Journal of Industrial and Engineering Chemistry, Vol.38, 50-60, June, 2016
Experimental investigation of the use of the dimethyl ether/polymer hybrid as a novel enhanced oil recovery method
E-mail:
Injection of dimethyl ether (DME) dissolved in water can enhance the recovery efficiency with respect to water flooding. In this Shell Proprietary Technology, DME partitions from water into the oil; decreases oil viscosity and increases its volume, and mobilizes the trapped oil again. In this work, DME-enhanced water flooding is combined with polymer and considered for cases in which a favorable mobility control between water and oil does not exist. In order to reduce the remaining oil, slugs of the mixed solution of DME and polymer were injected into the cores containing oil and then followed by injection of a chase fluid. This recovery method benefits both (a) from the presence of polymer, and the oil viscosity reduction caused by DME dissolution and (b) from oil swelling due to DME dissolution. It appears from experimental data that the injectivity of a DME/polymer (DMEP) solution is higher than the injectivity of a polymer solution without DME; this indicates the presence of DME can reduce the viscosifying effect of the polymer. The main experimental observations are: (1) a higher oil recovery is obtained from continuous DMEP flooding than from continuous DME.brine flooding, (2) the presence of polymer in the DME slug and in the chase phase reduced the remaining oil after a finite slug injection, and (3) a larger DME slug and mobility control of the chase phase can improve the oil recovery after a finite slug injection. In summary, the experiments show that combining polymer and DME improves the ultimate recovery significantly and shortens the duration of oil production.
- Holm L, Trans. AIME, 216, 225 (1959)
- Gatlin C, Slobod R, J. Pet. Technol., http://dx.doi.org/10.2118/1364-G., 12(3), 84 (1960)
- Holm L, Csaszar A, Soc. Pet. Eng. J., http://dx.doi.org/10.2118/117-PA., 2(2), 129 (1962)
- Taber J, Meyer W, The Annual SPE Fall Meeting, New Orleans, 1963, http://dx.doi.org/10.2118/707-PA.
- Christensen R, Annual Meeting of Rocky Mountain Petroleum Engineers of AIME, Society of Petroleum Engineers, 1961, http://dx.doi.org/10.2118/66-MS.
- Hickok C, Ramsay HJ, SPE Secondary Recovery Symposium, 1962, http://dx.doi.org/10.2118/333-MS.
- Scott J, Forrester C, J. Pet. Technol., http://dx.doi.org/10.2118/1126-PA., 17(12), 1 (1965)
- Chahardowli M, Zholdybayeva A, Farajzadeh R, Bruining H, EAGE Annual Conference & Exhibition Incorporating SPE Europec, Society of Petroleum Engineers, 2013, http://dx.doi.org/10.2118/164908-MS.
- Chernetsky A, Masalmeh S, Eikmans D, Boerrigter PM, Fadili A, Parsons CA, Parker A, Boersma DM, Cui J, Dindoruk B, te Riele PM, Alkindi A, Azri N, Abu Dhabi International Petroleum Exhibition and Conference, Society of Petroleum Engineers, 2015, http://dx.doi.org/10.2118/177919-MS.
- Chahardowli M, Farajzadeh R, Bruining H, The SPE EOR Conference at Oil and Gas West Asia, Muscat, Oman, Society of Petroleum Engineers, 2016.
- Semelsberger TA, Borup RL, Greene HL, J. Power Sources, http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jpowsour.2005.05.082., 156(2), 497 (2006)
- Fujimoto K, Ohno Y, DME Handbook, vol. 1, Japan DME Forum, Ohmsha, Tokyo, 2007.
- Chahardowli M, Farajzadeh R, Bruining H, 14th European Conference on the Mathematics of Oil Recovery, Catania, 2014, http://dx.doi.org/10.3997/2214-4609.20141854.
- Hagoort J, Soc. Pet. Eng. J., http://dx.doi.org/10.2118/4268-PA., 14(1), 63 (1974)
- King M, Dunayevsky V, SPE Annual Technical Conference and Exhibition, Society of Petroleum Engineers, 1989, http://dx.doi.org/10.2118/19648-MS.
- Sorbie K, Polymer-Improved Oil Recovery, Blackie, 1991.
- Lake LW, Johns R, Rossen B, Pope G, Fundamentals of Enhanced Oil Recovery, Society of Petroleum Engineers, 2014.
- Peksa A, Wolf K, Zitha P, Mar. Pet. Geol., http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.marpetgeo.2015.06.001., 67, 701 (2015)
- Gafonova OV, Yarranton HW, J. Colloid Interface Sci., http://dx.doi.org/10.1006/jcis.2001.7731., 241(2), 469 (2001)
- Czarnecki J, Tchoukov P, Dabros T, Xu ZH, Can. J. Chem. Eng., http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/cjce.21835., 91(8), 1365 (2013)
- Romero MI, SPE Annual Technical Conference and Exhibition, Society of Petroleum Engineers, 2009, http://dx.doi.org/10.2118/129519-STU.
- Buckley JS, Energy Fuels, http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/ef300268s., 26(7), 4086 (2012)
- Farajzadeh R, Lotfollahi M, Bedrikovetsky P, SPE Kuwait Oil and Gas Show and Conference, Society of Petroleum Engineers, 2015, http://dx.doi.org/10.2118/175380-MS.
- Bottcher CJF, van Belle OC, Bordewijk P, Rip A, Theory of Electric Polarization, vol. 2, Elsevier Science Ltd, 1978.
- Schechter D, Shah R, Improved Oil Recovery by Surfactant and Polymer Flooding, Academic Press, 1977, http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-641750-0.50001-3.
- Overbeek JTG, Colloid and Surface Chemistry: A Self-Study Course, Department of Chemical Engineering and Center for Advanced Engineering Study, 1971.
- Flory PJ, Principles of Polymer Chemistry, Cornell University Press, 1953.