Surfactant Flooding Method

Introduction

▪ A surfactant reduces the oil-water

interfacial tension and increases the oil
displacement efficiency.

▪ Surfactant flooding has been employed

mostly in light oil reservoirs, but could
also be considered in the case of
moderately viscous oils.
Surfactant Flooding Method
Advantages:

Very efficient method. (In lab , gives high recovery)

Disadvantages:
High cost
WHY ?

▪ Cost of chemical products.

▪ Losses of surfactant in the reservoir due to chemical
reactions with the salt water inside the formation.
Statement of the Problem
It is very important to improve the economy of the
surfactant method.
HOW ?
A. Since the surfactant cost represents a great value in
the total cost of the methods , so it is very useful to
try to reduce the cost of surfactant :
1. Use minimum suitable slug concentration
2. Use mixture of surfactants
B. Reduce losses of surfactant in the formation
What is Surfactant
Surfactant is the abreviation of “surface active agent material”

Mechanism
To reduce the surface tension between the residual oil and the
water and rock
Surfactant Flooding Method
The main disadvantage of this method,
as also of other chemical methods, is
the adsorption of the surfactant on the
rock matrix, which causes the surfactant
slug to lose its effectiveness at a short
distance from the injection well.
Principle and Characteristics
The micellar (chemical) solution composition is as
follows:

▪ Surfactant 10 – 15 %
▪ Oil 25 – 70
▪ Water 20 – 60
▪ Co surfactant 1 - 4 (usually alcohol)
▪ Electrolyte 0.01 – 4 (inorganic salts)
Surfactant Flooding Mechanism
▪ Improvement of Mobility Ratio (M)
▪ The mobility ratio is defined as the
mobility of the displacing fluid,
which is water or surfactant
enhanced water, divided by the
mobility of the displaced fluid which
is oil,

▪ κr and μ are the relative

permeability and phase viscosity,
respectively. It is better to have a
low mobility ratio (less than 1),
Surfactant Flooding Mechanism

Otherwise water or the displacing

fluid will pass through oil creating
fingering or channeling effects and
thus reducing the sweep
displacement efficiency.
Description of Process
▪ Micellar or microemulsion flooding is a fluid injection
process wherein a microemulsion or micellar solution is
injected into the formation and is in turn displaced by
a mobility buffer (polymer) solution.
▪ The mobility buffer is in turn displaced by injected
water.
▪ Mobility control is important to the success of the
process
Description of Process
Chase water
Injector Producer
Polymer Slug
Micellar Solution
Preflush
Oil and Water

Schematic micellar-polymer flood

Description of Process
▪ The MP flooding process is applied in general after water flooding.

▪ When the reservoir water salinity is too high, direct contact with the
micellar solution is avoided by first injecting low-salinity brine.