The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Apr. 25, 2006
Filed:
Nov. 21, 2000
George Constantine Blytas, Houston, TX (US);
Vitold Raimond Kruka, Houston, TX (US);
George Constantine Blytas, Houston, TX (US);
Vitold Raimond Kruka, Houston, TX (US);
Shell Oil Company, Houston, TX (US);
Abstract
Disclosed is a method for recovering and re-employing ionic surfactants from solutions, dispersions and emulsions of water and liquid hydrocarbons, by the addition of a second non-aqueous polar phase and an inorganic salt which changes the ionic strength of the surfactant and causes the surfactant to partition principally into the non-aqueous second polar phase. More specifically, the method applies to recovering hydrate growth inhibitor/modifying compounds, with cationic surfactants such as ammonium, phosphonium and sulphonium alkylated compounds from the effluent of hydrocarbon production wells; the effluent including water, hydrate inhibitor compound, at least one additional polar solvent and inorganic salt. Sufficient additional ions of inorganic salt, and if necessary, an alcohol/glycol are added to the effluent to form a second polar phase that is less polar than the aqueous phase, into which the hydrate inhibitor can then dissolve and be separated from the effluent.