Abstract
Enhancing the life of scale inhibitor squeeze treatments in the oil and gas industry is a major means of increasing productivity. Having an understanding of the route by which inhibitors such as PPCA can adsorb to the rock surface is important in designing new squeeze methodologies. Nanotechnology is emerging as an enabling technology in many fields including medicine, transport and pharmaceutical. Thus far there has been research activity in novel uses of nanotechnology in the oil and gas sector but there is still enormous potential for it to be further exploited. In the squeeze process, where fluids are pushed through the rock pore space, there is potential for nanotechnology to enhance the delivery of species (i.e. placement) and/or to assist in the "binding" of active species to the rock surfaces. It is in this area the current work is focused. In this paper we investigate the adsorption of PPCA (a common scale inhibitor) onto a C-based nanoparticle (CBN). The adsorption of PPCA on the CBN is quantified as a function of time and the concentration of the CBN. Experimental data from Inductively Coupled Plasma (ICP) illustrates a substantial adsorption of PPCA on CBNs comparing to the adsorption of PPCA on the rock. Various concentration ratios of CBNs and PPCA have been tested in dynamic adsorption tests to understand the effects of absorbent and absorbate concentration. The mass of adsorbent was assumed to be key factor in adsorption of PPCA on CBNs; indicative of the number of active sites on the nanoparticle.
