Process for treatment of water injection wells
Low permeability reservoirs (under 20 md) can be flooded for oil recovery by an oil-external micellar slug, preceded and followed by micellar (buffer) slugs of higher water content, and driven by a waterflood. The buffer slugs protect the micellar slug from contact with water which would cause a formation blocking emulsion. A fresh water preflush is desirable to displace reservoir water containing several hundred ppm of divalent ions. The salt concentration of the micellar slug is 5,000 to 20,000 ppm. To increase the system's resistance to emulsification, the ratio of cosurfactant to surfactant concentration should be higher in the first and last buffer slugs. The micellar slug consists of kerosene, a hydrocarbon sulfonate (surfactant), an ethoxylated aliphatic alcohol and a C/sub 5/ alcohol or fused oil, water, and sodium chloride.
- Assignee:
- Amoco Production Co.
- Patent Number(s):
- US 3670819
- OSTI ID:
- 7215966
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
020300* -- Petroleum-- Drilling & Production
ALCOHOLS
ENERGY SOURCES
ENHANCED RECOVERY
ESTERS
FLUID INJECTION
FOSSIL FUELS
FUELS
HYDROXY COMPOUNDS
KEROSENE
MICROEMULSION FLOODING
MISCIBLE-PHASE DISPLACEMENT
OIL WELLS
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
ORGANIC SULFUR COMPOUNDS
PETROLEUM
PETROLEUM PRODUCTS
PETROLEUM SULFONATES
SULFONATES
SULFONIC ACID ESTERS
WELLS