Oil and gas production

Colloid and interface science is fundamental to many aspects of oil and gas production processes. This review focuses on recent advances in water-based drilling fluids, reservoir fracturing fluids, polymer gels for modifying reservoir permeability, avoiding problems caused by colloidal asphaltene oil fractions and characterising the wettability of reservoir rocks. There have been major advances in the design and responsiveness of polymer and surfactant fluids, in the understanding and control of shale clayrock swelling and in the relationships between mesoscopic-scale phenomena in porous media and reservoir production performance.