Squeeze treatment for in situ scavenging of hydrogen sulfide

A squeeze treatment method for reducing the amount of hydrogen sulfide in a hydrocarbon-containing fluid, comprising:

• pumping a treatment fluid under pressure through a wellbore into a subterranean formation and maintaining the treatment fluid in the region around the wellbore for a predetermined period of time, wherein the treatment fluid includes a hydrogen sulfide scavenging compound that adsorbs onto the subterranean formation in a region around the wellbore;
• flowing production fluids from the subterranean formation into the wellbore, wherein the production fluids contact the adsorbed hydrogen sulfide scavenging compound as the production fluids flow through the region around the wellbore, and wherein the production fluids contain hydrogen sulfide that reacts with the hydrogen sulfide scavenging compound to reduce an amount of hydrogen sulfide in the production fluids before the production fluids flow into the wellbore,
• monitoring the concentration of hydrogen sulfide in the production fluids flowing from the subterranean formation through the wellbore;
• and
• in response to the concentration of hydrogen sulfide exceeding a threshold concentration, stopping the flow of production fluids from the subterranean formation into the wellbore, then pumping an additional amount of the treatment fluid under pressure through the wellbore into the subterranean formation, then maintaining the treatment fluid in the region around the wellbore for a predetermined period of time, and then restarting the flow of production fluids from the subterranean formation into the wellbore,
• wherein the hydrogen sulfide scavenging compound is an alpha-hydroxy alkyl ester functionalized with a phosphate group, phosphonate group, sulfate group, sulfonate group, or hydroxyl group;
• or an alpha-hydroxy alkyl ether functionalized with a phosphate group, phosphonate group, sulfate group, sulfonate group, or hydroxyl group.