Data for: Enhanced thermal conductivity and reduced viscosity of aegirine-based VR/VGO nanofluids for thermal enhanced oil recovery application

The depleting of the available conventional energy supplies together with an industrial shift towards unconventional resources like heavy oil/bitumen has become more pronounced. The steam-based heating methods are primarily used by the oil industry for the heavy oil/bitumen recovery. However, the thermal recovery methods are energy-intensive and have limited applications, especially for both thin and deep reservoirs. Therefore, there is a high priority need to investigate alternative approaches. To date, the most progressive alternative technique that has proven its potential during pilot-plant tests is nanocatalytic in-situ heavy oil/bitumen upgrading via hot-fluid injection. Hence, the continual improvement of this technique is of utmost importance. This study aims to propose a new injecting nanofluid system suitable for high-temperature injection into the reservoir with consecutive heavy oil/bitumen upgrading and recovery. Here we report a new type of copper-based nanofluid using a blend of vacuum gas oil (VGO) and vacuum residue (VR) as the mother solvent. The nanoparticles were prepared by low-temperature hydrothermal synthesis route. Their detailed surface, morphology and size characterizations were achieved by X-ray diffraction, dynamic light scattering and scanning electron microscopy. The stable nanofluids were prepared by dispersing copper-based nanoparticles in a mixture of VGO and VR, at different ratios and temperatures. A set of measurements to determine the thermal conductivity and viscosity of the nanofluid with different loading of nanoparticle were performed. The thermal conductivity values of nanofluid systems are substantially higher than that of the base fluids. The nanofluid for 2wt% of copper-doped aegirine nanoparticles dispersed in VGO and VGO/VR mixture exhibits a maximum thermal conductivity of 20% and 24%, respectively. It was found that the thermal conductivity of nanofluids increases with decreasing the hydrodynamic particle size. Moreover, the presence of chemo-physical interactions between nanoparticles and base fluid further enhances the thermal conductivity. Also, the temperature augmentation in a range from 80 to 110°C exhibited a positive effect on thermal conductivity enhancement of vacuum residue-based nanofluid system. This particular nanofluid may find potential applications in enhancing heavy oil upgrading and recovery.常规可用能源储备日渐枯竭，加之工业界向重油、沥青等非常规油气资源转型的态势愈发凸显。石油工业当前主要采用蒸汽加热法开展重油/沥青的开采作业。然而，热采方法能耗极高且应用场景受限明显，尤其不适用于薄层及深层油藏。因此，亟需探索替代型开采技术。截至目前，在中试试验中已证实应用潜力的最前沿替代技术，为采用热流体注入实现原位重油/沥青提质的纳米催化工艺。因此，对该技术进行持续优化至关重要。本研究旨在开发一款适用于油藏高温注入的新型注入式纳米流体系统，可同步实现重油/沥青提质与开采。本研究报道了一款以减压瓦斯油（VGO）与减压渣油（VR）的混合体系作为母溶剂的新型铜基纳米流体。该纳米颗粒通过低温水热合成法制备得到。借助X射线衍射、动态光散射及扫描电子显微镜，完成了该颗粒的表面性质、形貌与尺寸的详细表征。通过将铜基纳米颗粒以不同配比、在不同温度下分散于VGO与VR的混合体系中，制备得到稳定纳米流体。针对不同纳米颗粒负载量的纳米流体的导热系数与黏度开展了一系列测试。纳米流体体系的导热系数显著高于其基础液。当2wt%铜掺杂霓石纳米颗粒分别分散于VGO以及VGO/VR混合体系中所制备的纳米流体，其导热系数分别提升了20%与24%。研究发现，纳米流体的导热系数随流体力学粒径的减小而升高。此外，纳米颗粒与基础液之间存在的化学-物理相互作用可进一步提升导热系数。当温度在80~110℃范围内升高时，对减压渣油基纳米流体体系的导热系数提升具有正向作用。该款纳米流体在强化重油提质与开采领域具备潜在应用价值。