Research Progress on Demulsification Technology and Mechanism for Oilfield Crude Oil

ABSTRACT In petroleum recovery processes, crude oil emulsions serve a crucial yet complex dual role. While facilitating hydrocarbon transport from subterranean reservoirs to surface facilities, excessively stable emulsions create significant challenges in downstream dehydration operations. The heightened stability of these colloidal systems necessitates increased demulsifier dosages and elevated separation temperatures, thereby substantially escalating operational expenditures. This technological dichotomy underscores the critical need for a comprehensive understanding of emulsion formation mechanisms, comparative evaluation of demulsification methodologies, and fundamental insights into destabilization processes—all essential for optimizing field operations. Building upon systematic analysis of emulsion characteristics and stabilization mechanisms, this study presents a critical synthesis of contemporary physical and chemical demulsification technologies. We conduct a comparative assessment of their technical advantages and operational limitations, with particular emphasis on advancing chemical demulsification strategies. The paper provides a rigorous classification and mechanistic analysis of diverse demulsifier categories, elucidating their interfacial activity and molecular‐level interactions at oil–water interfaces. Looking toward future developments, we propose promising directions for next‐generation demulsifier design and emerging hybrid separation technologies. These forward‐looking perspectives aim to inform the development of cost‐effective dehydration solutions while addressing current technological gaps in heavy crude processing and environmentally sustainable demulsification.