Comparison of Cloud Point Changes and Surfactant Decomposition Under Conditions of the Ekofisk Reservoir

Abstract

This study was conducted as part of a much larger project at Phillips Petroleum in Bartlesville, OK which focused on the use of wettabiJity reversal to increase oil production from the Ekofisk reservoir in the Norwegian fields. This wettability reversal work in the Ekofisk reservoir involves the use of surfactants that must be stable under it's elevated temperature. This portion of the work was conducted to test the usefulness of cloud point measurement as a proposed surfactant stability indicator by comparing changes in surfactant cloud points after aging to their stability as measured by more traditional methods.