Properties Of Brine Research Articles

Experimental Investigation on the Interfacial Characteristics of Tight Oil Rocks Induced by Tuning Brine Chemistry.

Currently, research on enhancing imbibition oil recovery in tight oil reservoirs through the ion-tuning technique remains limited. Two critical parameters for capillary imbibition are the wettability and interfacial tension between oil and water. In this investigation, we manipulate the properties of two types of formation water for both aged and unaged samples by diluting brine and altering ion composition. Subsequently, we employ captive and pendant-drop methods to assess rock wettability and interfacial tension under varied brine conditions. Additionally, we elucidate the primary mechanisms underlying changes in rock wettability and interfacial tension. Meanwhile, we analyze capillarity characteristics and assess the relative significance of wettability and interfacial tension. Results indicate that there is a critical interfacial tension with progressive dilution of two types of formation water. However, modifying ion composition leads to a complex trend in interfacial tension, which can be explained qualitatively through the Gibbs adsorption isotherm. For unaged samples, the contact angle demonstrates a pronounced water-wet characteristic, showing a nonmonotonic trend with respect to dilution times. Remarkably, the rock surface exhibits the strongest water-wet, particularly evident in the case of FW-10, largely influenced by variations in interfacial tension. Conversely, aged samples demonstrate strong oil-wet, with a critical salinity resulting in the lowest contact angle, while altering brine ion types can alter rock wettability from strongly oil-wet to intermediate-wet, which is not sufficient to result in the wettability alteration. The removal of multivalent cations is proposed as the most effective method for wettability modification. Furthermore, capillarity variations among different brine cases are primarily contingent upon contact angle changes, and interfacial tension does not have a significant change when regulating the brine properties. Consequently, we emphasize the significance of wettability in the adoption of ion-tuned brine techniques for tight oil reservoirs. Overall, our study underscores the potential of reasonably regulating brine properties to enhance capillarity and, thereby, improve imbibition oil recovery.

The role of debittering process with normal water, NaOH and lye on chemical properties of brine, antioxidant activity, phenolic compounds and sensory characteristics of fermented caper (Capparis ovata Desf. var. Ovata) buds

In this study, the effect of the application of salt water (brine), lye and caustic (NaOH) on salt content, acidity, pH in caper brine during fermentation was investigated. The total carotenoid quantity of the caper buds were assessed to be between 0.46 (lye) and 1.57 µg/g (hot water) on the 5th day, while the total carotenoid quantities of the buds on the 30th are found between 0.22 (normal water) and 0.94 µg/g (brine). The total carotenoid values of the caper buds on the 45th day were changed to be between 0.05 (hot water) and 0.75 µg/g (brine). The total phenol quantities of the buds on the 30th day were detected between 111.23 (caustic) and 194.48 mg GAE/100 g (hot water), while the total phenol quantities of the caper buds on the 45th day were assigned between 66.87 (lye) and 159.33 mgGAE/100 g (brine). The total flavonoid quantities of thecaper buds were assigned between 289.29 (lye) and 458.81 mg catechin equivalent (CE)/100 g (normal water) on the 45th day. The highest decrease in phenolic components during fermentation was detected in catechin, rutin and resveratrol. Fermented caper buds, whose bitterness was removed with normal water on the 45th day, received the most appreciation. At the end of fermentation, the buds whose bitterness was removed with soda water, normal and hot water, normal water and caustic were most appreciated in terms of color, smell, taste and hardness.Graphical abstractIn this study, the effect of the application of salt water (brine), oak wood ash and caustic (NaOH) on salt content, acidity, pH in caper brine during fermentation and to determine the moisture, bioactive properties (antioxidant). activity, total phenol carotenoid, flavonoid), phenolic constituents and sensory characteristics of caper buds using hot water as an alternative to the bittering process with normal water in the production of fermented caper budswas investigated

Mechanism analysis of injection technique of water composition modification for enhanced oil recovery

