Vol. 337 No. 5 (2026)
DOI https://doi.org/10.18799/24131830/2026/5/5209
Development of an environmentally friendly composition based on biodegradable surfactants and silicon oxide nanoparticles for enhancing oil recovery
Relevance. Enhanced oil recovery methods have attracted considerable attention worldwide due to the significant reduction in available oil resources. However, there are many problems and limitations, such as high costs, low sweep efficiency and possible formation damage, that hinder the improvement of these methods. The article discusses issues related to increasing the efficiency of oil displacement. Aim. Development of an environmentally friendly composition based on biodegradable surfactants and silicon oxide nanoparticles to enhance oil recovery. Methods. Experimental studies, statistical methods. Results and conclusions. The article considers the efficiency of using "green" surfactants for flooding formations of Eastern Siberian fields. The authors have tested and improved the methodology for assessing the efficiency of oil-washing ability of surfactants. Based on the results of the work, the authors determined and assessed the characteristics of the considered non-ionic surfactants in terms of increasing oil recovery. When using solutions of the considered surfactants as a displacement agent, it was possible to achieve oil recovery indices higher than when using formation water. This proves the feasibility of using "green" surfactants to increase oil recovery. Analysis of the research results showed that modification of surfactant solutions with nanoparticles allows in some cases further increasing the oil displacement coefficient. The addition of nanoparticles to TWEEN-80 and Polysorbate-20 solutions led to a significant increase in the oil displacement coefficient compared to the original solutions. In particular, it was shown that the addition of 10 nm silicon oxide nanoparticles to a 0.5% concentration of TWEEN-80 solution increases the oil displacement coefficient by 12.5% compared to formation water, and by 9.4% compared to a TWEEN solution without nanoadditives.
For citation: Zhigarev V.A., Lesik E.I., Kuptsov M.A. Development of an environmentally friendly composition based on biodegradable surfactants and silicon oxide nanoparticles for enhancing oil recovery. Bulletin of the Tomsk Polytechnic University. Geo Assets Engineering, 2026, vol. 337, no. 5, pp. 36-44. https://doi.org/10.18799/24131830/2026/5/5209
Keywords:
"green" surfactants, nanoparticles, enhanced oil recovery, oil displacement coefficient, displacing agents, chemical methods of enhanced oil recovery, tertiary methods
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