Probing the interaction between asphaltene-wax and its effects on the crystallization behavior of waxes in heavy oil via molecular dynamics simulation

High content of asphaltenes and waxes leads to the high pour point and the poor flowability of heavy oil,which is adverse to its efficient development and its transportation in pipe.Understanding the interaction mechanism between asphaltene-wax is crucial to solve these problems,but it is still unclear.In this paper,molecular dynamics simulation was used to investigate the interaction between asphaltenewax and its effects on the crystallization behavior of waxes in heavy oil.Results show that molecules in pure wax are arranged in a paralleled geometry.But wax molecules in heavy oil,which are close to the surface of asphaltene aggregates,are bent and arranged irregularly.When the mass fraction of asphaltenes in asphaltene-wax system(ω_(asp))is 0-25 wt%,the attraction among wax molecules decreases and the bend degree of wax molecules increases with the increase ofω_(asp).Theω_(asp)increases from 0 to 25 wt%,and the attraction between asphaltene-wax is stronger than that among waxes.This causes that the wax precipitation point changes from 353 to 333 K.While theω_(asp)increases to 50 wt%,wax molecules are more dispersed owing to the steric hindrance of asphaltene aggregates,and the interaction among wax molecules transforms from attraction to repulsion.It causes that the ordered crystal structure of waxes can't be formed at normal temperature.Simultaneously,the asphaltene,with the higher molecular weight or the more hetero atoms,has more obvious inhibition to the formation of wax crystals.Besides,resins also have an obvious inhibition on the wax crystal due to the formation of asphalteneresin aggregates with a larger radius.Our results reveal the interaction mechanism between asphaltene-wax,and provide useful guidelines for the development of heavy oil.

Characterization of chemical composition of high viscosity heavy oils:Macroscopic properties, and semi-quantitative analysis of molecular composition using high-resolution mass spectrometry

Heavy oil is an important resource in current petroleum exploitation, and the chemical composition information of heavy oil is crucial for revealing its viscosity-inducing mechanism and solving practical exploitation issues. In this study, the techniques of high-temperature gas chromatography and high-resolution mass spectrometry equipped with an electrospray ionization source were applied to reveal the chemical composition of typical heavy oils from western, central, and eastern China. The results indicate that these heavy oils display significant variations in their bulk properties, with initial boiling points all above 200℃. Utilizing pre-treatment and ESI high-resolution mass spectrometry, an analysis of the molecular composition of saturated hydrocarbons, aromatic hydrocarbons, acidic oxygen compounds, sulfur compounds, basic nitrogen compounds, and neutral nitrogen compounds within the heavy oil was conducted. Ultimately, a semi-quantitative analysis of the molecular composition of the heavy oil was achieved by integrating the elemental content. The semi-quantitative analysis results of Shengli-J8 heavy oil and a conventional Shengli crude oil show that Shengli-J8 heavy oil lacks alkanes and low molecular weight aromatic hydrocarbons, which contributes to its high viscosity. Additionally,characteristic molecular sets for different heavy oils were identified based on the semi-quantitative analysis of molecular composition. The semi-quantitative analysis of molecular composition in heavy oils may provide valuable reference data for establishing theoretical models on the viscosity-inducing mechanism in heavy oils and designing viscosity-reducing agents for heavy oil exploitation.

The mechanisms of thermal solidification agent promoting steam diversion in heavy oil reservoirs

At high cycles of steam huff&puff,oil distribution in reservoirs becomes stronger heterogeneity due to steam channeling.Thermal solidification agent can be used to solve this problem.Its solution is a lowviscosity liquid at normal temperature,but it can be solidified above 80℃.The plugging degree is up to 99%at 250℃.The sweep efficiency reaches 59.2%,which is 7.3%higher than pure steam injection.In addition,simultaneous injection of viscosity reducer and/or nitrogen foams can further enhance oil recovery.The mechanism of this technology depends on its strong plugging ability,which changes the flowing pattern of steam to effectively mobilize remaining oil.Viscosity reducer and nitrogen foams further expand the sweep range and extends the effective period.Therefore,thermal solidification agent can plug steam channeling paths and adjust steam flowing direction to significantly enhance oil recovery at high cycles of steam huff&puff.

