Recent Advances in Enhanced Polyamidoamine Inhibitors for Silicate Scales in the Petroleum Upstream
Authors: Tan Bee Chea , Mohd Saaid Ismail , Jufar Shiferaw Regassa , Zainal Suzalina , Ahmed Awadelseed Abdelazim Abbas 
Published: July 2024

Chemical flooding is regarded as a promising enhanced oil recovery technique to recover more hydrocarbon from reservoirs. However, the dissolution of quartz minerals in a highly alkaline environment poses the risk of silicate scaling near the production well region from the mixing of two different waters. Commercial scale inhibitors are effective, but they are also harmful to the environment. This paper aims to provide insights into current advances in environment-friendly or “green” scale inhibitors for petroleum upstream. Previous research works have demonstrated that green chemicals are effective in mitigating silicate, carbonate, and sulfide scales. Polyamidoamine or amide-based inhibitors have been widely investigated in recent literature due to several advantages. The addition of anionic compounds in these inhibitors enhanced scale inhibition efficiency by roughly 10%. Nevertheless, the reported findings were deliberated for industrial wastewater treatment. Meanwhile, understanding the performance of polyamidoamine or amide-based scale inhibitors in petroleum upstream is inadequate to a certain extent. The formation process of silicate scales inside a reservoir is rather complicated by looking at the influence of water salinity, composition of brine, temperature, pressure, and rock type. Hence, it is essential to study and develop green scale inhibitors that are effective and environmentally friendly to meet increasingly stringent disposal regulations in the petroleum industry.
ABSTRAK: Pembanjiran kimia merupakan teknik pemulihan minyak. Ia berpotensi dalam memperoleh lebih banyak hidrokarbon dari takungan. Namun, pelarut mineral kuarza dalam persekitaran beralkali tinggi memberi risiko penumpukan silikat berhampiran kawasan takungan pengeluaran. Ia disebabkan oleh pencampuran dua jenis cecair berbeza. Perencat penumpukan silikat komersial adalah berkesan, tetapi sangat berbahaya pada alam sekitar. Kajian ini bertujuan bagi menambahbaik kemajuan perencat silikat mesra alam terkini atau perencat silikat hijau bagi bidang saliran petroleum. Kajian terdahulu telah membuktikan bahawa bahan kimia mesra alam adalah berkesan dalam pengurangan penumpukan silikat, karbonat dan sulfida. Perencat poliamidoamina atau perencat bersumber amida telah dikaji secara meluas dalam beberapa kajian sejak kebelakangan ini kerana kelebihannya yang banyak. Penambahan sebatian anionik dalam perencat ini mampu meningkatkan keberkesanan perencat silikat sebanyak 10%. Namun, laporan kajian terdahulu adalah khusus bagi rawatan sisa air industri. Sementara itu, pemahaman tentang prestasi perencat silikat bersumberkan poliamidoamina atau perencat bersumber amida dalam saliran petroleum masih tidak mencukupi. Proses pembentukan penumpukan silikat dalam takungan adalah agak rumit berdasarkan faktor saliniti air, komposisi air garam, suhu, tekanan dan jenis batuan. Oleh itu, kajian dan pembangunan berkesan tentang perencat silikat mesra alam adalah penting bagi memenuhi peraturan pelupusan sisa yang semakin ketat dalam industri petroleum.