Profile control process for use under high temperature reservoir conditions
US4974677A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventor
Key dates
| Filing date | Oct 16, 1989 |
| Grant date | Dec 4, 1990 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Oct 16, 2009 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC E)Fixed Constructions
- CPC primaryE21B43/24
- WIPO fieldCivil engineering
- WIPO sectorOther fields
Abstract
A process for selectively plugging zones of high permeability within an oil-bearing subterranean formation. The process of the present invention comprises the steps of injecting into the formation a high temperature selective gel-forming composition comprising an aqueous solution of a high molecular weight polyacrylamide having 30 percent or less hydrolysis, and an effective amount of a crosslinking agent which is a mixture of a phenolic component and an aldehyde, and gelling the solution in-situ by thermally reacting said gel-forming composition at a temperature effective to promote gelation. The resultant gel is exceptionally thermally stable and, therefore, can be used as an effective profile control agent in all thermal enhanced oil recovery operations, including steam flooding. Also provided is a process for recovering oil from a subterranean oil-bearing formation.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.