Obtaining the Optimum Concentration of TiO2/ZSM-5 Nanocomposites and Demonstrating Novel Approaches to Increase Oil Recovery in Carbonate Reservoirs

Abstract

Nanoparticles have been employed in many fields to improve oil recovery methods in recent years. This work introduced TiO₂/ZSM-5 nanocomposites (TZ-NCs) at the optimal concentration as a new enhanced oil recovery agent. The results from pure TiO₂ nanoparticles (T-NPs) and TZ-NCs were then compared. The reservoir conditions were applied in this study for wettability change, interfacial tension, and zeta potential tests. The same operational ideas were used to create spontaneous imbibition experiments after identifying the optimal concentration. Both TZ-NCs and T-NPs samples were characterized using SEM, FTIR, EDAX, XRD, and BET. XRD confirms the phase purity and high crystalline nature of the prepared T-NPs. The analysis of physicochemical properties confirmed the successful presence of titanium on the ZSM-5 zeolite substrate and the formation of the TZ-NCs. Different concentrations, ranging from 0.05 to 0.3 wt%, were used, and based on the highest zeta potential, contact angle reduction, and interfacial tension, 0.15 wt% was recommended as an optimum concentration for T-NPs and TZ-NCs. At 0.15 wt%, (contact angle, zeta potential) were changed to (72.03°, -45.35 mV) and (50.10°, -50.48 mV) with T-NPs and TZ-NCs, respectively. In order to get ready for additional study, higher oil recovery experiments were conducted for both NPs and NCs at an optimum concentration. After 350 h of operation, the percentage of oil recovered from base, T-NPs, and TZ-NCs increased to 35.70, 58.61, and 67.29%, respectively.