Effect of Marangoni flow on recovery of bypassed oil during CO₂ injection

We have experimentally investigated the effect of interfacial tension gradient induced convective fluxes - Marangoni flow - on the recovery of bypassed oil during near-miscible and immiscible CO₂ injection in a 1D-matrix/fracture model. Hydrocarbon systems of components were designed such that the existence of Marangoni flow and its direction with respect to fracture could be managed.The results show reasonable agreement between recovery changes and Marangoni number, indicating the significant impact of Marangoni flow on the recovery of bypassed oil in porous media under high-pressure high-temperature conditions. The results of our experiments introduce the so-far neglected Marangoni phenomenon as a considerable mechanism of oil recovery in near-critical conditions.