Jitendra Sangwai

The relevance of nanotechnology in the field of energy resources has been growing at a swift pace. The term ‘catalyst’ has a whole new outlook since the foundation of nanomaterials in process industries. Nanocatalysts, in general, play a vital role in the improvement of resource handling and process efficiency. New prospects to achieve sustainable processing have been made possible through the progress in nanotechnology. These developments of nanomaterials in the energy sector have also reached the parts of the oil and gas industry. In downstream processing of oil and gases, the use of nanocatalysts is commonplace. As the focus towards the production of heavy crude oil has seen an uprising, the use of nanomaterials has shown a promising scope in altering heavy oil properties to favour the oil recovery mechanisms. The majority of the reservoirs around the world have volumes of heavy crude oil with only a few effective ways to produce it. With the ever-growing energy demands it is of due importance that the focus has been shifted to implement nanotechnology in heavy oil production. This chapter discusses the role of nanomaterials in the development of heavy oil recovery. Different types of mechanisms that explain the effects of nanoparticles and their interaction with oil and its constituents are highlighted. The effects coupled with the use of various thermal treatment schemes have been explained. The scope of applicability in the field of flow assurance has been discussed. The use of nanoparticles in improving the existing EOR applications and devising new ways to achieve the production of heavy fractions.

Heavy oil reservoirs are one of the largest remaining crude oil reserves in the world. Often, the inherent properties of heavy and extra-heavy oils cause major problems in production and transportation processes. The viscosity of these oils makes their treatment difficult with conventional means. Use of solvents to dissolve the heavy oils has been a traditional method to deal with these problems. Improvement in flow through solvent treatment can be further optimized through the use of nanoparticles. Literature works have suggested that nanoparticles have catalyzing effects which affect the polar species of heavy oils. This study is aimed at examining the effects of metallic nanoparticles in altering the viscous property of heavy fraction. Use of thermal stimulation in association with solvents are explored as a means to achieve viscosity reduction. These applications can be further extended into the areas of flow assurance.