Polymeric nanoemulsion as drag reducer for multiphase flow
AssigneeBaker Hughes Incorporated
InventorsJiang Yang, Steven Jeremy Weghorn
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Polymeric nanoemulsions facilitate flow and reduce drag and friction in multiphase pipelines containing both oil and water (e.g., oil/water, oil/water/gas, oil/water/solids, and oil/water/gas/solids) such as are used for oil or gas production, gathering, and transmission; hydrotransport of oilsand or heavy oil slurries and the like. Specific examples of suitable drag reducing polymers include polyacrylamide. The emulsions have a hydrocarbon external phase, droplets of an aqueous internal phase having water-soluble polymer dissolved therein, where the droplets have an average particle size below about 200 nm, and at least one surfactant to form a stable nanoemulsion. The nanoemulsions advantageously have a low viscosity of about 200 cP or less.
Claims20
A method of reducing drag of a fluid comprising:
- providing the fluid selected from the group consisting of water;
- mixtures of hydrocarbons and water;
- mixtures of hydrocarbons, water and gas;
- mixtures of hydrocarbons, water and solids;
- mixtures of hydrocarbons, water, gas and solids;
- mixtures of water, gas, and solids;
- and mixtures of water and solids;
- and
- adding a polymeric nanoemulsion drag reducer to the fluid in an amount effective to reduce the drag thereof, where the polymeric nanoemulsion drag reducer comprises:
- a hydrocarbon external phase,
- droplets of an aqueous internal phase having water-soluble polymer dissolved therein, where the droplets have an average particle size below 300 nm, and
- at least one surfactant of a kind and amount effective to form a stable nanoemulsion of the droplets in the hydrocarbon external phase.
A method of reducing drag of a fluid comprising:
- providing the fluid selected from the group consisting of water;
- mixtures of hydrocarbons and water;
- mixtures of hydrocarbons, water and gas;
- mixtures of hydrocarbons, water and solids;
- mixtures of hydrocarbons, water, gas and solids;
- mixtures of water, gas, and solids;
- and mixtures of water and solids;
- and
- adding a polymeric nanoemulsion drag reducer to the fluid in an amount effective to reduce the drag thereof, where the polymeric nanoemulsion drag reducer comprises:
- a hydrocarbon external phase;
- droplets of an aqueous internal phase having water-soluble polymer dissolved therein, where the droplets have an average particle size below 300 nm, where the water-soluble polymer is selected from the group consisting of polyacrylamides, polyacrylic acids or copolymers of polyacrylic acid, polyethylene oxides, guars, hydroxyethyl celluloses, polyvinyl alcohols and mixtures thereof;
- and
- at least one surf actant of a kind and amount effective to form a stable nanoemulsion of the droplets in the hydrocarbon external phase, where the surfactant has a low HLB of less than about 8.
A fluid having reduced drag comprising:
- a fluid selected from the group consisting of water;
- mixtures of hydrocarbons and water;
- mixtures of hydrocarbons, water and gas;
- mixtures of hydrocarbons, water and solids;
- mixtures of hydrocarbons, water, gas and solids;
- mixtures of water, gas, and solids;
- and mixtures of water and solids;
- and
- a polymeric nanoemulsion drag reducer in an amount effective to reduce the drag of the fluid, where the polymeric nanoemulsion drag reducer comprises:
- a hydrocarbon external phase,
- droplets of an aqueous internal phase having water-soluble polymer dissolved therein, where the droplets have an average particle size below 300 nm, and
- at least one surf actant of a kind and amount effective to form a stable nanoemulsion of the droplets in the hydrocarbon external phase.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.