Zhao, J orcid.org/0000-0002-8714-7798, Yao, G orcid.org/0000-0002-3292-2152 and Wen, D orcid.org/0000-0003-3492-7982 (2020) Salinity-dependent alterations of static and dynamic contact angles in oil/brine/calcite systems: A molecular dynamics simulation study. Fuel, 272. 117615. ISSN 0016-2361
Abstract
In this study, classic Molecular Dynamics (MD) simulations with established force fields were first performed to investigate the salinity effects on the static contact angle of a n-decane droplet immersing in water atmosphere within a calcite nanochannel to advance our microscopic understanding on low salinity flooding. By applying an external body force, dynamic contact angle of n-decane in water phase was also studied in the presence of various salt concentrations based on Non-Equilibrium MD simulation. The predicted n-decane static contact angles are around 59.68° ± 0.26°, which agree well with experimental results in previous studies. A reduction of the static contact angle of the nanodrop is observed with the increase of salinity, which implies an enhancement of surface hydrophilicity. Under flow conditions, the deformation of nanodrop, as evidenced by the centre of mass analysis, becomes faster by increasing the salt concentration. The recovery/mobility of the n-decane nanodrop is, however, still significantly restricted by the adsorption interaction between the substrate and n-decane phase, which may lead to droplet snapping off and/or breaking up into small droplets.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: | |
Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2020,Elsevier. This is an author produced version of an article published in Fuel. Uploaded in accordance with the publisher's self-archiving policy. |
Keywords: | Low salinity flooding; Molecular dynamics; Contact angle; Wettability; Enhanced oil recovery |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Leeds |
Academic Units: | The University of Leeds > Faculty of Engineering & Physical Sciences (Leeds) > School of Chemical & Process Engineering (Leeds) The University of Leeds > Faculty of Engineering & Physical Sciences (Leeds) |
Funding Information: | Funder Grant number EU - European Union 648375 |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Publications |
Date Deposited: | 05 May 2020 09:29 |
Last Modified: | 31 Mar 2021 00:38 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | Elsevier |
Identification Number: | 10.1016/j.fuel.2020.117615 |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:159960 |