This original non-provisional application claims priority to and the benefit of PCT Application Serial No. PCT/MX2011/000036, filed Mar. 23, 2011, entitled “Compuesto Aditivo Para Petróleo Manejador de Asfaltenos,” claiming priority to Mexican Patent Application No. MX/a/2010/007188, filed Jun. 28, 2010, and entitled “Compuesto Aditivo Para Petróleo Manejador de Asfaltenos,” both of which are incorporated by reference herein.
As it is well known, petroleum is formed by organic compounds of varied structures and different molecular weights. It is possible to group these organic compounds into saturates, aromatics, resins and asphaltenes. The latter represent the heavy fraction and have increased in Mexico and the rest of the world causing production and conversion problems.
Asphaltenes are considered to be a fraction of heavy oil which may be soluble and are found in colloidal suspension, dispersed in a continuous phase and surrounded by resins in a micelle. Resins are responsible for keeping asphaltenes separated and maintaining stability in the system.
When there is a physical-chemical disturbance in an oil field, as it commonly occurs in production wells, the disturbance causes the concentration of resin molecules to undergo changes, causing them to leave the micelle, altering the stability of the asphaltenes that are suspended in oil, weakening the repulsive forces of the asphaltenes and generating a mutual interaction among asphaltenes.
This invention provides an innovative additive compound which can be utilized in handling these asphaltenes, allowing for improvement in heavy crude oil, increasing the production of oil wells and improving transportation in pipelines.
The detailed characteristics of this innovative petroleum asphaltene handler additive compound are clearly described in the following description and in the accompanying drawings.
The mere presence of asphaltenes in oil is not an indication of a problem in an oil well's production or in its transportation in pipelines. There is a larger concentration of asphaltenes in heavy or extra heavy oil, and they usually remain stable under normal conditions. But this relative stability may be modified if there is a change in oil temperature and pressure. As a representative sample,
It is possible to classify the types of oils as shown in Table 1.
As mentioned above, heavy and extra heavy oil have higher contents of asphaltenes, so any unbalance may generate a major problem in its production and transportation in pipelines when a deposition of heavy fractions occurs, producing a high-viscosity effects due to its density and API gravity.
In order to improve control of the asphaltenes, an additive compound was prepared which is formed by the following substances shown in Table 2.
Describing the effect of each element on the asphaltenes.
This additive compound when prepared at a temperature of 25° C., has the following characteristics:
Melting point: −5° C.
Density: 0.86 g/ml
Three doses with the additive compound were prepared as an example in heavy oil with the following characteristics:
Test temperature: 25° C.
Initial viscosity: 15,357 cP (centipoise)
Sediment percentage: 0.1%
Emulsion percentage: 0%
Water percentage: 1%
The results obtained in the test are described in Table 3, where it is possible to observe the viscosity reduction effect on asphaltene with the additive compound in heavy oil:
The dose of the asphaltene handler additive compound depends upon the physical characteristics of the oil in which it is applied. Another additional variable influencing the dosage is the desired added cost to each barrel of oil to be treated.
It is also important to point out that this additive compound produces a permanent effect in heavy oil, where the viscosity reduction does not have any reversible effect, as in the case of heating or steam injection methods, where the physical properties of the oil ultimately returns to their initial conditions before treatment.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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MX/a/2010/007188 | Jun 2010 | MX | national |
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind | 371c Date |
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PCT/MX2011/000036 | 3/23/2011 | WO | 00 | 5/14/2013 |
Publishing Document | Publishing Date | Country | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
WO2012/002790 | 1/5/2012 | WO | A |
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