As a complex component of crude oil, asphaltenes determine the stability of emulsion . However, the mechanism of asphaltenes stabilize emulsion is still insufficient recognition due to the complexity of the molecular structure of asphaltenes. In this paper, the experiments and dissipative particle dynamics simulations were used to study the interfacial properties of asphaltenes. The adsorption of asphaltenes at the oil–water interface was studied by interfacial tension (IFT) experiments. A realistic molecular structure of asphaltene was constructed on the results of the characterization of the asphaltenes. The effects of asphaltenes concentration, temperature, and shear on the formation and stability of emulsion based on this molecular structure were investigated by simulations. The results show that the IFT decreases as asphaltenes concentration increases, while the droplet size of the emulsion decreases and becomes more uniformly distributed. Increasing the temperature enhances the interfacial activity of the asphaltenes, but also promotes its dissolution in the oil phase, which has a negative effect on reducing the IFT value and the stability of the emulsion. As the shear rate increases , the configuration of the emulsion changes from droplets to ellipsoids and rods, and the structure of the interfacial film is disrupted. This work provides useful insights into the mechanisms of asphaltenes concentration, temperature, and shear on the stability of the emulsion.
Pei Zhang,Hui Wang,Xia Liu,Xuefeng Shi,Jian Zhang,Guang Yang,Keji Sun,Jinben Wang
The dynamic surface tension and dilational viscoelasticity properties of amphiphilic polyamidoamine (PAMAM) dendrimers were investigated to probe the hydrophobic chain effect on the interfacial properties and the demulsification behaviors. The values of dynamic parameters n and t * representing diffusion speed of the molecules obtained according to the Rosen equation decreased with the increasing of bulk concentration. Taking the hydrophobic effect into consideration, the t * values decreased and n values increased with the increase of alkyl chain length, suggesting easier adsorption and faster diffusion for longer hydrophobic chain which was opposite to the tendency of traditional surfactants. Further dilational viscoelasticity studies demonstrated that the properties referring to adsorption and exchange-diffusion were probably affected by the aggregates conformation at the interface. Subsequently, from the demulsification experiments a conclusion can be drawn that the amphiphilic dendrimers with branched dendritic structure possesses superior properties of breaking W/O crude oil emulsions, showing a certain correlation to the dilational viscoelasticity properties.
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