Cation Exchange Capacity in Mirador and Misoa Formation and the Effect in Enhanced Oil Recovery

Abstract

In the Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) methods, particularly in surfactant flooding, many tests have been performed, many scientific papers have been written and many findings have been found; however, there are still a lot of questions without any answers. Some of them are the interactions between the different reservoir components and the chemical flooding that are used in the EOR process. Nowadays, the main problem in the petroleum industry is the economic feasibility. Some authors report that the surfactant lost by the adsorption in the porous media increases the amount of surfactant that is needed. Understanding and controlling the amount of surfactant adsorbed directly, affects the project economics. It is crucial to the economic success of an EOR project that adsorption is reduced in the project design; to do so it requires an understanding of surfactant adsorption mechanisms. One of the factors that affect the surfactant adsorption in porous media is the mineralogy of the reservoir by the Cation Exchange Capacity (CEC) due to clays minerals present in the mineral composition of the reservoir.