Directional oil extraction: A new application of MXene as an oil development agent in petroleum exploration and production

Problems occurring in oilfields after secondary oil recovery can include low oil content, difficulty in tracing, and high production costs. The use of two-dimensional nanomaterials can improve the efficiency of oil exploration and extraction. In this study, we designed a new nanofluid based on lecithin-modified MXene (lecithin@MXene-COOH) for directional oil extraction and tertiary oil recovery. MXene has good interfacial affinity, and 0.02 % lecithin@MXene-COOH can be effectively enriched at the oil–water interface. The nanofluid based on lecithin@MXene-COOH has excellent emulsifying properties, and we found that the optimal formulation has an emulsifying volume of 12.8 mL. The efficient enrichment of lecithin@MXene-COOH at the oil–water interface means that it can effectively define the position of oil droplets. The lecithin@MXene-COOH nanofluid has excellent oil displacement effect, and can efficiently drive oil, with an improvement of recovery efficiency of up to 15.95 % after the traditional flooding stage. This research has developed a new application of MXene-based nanomaterials, and the lecithin@MXene-COOH nanofluid is predicted to have a successful future in the field of oilfield tracing and extraction.