A double‐tailed acrylamide hydrophobically associating polymer: Synthesis,characterization, and solution properties

In order to improve the salt resistant, temperature tolerance, and stability of the acrylamide‐based copolymer, the double‐tailed hydrophobically associating copolymer (DTHAP) was synthesized. The chemical and spatial network structures of the copolymer were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT‐IR), nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (NMR), and environmental scanning electron microscope (ESEM). The salt, temperature, aging resistance, and rheological behavior of the copolymer were investigated in detail. The experimental results showed that the performance of DTHAP were influenced by the amount of AA, PETMAM, SDS, and NaCl in the reaction system. Compared with HPAM, DTHAP solution showed excellent temperature resistance and salt tolerance. No matter in the solution varying NaCl or CaCl₂ concentration from 8 to 80 and 1 to 1.8 g/L, respectively, DTHAP behaved an obvious salt‐thickening phenomenon. The simulative tertiary oil recovery tests at 80°C indicated that DTHAP can remarkably enhance 16.9% of the oil recovery ratio. Even at 100 g/L salt solution, DTHAP exhibited an excellent performance which can also enhance 9.9% of oil recovery ratio. The experiment results indicated that DTHAP was superior to HPAM as a kind of oil displacement agent for enhanced oil recovery, especially in high‐temperature and high‐mineralization oil fields. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2015 , 132, 42569.