Effect of Physical Factors on Viscosity of Polyacrylamide Solution Prepared by Oilfield Produced Water

In the recent industrial practice, the produced water has been used for the preparation of polyacrylamide (PAM) for the enhancement of oil recovery in Chinese oilfields. With more affecting factors than the tap water, the produced water, originating from the existence of complicated constituents in the water, leads to the worth viscosity of the PAM solution. In this paper, the affecting factors were identified and evaluated by the analysis of the PAM operations of preparation, storage and production in Daqing oilfield. Effects of physical factors on PAM viscosity were studied in the lab test for understanding and controlling the viscosity. The results show that the dominant physical factors are composed of the heat, storage time, mechanical stress and photo/sonic radiation. Most notably viscosity degradation of PAM solution was exhibited by actions of most of the factors. By the results, the mechanism of the controlling viscosity was briefly proposed and discussed. These data can be provided and suitably specified for the benefit of polymer flooding production.