Preparation and Characterization of a Preformed Polyampholyte Particle Gel Composite for Conformance Control in Oil Recovery

Preformed particle gels (PPGs) based on acrylamide (AAm), (3-acrylamidopropyl) trimethylammonium chloride (APTAC), and 2-acrylamido-2-methyl-1-propanesulfonic acid sodium salt (AMPS) were synthesized via conventional free radical copolymerization. The resultant PPGs of various compositions were characterized using FTIR spectroscopy, TG and DT analysis, and mechanical testing. The swelling behavior of PPGs depending on ionic strength, temperature, degree of crosslinking, and pH was also studied. The obtained results show that the swelling mechanism of PPGs is mainly due to the diffusion of the solvent. The mechanical properties of PPGs were improved by creating a composite polymer network by adding the clay mineral (bentonite) to the reaction mixture of monomers, which also makes it possible to control the Young’s modulus and the swelling degree of the samples.