Fragrant Flower Extracts as Corrosion Inhibitors in the Oil and Gas Industry

Corrosion inhibitors used in the petroleum industry are a necessity to include in any acid job. When corrosion occurs to downhole tubulars and equipment, huge expenses are required to maintain the integrity and performance of the well. Unfortunately, commonly used corrosion inhibitors are accompanied with extreme environmental concerns and risk to human health. The recent developments in corrosion inhibitors have resolved the environmental aspect by focusing on biodegradability of these compounds, however, these inhibitors still struggle with issues of toxicity and high temperature stability. The project aims to develop new green, non-toxic, environmentally friendly corrosion inhibitors capable of performing well at high temperature conditions faced in the oil and gas industry. To achieve this goal, 13 commonly available flowers were screened for corrosion inhibition properties. The tests involved using low carbon steel (N-80) coupons and exposing them to 15 wt.% HCl solutions at temperatures between room temperature and 250 °F using a HPHT corrosion reactor to imitate oilfield conditions. A concentration of 0.2-2 wt.% grounded flowers were used to prevent corrosion. Moreover, a control solution containing no corrosion inhibitor was used to establish a corrosion rate for a base case. Upon identifying high performing flowers, extracts of these flowers were subsequently tested to save cost by minimizing quantity needed while achieving acceptable performance. The corrosion inhibition efficiency of the different flowers was compared at various concentrations and temperatures as well as the effect of adding corrosion inhibitor intensifiers. The results revealed that one new inhibitor can be developed from the 13 flower samples tested. The corrosion rate of the flower extract after 6 hours at 150°F was 0.0398 lb/ft2. Additionally, this flower extract was assessed at 200°F and 250°F with the addition of 1 wt.% corrosion inhibitor intensifier and exhibited a corrosion rate of 0.00823 lb/ft2 and 0.0141 lb/ft2, respectively. The results in this work share one new naturally occurring, green, non-toxic, high-temperature stable corrosion inhibitors that can be developed from flowers and can successfully protect the tubular during acid treatments achieving rates below the industry standard of 0.05 lb/ft2 for 6 hours at temperatures up to 250°F.