Inhibiting Asphaltene Deposition Using Polymer-Functionalized Nanoparticles in Microfluidic Porous Media

Asphaltenes are the heaviest and most polarizable fractions of crude oil. During the oil production process, changes in the temperature, pressure, and oil composition can destabilize asphaltenes. This destabilization leads to asphaltene aggregation and deposition, which can cause major clogging problems in both the wellbore and near-wellbore regions as well as the production facilities. In this study, we developed and investigated the application of acrylic acid and 2-acrylanmido-2-methylpropanesulfonic acid (AA–AMPS)-functionalized magnetic nanoparticles as a surface coating in inhibiting asphaltene deposition. The use of the porous media microfluidic platform allows for efficient evaluation of the effectiveness of the nanoparticle coating in mitigating asphaltene deposition in various crude oils. We demonstrated that the nanoparticle coating is effective in inhibiting asphaltene deposition, showing up to a 75% improvement in permeability change. The study also explores the dynamics of asphaltene aggregation and deposition in different crude oils. We identified factors such as asphaltene aggregate size as well as the physical and chemical characteristics of the aggregates that can determine the effectiveness of different mitigation methods.