ABSTRACT By adjusting the composition of injection water, including ionic type and strength, the goal of enhance oil recovery rate can be achieved. However, there is no clear understanding of which factor, ionic type or strength, has a greater impact. In this paper, based on the formation water of the offshore G oilfield, various brines with different ionic strengths and types were prepared. By measuring the zeta potential of rock powder and oil droplets, three-phase contact angle, interfacial tension between oil and water, emulsification properties of brines, and film strength of oil-water interface, the variation rules of the core wettability and emulsification performance of brine were systematically analyzed when the ionic strength and ionic type were changed. The experimental results showed that ionic strength has a greater impact than that of ionic type. For the oil-water-solid (rock) system of the G oilfield, an ionic strength of 82 mM/kg is the threshold for low salinity effect. Reducing ionic strength resulted in an increase in the hydrophilicity of rock and the ability of water flooding to emulsify oil droplets, which contribute to the improvement of oil displacement efficiency. Theoretically, water flooding to enhance oil recovery can be achieved by only reducing the ionic strength. This understanding was verified by dual polarization interferometry (DPI) experiments and low-field nuclear magnetic resonance experiments, which showed that reducing the salinity of the injection water from 42,000 mg/L (ionic strength of 820 mM/kg) to 4200 mg/L (ionic strength of 82 mM/kg) enhanced the oil recovery by 7.9%.

The Effects of Organically Modified Lithium Magnesium Silicate on the Rheological Properties of Water-Based Drilling Fluids.

To address the problem of insufficient temperature and salt resistance of existing polymer viscosity enhancers, we designed an organic-inorganic hybrid composite as a viscosity enhancer for water-based drilling fluids, named LAZ, and it was prepared by combining a water-soluble monomer and lithium magnesium silicate (LMS) using an intercalation polymerization method. The composite LAZ was characterized using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, transformed target X-ray diffractometry, scanning electron microscopy, and thermogravimetric analysis. The rheological properties of the composite LAZ were evaluated. The composite LAZ was used as a water-based drilling fluid viscosity enhancer, and the temperature and salt resistance of the drilling fluid were evaluated. The results showed that the composite LAZ presented a complex reticulation structure in an aqueous solution. This reticulation structure intertwined with each other exhibited viscosity-enhancing properties, which can enhance the suspension properties of water-based drilling fluids. The aqueous solution of the composite LAZ has shear dilution properties. As shear rate increases, shear stress becomes larger. The yield stress value of the aqueous solution increases as the composite LAZ's concentration increases. The aqueous solution of the composite LAZ exhibits strong elastic characteristics with weak gel properties. The addition of the composite LAZ to 4% sodium bentonite-based slurry significantly increased the apparent viscosity and dynamic shear of the drilling fluid. The drilling fluids containing the composite LAZ had good temperature resistance at 150 °C and below. The rheological properties of brine drilling fluids containing the composite LAZ changed slightly before and after high-temperature aging at 150 °C.

Comprehensive parametric study of CO2 sequestration in deep saline aquifers

Carbon dioxide injection in deep saline aquifers is a key method for permanently sequestering anthropogenic CO2. This study employs a reactive transport model to explore mineral precipitation/dissolution and its impact on reservoir properties in deep saline aquifers. We also assess capillary pressure and relative permeability hysteresis on various CO2 trapping mechanisms. Results from this study reveal the significant influence of initial brine composition on mineral precipitation/dissolution. The dissolution and precipitation of minerals have different effects around the wellbores compared to the overall reservoir. Additionally, salt concentration (Ca++ and Mg++) and quartz surface area affect CO2 mineralization, while Na+ impacts halite precipitation, altering reservoir flow properties. The effect of capillary pressure is significant, as including the capillary pressure in the simulation case resulted in significantly improved CO2 trapping, achieving almost total dissolution of the injected CO2 in around 300 years. This study offers novel insights into the interactions of reservoir minerals, brine properties, and the injected CO2.

Comparison of simple and active solar stills for freshwater recovery during lithium brine mining

Lithium mining from brines raise environmental issues due to huge volumes of both saline and freshwater being constantly pumped in desertic environments. Data indicating the slow depletion of both underground water levels and lagoon surfaces in the regions where large lithium brine mining exploitations are located have recently being disclosed. Amongst different direct lithium extraction methodologies, DLE, for more sustainable lithium recovery, a few proposals aim at the recovery of freshwater from the high salinity brines. About 900 kg of freshwater could potentially be recovered per cubic meter of processed native brine. The water evaporation and freshwater production capabilities of a simple and an active solar still are compared in this work. These are two simple and relatively low-cost technologies that could be adapted to existing solar evaporation ponds. The two systems were thermodynamically modelled. Equations were derived which were fed with real meteorological data from the Olaroz salt lake location and brine properties derived from the Pitzer model for the said brine. Analysis of the heat fluxes show that the behavior of both systems is relatively similar with large heat losses that are responsible for neither of the systems reaching the evaporation rate of the evaporation ponds.

