Modifying the Viscosity of Heavy Crude Oil Using Surfactants and Polymer Additives

Abstract

A systematic study of the influence of surfactant and stabilizing polymer additives on the rheological properties of heavy oil was carried out. The aim was to optimize the recipe for the most effective reduction in the oil viscosity. A total of 41 versions of the emulsion were prepared using different protocols. Creation of the emulsions with different recipes and modes of mixing led to a regulation of their morphologies, which determined the rheological properties of the final products. In all cases, emulsification resulted in a transformation of the oil from Newtonian behavior to a viscoplastic medium with a blurred yield stress. Dependent upon the composition, the yield stress was decreased up to 0.6 Pa and the viscosity at high shear obtained a value up to 50 mPa s, which is lower than the viscosity of crude oil by 34 times. The efficiency of the viscosity reduction increased with a decreasing temperature.