Microbial Abundance and Community Composition Influence Production Performance in a Low-Temperature Petroleum Reservoir

Enhanced oil recovery using indigenous microorganisms has been successfully applied in the petroleum industry, but the role of microorganisms remains poorly understood. Here, we investigated the relationship between microbial population dynamics and oil production performance during a water flooding...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Environmental science & technology 2014-05, Vol.48 (9), p.5336-5344
Main Authors: Li, Guoqiang, Gao, Peike, Wu, Yunqiang, Tian, Huimei, Dai, Xuecheng, Wang, Yansen, Cui, Qingfeng, Zhang, Hongzuo, Pan, Xiaoxuan, Dong, Hanping, Ma, Ting
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Alcaligenes - classification
Alcaligenes - genetics
Alcaligenes - metabolism
Applied sciences
Bacteria - classification
Bacteria - genetics
Bacteria - metabolism
Base Sequence
China
Cold Temperature
Crude oil, natural gas and petroleum products
Crude oil, natural gas, oil shales producing equipements and methods
DNA Primers
DNA, Bacterial - genetics
Emulsions
Energy
Enhanced oil recovery
Enhanced oil recovery methods
Exact sciences and technology
Fuels
Microbiology
Microorganisms
Petroleum - metabolism
Petroleum industry
Petroleum production
Polymerase Chain Reaction
Prospecting and production of crude oil, natural gas, oil shales and tar sands
Pseudomonas - classification
Pseudomonas - genetics
Pseudomonas - metabolism
Pseudomonas alcaligenes
Reservoirs
Rhizobium
Rhizobium - classification
Rhizobium - genetics
Rhizobium - metabolism
Rhodococcus
Rhodococcus - classification
Rhodococcus - genetics
Rhodococcus - metabolism
RNA, Ribosomal, 16S - genetics
Species Specificity
Surfactants
Temperature
Water - chemistry
Water Microbiology
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Summary:Enhanced oil recovery using indigenous microorganisms has been successfully applied in the petroleum industry, but the role of microorganisms remains poorly understood. Here, we investigated the relationship between microbial population dynamics and oil production performance during a water flooding process coupled with nutrient injection in a low-temperature petroleum reservoir. Samples were collected monthly over a two-year period. The microbial composition of samples was determined using 16S rRNA gene pyrosequencing and real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction analyses. Our results indicated that the microbial community structure in each production well microhabitat was dramatically altered during flooding with eutrophic water. As well as an increase in the density of microorganisms, biosurfactant producers, such as Pseudomonas, Alcaligenes, Rhodococcus, and Rhizobium, were detected in abundance. Furthermore, the density of these microorganisms was closely related to the incremental oil production. Oil emulsification and changes in the fluid-production profile were also observed. In addition, we found that microbial community structure was strongly correlated with environmental factors, such as water content and total nitrogen. These results suggest that injected nutrients increase the abundance of microorganisms, particularly biosurfactant producers. These bacteria and their metabolic products subsequently emulsify oil and alter fluid-production profiles to enhance oil recovery.
ISSN:0013-936X
1520-5851
DOI:10.1021/es500239w