Application of Augmented Water Flooding Using Ultrasound Energy to Improve Oil Recovery

The application of ultrasound energy in improving oil recovery is an emerging technique, it has been tested in laboratories and some field applications in different parts of the world. In this study, Nigerian crude oil of 4.21 cSt viscosity and sandstone rock samples were tested using a designed and constructed experimental rig. The rig is an analogue of a standard core flooding set up and works on the principle of fluid flow in porous media. Furthermore, a modeled equation was developed to better understand the effects of power and time on the volume of oil recovered at a constant ultrasound frequency. Results obtained show a positive impact in the recovery of residual oil during waterflooding with the assisted ultrasound energy. About 2-fold increase in the recovery of oil was observed when the ultrasound energy was applied to augment the waterflooding process. Model equations developed were found to be adequate because the adjusted and predicted R-squared values show reasonable agreement (R-adjusted = 0.9993, R-Predicted = 0.9974).