Experimental study of microemulsion systems applied on formation damage remediation

• Published in: Energy sources. Part A, Recovery, utilization, and environmental effects Vol. 42; no. 7; pp. 807 - 814
• Main Authors: Lucas, Cláudio R. S., Gurgel Aum, Yanne K. P., De Castro Dantas, Tereza N., Da Silva, Dennys C., De Oliveira, Katherine C., Aum, Pedro T. P.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Taylor & Francis 02-04-2020
• Subjects: microemulsions; Organic damage; reservoir production; sandstone; solvents
• ISSN: 1556-7036; 1556-7230
• DOI: 10.1080/15567036.2019.1587081

Aromatic solvents, such xylene and toluene, are widely used in the organic damage removal operations, although increasing environmental requirements have encouraged the research for new environmental-friendly solutions to replace these solvents. Microemulsions are thermodynamically stable multicomponent systems known by their notable solubilization capability. This paper describes the preparation and investigation of a low-oil-content microemulsion system able to remove the organic damage and restore the permeability. The damage removal efficiency, for the microemulsion systems prepared, was comparable to xylene. The results showed that the proposed microemulsion formulation is a cost-effective and environment-friendly alternative to aromatic solvents.