Water-in-Oil Emulsions Stabilized by Asphaltenes Obtained from Venezuelan Crude Oils

Synthesis of Interfacially Active and Magnetically Responsive Nanoparticles for Multiphase Separation Applications

“…As an example, the interfacially active M‐EC nanoparticles were applied to enhancing the coalescence of stable water droplets emulsified in asphaltene‐in‐toluene solution and the separation of water droplets from the organic phase by magnetic separation. As shown in Figure a,b, a toluene/water (4:1, w/w) emulsion is prepared with asphaltene (0.2 wt% of asphaltene in toluene) as the emulsion stabilizer 31. This emulsion is stable for at least 30 min without any visible phase separation.…”

Role of Aqueous Phase Chemistry, Interfacial Film Properties, and Surface Coverage in Stabilizing Water-in-Bitumen Emulsions

“…Several authors have reported significant decrease in interfacial tension between water and crude oils at high and low pH, confirming that the acidic and basic functional groups contained in the asphaltenes can be ionized at different pH ( Kokal, 2002;Langevin et al, 2004;Poteau et al, 2005;Arla et al, 2007;Jestin et al, 2007;Elsharkawy et al, 2008;Aguilera et al, 2010;Ortiz et al, 2010). The ionized asphaltenes likely adsorb more strongly at the interface than their corresponding non-ionized form, both reducing interfacial tension and contributing to irreversible film formation.…”

“…Several authors have reported a high increase in emulsion stability at high pH and a moderate or strong increase at very low pH ( Kokal, 2002;Langevin et al, 2004;Poteau et al, 2005;Arla et al, 2007;Jestin et al, 2007;Elsharkawy et al, 2008;Aguilera et al, 2010;Ortiz et al, 2010). For instance, Poteau et al (2005) measured the stability of waterin-oil emulsions at different pH of aqueous phase.…”

Fabrication of New Demulsifiers Employing the Waste Polyethylene Terephthalate and their Demulsification Efficiency for Heavy Crude Oil Emulsions

“…The formation of crude oil emulsions is one the major obstacles faced by the transportation and refining of recovered crude oil [21]. The surfactants added during enhanced oil recovery along with the presence of natural emulsifiers in the crude oil, such as asphaltenes, resins, and solid particles, can promote the formation of very stable emulsions [21][22][23][24][25][26][27][28][29]. Several techniques have been employed for the demulsification of crude oil emulsions, Molecules 2021, 26, 589. https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules26030589 https://www.mdpi.com/journal/molecules including chemical, biological, and physical methods.…”