Effective Viscosity in Porous Media and Applicable Limitations for Polymer Flooding of an Associative Polymer

Abstract

Hydrophobically associating polyacrylamide (HAPAM) is considered to be a promising candidate for polymer flooding because of its excellent apparent viscosifying capability. Compared with partially hydrolyzed polyacrylamide (HPAM), the resistance factor and residual resistance factor caused by HAPAM tend to be higher. However, the effective viscosity of HAPAM is lower than that of conventional polymer at a concentration of 2 000 mg/L. The dynamic retention capacity of HAPAM is about 2.3 times that of HPAM. The oil displacement efficiency of HAPAM is lower than that of conventional polymer at a concentration of 2 000 mg/L in the homogeneous sandpack model. The oil displacement efficiency of HAPAM is higher than that of HPAM only in the heterogeneous model (permeability ratio 2.8). Neither high nor low permeability ratios are good for the oil displacement efficiency of HAPAM.