A Novel Demulsifier Used to Separate Water from the Emulsion

Abstract

Recently, there has been interest in using chemical demulsifiers to separate the water phase from crude oil emulsion. Separating the water from the emulsion is crucial before transportation and refining to avoid complications from the water phase. This research introduces a novel chemical demulsifier, Poly (AAc-co-AAm) hydrogel, synthesised at Sebha University. Its characteristics were examined using the Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy test (FTIR). Its efficiency was tested against commercial demulsifiers (Emulsotron and Dmo-66813) used in some Libyan oil fields. The chosen concentrations for Poly (AAc-co-AAm) were 0.5%, 1%, and 2%, while commercial demulsifiers were tested based on the standard method in the oil field. The results revealed that Poly (AAc-co-AAm) outperformed the commercial demulsifiers in terms of separation time, volume, and quality. Notably, the 0.5% concentration of Poly (AAc-co-AAm) provided the best separation results.