Surfactant and nanoparticle synergy: Towards improved foam stability

Abstract

Surfactant foam stability gets a lot of interest while posing a significant obstacle to many industrial operations. One of the viable solutions for addressing gas mobility concerns and boosting reservoir fluid sweep efficiency during solvent-based enhanced heavy oil recovery processes is foam formation. The synergistic effect of nanoparticles and surfactants in a porous reservoir media can help create a more durable and sturdier foam. This study aims to see how well a combination of the nanoparticles (NPs) and surfactant can generate foam for controlling gas mobility and improving oil recovery. This research looked at the effects of silicon and aluminum oxide nanoparticles on the bulk and dynamic stability of sodium dodecyl surfactant (SDS)-foam in the presence and absence of oil. Normalized foam height, liquid drainage, half-decay life, nanoparticle deposition, and bubble size distribution of the generated foams with time were used to assess static foam stability in the bulk phase, while dynamic stability was studied in the micromodel. To understand the processes of foam stabilization by nanoparticles, the microscopic images of foam and the shape of bubbles were examined. When nanoparticles were applied in foamability testing in bulk and dynamic phase, the foam generation and stability were improved by 23% and 17%, respectively. In comparison to surfactant alone, adding nanoparticles to surfactant solutions leads to a more significant pressure drop of 17.34 psi for SiO₂ and 14.86 psi for Al₂O₃ NPs and, as a result, a higher reduction in gas mobility which ultimately assists in enhancing oil recovery.

Keywords

Foam stability / Nanoparticles / Surfactant / Foam decay / Pressure drop / Enhanced oil recovery / Etc

Acknowledgement

This research is funded by graduate studies of the University of Regina, Petroleum Technology Research Centre (PTRC), and MITACS.

References

[1] J. Zuta, I. Fjelde,Mechanistic modeling of CO2-foam processes in fractured chalk rock: effect of foam strength and gravity forces on oil recovery,in:Society of Petroleum Engineers -SPE Enhanced Oil Recovery Conference 2011, 2, EORC 2011, 2011, https://doi.org/10.2118/144807-ms.

[2] D.W. Green, P. Willhite, Enhanced Oil Recovery (Willhite). Pdf, 1998, p. 1.

[3] Z. John, F. Ingebret, B. Roman, L.H. Vartdal, O. Henrik,Modeling of transport of a CO2-foaming agent during CO2-foam processes in fractured chalk rock, in:SPE -DOE Improved Oil Recovery Symposium Proceedings, vol. 1, 2010, https://doi.org/10.2118/129601-ms.

[4] H.A. Slobod, L. R,Koch Jr., High-pressure gas injection-mechanism of recovery increase, Drill. Prod. Pract. Am. Pet. Inst. (1953) 82-96.

[5] B.T. Campbell, F.M. Orr, Flow visualization for CO2/CRUDE oil displacements, Soc. Petrol. Eng. J. 25 (5) (1985), https://doi.org/10.2118/11958-PA.

[6] D. Chakravarthy, V. Muralidharan, E. Putra, D.S. Schechter,Application of XRay CT for Investigation of CO₂ and WAG Injection in Fractured Reservoirs, 2004, https://doi.org/10.2118/2004-232.

[7] S.K. Masalmeh, H. Hillgartner, R. Al Mjeni, X.D. Jing, Simultaneous Injection of Miscible Gas and Polymer (SIMGAP) to Improve Oil Recovery and Sweep Efficiency from Layered Carbonate Reservoirs, 2010, https://doi.org/10.2118/129645-ms.

[8] M.A. Almobarky, Z. AlYousef, D. Schechter, A Comparison between Two Anionic Surfactants for Mobility Control of Super Critical CO₂ in Foam-Assisted Miscible EOR, 2017, https://doi.org/10.7122/486486-ms.

[9] A.R. Kovscek, C.J. Radke, Fundamentals of Foam Transport in Porous Media, 1994.

[10] H.S. Al-Hashim, M.S. Celik, M.M. Oskay, H.Y. Al-Yousef, Adsorption and precipitation behaviour of petroleum sulfonates from Saudi Arabian limestone, J. Pet. Sci. Eng. 1 (4) (1988), https://doi.org/10.1016/0920-4105(88)90008-3.

