Towards environmentally sustainable oil recovery: The role of sustainable materials

The energy and petrochemical sectors are expected to rely on crude oil and its derivatives for decades to come. Therefore, developing more sustainable and environmentally friendly approaches to oil production is becoming increasingly important. One approach that supports this goal involves the utilization of sustainable materials in oil recovery operations. This review discusses the role of biodegradable materials in enhanced oil recovery operations and produced water management. It has been demonstrated that conventional synthetic chemicals can be effectively substituted with biodegradable alternatives such as biosurfactants, biopolymers, biogenic acids, and biogenic solvents. These biodegradable substitutes reduce the environmental impact resulting from synthetic chemicals used in enhanced oil recovery. In produced water management, biodegradable materials are utilized in treatment processes such as demulsification, coagulation, flocculation, adsorption, and filtration. These processes are designed to eliminate a variety of contaminants from wastewater generated during oil production operations. Commonly, these contaminants include dissolved ions, dissolved and dispersed organic materials, heavy metals, radionuclides, production solids such as scale deposits and corrosion byproducts, and chemical additives including biocides, corrosion inhibitors, emulsifiers, and polymers. This review could assist researchers and policymakers in adopting biodegradable materials for more environmentally sustainable oil recovery operations.