Influence of pore structure heterogeneity on channeling channels during hot water flooding in heavy oil reservoir based on CT scanning

Hot water flooding is an effective way to develop heavy oil reservoirs.However,local channeling channels may form,possibly leading to a low thermal utilization efficiency and high water cut in the reservoir.The pore structure heterogeneity is an important factor in forming these channels.This study proposes a method that mixes quartz sand with different particle sizes to prepare weakly heterogeneous and strongly heterogeneous models through which hot water flooding experiments are conducted.During the experiments,computer tomography(CT)scanning identifies the pore structure and micro remaining oil saturation distribution to analyze the influence of the pore structure heterogeneity on the channeling channels.The oil saturation reduction and average pore size are divided into three levels to quantitatively describe the relationship between the channeling channel distribution and pore structure heterogeneity.The zone where oil saturation reduction exceeds 20%is defined as a channeling channel.The scanning area is divided into 180 equally sized zones based on the CT scanning images,and threedimensional(3D)distributions of the channeling channels are developed.Four micro remaining oil distribution patterns are proposed,and the morphology characteristics of micro remaining oil inside and outside the channeling channels are analyzed.The results show that hot water flooding is more balanced in the weakly heterogeneous model,and the oil saturation decreases by more than 20%in most zones without narrow channeling channels forming.In the strongly heterogeneous model,hot water flooding is unbalanced,and three narrow channeling channels of different lengths form.In the weakly heterogeneous model,the oil saturation reduction is greater in zones with larger pores.The distribution range of the average pore size is larger in the strongly heterogeneous model.The network remaining oil inside the channeling channels is less than outside the channeling channels,and the hot water converts the network remaining oil into cluster,film,and droplet remaining oil.

The potassium storage performance of carbon nanosheets derived from heavy oils

As by-products of petroleum refining,heavy oils are characterized by a high carbon content,low cost and great variability,making them competitive precursors for the anodes of potassium ion batteries(PIBs).However,the relationship between heavy oil composition and potassium storage performance remains unclear.Using heavy oils containing distinct chemical groups as the carbon source,namely fluid catalytic cracking slurry(FCCS),petroleum asphalt(PA)and deoiled asphalt(DOA),three carbon nanosheets(CNS)were prepared through a molten salt method,and used as the anodes for PIBs.The composition of the heavy oil determines the lamellar thicknesses,sp^(3)-C/sp^(2)-C ratio and defect concentration,thereby affecting the potassium storage performance.The high content of aromatic hydrocarbons and moderate amount of heavy component moieties in FCCS produce carbon nanosheets(CNS-FCCS)that have a smaller layer thickness,larger interlayer spacing(0.372 nm),and increased number of folds than in CNS derived from the other three precursors.These features give it faster charge/ion transfer,more potassium storage sites and better reaction kinetics.CNS-FCCS has a remarkable K^(+)storage capacity(248.7 mAh g^(-1) after 100 cycles at 0.1 A g^(-1)),long cycle lifespan(190.8 mAh g^(-1) after 800 cycles at 1.0 A g^(-1))and excellent rate capability,ranking it among the best materials for this application.This work sheds light on the influence of heavy oil composition on carbon structure and electrochemical performance,and provides guidance for the design and development of advanced heavy oil-derived carbon electrodes for PIBs.

Recent advances in switchable surfactants for heavy oil production:A review

Surfactants are extensively employed in the cold production of heavy oil.However,producing heavy oil emulsions using conventional surfactants poses a challenge to spontaneous demulsification,necessitating the addition of demulsifiers for oil-water separation.This inevitably increases the exploitation cost and environmental pollution risk.Switchable surfactants have garnered much attention due to their dual capabilities of underground heavy oil emulsification and surface demulsification.This study focuses on the fundamental working principles and classification of novel switchable surfactants for oil displacement developed in recent years.It offers a comprehensive overview of the latest advances in the applications of switchable surfactants in the fields of enhanced oil recovery(EOR),oil sand washing,and oil-water separation.Furthermore,it highlights the existing challenges and future development directions of switchable surfactants for heavy oil recovery.

