SOME MECHANISMS OF CRUDE OIL BRINE/SOLID INTERACTIONS/

Mechanisms by which crude oil components may adsorb on high energy min eral surfaces include polar, acid/base, and ion-binding interactions. Surface precipitation of asphaltic material can further alter surface wetting. Design of controlled experiments to investigate the contribut ions of different mechanisms is hindered by the lack of simple, well-c haracterized analogs for crude oils that show even qualitatively simil ar interfacial properties. As an alternative, we observe the wettabili ty altering tendencies of a variety of crude oils with the aim of rela ting the fluid/solid interactions to crude oil composition. The mixtur es of compounds in crude oils, variability of samples, and changes tha t can occur during storage, all add to the uncertainties of mechanisti c studies with crude oils. Nevertheless, consistent trends can be iden tified. (C) 1998 Published by Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserve d.