Comparative effect of zirconium oxide (ZrO2) and silicon dioxide (SiO2) nanoparticles on the adsorption properties of surfactant-rock system: Equilibrium and thermodynamic analysis

Recently, application of mixed system of zirconium oxide (ZrO2) nanoparticles and surfactants for improving hydrocarbon recovery through oil-water interfacial tension reduction and rock-surface wettability modification has received significant attention. However, application of ZrO2 nanoparticles for minimizing the adsorption and loss of surfactant molecules onto rock surfaces is yet to be thought-out. In this research, influence of ZrO2 nanoparticles on the static adsorption of Triton X-100 (TX-100) and sodium dodecylbenzenesulfonate (SDBS) onto the surface of an adsorbent, with significant presence of positive and negative charges, was investigated through UV-Vis spectrophotometry method at different temperature. Adsorption behaviors were characterized via equilibrium and thermodynamic analysis. Adsorbent and adsorbate characterizations were conducted through Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) analysis, field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) visualization, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and electrokinetic study. The effectiveness of ZrO2 nanoparticles in reducing surfactant adsorption was then compared with the performance of SiO2 nanoparticles. The adsorption isotherm data analysis demonstrated that the highest values of correlation coefficient (R2) and least error values were obtained using Langmuir isotherm model. Results showed that equilibrium adsorption of ZrO2-surfactant and SiO2-surfactant solutions onto the adsorbent surface is best fitted with the Langmuir model, suggesting the feasibility of monolayer coverage of nanoparticlessurfactants solutions onto the rock surfaces. The amount of surfactant adsorbed reduced in presence of nanoparticles and at elevated temperature. The ZrO2 nanoparticles demonstrated significantly high capacity to decrease the extent of surfactant adsorption onto the adsorbent surface more than nanosilica. Precisely, at 303 K, the maximum adsorption capacity of TX100 considerably reduced from 2.216 mg/g to 1.250 mg/g (43.59%) and 0.767 mg/g (65.39%) in presence of SiO2 and ZrO2 nanoparticles. Likewise, the SDBS optimum adsorption capacity decreased from 0.466 to 0.316 mg/g (32.19%) and 0.048 mg/g (89.70%) in presence of SiO2 and ZrO2 nanoparticles respectively at 333 K. The study suggests that ZrO2 nanoparticles are more promising nanomaterials for reducing the adsorption of surfactant onto rock surfaces, due to electrostatic repulsion between charged nano-surfactant complex and rock charged sites, as well as higher competition for the surfactant molecules.

Automated summary

This research investigated the impact of ZrO2 nanoparticles on the static adsorption of Triton X-100 and sodium dodecylbenzenesulfonate onto an adsorbent surface with positive and negative charges. The study found that ZrO2 nanoparticles are more effective at reducing surfactant adsorption compared to SiO2 nanoparticles, especially at higher temperatures. The results suggest that ZrO2 nanoparticles have promise in minimizing surfactant adsorption onto rock surfaces due to electrostatic repulsion and higher competition for surfactant molecules.