Newly developed high-speed, synchrotron-based X-ray computed microtomography enabled us to directly image pore-scale displacement events in porous rock in real time. Common approaches to modeling macroscopic fluid behavior are phenomenological, have many shortcomings, and lack consistent links to elementary pore-scale displacement processes, such as Haines jumps and snap-off. Unlike the common singular pore jump paradigm based on observations of restricted artificial capillaries, we found that Haines jumps typically cascade through 10–20 geometrically defined pores per event, accounting for 64% of the energy dissipation. Real-time imaging provided a more detailed fundamental understanding of the elementary processes in porous media, such as hysteresis, snap-off, and nonwetting phase entrapment, and it opens the way for a rigorous process for upscaling based on thermodynamic models.

https://www.pnas.org/content/pnas/110/10/3755.full.pdf

Real-time 3D imaging of Haines jumps in porous media flow

The injected fluids in secondary processes supplement the natural energy present in the reservoir to displace oil. The recovery efficiency mainly depends on the mechanism of pressure maintenance. However, the injected fluids in tertiary or enhanced oil recovery (EOR) processes interact with the reservoir rock/oil system. Thus, EOR techniques are receiving substantial attention worldwide as the available oil resources are declining. However, some challenges, such as low sweep efficiency, high costs and potential formation damage, still hinder the further application of these EOR technologies. Current studies on nanoparticles are seen as potential solutions to most of the challenges associated with these traditional EOR techniques. This paper provides an overview of the latest studies about the use of nanoparticles to enhance oil recovery and paves the way for researchers who are interested in the integration of these progresses. The first part of this paper addresses studies about the major EOR mechanisms of nanoparticles used in the forms of nanofluids, nanoemulsions and nanocatalysts, including disjoining pressure, viscosity increase of injection fluids, preventing asphaltene precipitation, wettability alteration and interfacial tension reduction. This part is followed by a review of the most important research regarding various novel nano-assisted EOR methods where nanoparticles are used to target various existing thermal, chemical and gas methods. Finally, this review identifies the challenges and opportunities for future study regarding application of nanoparticles in EOR processes.

/pdf/application-of-nanoparticles-in-enhanced-oil-recovery-a-3phymk4cb9.pdf

Application of Nanoparticles in Enhanced Oil Recovery: A Critical Review of Recent Progress

https://pure.rug.nl/ws/files/35622281/1_s2.0_S0920410516302674_main.pdf

Polymeric surfactants for enhanced oil recovery: A review

This paper reports a laboratory study of foams intended to improve immiscible gas flooding in oil production. The study is relevant for both continuous and water alternating gas (WAG) injection sch...

Immiscible Foam for Enhancing Oil Recovery: Bulk and Porous Media Experiments

Literature review of low salinity waterflooding from a length and time scale perspective

Oil exploration and production actively began 100 years ago, from the present day. What we see now, known as primary production by natural flowing of oil by pumped wells. This covers 15% of oil recovery from reservoir. Later 25% of oil is recovered by water flooding is activated which is termed as secondary production. There is still significant oil left in the reservoir, if there is no proper employment of commercial valuable techniques for the production, the oilwell would simply be abandoned. But as the demand for oil kept raising new techniques emerged, eventually from those EOR was a successful in artificial up lifting of oil from the reservoir by providing enough pressure to the trapped oil to flow out of well. It is a tertiary production. EOR is different because it works from microscopic levels as well as by injecting the substances like gases, special liquid (polymers) and stream in the form of injection through injecting wells for oil recovery, which is termed as Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR). The flooding in EOR, categorized as chemical flooding (by chemicals), stream or thermal injection (by stream) and miscible gas drive (CO2, N2 and LPG). These flooding will alter the physical and chemical properties of reservoirs for the flow of oil out of the well. EOR can unlock a percentage of 30-45% of trapped oil. After naming as successful technique in onshore for tertiary production, research is still going to implement EOR in offshore, to improve tertiary production and exploit hidden billion barrels of oil.

George F. Pinder

Papers

Enhanced Oil Recovery

Flow of a Fluid in a Porous Medium

Solution of Flow and Transport Problems Using a Collocation Discretization of a Domain Decomposition Algorithm

Appendix C: Proof of Theorem

Axiomatic Formulation of the Basic Models