[11] P.E. Figdore, Adsorption of surfactants on kaolinite: NaCl versus CaCl2 salt effects, J. Colloid Interface Sci. 87 (2) (1982), https://doi.org/10.1016/0021-9797(82)90347-2.

[12] R.B. Grigg, B. Bai, Sorption of Surfactant Used in CO₂ Flooding onto Five Minerals and Three Porous Media, 2005, https://doi.org/10.2523/93100-ms.

[13] K. Mannhardt, L.L. Schramm, J.J. Novosad, Effect of rock type and brine composition on adsorption of two foam-forming surfactants, SPE Adv. Technol. 1 (1) (1993), https://doi.org/10.2118/20463-pa.

[14] J.S. Kim, Y. Dong, W.R. Rossen, Steady-state flow behavior of CO₂ foam, SPE J. 10 (4) (2005), https://doi.org/10.2118/89351-PA.

[15] A. Rahman, A, E. Shirif, F. Torabi, Rahimbakhsh, A critical review on nanoparticle-assisted enhanced oil recovery : introducing scaling approach, Int. J. Nano Dimens. 13 (1) (2022) 1-30.

[16] A. Rahman, F.A. Happy, S. Ahmed, M.E. Hossain, Development of scaling criteria for enhanced oil recovery: a review, J. Pet. Sci. Eng. 158 (2017) 66-79, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.petrol.2017.08.040.

[17] A. Rahman, S. Ahmed, M.E. Hossain, F.A. Happy, Development of scaling criteria for steam flooding EOR process, J. Pet. Explor. Prod. Technol. 10 (8) (2020), https://doi.org/10.1007/s13202-020-00909-1.

[18] F.A. Happy, A. Rahman, S. Imtiaz, M.E. Hossain, A critical review of engineering approach in the context of memory concept for fluid flow through porous media, J. Porous Media 23 (6) (2020) 593-611, https://doi.org/10.1615/JPorMedia.2020020571.

[19] A. Rahman, Development of Scaling Criteria and Numerical Simulation Study of Steam Flooding Process, Memorial University of Newfoundland, 2018.

[20] J.F. Casteel, N.F. Djabbarah, Sweep improvement in the CO₂ flooding by use of foaming agents, SPE Reserv. Eng. (Society Pet. Eng. 3 (4) (1988), https://doi.org/10.2118/14392-PA.

[21] F.M. Llave, F.T.H. Chung, R.W. Louvier, D.A. Hudgins, Foams as Mobility Control Agents for Oil Recovery by Gas Displacement, 1990, https://doi.org/10.2523/20245-ms.

[22] M. Zerhboub, K. Ben-Naceur, E. Touboul, R. Thomas, Matrix acidizing: a novel approach to foam diversion, SPE Prod. Facil. 9 (2) (1994), https://doi.org/10.2118/22854-PA.

[23] P. Stevenson, Dimensional analysis of foam drainage, Chem. Eng. Sci. 61 (14) (2006) 4503-4510, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ces.2006.02.026.

[24] X. Li, S.I. Karakashev, G.M. Evans, P. Stevenson, Effect of environmental humidity on static foam stability, Langmuir 28 (9) (2012) 4060-4068, https://doi.org/10.1021/la205101d. Mar.

[25] A. Emadi, M. Sohrabi, M. Jamiolahmady, S. Ireland, Visualization of oil recovery by CO2-foam injection; effect of oil viscosity and gas type, in:SPE -DOE Improved Oil Recovery Symposium Proceedings, vol. 1, 2012, https://doi.org/10.2118/152996-ms.

[26] R. Farajzadeh, A. Andrianov, H. Bruining, P.L.J. Zitha, Comparative study of CO₂ and N2 foams in porous media at low and high pressure-temperatures, Ind. Eng. Chem. Res. 48 (9) (2009), https://doi.org/10.1021/ie801760u.

[27] K. Osei-Bonsu, N. Shokri, P. Grassia, Foam stability in the presence and absence of hydrocarbons: from bubble-to bulk-scale, Colloids Surfaces A Physicochem. Eng. Asp. 481 (2015), https://doi.org/10.1016/j.colsurfa.2015.06.023.

