A pore scale investigation of crude oil distribution and removal from homogeneous porous media during surfactant-induced remediation

Abstract

A pore-scale study was conducted to understand interfacial processes contributing to the removal of crude oils from a homogeneous porous medium during surfactant-induced remediation. Synchrotron X-ray microtomography (SXM) was used to obtain high-resolution three-dimensional images of the two-fluid-phase oil/water system, and quantify temporal changes in oil blob distribution, blob morphology, and blob surface area before and after sequential surfactant flooding events. The reduction of interfacial tension in conjunction with the sufficient increase in viscous forces as a result of surfactant flushing was most likely responsible for mobilization and recovery of the two lighter oil fractions. However, corresponding increases in viscous forces as a result of a reduction of interfacial tension were insufficient to initiate and maintain the displacement (recovery) of the heavy crude oil fraction during surfactant flushing. In contrast to the heavy oil system, changes in trapping number for the lighter fraction crude oils were sufficient to initiate mobilization as a result of surfactant flushing. Both light and medium oil fractions showed an increase in the number of blobs and total blob surface area, and a reduction in the total volume after 2 pore volumes (PVs) of surfactant flooding. This increase in surface area was attributed to the change in blob morphology from spherical to more complex non-spherical ganglia shape characteristics. Moreover, the increase in the number of oil blobs from larger to smaller particles after surfactant flushing may have contributed to the greater cumulative oil surface area. Complete recovery of light and medium oil fractions resulted after 5 PVs of surfactant flooding, whereas the displacement efficiency of heavy-oil fraction was severely limited, even after extended periods of flushing. The results of these experiments demonstrate the utility of SXM for quantifying pore-scale interfacial characteristics for specific crude-oil-fraction/porous-medium systems, critical for understanding mobilization/removal relationships in which surfactant-enhanced remediation techniques will be most successful.

Keywords: Crude oil; Pore scale; Surfactant-enhanced aquifer remediation (SEAR); Synchrotron X-ray microtomography.