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.

Nanotechnology is a common word used by academia which is referred to the applied nanoscience conducted at nanoscale (1–100 nm) for variety of industrial applications. Application of nanotechnology in various fields is increasing extensively resulting in an enormous amount of publications in the distinct field. Nanoparticles (NPs) possess unique properties due to their larger surface area which leads to prolong application in multifold. Researchers working in enhanced oil recovery (EOR) areas are trying to get rid of challenges faced by the oil and gas companies for crude oil production. This chapter, therefore, focuses on work carried out by the researchers on chemical and rarely on thermal, gas injection, and biological EOR methods using NPs. Chemical enhanced oil is recovery (CEOR) methods taken into consideration due to their popularity in oilfields than the other existing methods. Viscosity, interfacial tension (IFT), and wettability are the major influencing factors for EOR. The authors intend to make the reader understand the pore-scale mechanism behind the enhanced oil recovery in the presence of NPs. In the early stage of enhanced oil recovery, it is essential to understand the properties of various NPs. Literature review reveals that properties of NPs mostly depend on methods they are prepared. Hence, at the beginning of the chapter, the types of NPs, preparation, and their characterization are explained briefly with the application of various nanoparticles in CEOR. Limitation of NPs application in chemical EOR area is spelled out clearly with the recommendation at the end.