In the present study, multifractality and its formalism were employed to investigate the surface characteristics of an asphaltene deposited heterogeneous solid surface. Wettability alteration of the solid surface was found to affect the multifractal characteristics of an asphaltene deposited heterogeneous surface. Multifractal spectra f(alpha) show that the more oil wet the surface, the wider the spectrum, and the higher the f(max). The notable distinction between the multifractal spectra associated with different surface wettabilities can be used as a new aspect of wettability alteration. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.