Method and composition for inhibiting foam in a hydrocarbon mixture

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9453173-B2
Application number	US-201214366782-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 17, 2012
Priority date	Dec 21, 2011
Publication date	Sep 27, 2016
Grant date	Sep 27, 2016

Abstract

A method of inhibiting the formation of foam in a mixture comprising water and hydrocarbons, the method comprising contacting the mixture with a composition which comprises at least one ionic liquid. The ionic liquid is preferably a poly(hydroxycarboxylic acid) amide salt derivative or an alkyl ethoxylate phosphate salt.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method of treating hydrocarbons produced from a hydrocarbon production well, the method comprising:
injecting an ionic liquid comprising treatment fluid into a production well, wherein the ionic liquid comprises a poly(hydroxycarboxylic acid) amide salt derivative having the chemical formula [Y—CO[O—A—CO] n —Z r —R + ] m pX q− , wherein Y is hydrogen or hydrocarbyl group, A is a divalent hydrocarbyl group, n is from 1 to 100, m is from 1 to 4, q is from 1 to 4 and p is an integer such that pq =m, Z is a divalent bridging group which is attached to the carbonyl group through a nitrogen atom, r is 0 or 1, R + is an ammonium group and X q− is an anion and
contacting a mixture comprising water and hydrocarbons with the ionic liquid comprising treatment fluid.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein R + is a quaternary ammonium group.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein A is an arylene, alkylene, or alkenylene group.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein A is an arylene alkylene, or alkenylene group containing in the range of from 12 to 20 carbon atoms.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the chemical formula has 8 to 14 carbon atoms connected directly between the carbonyl group and the oxygen atom derived from the hydroxyl group.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein n is in the range of from 3 to 10.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein Y is a stearyl group, a 12-hydroxystearyl group, an oleyl group, or a 12-hydroxyoleyle group.

Assignees

• Shell Oil Co

Inventors

• Huo Zhongxin
• Shea Timothy Michael
• Kuijvenhoven Cornelis Antonius Theodorus
• Zhang Ying

Classifications

• B01D19/02 Primary

  Foam dispersion or prevention (during boiling B01B1/02; during fermentation C12) · CPC title

• C10L1/2641 Primary

  oxygen bonds only · CPC title

• C10L1/188

  Carboxylic acids; {metal} salts thereof {(C10L1/1802, C10L1/1805, C10L1/1808, C10L1/1811, C10L1/1814, C10L1/1817 take precedence)} · CPC title

• C09K8/035 Primary

  Organic additives · CPC title

• C10G33/04

  with chemical means · CPC title