Effect of Zinc Oxide Nanoparticle Sizes on Viscosity of Nanofluid for Application in Enhanced Oil Recovery

Zinc oxide (ZnO) with different nanoparticle (NP) sizes was prepared and synthesized by using the sol-gel method with organic precursor, followed by the characterization of the ZnO nanoparticle by using X-Ray Diffraction (XRD) and Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) to identify the effect of nanoparticle sizes of ZnO on the viscosity of the nanofluid. The impact of nanoparticle sizes on EOR was investigated. Results showed both viscosity and interfacial tension (IFT) increased with the nanoparticle size.