Preparation and application of nanofluid flooding based on polyoxyethylated graphene oxide nanosheets for enhanced oil recovery

• Published in: Chemical engineering science 2022-01, Vol.247, p.117023, Article 117023
• Main Authors: Cao, Jie, Chen, Yingpeng, Zhang, Jian, Wang, Xiujun, Wang, Jia, Shi, Chunxiao, Ning, Yifan, Wang, Xinming
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Enhanced oil recovery; Interfacial tension; Nanofluid; Polyoxyethylated graphene oxide; Wettability alteration
• ISSN: 0009-2509; 1873-4405
• DOI: 10.1016/j.ces.2021.117023

•Janus graphene material (P-GO-O) was synthesized by an interfacial reaction method.•P-GO-O has polyoxyethylene hydrophilic side and octadecyl hydrophobic side.•P-GO-O nanofluid has excellent temperature and salinity resistance properties.•P-GO-O nanofluid can change an oil-wet surface to a water-wet surface.•P-GO-O nanofluid can achieve 17.2% oil recovery at 100 mg/L. In this paper, an innovative polyoxyethylated graphene oxide-based nanofluid (P-GO-O) for enhanced oil recovery was prepared. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Fourier transform infrared spectrometer (FTIR), Raman spectra, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and UV–vis spectra analysis were used to characterize the P-GO-O nanosheets. Moreover, zeta potential, temperature resistance, and salinity tolerance were evaluated to determine the dispersion stability of the P-GO-O nanofluid. The zeta potential of P-GO-O in deionized water was −39 mV, and the P-GO-O nanofluid exhibited excellent high temperature and high salinity resistance. Benefiting from its structure, the P-GO-O nanofluid was capable of lowering the oil–water interfacial tension to 12.2 mN/m and changing the oil-wet surface to the water-wet surface. In the oil displacement test, the oil recovery ratio of P-GO-O nanofluid (17.2%) was higher than the GO-O (octadecylaminated graphene oxide) nanofluid (6.7%), which was attributed to its better stability and wettability alteration. These results indicated that the P-GO-O nanofluid had the potential for enhanced oil recovery (EOR) application.