Effects of Surfactant and Hydrophobic Nanoparticles on the Crude Oil-Water Interfacial Tension

Xu Jiang, Ming Liu, Xingxun Li, Li Wang, Shuang Liang and Xuqiang Guo
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Xu Jiang: Xinjiang Petroleum Engineering Co., Ltd., Karamay 834000, China
Ming Liu: State Key Laboratory of Heavy Oil Processing, China University of Petroleum—Beijing, Beijing 102249, China
Xingxun Li: State Key Laboratory of Heavy Oil Processing, China University of Petroleum—Beijing, Beijing 102249, China
Li Wang: Xinjiang Petroleum Engineering Co., Ltd., Karamay 834000, China
Shuang Liang: State Key Laboratory of Heavy Oil Processing, China University of Petroleum—Beijing, Beijing 102249, China
Xuqiang Guo: State Key Laboratory of Heavy Oil Processing, China University of Petroleum—Beijing, Beijing 102249, China

Energies, 2021, vol. 14, issue 19, 1-11

Abstract: Surfactants and nanoparticles play crucial roles in controlling the oil-water interfacial phenomenon. The natural oil-wet mineral nanoparticles that exist in crude oil could remarkably affect water-oil interfacial characteristics. Most of recent studies focus on the effect of hydrophilic nanoparticles dispersed in water on the oil-water interfacial phenomenon for the nanoparticle enhanced oil recovery. However, studies of the impact of the oil-wet nanoparticles existed in crude oil on interfacial behaviour are rare. In this study, the impacts of Span 80 surfactant and hydrophobic SiO 2 nanoparticles on the crude oil-water interfacial characteristics were studied by measuring the dynamic and equilibrium crude oil-water interfacial tensions. The results show the existence of nanoparticles leading to higher crude oil-water interfacial tensions than those without nanoparticles at low surfactant concentrations below 2000 ppm. At a Span 80 surfactant concentration of 1000 ppm, the increase of interfacial tension caused by nanoparticles is largest, which is around 8.6 mN/m. For high Span 80 surfactant concentrations, the less significant impact of nanoparticles on the crude oil-water interfacial tension is obtained. The effect of nanoparticle concentration on the crude oil-water interfacial tension was also investigated in the existence of surfactant. The data indicates the less significant influence of nanoparticles on the crude oil-water interfacial tension at high nanoparticle concentration in the presence of Span 80 surfactant. This study confirms the influences of nanoparticle-surfactant interaction and competitive surfactant molecule adsorption on the nanoparticles surfaces and the crude oil-water interface.

Keywords: nanoparticle; surfactant; interfacial tension; crude oil; hydrophobic (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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