Inhibitors for organics solubilized in produced water

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9656889-B2
Application number	US-201314012260-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Aug 28, 2013
Priority date	Aug 28, 2012
Publication date	May 23, 2017
Grant date	May 23, 2017

Abstract

A surface active compound is supplied into contact with an oilfield production fluid that comprises a mixture of water and oil including water soluble organics. The surface active compound comprises at least one alkoxylate chain and at least one end group attached to each of the at least one alkoxylate chain. The surface active compound is supplied into the oilfield production fluid at a dosage rate that is effective to self-associate at interfaces between the water and oil and inhibit the water soluble organics in the oil from entering the water when the oilfield production fluid is depressurized.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method for treating an oilfield production fluid, comprising:
supplying at least one surface active compound into contact with an oilfield production fluid comprising a mixture of water and oil including water-soluble organics, wherein the at least one surface active compound comprises amino groups, each amino group being linked to at least one alkoxylate chain, and at least one sulfosuccinate end group attached to each of the at least one alkoxylate chain, the sulfosuccinate end group having protonizeable carboxylate and sulfonate functionality, and depressurizing the oilfield production fluid, wherein the at least one surface active compound self-associates at interfaces between the water and oil and inhibits the water-soluble organics in the oil from entering the water when the oilfield production fluid is depressurized.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the oil includes water-soluble naphthenic acids.

3. The method of claim 1 , where the alkoxylate chain includes more propylene oxide, butylene oxide or a combination thereof than ethylene oxide so that the at least one surface active compound is lipophilic.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the at least one surface active compound includes from 2 to 10 alkoxylate chains.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the at least one surface active compound is added into contact with the mixture of oil and water at a dosage rate between 1 and 5000 ppm.

6. The method of claim 1 , further comprising the step of separating the oil and the water after the at least one surface active compound is supplied into contact with the mixture of oil and water.

7. A method for treating an oilfield production fluid, comprising:
supplying at least one surface active compound into contact with an oilfield production fluid comprising a mixture of water and oil including water-soluble organics, wherein the at least one surface active compound is diethylenetriamine alkoxylate sulfosuccinate, ethylenediamine alkoxylate sulfosuccinate, triethylenetriamine alkoxylate sulfosuccinate, or bis(hexamethylene)triamine alkoxylate sulfosuccinate, and depressurizing the oilfield production fluid, wherein the at least one surface active compound self-associates at interfaces between the water and oil and inhibits the water-soluble organics in the oil from entering the water when the oilfield production fluid is depressurized.

8. The method of claim 7 , wherein the at least one surface active compound is diethylenetriamine alkoxylate sulfosuccinate.

9. The method of claim 7 , wherein the at least one surface active compound is ethylenediamine alkoxylate sulfosuccinate.

10. The method of claim 7 , wherein the at least one surface active compound is triethylenetriamine alkoxylate sulfosuccinate.

11. The method of claim 7 , wherein the at least one surface active compound is bis(hexamethylene)triamine alkoxylate sulfosuccinate.

Assignees

• Ecolab Usa Inc

Inventors

• Lucente-Schultz Rebecca M
• Bosch Ronald O
• Bhandari Manojkumar
• Perry Robert

Classifications

• C02F1/40

  Devices for separating or removing fatty or oily substances or similar floating material (cleaning or keeping clear the surface of open water from oil or like materials E02B15/04; devices in sewers for separating liquid or solid substances from sewage E03F5/14, e.g. for use in drains leading to the sewer E03F5/16) · CPC title

• C02F2305/04

  Surfactants, used as part of a formulation or alone · CPC title

• C02F2101/34

  containing oxygen · CPC title

• B01D17/04

  Breaking emulsions · CPC title

• E21B43/00 Primary

  Methods or apparatus for obtaining oil, gas, water, soluble or meltable materials or a slurry of minerals from wells (applicable only to water E03B) · CPC title