Reduced Sodium in White Brined Cheese Production: Artificial Neural Network Modeling for the Prediction of Specific Properties of Brine and Cheese during Storage

Background: White brined cheese is one of the most frequently consumed cheeses that is accepted among a large group of consumers, which is largely related to its unique sensory properties, which are characterized by specific technological processes including ripening in the brine. Thus, white brined cheese contains a high amount of NaCl, and frequent consumption might lead to excessive sodium intake, which nowadays, presents a global problem. Consequently, food industries have developed reduced sodium products by substitutional salts. Furthermore, various studies have indicated that increased sodium intake via the diet can be associated with cardiovascular diseases, a risk of digestive system cancer, obesity, and other conditions. Calcium salts (citrate and lactate) are safe for human health and can be added to various foods according to the quantum satis rule. The present study aimed to partially replace NaCl with Ca-citrate and Ca-lactate in proportions of 25% and 50%. Additionally, the study presents the possibility of applying Artificial Neural Network (ANN) models for the prediction of some brine and cheese properties. Methods: White brined cheese with substitutional salts in brine (25% and 50% Ca-citrate and 25% and 50% Ca-lactate) were produced and compared to the control cheese ripened in conventionally applied NaCl brine. The acidity, total dissolved solids, salt amount, conductivity, color, and textural and sensory properties were determined over the 28 days of cold storage. Results: The substitution of NaCl with Ca-citrate and Ca-lactate is promising for sodium reduction in white brined cheese, whereby the physical and chemical properties remain acceptable. The best sensory score gain occurred with a substitution of 25% NaCl with Ca-citrate. Furthermore, ANN models can be employed to predict brine and cheese properties during storage.

Investigation of Hybrid Nanoparticle-Acid Fluids (HNAFs): Influence of Wettability and Interfacial Tension Mechanisms in Harsh Carbonate Reservoirs for Improved Oil Recovery.

Over the past few years, there has been significant interest in the potential of hybrid nanoparticle-acid fluid (HNAFs) for improved oil recovery. This comprehensive study investigates the effects of nanoparticles and acid on interfacial tension (IFT) to establish a relationship between brine properties and the oil/brine IFT. This investigation is one of the first regional studies conducted utilizing candidate field data from the Middle East. Based on the literature review and screening studies conducted, a seawater (SW)-based HNAF was formulated with nanoparticles (SiO2, Al2O3, and ZnO) and HCl to measure their effect on IFT. A total of 48 formulations of HNAFs, nanofluids with and without acid, were analyzed with crude oil from a candidate field. IFT measurements were subsequently conducted using the pendant drop method under ambient conditions and in a high-pressure, high-temperature reservoir environment. Results showcased that IFT reduction was observed by increasing the acid concentration with SiO2 and Al2O3, although a reverse trend was observed with ZnO. Moreover, it was observed that IFT varied with increasing concentrations of nanoparticles, and at certain acid concentrations, IFT reduced significantly with higher nanoparticle concentrations. From the Amott studies, a clear signature was achieved, with ZnO exhibiting a total of 31.4% oil recovery, followed by SiO2 (27.3%) and Al2O3 (23.7%). The results of this study may assist in defining a screening criterion for future displacement (oil recovery) studies involving the presented nanoparticles. The results also reveal further the mechanisms involved in IFT reduction by hybrid nano-acid fluids and their potential for significant applications in the Middle East.

Microbial and metabolic characterization of organic artisanal sauerkraut fermentation and study of gut health-promoting properties of sauerkraut brine.