A Real-time Prediction System for Molecular-level Information of Heavy Oil Based on Machine Learning

Acquiring accurate molecular-level information about petroleum is crucial for refining and chemical enterprises to implement the“selection of the optimal processing route”strategy.With the development of data prediction systems represented by machine learning,it has become possible for real-time prediction systems of petroleum fraction molecular information to replace analyses such as gas chromatography and mass spectrometry.However,the biggest difficulty lies in acquiring the data required for training the neural network.To address these issues,this work proposes an innovative method that utilizes the Aspen HYSYS and full two-dimensional gas chromatography-time-of-flight mass spectrometry to establish a comprehensive training database.Subsequently,a deep neural network prediction model is developed for heavy distillate oil to predict its composition in terms of molecular structure.After training,the model accurately predicts the molecular composition of catalytically cracked raw oil in a refinery.The validation and test sets exhibit R2 values of 0.99769 and 0.99807,respectively,and the average relative error of molecular composition prediction for raw materials of the catalytic cracking unit is less than 7%.Finally,the SHAP(SHapley Additive ExPlanation)interpretation method is used to disclose the relationship among different variables by performing global and local weight comparisons and correlation analyses.

Catalytic Performance of Aquathermolysis and Viscosity Reduction of Heavy Oil over a WO_(3)/ZrO_(2) Solid Acid

Tungstated zirconia(WO_(3)/ZrO_(2))solid acid catalysts with different WO_(3) contents were prepared by a hydrothermal method and then used in the catalytic aquathermolysis of heavy oil from Xinjiang.The WO_(3)/ZrO_(2) solid acid catalyst was characterized by a range of characterization methods,including X-ray diffraction,NH3-temperature programmed desorption,and pyridine infrared spectroscopy.The WO_(3) content of the WO_(3)/ZrO_(2) catalysts had an important impact on the structure and property of the catalysts.When the WO_(3) mass fraction was 20%,it facilitated the formation of tetragonal zirconia,thereby enhancing the creation of robust acidic sites.Acidity is considered to have a strong impact on the catalytic performance of the aquathermolysis of heavy oil.When the catalyst containing 20%WO_(3) was used to catalyze the aquathermolysis of heavy oil under conditions of 14.5 MPa,340℃,and 24 h,the viscosity of heavy oil decreased from 47266 to 5398 mPa·s and the viscosity reduction rate reached 88.6%.The physicochemical properties of heavy oil before and after the aquathermolysis were analyzed using a saturates,aromatics,resins,and asphaltenes analysis,gas chromatography,elemental analysis,densimeter etc.After the aquathermolysis,the saturate and aromatic contents significantly increased from 43.3%to 48.35%and 19.47%to 21.88%,respectively,with large reductions in the content of resin and asphaltene from 28.22%to 25.06%and 5.36%to 2.03%,respectively.The sulfur and nitrogen contents,and the density of the oil were significantly decreased.These factors were likely the main reasons for promoting the viscosity reduction of heavy oil during the aquathermolysis over the WO_(3)/ZrO_(2) solid acid catalysts.

An Integrated Optimization Method for CO_(2) Pre-Injection during Hydraulic Fracturing in Heavy Oil Reservoirs

CO_(2) pre-injection during hydraulic fracturing is an important method for the development of medium to deep heavy oil reservoirs.It reduces the interfacial tension and viscosity of crude oil,enhances its flowability,maintains reservoir pressure,and increases reservoir drainage capacity.Taking the Badaowan Formation as an example,in this study a detailed three-dimensional geomechanical model based on static data from well logging interpretations is elaborated,which can take into account both vertical and horizontal geological variations and mechanical characteristics.A comprehensive analysis of the impact of key construction parameters on Pre-CO_(2) based fracturing(such as cluster spacing and injection volume),is therefore conducted.Thereafter,using optimized construction parameters,a non-structured grid for dynamic development prediction is introduced,and the capacity variations of different production scenarios are assessed.On the basis of the simulation results,reasonable fracturing parameters are finally determined,including cluster spacing,fracturing fluid volume,proppant concentration,and well spacing.

