The use of environmental scanning electron microscopy for imaging the microstructure of gels for profile control and water shutoff treatments

• Published in: Journal of applied polymer science 2014-02, Vol.131 (4), p.n/a
• Main Authors: Zhao, Guang, Dai, Caili, Zhao, Mingwei, You, Qing
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Applied sciences; crosslinking; Crude oil, natural gas and petroleum products; Crude oil, natural gas, oil shales producing equipements and methods; Energy; Enhanced oil recovery methods; Exact sciences and technology; Forms of application and semi-finished materials; Fuels; gels; Materials science; microscopy; Miscellaneous; oil and gas; Polymer industry, paints, wood; Polymers; Prospecting and production of crude oil, natural gas, oil shales and tar sands; Technology of polymers
• ISSN: 0021-8995; 1097-4628
• DOI: 10.1002/app.39946

ABSTRACT The use of gel systems as profile control and water shutoff agents has become a wide practice in recent years for oil recovery applications. But few systematic studies have been carried out on the microstructure of gels. In this study, environmental scanning electron microscopy (ESEM) was employed to investigate the microstructure of gels in their natural state. It was directly observed that a three‐dimensional network structure formed in chromium or zirconium crosslinked polymer gels is the same as organic/ inorganic crosslinked gels. However, there is a dense flat structure in phenol resin crosslinked polymer gels or phenolic resin gels. The differences between the microstructures can be attributed to the different crosslinking sites and crosslinking density, and this affect the gel's stability at reservoir temperatures. In addition, this paper also introduced the crosslinking mechanism and macro‐morphology of the bulk gels. It can contribute to a better understanding of the gel's microstructure. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2014, 131, 39946.