Sauerkraut is a traditionally fermented cabbage, and recent evidence suggests that it has beneficial properties for human health. In this work, a multi-disciplinary approach was employed to characterize the fermentation process and gut health-promoting properties of locally produced, organic sauerkraut from two distinct producers, SK1 and SK2. 16S rRNA metataxonomics showed that bacterial diversity gradually decreased as fermentation progressed. Differences in sauerkraut microbiota composition were observed between the two producers, especially at the start of fermentation. Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) dominated the microbiota after 35 days, with Lactiplantibacillus being the dominant genus in both sauerkraut products, together with Leuconostoc and Paucilactobacillus in SK1, and with Pediococcus, Levilactibacillus, and Leuconostoc in SK2. LAB reached between 7 and 8 Log CFU/mL brine at the end of fermentation (35 days), while pH lowering happened within the first week of fermentation. A total of 220 LAB strains, corresponding to 133 RAPD-PCR biotypes, were successfully isolated. Lactiplantibacillus plantarum and Lactiplantibacillus pentosus accounted for 67% of all SK1 isolates, and Lactiplantibacillus plantarum/paraplantarum and Leuconostoc mesenteroides represented 72% of all the isolates from SK2. 1H-NMR analysis revealed significant changes in microbial metabolite profiles during the fermentation process, with lactic and acetic acids, as well as amino acids, amines, and uracil, being the dominant metabolites quantified. Sauerkraut brine did not affect trans-epithelial electrical resistance through a Caco-2 cell monolayer as a measure of gut barrier function. However, significant modulation of inflammatory response after LPS stimulation was observed in PBMCs-Caco-2 co-culture. Sauerkraut brine supported a robust inflammatory response to endotoxin, by increasing TNF-α and IL-6 production while also stimulating the anti-inflammatory IL-10, therefore suggesting positive resolution of inflammation after 24 h and supporting the potential of sauerkraut brine to regulate intestinal immune function.

Phase equilibria in the ternary systems LiCl–LiBr–H2O and LiCl–LiBr–CH3OH at 298 K

Oil gas field brine is a dominant liquid mineral resource in Sichuan Basin, and its rational development and utilization is of great significance to the national economy. In order to explore the physicochemical properties of brine and provide theoretical guidance for the comprehensive utilization of brine, the isothermal solubilities of the ternary systems LiCl − LiBr − H2O and LiCl − LiBr − CH3OH at 298 K were determined by employing the isothermal dissolution equilibrium method. Based on the measured composition of the liquid phase, wet solid phase and equilibrium solid phase, isothermal phase diagrams of the two systems at 298 K were drawn. The results show that according to the phase diagram of the ternary system LiCl − LiBr − H2O at 298 K, there is no single salt and double salt formation, but the crystalline region precipitated by the solid solution occupies all the crystalline space. The phase region is divided by a solubility boundary line into two parts, namely the liquid phase unsaturated region located below the isotherm and the completely mutually soluble solid solution crystallization region above it. Therefore, the two single salts LiCl and LiBr could not be successfully separated with the guidance of this phase diagram. The ternary system LiCl − LiBr − CH3OH at 298 K has single salt and solid solution formed, but no double salt determined. The phase diagram of the ternary system LiCl − LiBr − CH3OH consists of an invariant point, two isothermal solubility lines, and two crystallization regions precipitated with Li(Cl, Br) and LiCl, respectively. Using the phase diagram as a guiding tool for phase separation, LiCl can be acquired by crystallization and filtration operations, but it cannot be achieved for LiBr. In this work, a combination of wet residue method and XRD is used to identify the equilibrium solid phase. Selecting the particle swarm optimization algorithm, the solubility predictions of the ternary systems LiCl − LiBr − H2O and LiCl − LiBr − CH3OH at 298 K were achieved through the well-established Pitzer model. The solubility simulation results satisfactorily matched with the experimental values, indicating that the parameters selected for the simulation have strong applicability.

