Applications of magnetic nanoparticles in thermal enhanced oil recovery

Thermal enhanced oil recovery (TEOR) technique is among the most efficient and common methods to recover heavy and extraheavy crude oil by reducing their viscosities and making them easier to flow. However, the major challenge associated with the traditional TEOR methods (such as either steam/hot water injection or in situ combustion) is rapid heat loss at the early stage of heating during the contact of steam or hot water with in situ phases like oil, formation water, and reservoir rock. In the context of such limitations of these conventional techniques, magnetic nanoparticles have attracted researchers to focus on the application of these nanoparticles in TEOR techniques due to their high heat carrying capacity for maintaining the high steam quality over a longer period of time, so that a higher oil recovery efficiency can be achieved. Recently, a novel approach of the injectivity of magnetic nanoparticles into the subsurface has shown their utmost importance and proven to be much more effective as they generate local heat inside the reservoir as a consequent hysteresis loss when they are exposed to a high-frequency magnetic field oscillation. Moreover, less energy requirement, superior heating performance, high injectivity, and better heat propagation efficiency in much deeper regions located far away from the wellbore make this process more attractive. Despite the huge success of this novel method at laboratory stage, still it is far away from the actual field applications and requires much deeper investigations with proper understanding. Thus, this chapter starts with a brief introduction of traditional TEOR techniques followed by electromagnetic heating. Further, it discusses the potential of magnetic nanoparticles for TEOR projects. The responsible mechanisms for magnetic nanoparticles-assisted TEOR followed by controlling factors to optimize the efficiency of TEOR methods are also deliberated briefly. The challenges of magnetic nanoparticles transportation through porous media are explained precisely. The advantages and disadvantages of applications of magnetic nanoparticles based on economic viability and environmental sustainability are also considered. Along with these, recent advances in magnetic nanoparticles-assisted TEOR techniques are well documented. Finally, TEOR challenges using magnetic nanoparticles and the necessary future prospects of research are highlighted. © 2022 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.