Abstract
The effect of salinity on water-in-oil emulsions was systematically studied using a combination of nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) pulsed field gradient (PFG) measurements of emulsion droplet size distribution complemented by interfacial tension measurements using the pendant drop method. Long-term emulsion stability over periods of up to 5 days was found to increase with salinity; this was shown to be independent of whether a monovalent (NaCl) or divalent (CaCl2) salt was used. The methodology was applied to water-in-oil emulsions formulated with crude oil, paraffin oil, xylene, crude oil with reduced asphaltene content, and crude oil with reduced organic acid content as the continuous phase, respectively. In all cases, emulsion stability increased consistently with aqueous phase salinity, with no discernible difference between the continuous oil phases with respect to the extent of this stabilization. The enhanced stability could thus not be attributed to differences in density, interfacial tension, or dielectric permittivity. This leaves a potential increased surface accumulation of stabilizing surface-active species driven by increasing salinity as the most plausible explanation for the observations reported here.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 10042-10049 |
| Number of pages | 8 |
| Journal | Energy and Fuels |
| Volume | 32 |
| Issue number | 9 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 20 Sep 2018 |
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Quantifying the Effect of Salinity on Oilfield Water-in-Oil Emulsion Stability. / Ling, N. N.A.; Haber, A.; Graham, B. F.; Aman, Z. M.; May, E. F.; Fridjonsson, E. O.; Johns, M. L.
In: Energy and Fuels, Vol. 32, No. 9, 20.09.2018, p. 10042-10049.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article
TY - JOUR
T1 - Quantifying the Effect of Salinity on Oilfield Water-in-Oil Emulsion Stability
AU - Ling, N. N.A.
AU - Haber, A.
AU - Graham, B. F.
AU - Aman, Z. M.
AU - May, E. F.
AU - Fridjonsson, E. O.
AU - Johns, M. L.
PY - 2018/9/20
Y1 - 2018/9/20
N2 - The effect of salinity on water-in-oil emulsions was systematically studied using a combination of nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) pulsed field gradient (PFG) measurements of emulsion droplet size distribution complemented by interfacial tension measurements using the pendant drop method. Long-term emulsion stability over periods of up to 5 days was found to increase with salinity; this was shown to be independent of whether a monovalent (NaCl) or divalent (CaCl2) salt was used. The methodology was applied to water-in-oil emulsions formulated with crude oil, paraffin oil, xylene, crude oil with reduced asphaltene content, and crude oil with reduced organic acid content as the continuous phase, respectively. In all cases, emulsion stability increased consistently with aqueous phase salinity, with no discernible difference between the continuous oil phases with respect to the extent of this stabilization. The enhanced stability could thus not be attributed to differences in density, interfacial tension, or dielectric permittivity. This leaves a potential increased surface accumulation of stabilizing surface-active species driven by increasing salinity as the most plausible explanation for the observations reported here.
AB - The effect of salinity on water-in-oil emulsions was systematically studied using a combination of nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) pulsed field gradient (PFG) measurements of emulsion droplet size distribution complemented by interfacial tension measurements using the pendant drop method. Long-term emulsion stability over periods of up to 5 days was found to increase with salinity; this was shown to be independent of whether a monovalent (NaCl) or divalent (CaCl2) salt was used. The methodology was applied to water-in-oil emulsions formulated with crude oil, paraffin oil, xylene, crude oil with reduced asphaltene content, and crude oil with reduced organic acid content as the continuous phase, respectively. In all cases, emulsion stability increased consistently with aqueous phase salinity, with no discernible difference between the continuous oil phases with respect to the extent of this stabilization. The enhanced stability could thus not be attributed to differences in density, interfacial tension, or dielectric permittivity. This leaves a potential increased surface accumulation of stabilizing surface-active species driven by increasing salinity as the most plausible explanation for the observations reported here.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85052313540&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1021/acs.energyfuels.8b02143
DO - 10.1021/acs.energyfuels.8b02143
M3 - Article
VL - 32
SP - 10042
EP - 10049
JO - Energy & Fuels
JF - Energy & Fuels
SN - 0887-0624
IS - 9
ER -