Changes in Some Biochemical Properties of Brassica Vegetables (Cabbage, Cauliflower and Broccoli) Pickles and Brines

Lactic acid fermentation is an important process in terms of storing fruits and vegetables for a longer time and preserving their nutritional content. It is also important in terms of improving the taste and aroma of fruits and vegetables for consumer preference. In this study, the physicochemical, bioactive, and sensorial properties of pickles and brines, which are formed as a result of 18 days of lactic acid fermentation of cabbage, cauliflower, and broccoli vegetables, were investigated. The highest total phenolic content (TPC) and antioxidant activity (AA) were found in fresh (7198.27 ppm Gallic Acid Equivalent (GAE), 7179.33 ppm FeSO4•7H2O) and pickled broccoli (3600.10ppm GAE and 3253.03 ppm FeSO4•7H2O), respectively. The highest AA of brines was accounted from pickled broccoli as 303.44 ppm FeSO4•7H2O while cauliflower brine had the highest TPC (246.87 ppm GAE). Fresh broccoli its pickle and brine have exhibited the highest content of vitamin C (4878.4, 1739.4, and 247.3 ppm ascorbic acid, respectively). The results show that pickling has a protective effect on the bioactive contents of vegetables. Moreover, the study demonstrated that fermentation impacted the color of samples. According to the results of sensorial analysis, cabbage and cauliflower samples got the highest score among the pickles evaluated in terms of overall acceptability. In brines, the overall acceptability score did not change significantly (p>0.05). Overall, the relationship between vegetables and fermentation can be said to be important for maintaining or enhancing the sensorial, nutritive properties of foods and also for the production of new products such as brine that may be beneficial for health.

Effects of Electro-Oxidation Process on Tight-Rock Wettability and Imbibition Oil Recovery

Oil and gas industry has faced significant operational, economic, and environmental challenges in recycling produced water. The treatment of produced water is highly researched, but few studies have evaluated the performance of treated produced water when used for hydraulic fracturing and enhanced oil recovery (EOR) operations. In this study, we treated various aqueous solutions, including synthetic formation brine (FB), sodium chloride (NaCl), calcium chloride (CaCl2), and sodium sulfate (Na2SO4), using an electro-oxidation (EO) process. The brine properties, including density, surface tension (ST), oil–water interfacial tension (IFT), viscosity, and pH, were compared before and after the treatment. Then, we conducted systematic contact-angle (CA) measurements and spontaneous imbibition tests using treated and untreated brine to study the effects of water treatment on rock–fluid interactions and its impact on oil recovery. The experimental results show that the effect of the EO process on ST, density, viscosity, and IFT was insignificant. However, the CA results show that the treated FB, NaCl, and Na2SO4 solutions exhibit stronger wetting characteristics compared with the untreated ones, while the treated CaCl2 solution exhibit weaker wetting characteristics compared with the untreated ones. We hypothesized that the change in the wetting characteristics was due to the generated oxidants from the EO process. We added OH–, H+, hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), and sodium hypochlorite (NaOCl) into untreated brine to test this hypothesis and monitored the CA variations. The results suggest that H2O2 and OH– can alter the wettability to more water-wet conditions in the NaCl solution but not in the CaCl2 solution. Furthermore, NaOCl results in wettability alteration to more oil-wet conditions in NaCl and CaCl2 solutions. The change in wettability to more water-wet conditions is mainly the result of the oxidation of dissolved organic matters, and the change to more oil-wet conditions is the result of the dissolution of high-valence cations, causing the cation bridging effect.

Bulk and Interfacial Properties of Brine or Alkane in the Presence of Carbon Dioxide, Methane, and Their Mixture

Bulk and Interfacial Properties of Brine or Alkane in the Presence of Carbon Dioxide, Methane, and Their Mixture

Physical and chemical properties of sea salt deliquescent brines as a function of temperature and relative humidity

Thermodynamic modeling has been used to predict chemical compositions of brines formed by the deliquescence of sea salt aerosols. Representative brines have been mixed, and physical and chemical properties have been measured over a range of temperatures. Brine properties are discussed in terms of atmospheric corrosion of austenitic stainless steel, using spent nuclear fuel dry storage canisters as an example. After initial loading with spent fuel, during dry storage, the canisters cool over time, leading to increased surface relative humidities and evolving brine chemistries and properties. These parameters affect corrosion kinetics and damage distributions, and may offer important constraints on the expected timing, rate, and long-term impacts of canister corrosion.

