surfactants. Enhanced solubilization of oil was seen at temperatures above the cloud point of the nonionic surfactant solutions. Intermediate liquid crystal and microemulsion layers typically formed near the phase inversion temperature, while conversion of oil into a water-in-oil microemulsions occurred at higher temperatures. Comparison of a pure ethoxylated alcohol system was also made to formulations having the same cloud point but containing a different ethoxylated alcohol and a lipophilic additive. Differences in nonequilibrium behavior were observed upon contacting with hydrocarbons due to partitioning of additive into the oleic phase. Finally, contacting experiments were compared to calculated diffusion paths for a well-characterized oil-water-alcohol system. One observation was the formation of an interface across a three-phase region.

• Research Organization: Rice Univ., Houston, TX (USA)
• OSTI ID: 7040691
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

02 PETROLEUM
020300* -- Petroleum-- Drilling & Production
ALCOHOLS
BRINES
CARBOXYLIC ACIDS
COLLOIDS
COMPARATIVE EVALUATIONS
CRYSTALS
DIFFUSION
DISPERSIONS
DISPLACEMENT FLUIDS
EMULSIONS
ENERGY SOURCES
ENHANCED RECOVERY
ESTERS
FLUIDS
FOSSIL FUELS
FUELS
HYDROCARBONS
HYDROXY COMPOUNDS
INTERFACES
LIQUID CRYSTALS
LIQUIDS
MICROEMULSIONS
MICROSCOPY
MONOCARBOXYLIC ACIDS
OLEIC ACID
ORGANIC ACIDS
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
ORGANIC SULFUR COMPOUNDS
PETROLEUM
PETROLEUM SULFONATES
PH VALUE
PHASE STUDIES
RECOVERY
SALINITY
SOLUBILITY
SULFONATES
SULFONIC ACID ESTERS
SURFACTANTS
TEMPERATURE DEPENDENCE