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. 2021 Mar 22;6(13):9001-9012.
doi: 10.1021/acsomega.1c00026. eCollection 2021 Apr 6.

Conformance Control in Oil Reservoirs by Citric Acid-Coated Magnetite Nanoparticles

Hassan Divandari  1 , Abdolhossein Hemmati-Sarapardeh  1   2 , Mahin Schaffie  1 , Maen M Husein  3 , Mohammad Ranjbar  1
Affiliations

Conformance Control in Oil Reservoirs by Citric Acid-Coated Magnetite Nanoparticles

Hassan Divandari et al. ACS Omega. .

Abstract

Reservoir conformance control methods may significantly improve enhanced oil recovery technologies through reduced water production and profile correction. Excessive water production in oil and gas reservoirs leads to severe problems. Water shutoff and conformance control are, therefore, financially and environmentally advantageous for the petroleum industry. In this paper, water shutoff performance of citric acid-coated magnetite (CACM) and hematite nanoparticles (NPs) as well as polyacrylamide polymer solution in a heterogeneous and homogeneous two-dimensional micromodel is compared. A facile one-step technique is used to synthesize the CACM NPs. The NPs, which are reusable, easily prepared, and environmentally friendly, are characterized using Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, field emission scanning electron microscopy, dynamic light scattering, and X-ray diffraction. The results confirm uniform spherical Fe3O4 NPs of an average diameter of 40 nm, well coated with citric acid. CACM NPs provide a high pressure drop coupled with an acceptable resistance factor and residual resistance factor owing to NP arrangement into a solid-/gel-like structure in the presence of a magnetic field. A resistance factor and a residual resistance factor of 3.5 and 2.14, respectively, were achieved for heavy oil and the heterogeneous micromodel. This structure contributed to an appreciable plugging efficiency. CACM NPs respond to ∼1000 G of magnetic field intensity and display a constant resistance factor at intensities between 4500 and 6000 G. CACM NPs act as a gel, forming a solid-/gel-like structure, which moves toward the magnetic field and thereby shuts off the produced water and increases the oil fraction. The findings of this study suggest the ability to shut off water production using specially designed magnetic field-responsive smart fluids. The application would require innovative design of field equipment.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no competing financial interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
General sketch of the problem.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Schematic of the synthesis procedure of Fe3O4 NPs.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Patterns of the heterogeneous and homogeneous micromodels employed in this study.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Schematic representation of the experimental setup.
Figure 5
Figure 5
FESEM (A) and TEM (B) photographs. Particle size distribution (C) of the as-prepared Fe3O4 NPs based on TEM results.
Figure 6
Figure 6
Effect of magnetic field strength on RF using two patterns of the micromodel.
Figure 7
Figure 7
Pressure drop of different agents for (A) heavy and (B) light oil in the heterogeneous micromodel.
Figure 8
Figure 8
Pressure drops of different systems for (A) heavy and (B) light oil in the homogeneous micromodel.
Figure 9
Figure 9
RF and RRF of different systems for (A) heavy and (B) light oil in the heterogeneous micromodel.
Figure 10
Figure 10
RF and RRF of different systems for (A) heavy and (B) light oil in the homogeneous micromodel.
Figure 11
Figure 11
Simple separation of the Fe3O4 NPs from their suspension using handheld magnets.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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