Research Projects

Nanoparticles have significant applications in various sectors, including drug delivery, cosmetics, nano sensors, food engineering, diagnosis, tissue engineering, and electronic circuits. They are emerging as a cutting-edge technology in the oil and gas industries to recover trapped residual oil. However, the technology is not fully developed or understood due to the heterogeneity and complexities involved in oil reservoir systems. Researchers have reported improvements in oil recovery using nanoparticles, but detail understanding and information required for large-scale execution is still missing. The interfacial properties of oil-water interfacial systems are critical parameters, with insignificant information available. Factors such as strength of interfacial film, binding and desorption energy, chemical packing, orientation and rotation, capillary interaction, and interfacial rheology have not been explored to an understandable limit. These factors are governed by the physiochemical properties of nanoparticles, chemicals, complex crude compositions, and reservoir properties. Particle properties include multidimensional, hydrophilic, hydrophobic, and Janus nature, surface charge, shape, size, surface anisotropy, and surface roughness. Chemicals like surfactants and polymers determine the suspension of nanoparticles by electrostatic forces, modify particle wettability, and control synergistic interfacial interaction. Complex crude compositions like saturates, Asphaltenes, Resins, and Aromatics (sARA) content can regulate interfacial behavior and change the game. Rock properties like porosity, permeability, pores size distribution, rock mineralogy, and reservoir charge can also regulate nanoparticle flow. Mechanistic investigation is expected to provide insights into existing literature gaps.