Dolphin study to assess chemical EOR impact

March 17, 2014
IFP Energies nouvelles (IFPEN) is investigating how chemical enhanced oil recovery (EOR) processes impact water management.

Offshore staff

REIL-MALMAISON, FranceIFP Energies nouvelles (IFPEN) is investigating how chemical enhanced oil recovery (EOR) processes impact water management.

Chemical recovery typically involves use of viscosifiers and surfactants to produce up to 20% more hydrocarbons from an oil field.

IFPEN says it is important to study the compatibility of EOR processes with fluid separation technologies, to develop appropriate solutions to facilitate treatment of produced water, and to define conditions for reinjection of water into reservoirs to enhance the oil recovery.

In partnership with Petrobras andStatoil, IFPEN has just completed an 18-month preliminary laboratory study to improve understanding of chemical EOR’s impact on surface water treatment facilities.

Now it has launched the three-year Dolphin research program with the same two companies plus IFP Technologies Canada, OMV, Shell, and Wintershall.

Dolphin will quantify and describe the impact of chemical EOR on the production system as a whole, in conditions representative of oil fields. It will also assess the compatibility of chemical EOR substances with treatment additives, along with their impact on well performance, surface installations, and reinjection processes.

03/17/2014