... the potential for surfactant flooding ( Santanna, 2009 ; Huang and Dong, 2004 ; Kumar and Mohanty, 2011 ) and polymer flooding ( Seright, 2010 ; Wang et al ., 2010; Sheng, 2011 ) in heavy oil systems. Most of the laboratory work done in this area has focused on tests in linear core flooding systems...

... with the paraffin molecules with the aid of its hanging chains to avoid Cristal growth on the tubing or flowline surface. Among them are the Polymers, Co-polymers and Esters. Low concentrations are required. Are known also as pour point depressants. – Dispersants: neutralize the forces that bind the paraffin...

.... Divalent cations, such as Ca 2+ , Mg 2+ etc, influence the hydrolysis of polyacrylamides and thus their solution stability or tendency to flocculate. Cationic polymers are frequently used as flocculants in the treatment of water to remove solids. Cations attached to the polymeric chain allow the polymer...

... 1.5 wt% Na 2 CO 3 , 0.2 wt% surfactant and 1,500 ppm polymer, was injected to mobilize residual oil chased by 0.35 PV injection of 750 ppm polymeric solution prepared in LSW (TDS=215 ppm). Finally, chemical flooding was followed by 2 PV of LSW water injection until oil production ceased. In this set...

... but this is no longer the case; several heavy oil polymer floods have proven successful and more are in the planning stages. In the US alone several billion barrels of oil could be targeted; in the rest of the world and in Latin America in particular the potential target is also probably large but mostly unknown...