Green Enzyme Enhanced Oil Recovery

Enhanced oil recovery (EOR) is widely performed in oil fields after primary and secondary productions. Enzyme enhanced oil recovery (EEOR) has seen rapid growth in both lab research and field applications in recent years due to its promising effectiveness and minimum footprint to the environment in comparing to other EOR methods. To promote the progress of this emerging technology, this preliminary review is conducted with the intention of revealing and sharing experience from many unpublished case studies, and integrating them with results in conference and peer reviewed papers, with special attention to the application of green enzyme, a DNA-modified protein. The collected literature and technical reports included cases from Asia, Middle East, South America and USA. Mechanisms to the success of some cases are discussed. Factors limiting the applications in some cases are shared. Directions of future efforts are proposed.

Keywords:Enhanced oil recovery; Enzyme; Wettability alternation; Interfacial tension reduction; DNA-modification