A Comprehensive Review of Chemical Induced Reservoir Wettability Alteration: Characterization and EOR Aspects

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Department of Chemical Engineering, Isfahan University of Technology,Isfahan, Iran

2 Petroleum University of Technology, Tehran Petroleum Research Center, Tehran, Iran

3 Research Center of Petroleum University of Technology, Abadan, Iran

Abstract

It is a well-established fact that that wettability alteration toward more wetness condition could resultants in improve
oil recovery. Understanding the wettability alteration mechanisms in multiphase flow in porous media is crucial for
the efficient development of enhanced oil recovery techniques. Chemical solution such as surfactant increase the
water wetness of rock surface which increase the relative permeability of the oil phase. However, the wetting states
of reservoir is determining how the fluids are distributed in the pore space. A key aspect of wettability alteration
process is interactions in crude oil-brine-rock system which is characterized by several methods.
The purpose of a review is to analyze critically a modification of wettability characteristics in terms of chemical EOR
methods. It consists of chemical materials, characterization methods, and EOR mechanisms. To identify any factors
which are influencing the wettability of rock surface during chemical injection, responsible mechanisms involved in.