Innovations and applications of the thermal recovery techniques for heavy oil

Heavy oil represents a vital petroleum resource worldwide.As one of the major producers,China is facing great challenges in effective and economic production of heavy oil due to reservoir complexity.Plenty of efforts have been made to promote innovative advances in thermal recovery modes,methods,and processes for heavy oil in the country.The thermal recovery mode has been shifted from simple steam injection to a more comprehensive“thermal+"strategy,such as a novel N2-steam hybrid process and CO_(2)-enhanced thermal recovery techniques.These advanced techniques break through the challenges of heavy oil extraction from less accessible reservoirs with thinner oil layers and greater burial depths.Regarding thermal recovery methods,China has developed the steam-assisted gravity drainage method integrating flooding and drainage(also referred to as the hybrid flooding-drainage SAGD technology)for highly heterogeneous ultra-heavy oil reservoirs and the fire flooding method for nearly depleted heavy oil reservoirs,substantially improving oil recovery.Furthermore,a range of processes have been developed for heavy oil production,including the open hole completion process using sand control screens for horizontal wells,the process of integrated injection-recovery with horizontal pump for horizontal wells,the steam dryness maintenance,measurement,and control process,efficient and environment-friendly circulating fluidized bed(CFB)boilers with high steam dryness,the recycling process of produced water,and the thermal recovery process for offshore heavy oil.Based on the advances in methodology,technology,and philosophy,a series of supporting technologies for heavy oil production have been developed,leading to the breakthrough of existing technical limit of heavy oil recovery and the expansion into new exploitation targets.For the future heavy oil production in China,it is necessary to embrace a green,low-carbon,and energy-efficient development strategy,and to expand heavy oil extraction in reservoirs with larger burial depth,more viscous oil,thinner oil layers,and lower permeability.Moreover,it is highly recommended to collaboratively maximize oil recovery and oil-to-steam ratio through technological innovations,and boost intelligentization of heavy oil production.

Steam Flooding after Steam Soak in Heavy Oil Reservoirs through Extended-reach Horizontal Wells

This paper presents a new development scheme of simultaneous injection and production in a single horizontal well drilled for developing small block reservoirs or offshore reservoirs. It is possible to set special packers within the long completion horizontal interval to establish an injection zone and a production zone. This method can also be used in steam flooding after steam soak through a horizontal well. Simulation results showed that it was desirable to start steam flooding after six steam soaking cycles and at this time the oil/steam ratio was 0.25 and oil recovery efficiency was 23.48%. Steam flooding performance was affected by separation interval and steam injection rate. Reservoir numerical simulation indicated that maximum oil recovery would be achieved at a separation section of 40-50 m at steam injection rate of 100-180 t/d; and the larger the steam injection rate, the greater the water cut and pressure difference between injection zone and production zone. A steam injection rate of 120 t/d was suitable for steam flooding under practical injection-production conditions. All the results could be useful for the guidance of steam flooding projects.

Viscosity profile prediction of a heavy crude oil during lifting in two deep artesian wells

It has been known that the productivity of artesian wells is strongly dependent on the rheological properties of crude oils. This work targets two deep artesian wells(>5000 m) that are producing heavy crude oil. The impacts of well conditions including temperature, pressure and shear rate, on the crude oil rheology were comprehensively investigated and correlated using several empirical rheological models. The experimental data indicate that this heavy oil is very sensitive to temperature as result of microstructure change caused by hydrogen bonding. The rheological behavior of the heavy oil is also significantly impacted by the imposed pressure, i.e., the viscosity flow activation energy(Eμ) gently increases with the increasing pressure. The viscosity–shear rate data are well fitted to the power law model at low temperature. However, due to the transition of fluid feature at high temperature(Newtonian fluid), the measured viscosity was found to slightly deviate from the fitting data. Combining the evaluated correlations, the viscosity profile of the heavy crude oil in these two deep artesian wells as a function of well depth was predicted using the oilfield producing data.

