Synthesis of novel demulsifier nano-materials and their application in the oil industry

Abstract

Nanotechnology is a scientific discipline that has a wide range of applications in practically every aspect of modern life, particularly in the fabrication of nanomaterials and nanocomposites. Due to the importance of this sector economically and in terms of energy supply, one of the most important applications of nanomaterials is their large scale use to remove or minimize the hurdles that the oil and gas industry faces. The hydrothermal method was used to prepare novel Rhodium borate nanoparticles, which were made by first obtaining Rhodium oxide from Rhodium acetate, then reacting with boric acid and other cofactors. The efficiency of the process for generating Rhodium borate nanoparticles was extremely high. The efficiency of the process for generating Rhodium borate nanoparticles was extremely high. The validity of the obtained results was confirmed by the diagnostic and estimation procedures utilized in this work (XRD, FT-IR, SEM, and TEM). One of the most critical processes in petroleum processing is demulsification. To avoid issues during oil transportation and handling, oil emulsions must be broken down. Because of the water content and dissolved salts in the aqueous phase of the emulsion, the presence of water in the crude oil is undesirable and can lead to pipeline corrosion and increased transportation costs. The physical and chemical features of crude oil from the Halfaya oil field in southern Iraq, which is known to contain a certain percentage of water, have been investigated. Rhodium borate (Rh2O3. B2O3·H2O) (DF1) nanoparticles were utilized in this work to separate water from crude oil emulsions. Effective aggregates exist in the synthesized Rhodium borate nanoparticles, allowing them to operate as demulsifying agents. The separation of water from the emulsion by the produced rhodium borate (DF1) and the standard demulsifier (RP96BQ) used in the same oil field at constant temperature (60 °C) and with varying concentrations was compared in this study using crude oil samples. A high separation efficiency was obtained for the prepared nano demulsifier with a percentage of up to (84.2%) compared with the standard demulsifier (RP96BQ).