SCREENING OF SURFACTANTS FOR MICELLAR FLOODING AND FOAM FLOODING

A great deal of information has been published on the use of surfactants in chemical Enhanced Oil Recovery methods as it hold particular attraction for recovering the residual oil left in the reservoir after water flooding. The application of surfactants leads to the mobility control mechanism in foam flooding whereas interfacial tension reduction is the important mechanism micellar flooding. When foam flooding is conducted, some portion of the surfactant tends to adhere on the surface of the rocks due to the adsorption characteristic of the surfactants themselves. This will consequent to less amount of surfactant to be injected for the micellar flooding as remaining surfactant down hole will react with the injected solution to form microemulsion.