Development Strategies for Achieving High Production with Fewer Wells in Conventional Offshore Heavy Oil Fields in Bohai Bay,China

Development strategy for heavy-oil reservoirs is one of the important research interests in China National Offshore Oil Corp. （CNOOC） that plans a highly effective development for heavy oil fields in multilayered fluvial reservoirs because of their significant influence on marine oil and even on China＇s petroleum production. The characteristics analysis of multilayered fluvial reservoirs in the heavy oil fields in Bohai Bay indicates that large amounts ofoil were trapped in the channel, point bar and channel bar sands. The reserves distribution of 8 oilfields illustrates that the reserves trapped in the main sands, which is 20%-40% of all of the sand bodies, account for 70%-90% of total reserves of the heavy oil fields. The cumulative production from high productivity wells （50% of the total wells） was 75%-90% of the production of the overall oilfield, while only 3%-10% of the total production was from the low productivity wells （30% of the total wells）. And the high productivity wells were drilled in the sands with high reserves abundance. Based on the above information the development strategy was proposed, which includes reserves production planning, selection of well configuration, productivity design, and development modification at different stages.

Heating of heavy oil by circulating hot water in closed double casing in ultra-deep wells

In heavy oil production,the loss of energy to ambient surroundings decreases the temperature of the heavy oil flowing upwards in a vertical wellbore,which increases the oil viscosity and the oil may not flow normally in the wellbore.Therefore,it is necessary to lower the heavy oil viscosity by heating methods to allow it to be lifted easily.Heating of heavy oil in an oil well is achieved by circulating hot water in annuli in the well（tubing-casing annulus,casing-casing annulus）.In this paper,based on heat transfer principles and fluid flow theory,a model is developed for produced fluids and hot water flowing in a vertical wellbore.The temperature and pressure of produced fluids and hot water in the wellbore are calculated and the effect of hot water on heavy oil temperature is analyzed.Calculated results show that the hot water circulating in the annuli may effectively heat the heavy oil in the tubing,so as to significantly reduce both oil viscosity and resistance to oil flow.

Effects of Different Heavy Crude Oil Fractions on the Stability of Oil-in-water Emulsions —— Isolation of functional fractions from heavy crude oil and study of their properties

The functional fractions (acid, basic, amphoteric and neutral fractions) are isolated from the Liaohe Du-84 heavy crude oil and Shengli Gudao Kenxi heavy crude oil by ion-exchange chromatography, but the conventional fractions (saturates, aromatics, resins and asphaltenes) are also isolated from the heavy crude oil. These components have been characterized by spectroscopic methods (FT-IR), namely acid number, basic nitrogen number, ultimate analysis and molecular weight measurements using vapor pressure osmometry (VPO). The ion-exchange chromatography method based on separation by a functional group induces a little change on the nature of the crudes and reasonable mass balances can be easily obtained.