[28] J. Yu, M. Khalil, N. Liu, R. Lee, Effect of particle hydrophobicity on CO₂ foam generation and foam flow behavior in porous media, Fuel 126 (2014) 104-108, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fuel.2014.02.053. Jun.

[29] G. Zhao, C. Dai, Y. Zhang, A. Chen, Z. Yan, M. Zhao, Enhanced foam stability by adding comb polymer gel for in-depth profile control in high temperature reservoirs, Colloids Surfaces A Physicochem. Eng. Asp. 482 (2015) 115-124, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.colsurfa.2015.04.041. Oct.

[30] S.S. Adkins, D. Gohil, J.L. Dickson, S.E. Webber, K.P. Johnston, Water-in-carbon dioxide emulsions stabilized with hydrophobic silica particles, Phys. Chem. Chem. Phys. 9 (48) (2007), https://doi.org/10.1039/b711195a.

[31] D. Espinosa, F. Caldelas, K. Johnston, S.L. Bryant, C. Huh,Nanoparticle-stabilized supercritical CO2 foams for potential mobility control applications,in: Proceedings -SPE Symposium on Improved Oil Recovery, vol. 2, 2010.

[32] J. Zhao, F. Torabi, J. Yang, The synergistic role of silica nanoparticle and anionic surfactant on the static and dynamic CO₂ foam stability for enhanced heavy oil recovery: an experimental study, Fuel 287 (2021), 119443, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fuel.2020.119443. Mar.

[33] J. Zhao, F. Torabi, Experimental investigation and modelling of CO2-foam flow in heavy oil systems, Can. J. Chem. Eng. 98 (1) (2020) 147-157, https://doi.org/10.1002/cjce.23573.

[34] D. Golomb, E. Barry, D. Ryan, P. Swett, H. Duan, Macroemulsions of liquid and supercritical CO2-in-water and water-in-liquid CO₂ stabilized by fine particles, Ind. Eng. Chem. Res. 45 (8) (2006) 2728-2733, https://doi.org/10.1021/ie051085l.

[35] A.L. Fameau, A. Salonen, Effect of particles and aggregated structures on the foam stability and aging, Compt. Rendus Phys. 15 (2014), https://doi.org/10.1016/j.crhy.2014.09.009, 8-9.

[36] R. Singh, K.K. Mohanty, Synergy between nanoparticles and surfactants in stabilizing foams for oil recovery, Energy Fuel. 29 (2) (2015), https://doi.org/10.1021/ef5015007.

[37] T.A.T. Mohd, et al., Relationship between foamability and nanoparticle concentration of carbon dioxide (CO2) foam for enhanced oil recovery (EOR), Appl. Mech. Mater. (2014) 548-549, https://doi.org/10.4028/www.scientific.net/AMM.548-549.67.

[38] R. Singh, K.K. Mohanty, Nanoparticle-stabilized foams for high-temperature, high-salinity oil reservoirs, in:Proceedings -SPE Annual Technical Conference and Exhibition, 2017, https://doi.org/10.2118/187165-ms, 0.

[39] P. Nguyen, H. Fadaei, D. Sinton, Pore-scale assessment of nanoparticlestabilized CO₂ foam for enhanced oil recovery, Energy Fuel. 28 (10) (2014) 6221-6227, https://doi.org/10.1021/ef5011995.

[40] A.J. Worthen, H.G. Bagaria, Y. Chen, S.L. Bryant, C. Huh, K.P. Johnston,Nanoparticle stabilized carbon dioxide in water foams for enhanced oil recovery, in:SPE -DOE Improved Oil Recovery Symposium Proceedings, vol. 2, 2012, https://doi.org/10.2118/154285-ms.

[41] N. Yekeen, et al. A comprehensive review of experimental studies of nanoparticles-stabilized foam for enhanced oil recovery, Elsevier B.V. J. , Petrol. Sci. Eng. 164 (2018) 43-74, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.petrol.2018.01.035. May 01

[42] S. Alzobaidi, M. Lotfollahi, I. Kim, K.P. Johnston, D.A. DiCarlo, Carbon dioxidein-brine foams at high temperatures and extreme salinities stabilized with silica nanoparticles, Energy Fuel. 31 (10) (2017), https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.energyfuels.7b01814.

