Stephen J. Johnson

Mechanistic Study of Wettability Alteration Using Surfactants with Applications in Naturally Fractured Reservoirs

In naturally fractured reservoirs, oil recovery from waterflooding relies on the spontaneous imbibition of water to expel oil from the matrix into the fracture system. The spontaneous imbibition process is most efficient in strongly water-wet rock where the capillary driving force is strong. In oil- or mixed-wet fractured carbonate reservoirs, however, the capillary driving force for the spontaneous imbibition process is weak, and therefore the waterflooding oil recoveries are low. The recovery efficiency can be improved by dissolving low concentrations of surfactants in the injected water to alter the wettability of the reservoir rock to a more water-wet state. This wettability alteration accelerates the spontaneous imbibition of water into matrix blocks, thereby increasing the oil recovery during waterflooding. Several mechanisms have been proposed to explain the wettability alteration by surfactants, but none have been verified experimentally. Understanding of the mechanisms behind wettability alteration could help to improve the performance of the process and aid in identification of alternative surfactants for use in field applications. Results from this study revealed that ion-pair formation and adsorption of surfactant molecules through interactions with the adsorbed crude oil components on the rock surface are the two main mechanisms responsible for the wettability alteration. Previous researchers observed that, for a given rock type, the effectiveness of wettability alteration is highly dependent upon the ionic nature of the surfactant involved. Our experimental results demonstrated that ion-pair formation between the charged head groups of surfactant molecules and the adsorbed crude oil components on rock surface was more effective in changing the rock wettability toward a more water-wet state than the adsorption of surfactant molecules as a monolayer on the rock surface through hydrophobic interaction with the adsorbed crude oil components. By comparing two anionic surfactants with different charge densities, we propose that wettability alteration processes might be improved through the use of dimeric surfactants, which have two charged head groups and two hydrophobic tails. Gemini surfactants where the molecules are joined at the head end are likely to be effective when ion-pair formation is the wettability alteration mechanism, and bolaform surfactants, in which molecules are joined by the hydrophobic tails, should be more effective in the case of surfactant monolayer adsorption.

Contribution of anaerobic microbial activity to natural attenuation of benzene in groundwater

Anaerobic biodegradation of hydrocarbons, using a variety of terminal electron acceptors (TEAs), is increasingly being reported both in laboratory studies and in the field. Of all the petroleum hydrocarbons, benzene is considered the most problematical due to its high toxicity and relatively high aqueous solubility. These, combined with its peculiarly stable structure, mean that it has long been considered recalcitrant in all but aerobic conditions. There is now a small, but growing, literature to suggest that this may not in fact be the case. We present an assessment of the field, encompassing reviews up to 1997 and original papers published since then. It appears that benzene is indeed degraded anaerobically, but that organisms capable of doing so are not ubiquitous. In addition, benzene degradation may be competitively inhibited by the presence of more readily degraded compounds such as toluene. Certainly, the occurrence and rate of benzene attenuation under anaerobic conditions is far more site-specific than for other benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene and xylenes (BTEX) compounds. We discuss a mathematical method for modelling redox-dependent, differential degradation rates.

Anaerobic biodegradation of linear alkylbenzene: Isomeric ratio as a monitoring tool

Linear alkylbenzenes (LABs) are common environmental contaminants associated with a range of industrial and domestic activities. Although natural environments receiving LABs may exhibit a range of redox conditions, until now only aerobic biodegradation of these compounds has been demonstrated. Where LAB contamination occurs, it is important to identify degradation and measure its extent in order to make decisions on whether monitored natural attenuation (intrinsic bioremediation) is sufficient, or whether active remediation techniques are required. We have demonstrated that LABs are degraded under both aerobic and nitrate-reducing conditions. Statistical analysis of these results and published data indicate that the C12 LAB isomeric ratio varies with biodegradation, independently of the terminal electron acceptor used. Biodegradation (B, %) can be estimated from the ratio of internal to external isomers of C12 LAB by the equation B = 78 x log10 (I:E) + 16.4. This relationship can be used to determine the degree of biodegradation of LABs in a range of environments, including sites where the redox history is unknown, making it a powerful yet simple tool for monitoring LAB biodegradation in the environment.

Using Biosurfactants Produced from Agriculture Process Waste Streams to Improve Oil Recovery in Fractured Carbonate Reservoirs

This report describes the progress of our research during the first 30 months (10/01/2004 to 03/31/2007) of the original three-year project cycle. The project was terminated early due to DOE budget cuts. This was a joint project between the Tertiary Oil Recovery Project (TORP) at the University of Kansas and the Idaho National Laboratory (INL). The objective was to evaluate the use of low-cost biosurfactants produced from agriculture process waste streams to improve oil recovery in fractured carbonate reservoirs through wettability mediation. Biosurfactant for this project was produced using Bacillus subtilis 21332 and purified potato starch as the growth medium. The INL team produced the biosurfactant and characterized it as surfactin. INL supplied surfactin as required for the tests at KU as well as providing other microbiological services. Interfacial tension (IFT) between Soltrol 130 and both potential benchmark chemical surfactants and crude surfactin was measured over a range of concentrations. The performance of the crude surfactin preparation in reducing IFT was greater than any of the synthetic compounds throughout the concentration range studied but at low concentrations, sodium laureth sulfate (SLS) was closest to the surfactin, and was used as the benchmark in subsequent studies. Core characterization was carried out using both traditional flooding techniques to find porosity and permeability; and NMR/MRI to image cores and identify pore architecture and degree of heterogeneity. A cleaning regime was identified and developed to remove organic materials from cores and crushed carbonate rock. This allowed cores to be fully characterized and returned to a reproducible wettability state when coupled with a crude-oil aging regime. Rapid wettability assessments for crushed matrix material were developed, and used to inform slower Amott wettability tests. Initial static absorption experiments exposed limitations in the use of HPLC and TOC to determine surfactant concentrations. To reliably quantify both benchmark surfactants and surfactin, a surfactant ion-selective electrode was used as an indicator in the potentiometric titration of the anionic surfactants with Hyamine 1622. The wettability change mediated by dilute solutions of a commercial preparation of SLS (STEOL CS-330) and surfactin was assessed using two-phase separation, and water flotation techniques; and surfactant loss due to retention and adsorption on the rock was determined. Qualitative tests indicated that on a molar basis, surfactin is more effective than STEOL CS-330 in altering wettability of crushed Lansing-Kansas City carbonates from oil-wet to water-wet state. Adsorption isotherms of STEOL CS-330 and surfactin on crushed Lansing-Kansas City outcrop and reservoir material showed that surfactin has higher specific adsorption on these oomoldic carbonates. Amott wettability studies confirmed that cleaned cores are mixed-wet, and that the aging procedure renders them oil-wet. Tests of aged cores with no initial water saturation resulted in very little spontaneous oil production, suggesting that water-wet pathways into the matrix are required for wettability change to occur. Further investigation of spontaneous imbibition and forced imbibition of water and surfactant solutions into LKC cores under a variety of conditions--cleaned vs. crude oil-aged; oil saturated vs. initial water saturation; flooded with surfactant vs. not flooded--indicated that in water-wet or intermediate wet cores, sodium laureth sulfate is more effective at enhancing spontaneous imbibition through wettability change. However, in more oil-wet systems, surfactin at the same concentration performs significantly better.