Polymer Flooding
(also called Chemical Flooding) is used to reduce the surface tension
between water and the oil and makes the water more viscous. This
helps to move the oil and increases the recovery factor. The polymer
used is usually polyacrylamide which is said to be non-toxic. What
the oil companies don’t want you to know is that it is made from
acrylamideiii
and can degrade to acrylamideiv
which is a well-known neurotoxin in human and animal studies. It is
also a probable carcinogen and increased cancer risks have been
documented in rats and humans.
Solvents
used in SAP operations generally involve variable composition with
time, changing from heavier solvents to lighter solvents as the field
produces. Therefore the toxity of the oil changes with time. Since
these chemicals were never intended to come into direct contact with
humans or other organisms there has been little concern for their
toxicity in oil field injection operations. This is little comfort to
the people of Mayflower or other communities who may be on the
receiving end of these unknown, secret chemicals.
iii
Daughton, Christian G.
(23 June 1988).
"Quantitation
of Acrylamide (and Polyacrylamide): Critical review of methods for
trace determination/formulation analysis & Future-research
recommendations"
(PDF). EPA
Environmental Sciences Division homepage.
The California
Public Health Foundation.
iv
Cheng, Peiyao 2004 M.S. Thesis University of South Florida
Chemical
and Photolytic Degradation of Polyacrylamides Used in Potable Water
Treatment
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