Alkylated oxidized lignins as surfactants

A method of recovering hydrocarbons from an underground hydrocarbon formation penetrated by at least one injection well and at least one production well, which comprises:

• injecting into the formation through an injection well a surfactant slug comprising about 0.1% to about 10% by weight of surfactants produced from lignin,
• said surfactants produced by subjecting lignin to a reaction selected from the group consisting of alkylation at phenolic oxygen sites with an alkyl chain having about 3 to about 24 carbon atoms and oxidation sufficient to break the lignin into smaller polymeric and monomeric units, oxidizing the alkylated lignin sufficiently to break the lignin into smaller polymeric and monomeric compounds if the first reaction was an alkylation reaction, and alkylating the oxidized lignin at phenolic oxygen sites with an alkyl chain having about 3 to about 24 carbon atoms if the first reaction was an oxidation reaction;
• injecting into the formation through the injection well a drive fluid to push the surfactant slug towards a production well;
• and
• recovering hydrocarbons at the production well.