Microbial enhanced oil recovery and compositions therefor

Patent · Mon Jan 01 04:00:00 EST 1990

OSTI ID:867287

Bryant, Rebecca S ^[1]

---

1. Bartlesville, OK

A method is provided for microbial enhanced oil recovery, wherein a combination of microorganisms is empirically formulated based on survivability under reservoir conditions and oil recovery efficiency, such that injection of the microbial combination may be made, in the presence of essentially only nutrient solution, directly into an injection well of an oil bearing reservoir having oil present at waterflood residual oil saturation concentration. The microbial combination is capable of displacing residual oil from reservoir rock, which oil may be recovered by waterflooding without causing plugging of the reservoir rock. Further, the microorganisms are capable of being transported through the pores of the reservoir rock between said injection well and associated production wells, during waterflooding, which results in a larger area of the reservoir being covered by the oil-mobilizing microorganisms.

• Research Organization: IIT Research Institute (Chicago, IL)
• DOE Contract Number: FC22-83FE60149
• Assignee: IIT Research Institute (Chicago, IL)
• Patent Number(s): US 4905761
• OSTI ID: 867287
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

/166/435/
associated
based
bearing
capable
causing
combination
compositions
concentration
conditions
covered
directly
displacing
efficiency
empirically
enhanced
enhanced oil
essentially
formulated
injection
larger
method
microbial
microbial enhanced
microorganisms
nutrient
oil
oil bearing
oil recovery
oil-mobilizing
plugging
pores
presence
production
provided
recovered
recovery
recovery efficiency
reservoir
reservoir conditions
reservoir rock
residual
residual oil
results
rock
saturation
solution
survivability
transported
waterflood
waterflooding