Abstract
The most complex components in heavy crude oils tend to form aggregates that constitute the dispersed phase in these fluids, showing the high viscosity values that characterize them. Water-in-oil (W/O) emulsions are affected by the presence and concentration of this phase in crude oil. In this paper, a theoretical study based on computational chemistry was carried out to determine the molecular interaction energies between paraffin–asphaltenes–water and four surfactant molecules to predict their effect in W/O emulsions and the theoretical influence on the pressure drop behavior for fluids that move through porous media. The mathematical model determined a typical behavior of the fluid when the parameters of the system are changed (pore size, particle size, dispersed phase fraction in the fluid, and stratified fluid) and the viscosity model determined that two of the surfactant molecules are suitable for applications in the destabilization of W/O emulsions. Therefore, an experimental study must be set to determine the feasibility of the methodology and mathematical model displayed in this work.
Highlights
Asphaltenes are part of the heaviest fraction of crude oils, and due to their high chemical structure complexity with active sites that promote strong intermolecular interactions, they tend to form aggregates that become a dispersed phase which increases the viscosity of the oil [1,2,3]
It was found that the minimum interaction energies that methodology for a paraffin–asphaltene–water surfactant
It was found that the minimum interaction determine the main molecular associations can be taken as the activation energies involved in the study energies that determine the main molecular associations can be taken as the activation energies of the behavior of the pressure drop when a dispersed system (e.g., W/O emulsions) flows through involved in the study of the behavior of the pressure drop when a dispersed system
Summary
Asphaltenes are part of the heaviest fraction of crude oils, and due to their high chemical structure complexity with active sites that promote strong intermolecular interactions (such as π–π stacking, hydrogen bonding, van der Waals interactions, among others), they tend to form aggregates that become a dispersed phase which increases the viscosity of the oil [1,2,3]. If these aggregates reach a critical size, they could form a deposition of precipitates in the walls of tubes, making crude oil transportation difficult and poorly efficient [4]. It has been hypothesized that the enhancer interacts with the heaviest components and reduces the dispersed phase and viscosity as a consequence, even at relatively low concentrations of the enhancer which is one of the desirable properties of these type of products; the emulsion formation related to the water content and the water–asphaltene interaction has become a topic of interest [1,9]
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