Clusters of Asphaltene Nanoaggregates Observed in Oilfield Reservoirs

Abstract

Many studies have indicated that asphaltenes have two hierarchical nanocolloidal species, the nanoaggregate and the cluster of nanoaggregates. These two species, along with the dominant molecular architecture of asphaltenes comprise the Yen–Mullins model of asphaltenes. Delineating different nanocolloidal species is a challenge, and moreover, elucidating their corresponding practical importance is a necessity in this applied science. Moreover, it is necessary to continue testing this asphaltene nanoscience model especially for crude oils, as opposed to simply asphaltene solutions in laboratory solvents. Both the validity and applicability of this model are addressed by observing gravitational gradients of asphaltenes in black oil and mobile heavy oil columns in oilfield reservoirs. In this paper, we examine stacked oil reservoirs in an oilfield in Saudi Arabia using simple predictions from the Flory–Huggins–Zuo equation of state (FHZ EoS), with its foundation in the Yen–Mullins model. The extraordinary fi...