Select Naphthenic Acids Beneficially Impact Oil-Water Dynamics During Smart Waterflooding

Abstract

Injection of a generic naphthenic acid blend in waterflooding experiments has been shown to enhance oil recovery. A brine-oil interfacial response upon addition of organic acids has also been recorded and linked to the improved recovery response. The purpose of this work is to analyze the effect of several individual naphthenic acids on the oil-water interface and thereby determine which structure of acids is most potentially influential in improving oil recovery. Acids were selected based on water solubility and structure; analyses were conducted on several molecular structural characteristics to assess the relationship to interfacial responses. Based on the observed fluid-fluid interactions and the likelihood that the acid blend in previous work contained some of the acids studied, we propose a causative connection between the addition of organic acid blends and the recovery efficiency.