Journal of Sustainable Energy Engineering

Publisher: Scrivener Publishing

E-ISSN: 2164-6295|6|3|136-162

ISSN: 2164-6287

Source: Journal of Sustainable Energy Engineering, Vol.6, Iss.3, 2018-08, pp. : 136-162

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Abstract

Polymer flooding as a widely used Enhanced Oil Recovery technique can improve oil recovery by reducing the mobility of a displacing fluid. However, the injectability of polymer is one of the obstructions for field applications. Polymers experience mechanical degradation and adsorption while passing through porous reservoir rocks and, as a result, a higher injection pressure is required to push the displacing fluid through reservoir rocks. To ensure the success of polymer flooding and take advantage of encapsulation techniques, a new concept, "encapsulated polymer", will be studied in this paper. By encapsulating polymers into nanoscale capsules, a releasing or burst time of such capsules can be engineered. The capsule coating can be manipulated to reduce adsorption so that the loss of the polymer is reduced during the process of delivery. In this study, the viscosity of flooding fluid is considered the same as water in the near-wellbore capsule zone. Since polymers are not released there, a better injectability can be provided. The overall effect of this process is studied numerically under a 2-dimentional, homogeneous, circular domain. The computational processes include the following modules: radial flow pressure drop, viscosity shear thinning effect, burst of capsule (releasing time), transport of polymer and capsules (advection-dispersion), and polymer adsorption and desorption.