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Updated: Jul 16, 2026
10:38
Measurement of the Rheology of Crude Oil in Equilibrium with CO2 at Reservoir Conditions
Published on: June 6, 2017
Viscosity Reduction Mechanism of Heavy Oil Using Supercritical CO2: A Molecular Dynamics Simulation
Jiatong Tan1, Bowen Wu1, Zehong Wang2
1Petroleum Engineering School, Southwest Petroleum University, Chengdu610500, China.
Langmuir : the ACS Journal of Surfaces and Colloids
|July 14, 2026
Summary
Supercritical CO2 injection reduces heavy oil viscosity by interacting with oil components. This molecular dynamics study reveals how temperature and pressure influence this process for enhanced oil recovery and carbon sequestration.
Area of Science:
- Petroleum Engineering
- Chemical Engineering
- Computational Chemistry
Background:
- Heavy oil reserves constitute 70% of global oil.
- Supercritical CO2 (scCO2) injection offers solutions for heavy oil recovery and carbon sequestration.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the microscopic mechanisms of scCO2 interaction with heavy oil.
- To analyze the effects of temperature and pressure on scCO2-heavy oil systems.
Main Methods:
- Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations were used.
- An scCO2-heavy oil system was constructed using ZD crude oil SARA components.
- Analysis included radial distribution function (RDF), mean square displacement (MSD), diffusion coefficient, cohesive energy density (CED), and solubility parameter.
Main Results:
- scCO2 preferentially aggregates at the oil-gas interface and penetrates heavy oil.
- scCO2 induces swelling, phase separation, and selective extraction of saturates and aromatics.
- Temperature and pressure significantly influence scCO2 solubility, intermolecular interactions, and diffusion.
Conclusions:
- scCO2 injection effectively reduces heavy oil viscosity through specific molecular interactions.
- The findings provide theoretical support for scCO2 flooding in heavy oil reservoirs.
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