Gypsum -brine -dolomite interfacial interactions in the presence of scale inhibitor

The underlying mechanisms upon which chemical scale inhibitors (SIs) mitigate inorganic scale formation, as a major drawback of waterflooding, are of practical implications. The present study investigates interactions between gypsum precursors in contact with dolomite rock and brine from experimental, simulation, and theoretical stands point of view. The influence of various dominant parameters such as the presence of inhibitor, dolomite rock and brine salinity on the intermolecular interaction energies is investigated. The results show that with the use of SI, the electrical double-layer and Lewis acid-base interaction energies decrease whereas Lifshitz-van der Waals increases approximately one order of magnitude. Furthermore, based on the works of cohesion and adhesion, the used SI retards gypsum from getting precipitated then deposited almost 77% and 90%, respectively. In most cases also, the gypsum-scaled dolomite rock compared to the bare rock would be more prone to gypsum scaling. © 2020 Elsevier Ltd