[43] Z.A. Al Yousef, M.A. Almobarky, D.S. Schechter, Surfactant and a mixture of surfactant and nanoparticles to stabilize CO2/brine foam, control gas mobility, and enhance oil recovery, J. Pet. Explor. Prod. Technol. 10 (2) (Feb. 2020) 439-445, https://doi.org/10.1007/s13202-019-0695-9.

[44] F. Carn, A. Colin, O. Pitois, M. Vignes-Adler, R. Backov, Foam drainage in the presence of nanoparticle-surfactant mixtures, Langmuir 25 (14) (2009), https://doi.org/10.1021/la900414q.

[45] H. Farhadi, S. Riahi, S. Ayatollahi, H. Ahmadi,Experimental study of nanoparticle-surfactant-stabilized CO₂ foam: stability and mobility control, Chem. Eng. Res. Des. 111 (Jul. 2016) 449-460, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cherd.2016.05.024.

[46] A. Maestro, E. Rio, W. Drenckhan, D. Langevin, A. Salonen, Foams stabilised by mixtures of nanoparticles and oppositely charged surfactants: relationship between bubble shrinkage and foam coarsening, Soft Matter 10 (36) (2014) 6975-6983, Sep, https://doi.org/10.1039/c4sm00047a.

[47] C. Zhang, Z. Li, Q. Sun, P. Wang, S. Wang, W. Liu, CO₂ foam properties and the stabilizing mechanism of sodium bis(2-ethylhexyl) sulfosuccinate and hydrophobic nanoparticle mixtures, Soft Matter 12 (3) (2016), https://doi.org/10.1039/c5sm01408e.

[48] Z.G. Cui, Y.Z. Cui, C.F. Cui, Z. Chen, B.P. Binks, Aqueous foams stabilized by in situ surface activation of CaCO3 nanoparticles via adsorption of anionic surfactant, Langmuir 26 (15) (Aug. 2010) 12567-12574, https://doi.org/10.1021/la1016559.

[49] A.J. Worthen, P.S. Parikh, Y. Chen, S.L. Bryant, C. Huh, K.P. Johnston,Carbon dioxide-in-water foams stabilized with a mixture of nanoparticles and surfactant for CO2storage and utilization applications, Energy Proc. 63 (2014) 7929-7938, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.egypro.2014.11.827.

[50] T.S. Horozov,Foams and foam films stabilised by solid particles, Curr. Opin. Colloid Interface Sci. 13 (3) (Jun. 2008) 134-140, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cocis.2007.11.009.

[51] G. Kaptay, On the equation of the maximum capillary pressure induced by solid particles to stabilize emulsions and foams and on the emulsion stability diagrams, Colloids Surfaces A Physicochem. Eng. Asp. 282 (283) (Jul. 2006) 387-401, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.colsurfa.2005.12.021.

[52] B.P. Binks, S.O. Lumsdon, Influence of particle wettability on the type and stability of surfactant-free emulsions, Langmuir 16 (23) (2000) 8622-8631, Nov, https://doi.org/10.1021/la000189s.

[53] T.S. Horozov, R. Aveyard, J.H. Clint, B. Neumann, Particle zips: vertical emulsion films with particle monolayers at their surfaces, Langmuir 21 (6) (2005) 2330-2341, Mar, https://doi.org/10.1021/LA047993P.

[54] J.H. Schulman, J. Leja, Control of contact angles at the oil-water-solid interfaces: emulsions stabilized by solid particles (BaSO4), Trans. Faraday Soc. 50 (1954), https://doi.org/10.1039/tf9545000598.

[55] H. Wang, F. Zeng, F. Torabi, H. Xiao, Experimental and numerical studies of non-equilibrium solvent exsolution behavior and foamy oil stability under quiescent and convective conditions in a visualized porous media, Fuel 291 (May 2021), https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fuel.2021.120146.

[56] G.J. Hirasaki, J.B. Lawson, Mechanisms of foam flow in porous media: apparent viscosity in smooth capillaries, Soc. Petrol. Eng. J. 25 (2) (1985), https://doi.org/10.2118/12129-PA.

[57] J.G. Roof, SNAP-OFF of oil droplets in water-wet pores, Soc. Petrol. Eng. J. 10 (1) (1970), https://doi.org/10.2118/2504-pa.

