摘要：As a key issue in the flow assurance of wax-containing crude oils, the microscopic mechanism of wax deposition in multiphase pipelines is still unclear. Based on macroscopic experimental data, two forms of crystallized wax have been found under an oil-water emulsion, including adsorbed wax on the interface of water droplets and suspended wax in the bulk oil phase, which are the important factors influencing wax deposition. However, the micro-formation mechanism of the adsorbed & suspended wax is not elucidated. In this work, molecular dynamics simulations are used to investigate the micro-structure characteristics of the adsorbed & suspended wax in the oil-water emulsion containing surfactant Span60. A method is proposed to quantitatively calculate the distributions of the adsorbed & suspended wax and the percentage of wax adsorption area at the oil-water interface. The results indicate that surfactant with the hydrophilic end will insert into the water phase and the trailing hydrophobic end stretching will point to the oil phase during co-crystallizing with wax molecules. Meanwhile, the interface tension is further reduced by tilting the adsorbed wax tail chain to enhance the adsorption stability. Based on the complicated influence of surfactants on wax adsorption, the quantitative distribution characteristics of the adsorbed & suspended wax in the oil-water emulsion are complex under different wax carbon numbers and surfactant/wax contents. This microscopic investigation of wax distribution in oil-water emulsion can support the establishment of better strategies for solving the wax deposition problem in multiphase flow. 漏 2024 Elsevier Ltd

ISSN号：0016-2361

卷、期、页：卷374

发表日期：2024-10-15

期刊分区（SCI为中科院分区）：一区

收录情况：SCI（科学引文索引印刷版）,EI（工程索引）,SCIE（科学引文索引网络版）

发表期刊名称：Fuel

参与作者：廖青云,姚海元

通讯作者：朱羽墨,李匀超,隋金昊,刘礼豪,廖那伽

第一作者：史博会,宋尚飞,宫敬

论文类型：期刊论文

论文概要：朱羽墨,史博会,廖青云,宋尚飞,李匀超,隋金昊,刘礼豪,廖那伽,姚海元,宫敬，Molecular dynamics simulation of wax micro-structure characteristics in the oil-water emulsion，Fuel，2024，卷374

论文题目：Molecular dynamics simulation of wax micro-structure characteristics in the oil-water emulsion