2018•Petroleum Science and TechnologyRequires access
Effect of polymer concentration on the properties of the crude oil-water emulsion
Jianian Xu, Hongli Liu, Zhengku Wang
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Abstract
In order to clarify the stability mechanism of the crude oil-water emulsion during polymer flooding, the effect of polymer concentration on the properties of the crude oil-water emulsion is systematically investigated by laboratory experiment, including the changes of the compositions of the crude oil, the parameters of interfacial tension, interfacial electrical property, interfacial expansion rheology and interfacial shear rheology, which can be used to characterize the change of the oil-water interfacial properties under the different polymer concentration. The results show that polymer molecules can be absorbed at oil-water interface to react with the asphaltene and resin to reduce the interfacial energy, increase the modulus of interfacial expansion rheology and interfacial shear rheology, and enhance the electronegativity of the oil-water film, which is contributed to emulsification, so that the emulsion is more stable with the increase of the polymer concentration.