[58] S. Kumar, A. Mandal, Investigation on stabilization of CO₂ foam by ionic and nonionic surfactants in presence of different additives for application in enhanced oil recovery, Appl. Surf. Sci. 420 (Oct. 2017) 9-20, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apsusc.2017.05.126.

[59] Y. Hurtado, et al., Effects of surface acidity and polarity of SiO 2 nanoparticles on the foam stabilization applied to natural gas flooding in tight gascondensate reservoirs, Energy Fuel. 32 (5) (2018), https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.energyfuels.8b00665.

[60] T.N. Hunter, R.J. Pugh, G.V. Franks, G.J. Jameson, The role of particles in stabilising foams and emulsions, Adv. Colloid Interface Sci. 137 (2) (2008) 57-81, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cis.2007.07.007. Mar. 18.

[61] X. Sun, Y. Zhang, G. Chen, Z. Gai, Application of nanoparticles in enhanced oil recovery: a critical review of recent progress, Energies 10 (3) (2017), https://doi.org/10.3390/en10030345.

[62] Y. Liu, R.B. Grigg, B. Bai, Salinity,pH, and Surfactant Concentration Effects on CO2-foam, 2005, https://doi.org/10.2118/93095-ms.

[63] L. Zhao, A. Li, K. Chen, J. Tang, S. Fu,Development and evaluation of foaming agents for high salinity tolerance, J. Pet. Sci. Eng. 81 (Jan. 2012) 18-23, https://doi.org/10.1016/J.PETROL.2011.11.006.

[64] M.I. Kuhlman, Visualizing the effect of light oil on CO₂ foams, JPT, J. Pet. Technol. 42 (7) (1990), https://doi.org/10.2118/17356-pa.

[65] S. Ross, J.W. McBain, Inhibition of foaming in solvents containing known foamers, Ind. Eng. Chem. 36 (6) (1944), https://doi.org/10.1021/ie50414a019.

[66] S.A. Farzaneh, M. Sohrabi, Experimental investigation of CO2-foam stability improvement by alkaline in the presence of crude oil, Chem. Eng. Res. Des. 94 (2015), https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cherd.2014.08.011.

[67] L.L. Schramm, J.J. Novosad,Micro-visualization of foam interactions with a crude oil, Colloid. Surface. 46 (1) (Jan. 1990) 21-43, https://doi.org/10.1016/0166-6622(90)80046-7.

[68] M. Simjoo, T. Rezaei, A. Andrianov, P.L.J. Zitha, Foam stability in the presence of oil: effect of surfactant concentration and oil type, Colloids Surfaces A Physicochem. Eng. Asp. 438 (Dec. 2013) 148-158, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.colsurfa.2013.05.062.

[69] A. Esfandyari Bayat, R. Junin, S. Shamshirband, W. Tong Chong, Transport and retention of engineered AL2O3, TiO₂, and SiO2 nanoparticles through various sedimentary rocks, Sci. Rep. 5 (2015), https://doi.org/10.1038/srep14264.

[70] E.M. Hotze, T. Phenrat, G.V. Lowry, Nanoparticle aggregation: challenges to understanding transport and reactivity in the environment, J. Environ. Qual. 39 (6) (2010), https://doi.org/10.2134/jeq2009.0462.

[71] J.N. Israelachvili, Intermolecular and Surface Forces, third ed., 2011.

[72] C.J. van Oss, Acid-base interfacial interactions in aqueous media, Colloids Surf. A Physicochem. Eng. Asp. 78 (1993), https://doi.org/10.1016/0927-7757(93)80308-2.C.

[73] J.B. Lawson, The Adsorption of Non-ionic and Anionic Surfactants on Sandstone and Carbonate, 1978, https://doi.org/10.2523/7052-ms.

[74] P. Somasundaran, H.S. Hanna, Adsorption of sulfonates on reservoir rocks, J. Polym. Sci. 2 Polym. Phys. 19 (4) (1979), https://doi.org/10.2118/7059-pa.

[75] W.T. Adams, V.H. Schievelbein, Surfactant flooding carbonate reservoirs, SPE Reserv. Eng. (Society Pet. Eng. 2 (4) (1987), https://doi.org/10.2118/12686-PA.