Effects of Interfacial Tension Reduction and Wettability Alteration on Oil Recovery by Surfactant Imbibition

Abstract:

Surfactant imbibition experiments were carried out with four surfactants and effects of interfacial tension and surface wettability on oil recovery were studied. A convenient imbibition process with quartz sands was used, and the experimental results suggest that anionic and non-ionic surfactants have higher oil recovery than cationic surfactant, and the sand surface wettability plays an important role in influencing oil recovery during spontaneous imbibition. Altering the wettability of oil sand surface from oil-wet to water-wet can enhance the oil recovery of imbibition process. The maximum ultimate imbibition recovery appeared in the area where both contact angle and interfacial tension were low.

• Periodical: Advanced Materials Research (Volume 868)
• Pages: 664-668
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.4028/www.scientific.net/AMR.868.664
• Online since: December 2013
• Authors: Zi Yuan Qi*, Ye Fei Wang, Xiao Li Xu
• Keywords: Contact Angle, Interfacial Tension, Oil Recovery, Surfactant Imbibition, Wettability Alteration

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