Study of heterogeneous reservoir effects on surfactant flooding in consideration of surfactant adsorption reversibility

In this study, effects of surfactant adsorption and desorption on oil production were investigated in laboratory scale by using Sodium Dodecyl Benzene Sulfonate and Berea sandstone. The maximum adsorption-desorption values were measured as 57.7 mg/100g and 47.9 mg/100g of rock, respectively. Based on those measurement results, numerical reservoir simulations were performed with a commercial simulator, STARS, to discuss about effects of the degree of surfactant adsorption reversibility. Reservoir heterogeneity was also taken into consideration by comparing to that of homogenous reservoir. The numerical simulation results showed that the reservoir heterogeneity reduced oil recovery factor by up to 7.4% comparing to homogenous reservoir, but the effects of reversibility of surfactant adsorption on oil recovery are different due to reservoir types.