Application of Electrokinetics for Enhanced Oil Recovery - Electrokinetics for Petroleum and Environmental Engineers - page 142

5000

Viscosity = -65.444Days + 4520.345

California Heavy Crude BB
California Heavy Crude EE

4000

3000

2000

Viscosity = -23.718Days + 2635.115

1000

0

0 10 20 30

Days of Electrochemical Treatment

40 50 60

Figure 3.26 California, USA, Heavy Crude viscosity changes during DCEOR laboratory
tests (after Wittle et al., 2008a, 2008b, 2008c, & 2011)

1.0E-04

Start of EO at 5VDC
@ 4265 min

1.0E-05

EO at
10VDC

EO at
35VDC

Hydraulic gradient

1.0E-06

Hydraulic gradient

1.0E-07

0 2000 4000

Time, min

6000 8000

Figure 3.27 Changes in effective permeability, due to the passage of DC current (after,
Pamukcu, and Pervizpour, 1997)

3.12.1 Electrokinetics and Effective Permeability

Figure 3.27 illustrates the effect of DC current application on fluid flow
in a micro-darcy fine grained silty-clay. The effective permeability, in this
laboratory test, increases 1 to 1.5 orders of magnitude, when electrical
current is applied. This is consistent with the approximately 60m rise in
the fluid level of a monitoring well, during the Lloydminster Heavy Oil
Belt, DCEOR field demonstration, and the USC electro-osmosis results
described earlier and with the results of Chilingar et al. (1970).