Sustainable carbon nanofluids of petroleum extraction

Renewable energy is fast expanding, yet it still needs the assistance of traditional fossil energy. Given that renewable energy cannot totally replace conventional fossil energy, the green development and utilization of traditional fossil energy is crucial for promoting low-carbon development. Crude oil has a significant influence on the evolution of human culture and civilization, hence extracting crude oil from underground sources is critical. However, following primary and secondary oil recovery, a large amount of residual oil remains in the reservoir. Enhanced oil recovery (EOR) is a technique for restoring reservoir characteristics and increasing crude oil output. Carbon nanofluid is a uniform and stable fluid obtained by dispersing carbon nanomaterials into a liquid medium (usually water). Carbon nanofluids have the benefits of a broad raw material supply, low cost, and environmental protection, as well as demonstrating great application value in EOR. In this chapter, we discuss the oil displacement mechanism of carbon nanofluids as well as the current state of research on carbon nanofluids for EOR. Finally, the challenges for future carbon nanofluid development in EOR are briefly highlighted.