Impact of polymer on electro-kinetic properties of crude oil, brine and rock interfaces

In recent years, there has been a growing interest in the petroleum industry to improve the ultimate oil recovery method by using low-salinity polymer flooding (LSPF) with the synergistic effect by combining polymer and low-salinity water injection. Although numerous research studies have focused on the technical and economic benefits of low salinity polymer (LSP), to the best of our knowledge, crude oil/brine/rock (COBR) interactions in LSP did not receive enough attention due to the complexity of the interactions between brine, polymer, crude oil, and the rock surface. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the impact of polymer on COBR interactions with different brine chemistry and improve the understanding of active mechanisms of LSPF. Partially hydrolyzed polyacrylamide (HPAM) polymer, Boise rock, a crude oil sample from an Omani oil field, and several brine solutions were used in the study. Zeta potential and pH measurements were performed to examine the role of polymer on electrical properties of brine/rock and oil/brine interfaces. In addition, rheological properties of the polymer were investigated at different salinity and brine compositions. Changes in Boise rock surface charge through zeta potential measurements were investigated in the absence and presence of polymer. pH and rheology measurements for equilibrated brines with and without polymer and zeta potential of crude oil/equilibrated brine were performed. The results revealed that the addition of polymer to the brine not only increased the viscosity, but also affected the electrical charge at crude oil/brine/rock (COBR) interfaces and triggered pH increase of the brine. The impact of polymer on COBR interactions is mainly controlled by the water chemistry. In the absence of ions, polymer molecules did not affect the charge of COBR interfaces, while in the presence of ions, at different compositions and concentrations, the charge of COBR interfaces changed to become more negative. Thus, the presence of polymer in brine increases the electrostatic repulsion between crude oil/brine and brine/rock interfaces, increases electrical double layer (EDL) thickness, and makes the water film more stable. A direct relationship between the viscosity and zeta potential of the polymer solutions was observed at different brine chemistry. Moreover, the presence of polymer at different brine chemistry resulted in an increase in pH of the aqueous phase. This could in turn reduce the adsorption of polar organic acids from crude oil. Therefore, in addition to the reduction of the water-oil mobility ratio, polymer molecules could contribute to an increase in the repulsion forces between COBR interfaces and an increase in the pH of the aqueous solution.

Data-Driven Analyses of Low Salinity Waterflooding in Carbonates

Low salinity water (LSW) injection is a promising Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) technique that has the potential to improve oil recovery and has been studied by many researchers. LSW flooding in carbonates has been widely evaluated by coreflooding tests in prior studies. A closer look at the literature on LSW in carbonates indicates a number of gaps and shortcomings. It is difficult to understand the exact relationship between different controlling parameters and the LSW effect in carbonates. The active mechanisms involved in oil recovery improvement are still uncertain and more analyses are required. To predict LSW performance and study the mechanisms of oil displacement, data collected from available experimental studies on LSW injection in carbonates were analyzed using data analysis approaches. We used linear regression to study the linear relationships between single parameters and the incremental recovery factor (RF). Correlations between rock, oil, and brine properties and tertiary RF were weak and negligible. Subsequently, we analyzed the effect of oil/brine parameters on LSW performance using multivariable linear regression. Relatively strong linear correlations were found for a combination of oil/brine parameters and RF. We also studied the nonlinear relationships between parameters by applying machine learning (ML) nonlinear models, such as artificial neural network (ANN), support vector machine (SVM), and decision tree (DT). These models showed better data fitting results compared to linear regression. Among the applied ML models, DT provided the best correlation for oil/brine parameters, as ANN and SVM overfitted the testing data. Finally, different mechanisms involved in the LSW effect were analyzed based on the changes in the effluent PDIs concentration, interfacial tension, pH, zeta potential, and pressure drop.

Thermo-Optic Property Measurement Using Surface Plasmon Resonance-Based Fiber Optic Sensor

The temperature disturbances greatly influence the performances of microfluidic chips during the working process. It is therefore important to evaluate the thermo-optic properties of microfluidic materials. Here, we measure the thermo-optic property by employing a fiber optic surface plasmon resonance (SPR) sensor combined with a thermocouple. This setup can be applied for embedding in microfluidic materials or directly detecting fluidic samples. Three fiber optic SPR sensors were fabricated with a <inline-formula xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$400~\mu m$ </tex-math></inline-formula> -bare-core, <inline-formula xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$600~\mu m$ </tex-math></inline-formula> -bare-core and mismatched-core structures. The thermo-optic responses of the three sensors were compared to determine the optimum sensor structure. The thermo-optic property of polydimethylsiloxane was then investigated over the full temperature detection range of 25–200 °C. The thermo-optic coefficient of polydimethylsiloxane was determine to be <inline-formula xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$- 4.19\times 10^{-4}$ </tex-math></inline-formula> RIU/°C, which agrees well with previous reports. The thermo-optic properties of ethanol and brine were also evaluated to confirm the universality of the proposed measurement method. To our knowledge, this is the first reported detection of thermo-optic properties using a fiber optic SPR sensor.

