Enhanced microbial degradation of waxy crude oil: A review on current status and future perspective

Most of the crude oil reservoirs in the world are getting matured leading to the increased production and deposition of long chain paraffins (wax) at subsurface and surface facilities creating a challenge for flow assurance and safer operation. Deposition of wax on the inner walls of the pipelines tends to decrease the flow of crude oil thereby causing billions of dollars of loss. This article reviews in detail about the various aspects of the microbial degradation of waxy crude oil, along with different mechanisms involved in the hydrocarbon degradation. In addition, the article acts as a guide to screen the microorganism suitable for different environmental conditions for their applications in pipelines, oil spill remediation and microbial-based enhanced oil recovery technique to waxy and heavy oil reservoirs for environmentally safe operation.