Synthesis And Evaluation Of Alkyl Benzene Sulfonate Surfactant For Enhanced Oil Recovery

The paper describes a new method of preparation of new alkyl benzene sulphonate surfactant with steady features. First, heavy alkyl benzene, the by-product of dodecyl benzene, was chosen as the raw material and was primarily processed by being rectified into the light and heavy sections by means of segment to ensure the improved surfactant characteristics of the distillates of heavy alkyl benzene, more appropriate for the ASP(containing alkali/surfactant/polymer) flooding. Second, component matching lab analyses were carried on by means GC-MS and ESI-MS upon the rectified raw heavy alkyl benzene crude and its products. The results were applied based upon matching concepts, previous sulphonation data of heavy alkyl benzene, into a serials of comparative tests of un-sulphonated crude and active content variation under various matching degrees and processing conditions to build the optimizing patterns for the sulphonation processing conditions of the sulfur trioxide and the falling-film technology. The desirable parameters were optimized.The overall performance evaluation of the product shows that the corresponding ASP system not only has a high performance of interfacial tension (IFT) required displacing oil, but also a long term IFT and viscosity stability. The laboratory experiment of adsorption on the sandstone and its emulsifying power indicate that the surfactant is comparable with the USA ones (such as ORS-41). In order to meet the greatly spread of ASP we've developed the alkyl benzene sulphonate surfactant for sodium carbonate, the alkyl benzene sulphonate surfactant of relatively single component to enrich the variety of alkyl benzene sulphonate surfactant products. At the same time, we've developing the source of raw material of alkyl benzene, and have obtained progresses on the research of the polymerize of alkene and hopefully to achieve the multiplex of alkyl benzene.