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Updated: Jul 16, 2025
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Calcium Carbonate Formation in the Presence of Biopolymeric Additives
Published on: May 14, 2019
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Molecular Dynamics Simulation of Polyacrylamide Adsorption on Calcite.
Keat Yung Hue1, Jin Hau Lew1, Maung Maung Myo Thant2
1Department of Chemical Engineering, Imperial College London, London SW7 2AZ, UK.
Molecules (Basel, Switzerland)
|September 9, 2023
Summary
Hydrolyzed polyacrylamide with 33% charge density (HPAM33%) shows superior adsorption onto calcite, mitigating solids production in carbonate reservoirs. This polymer offers a promising solution for formation strengthening and reducing environmental waste.
Area of Science:
- Petroleum Engineering
- Materials Science
- Computational Chemistry
Background:
- Solids production in poorly consolidated carbonate reservoirs poses environmental risks.
- Formation-strengthening chemicals can mitigate these risks.
- Polyacrylamide-based polymers are potential candidates for such applications.
Purpose of the Study:
- To model and assess the interaction of polyacrylamide-based polymers with calcite using atomistic molecular dynamics.
- To determine the adsorption characteristics and binding energies of various polymers on calcite surfaces.
- To identify the most effective polymer for enhancing carbonate reservoir stability.
Main Methods:
- Atomistic molecular dynamics (MD) simulations were employed.
- The calcite (1 0 4) crystal plane was used as a surrogate for reservoir rock.
- Enhanced umbrella sampling was utilized for adsorption-free energy analysis.
Main Results:
- Polyacrylamide-based polymers exhibited favorable interactions with the calcite structure.
- Electrostatic attraction between functional groups and calcite contributed to adsorption.
- HPAM33% demonstrated the lowest free energy, indicating superior adsorption performance.
Conclusions:
- HPAM33% shows the most effective chemical adsorption onto calcite surfaces.
- This superior performance is attributed to the ionized acrylate monomer in HPAM33%.
- The findings support the use of HPAM33% for mitigating solids production in carbonate reservoirs.