A comprehensive numerical model for the thermodynamic and transport properties of H2O-NaCl fluids

Saline fluids are common to a variety of geologic settings in Earth's crust and upper mantle. The binary system H2O-NaCl is commonly used to interpret data obtained from fluid inclusions, and for geochemical modeling of mass and energy transport and fluid-rock interaction. Modeling of fluid properties in this binary system has generally relied on piecemeal compilations from available models specific to certain properties, whereas a standalone, comprehensive tool has been lacking. Here, we present a new computer package, entitled ProBrine (Properties of Brine) to evaluate the thermodynamic and transport properties of H2O-NaCl fluids over the range of temperatures from 0 to 1000 °C, pressure from 1 to 5000 bar, and salinity from 0 to 100 wt% NaCl. ProBrine is designed to calculate a wide range of thermodynamic and transport properties, including (but not limited to): phase equilibria (liquid, vapor, and halite); molar volume, density, specific enthalpy, and viscosity. The program is also equipped to calculate derived properties such as: 1) the coefficient of isobaric thermal expansion; 2) the coefficient of isothermal compressibility; 3) the reduced susceptibility; 4) the isobaric specific heat capacity, and the fluxibility. In addition, the model will calculate solubility of the following six minerals: fluorapatite, calcite, corundum, fluorite, rutile, and quartz, as well as the respective temperature and pressure derivatives, which can be used to predict mineral dissolution and precipitation along a flow path. Moreover, the program is equipped to interpret fluid-inclusion data. The program is written in Visual Basic (VBA) in Microsoft Excel and is released open-source, allowing a user full scope to review, copy, modify and expand the program code.

Dynamics of emulsion generation and stability during heavy oil displacement with chemicals and nanoparticles: Qualitative analysis using visual 2D data

There are a plethora of factors that may impact the viscous finger profiles observed in heavy oil-in-water emulsification in porous media such as chemical properties, chemical reaction, capillary number, mobility ratio, interfacial tension (IFT) gradient, chemical concentration, wettability, pH, and brine properties. To investigate such impact, we studied a large series of in-situ heavy oil-in-water emulsifications at various conditions using emulsifiers such as anionic surfactants, cationic surfactants, and NaOH (sodium hydroxide). For the stabilization of the emulsions formed with the emulsifiers, we tested nanofluids (silica, cellulose nanocrystal, zirconia, alumina) and polymers. 2-D visual results displayed that there exist finger profiles which strongly correlate with stable Winsor type 4 heavy oil-in-water emulsion generation along with “semi-stable” Winsor type 4 heavy oil-in-water emulsification. By controlling the structure of emulsion droplets and correlating observed multiple finger interactions to the materials, we enable the selection of novel designs for effective heavy-oil recovery as well as corresponding displacement mechanisms.

Extension of Vibrating-Wire Viscometry to Electrically Conducting Fluids and Measurements of Viscosity and Density of Brines with Dissolved CO2at Reservoir Conditions

In order to design safe and effective storage of anthropological CO2 in deep saline aquifers, it is necessary to know the thermophysical properties of brine–CO2 solutions. In particular, density and viscosity are important in controlling convective flows of the CO2-rich brine. In this work, we have studied the effect of dissolved CO2 on the density and viscosity of NaCl and CaCl2 brines over a wide range of temperatures from 298 to 449 K, with pressures up to 100 MPa, and salinities up to 1 mol·kg–1. Additional density measurements were also made for both NaCl and CaCl2 brines with dissolved CO2 at salt molalities of 2.5 mol·kg–1 in the same temperature and pressure ranges. The viscosity was measured by means of a vibrating-wire viscometer, while the density was measured with a vibrating U-tube densimeter. To facilitate the present study, the theory of the vibrating-wire viscometer has been extended to account for the electrical conductivity of the fluid, thereby expanding the use of this technique to a w...