Claims
- 1. A water-soluble, random polymer of monomers comprising, by mole percent:
- (a) from about 1 to 99 percent of acrylamide;
- (b) from about 1 to 99 percent of an alkaline or alkali metal 3-acrylamido-3-methylbutanoate; and
- (c) from 0 to about 30 percent of one or more copolymerizable olefinically unsaturated monomers having at least one polymerizable ethylenic double bond,
- in which the polymer has an average molecular weight greater than about 50,000.
- 2. Polymers of claim 1 wherein the average molecular weight is from about 1,000,000 to 20,000,000.
- 3. Polymers of claim 1 wherein the monomers comprise from about 30 to 97 mole percent acrylamide, and about 3 to 70 mole percent alkaline or alkali metal 3-acrylamido-3-methylbutanoate.
- 4. Polymers of claim 3 wherein the monomers comprise from about 50 to 95 mole percent acrylamide and about 5 to 50 mole percent alkaline or alkali metal 3-acrylamido-3-methylbutanoate.
- 5. Polymers of claim 3 wherein the monomers comprise from about 85-95 mole percent acrylamide, and about 5-15 percent alkaline or alkali metal 3-acrylamido-3-methylbutanoate.
- 6. Polymers of claim 1 wherein the olefinically unsaturated monomer comprises up to about 30 mole percent of acrylic acid.
- 7. Polymers of claim 1 wherein the olefinically unsaturated monomer comprises up to about 30 mole percent of an alkali meta- acrylate.
- 8. Polymers of claim 1 wherein the monomers comprise from about 30 to 97 mole percent acrylamide, and about 3 to 70 mole percent alkaline or alkali metal 3-methacrylamido-3-methylbutanoate.
- 9. In a process for recovering petroleum from a subterranean oil-bearing formation wherein there is introduced into an input well, an aqueous solution containing a water-soluble, viscosity-controlling polymer, thereby causing said petroleum to flow a distance for collection at least one output well, the improvement which comprises employing as said viscosity-controlling polymer a minor but effective amount of a water-soluble, random polymer of monomers comprising, by mole percent:
- (a) from about 1 to 99 percent of acrylamide;
- (b) from about 1 to 99 percent of an alkaline or alkali metal 3-acrylamido-3-methylbutanoate; and
- (c) from 0 to about 30 percent of one or more copolymerizable olefinically unsaturated monomers having at least one polymerizable ethylenic double bond,
- in which the polymer has an average molecular weight greater than about 50,000.
- 10. Method of claim 9 wherein the average molecular weight of the polymer is from about 1,000,000 to 20,000,000.
- 11. Method of claim 9 wherein the polymer comprises from about 30 to 97 mole percent acrylamide, and about 3 to 70 mole percent alkaline or alkali metal 3-acrylamido-3-methylbutanoate.
- 12. Method of claim 11 wherein the polymer comprises from about 50 to 95 mole percent acrylamide, and about 5 to 50 mole percent alkaline or alkali metal 3-acrylamido-3-methylbutanoate.
- 13. Method of claim 11 wherein the polymer comprises from about 85 to 95 mole percent acrylamide, and about 5-15 percent alkaline or alkali metal 3-acrylamido-3-methylbutanoate.
- 14. Method of claim 9 wherein the polymer contains up to about 30 mole percent of acrylic acid and 5-15 percent alkaline or alkali metal 3-acrylamido-3-methylbutanoate.
- 15. Method of claim 9 wherein the polymer contains up to about 30 mole percent of an alkali metal acrylate, and 5-15 percent alkaline or alkali metal 3-acrylamido-3-methylbutanoate.
- 16. Method of claim 9 wherein the polymer is employed in an aqueous medium in concentrations of from about 500 to 2000 ppm by weight based on the weight of the aqueous medium.
- 17. Method of claim 9 wherein the polymer comprises from about 30 to 97 mole percent acrylamide, and about 3 to 70 mole percent alkaline or alkali metal 3-methacrylamido-3-methylbutanoate.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention was made with government support under Grant DE-AS19-80-BC-10321 awarded by the Department of Energy. The government has certain rights in this invention.
US Referenced Citations (1)
Number |
Name |
Date |
Kind |
4438246 |
Bush |
Mar 1984 |
|
Non-Patent Literature Citations (1)
Entry |
J. Polymer Science, vol. 10, pp. 3311-3315, 1972. |