US4226702A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Addition of water to emulsions to accelerate coalescence
Assignee: Phillips Petroleum Co
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Filing: 1978-07-20
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Granted: 1980-10-07
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Expires: 1998-07-20
Abstract
Abstract Opaque macroemulsions comprising oil and brine are diluted with water to an electrolyte concentration at which rapid coalescence into three phases, oil, a transparent microemulsion, and water is achieved. This is of particular utility in post-primary oil recovery processes wherein said opaque macroemulsions are produced as effluents from producing wells. The opaque macroemulsions are collected and oil therein recovered by dilution as described herein.
Inventors
- 👤 James E. Vinatieri
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-25 12:13
CPC Classifications
B; B01; B01D; B01D17/00; B01D17/02; B01D17/04; B01D17/047; C; C10; C10G; C10G33/00; C10G33/04
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 12
Claim 1
Independent Claim
97 words
A process comprising: (a) forming a diluted system by adding to an opaque macroemulsion system made up of oil, a surfactant, water, and an electrolyte having a sodium chloride equivalent concentration in said opaque macroemulsion of at least 2 weight percent based on the weight of water; an amount of water such that the thus formed diluted system coalesces into a predominantly oil upper phase, a transparent microemulsion middle phase containing oil, surfactant, water and electrolyte and an aqueous lower phase; (b) allowing said diluted system to so coalesce; and (c) recovering oil from said upper phase.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
97 words
A process comprising: (a) forming a diluted system by adding to an opaque macroemulsion system made up of oil, a surfactant, water, and an electrolyte having a sodium chloride equivalent concentration in said opaque macroemulsion of at least 2 weight percent based on the weight of water; an amount of water such that the thus formed diluted system coalesces into a predominantly oil upper phase, a transparent microemulsion middle phase containing oil, surfactant, water and electrolyte and an aqueous lower phase; (b) allowing said diluted system to so coalesce; and (c) recovering oil from said upper phase.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
14 words
A process according to claim 1 wherein said opaque macroemulsion also contains a cosurfactant.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
29 words
A process according to claim 2 wherein said opaque macroemulsion is recovered from a producing well in an oil reservoir system utilizing a transparent microemulsion in post-primary oil recovery.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
19 words
A method according to claim 3 wherein said surfactant is a petroleum sulfonate and said cosurfactant is an alcohol.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
34 words
A method according to claim 4 wherein said petroleum sulfonate has an average equivalent weight within the range of 375 to 500, said cosurfactant is isobutyl alcohol, and said electrolyte is predominantly sodium chloride.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
63 words
A method according to claim 5 wherein said transparent microemulsion phase produced on said coalescence is diluted with water to drive it to a water external condition, air is introduced to create a foam, the foam is removed and the remaining transparent microemulsion is mixed with acid and brine of sufficient salinity to drive said remaining transparent microemulsion to an oil-external transparent microemulsion.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
63 words
A method according to claim 2 wherein said transparent microemulsion phase produced on said coalescence is diluted with water to drive it to a water external condition, air is introduced to create a foam, the foam is removed and the remaining transparent microemulsion is mixed with acid and brine of sufficient salinity to drive said remaining transparent microemulsion to an oil-external transparent microemulsion.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
59 words
A method according to claim 1 wherein the degree of dilution employed is optimized by preparing a plurality of mixtures of said opaque macroemulsion and pure water at various concentrations of pure water, agitating said mixtures, allowing time for coalescence, measuring coalescence time, and from the results obtained selecting the amount of added water to obtain minimum coalescence time.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
13 words
A method according to claim 8 wherein the surfactant is a petroleum sulfonate.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
14 words
A method according to claim 9 wherein the opaque macroemulsion also contains a cosurfactant.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
34 words
A method according to claim 10 wherein the petroleum sulfonate has an average equivalent weight within the range of 375 to 500, the cosurfactant is isobutyl alcohol, and the electrolyte is predominantly sodium chloride.
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USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1983-10-07 | 1984-04-07 | 1984-10-07 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1987-10-07 | 1988-04-07 | 1988-10-07 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1991-10-07 | 1992-04-07 | 1992-10-07 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |