Biswal, Sibani Lisa2022-09-262022-052022-04-22May 2022Zhang, Zhuqing. "Characterizing Asphaltene Related Flow Assurance Problems with Microfluidics." (2022) Diss., Rice University. <a href="https://hdl.handle.net/1911/113365">https://hdl.handle.net/1911/113365</a>.https://hdl.handle.net/1911/113365Asphaltene deposition and emulsion plugging are significant contributors to oil production and transportation flow assurance problems. A better understanding of the physicochemical aspects of asphaltenes, such as their interfacial and transport properties, is required to better design industrial macroscale processes. Microfluidics has emerged as a new method to evaluate complex fluid flow in confined geometries. Also, microfluidic devices can capture the critical characteristics of reservoir rocks and provide novel insights into the transport, reactions, and chemical interactions governing fluids used in the oil and gas industry. Dual-perm and natural porous mimic microfluidic designs are applied to represent various flow conditions typically found in oil flow processes. High efficient, economically feasible solutions, including non-toxic microemulsion formulations, polymer-grafted nanoparticles, and chemical inhibitors, are designed for asphaltene mitigation and remediation. Furthermore, the organization of asphaltenes on interfaces is studied, using asphaltene mimic molecules as a comparison to natural asphaltenes to better understand emulsion stability. We provide insight to better design industrial treatment for crude oil demulsification and oil-water separation through a deeper understanding of asphaltene behaviors at interfaces.application/pdfengCopyright is held by the author, unless otherwise indicated. Permission to reuse, publish, or reproduce the work beyond the bounds of fair use or other exemptions to copyright law must be obtained from the copyright holder.AsphalteneMicrofluidicsThesis2022-09-26