IOR Surfactants
CRS® is a novel suite of surfactant formulations designed to increase oil recovery, especially from fractured and unconventional (shale) reservoirs. Specifically, CRS® products offered by ChemEOR are custom-designed multifunctional surfactant blends for enhanced stimulation/fracturing and hydrocarbon recovery efficiency from carbonate and shale oil/gas formations. In addition to preventing “water blockage” and improving flowback of spending stimulation fluids for the post-stimulation well clean up, the CRS® products also are optimized for promoting rapid spontaneous imbibition and altering the surface wettability of carbonate-based shale rock surfaces. Ultimately, CRS® offers an advanced IOR technology to enhance initial production (IP) as well as ultimate well productivity. The proven CRS® technology includes products customized for application in a number of different oil fields and basins, including Permian, Bakken, Eagle Ford and Canadian basins. As a full-spectrum product brand, CRS® are provided in a variety of forms, including those of environmentally-compliant biosurfactants, i.e., bioCRS; and those existing in the microemulsion or nanoemulsion forms, i.e. CRS ME; as well as those enhanced with the nano-scale particulates, i.e., nanoCRS.
Currently, surfactants used as additives in hydraulic fracturing fluids are primarily for promoting flow-back of injected aqueous fluids, often referred as “flowback agents”. Large amount of water-based fluids are injected downhole in well stimulation operations, including hydraulic fracturing of unconventional shale reservoirs. Aqueous solutions often become trapped and entrained within oil-bearing rock matrix, causing the reduction of the reservoir permeability, a formation-damage issue also known as “water blockage”. Different types of surfactants are added in the stimulation fluids to prevent or break the water-oil emulsion for cleaning up formation during or post stimulation. Surfactant products used for this purpose have also been referred to as “non-emulsifiers”.
However, by simply improving reservoir/fluid permeability alone is often not sufficient to achieve maximum hydrocarbon recovery, especially to recover oils that are sticking on the oil-bearing porous matrix. A fractured reservoir consists of two distinct elements: fractures and matrix. The fracture system is a series of interconnected cracks that can transmit fluids easily (high permeability), but make up only a small fraction of the total porosity. The matrix portion consists of the oil-bearing porous rock that typically has much lower permeability and has the bulk of the total porosity of the reservoir. The added surfactants shall also play important roles to alter the wettability of the rock surface, in particular carbonate fractured surface, from typically oil-wet to more water-wet or neutral conditions, so as to lift and mobilize the “trapped” oils from porous surfaces.
CRS® series consists of formulated multifunctional surfactant products, targeting improved oil recovery (IOR) from well stimulation processes, which are custom-designed for each reservoir conditions. In particular, a CRS® product serves purposes as both non-emulsifier and IOR agent to achieve maximum hydrocarbon recovery.
FIELD PROVEN
Proven product, effective in oil field operations.
BASIN SPECIFIC
Custom-designed for low porosity, low permeability carbonate and unconventional reservoirs.
PRODUCTION ENHANCEMENT
Increases oil production by extending the volume of reservoir treated. Promotes spontaneous imbibition and alters surface wettability to facilitate oil recovery.
FLUID COMPATIBILITY
Compatible with stimulation fluids and produced water.
PUMP ON-THE-FLY
Water soluble, low viscosity liquid compound that is easily metered and pumped with fracturing fluids.
COST-EFFECTIVE
Higher shale oil production payoff with lower doses used.