Synthesis and evaluation of an oil-soluble viscosity reducer for heavy oil

To reduce the viscosity of highly-viscous oil of the Tahe oilfield （Xinjiang,China）,an oilsoluble polybasic copolymer viscosity reducer for heavy oil was synthesized using the orthogonal method.The optimum reaction conditions are obtained as follows：under the protection of nitrogen,a reaction time of 9 h,monomer mole ratio of reaction materials of 3：2：2 （The monomers are 2-propenoic acid,docosyl ester,maleic anhydride and styrene,respectively）,initiator amount of 0.8% （mass percent of the sum of all the monomers） and reaction temperature of 80 oC.This synthesized viscosity reducer is more effective than commercial viscosity reducers.The rate of viscosity reduction reached 95.5% at 50 oC.Infrared spectra （IR） and interfacial tensions of heavy oil with and without viscosity reducer were investigated to understand the viscosity reduction mechanism.When viscosity reducer is added,the molecules of the viscosity reducer are inserted amongst the molecules of crude oil,altering the original intermolecular structure of crude oil and weakening its ability to form hydrogen bonds with hydroxyl or carboxyl groups,so the viscosity of crude oil is reduced.Field tests of the newly developed oil-soluble viscosity reducer was carried out in the Tahe Oilfield,and the results showed that 44.5% less light oil was needed to dilute the heavy oil to achieve the needed viscosity.

Necessity and feasibility of improving the residual resistance factor of polymer flooding in heavy oil reservoirs

The efficiency of water flooding in heavy oil reservoirs would be improved by increasing the viscosity of the displacing phase, but the sweep efficiency is not of significance due to the low mobility of the vicious oil. On the basis of mobility control theory, increasing the residual resistance factor not only reduces the water-oil mobility ratio but also decreases the requirement for viscosity enhancement of the polymer solution. The residual resistance factor caused by hydrophobic associating polymer solution is higher than that caused by polyacrylamide solution in brine containing high concentrations of calcium and magnesium ions. The results of numerical simulations show that the polymer flooding efficiency improved by increasing the residual resistance factor is far better than that by only increasing solution viscosity. The recovery factor of heavy oil reservoirs （70 mPa·s） can be enhanced by hydrophobic associating polymer solution of high residual resistance factor （more than 3） and high effective viscosity （24 mPa·s）. Therefore, increasing the residual resistance factor of the polymer solution not only decreases the requirement for the viscosity of polymer solution injected into heavy oil reservoirs but also is favorable to enhanced oil recovery during polymer flooding.

Heavy Oil and Oil Sands:Global Distribution and Resource Assessment

Global recoverable resources of heavy oil and oil sands have been assessed by CNPC using a geology-based assessment method combined with the traditional volumetric method, spatial interpolation method, parametric-probability method etc. The most favourable areas for exploration have been selected in accordance with a comprehensive scoring system. The results show:(1) For geological resources, CNPC estimate 991.18 billion tonnes of heavy oil and 501.26 billion tonnes of oil sands globally, of which technically recoverable resources of heavy oil and oil sands comprise 126.74 billion tonnes and 64.13 billion tonnes respectively. More than 80% of the resources occur within Tertiary and Cretaceous reservoirs distributed across 69 heavy oil basins and 32 oil sands basins. 99% of recoverable resources of heavy oil and oil sands occur within foreland basins, passive continental-margin basins and cratonic basins.(2) Since residual hydrocarbon resources remain following large-scale hydrocarbon migration and destruction, heavy oil and oil sands are characterized most commonly by late hydrocarbon accumulation, the same basin types and source-reservoir conditions as for conventional hydrocarbon resources, shallow burial depth and stratabound reservoirs.(3) Three accumulation models are recognised, depending on basin type: degradation along slope; destruction by uplift; and migration along faults.(4) In addition to mature exploration regions such as Canada and Venezuela, the Volga-Ural Basin and the Pre-Caspian Basin are less well-explored and have good potential for oil-sand discoveries, and it is predicted that the Middle East will be an important region for heavy oil development.

Effects of Temperature and Catalyst to Oil Weight Ratio on the Catalytic Conversion of Heavy Oil to Propylene Using ZSM-5 and USY Catalysts

It is useful for practical operation to study the rules of production of propylene by the catalytic conversion of heavy oil in FCC （fluid catalytic cracking）. The effects of temperature and C/O ratio （catalyst to oil weight ratio） on the distribution of the product and the yield of propylene were investigated on a micro reactor unit with two model catalysts, namely ZSM-5/Al2O3 and USY/Al2O3, and Fushun vacuum gas oil （VGO） was used as the feedstock. The conversion of heavy oil over ZSM-5 catalyst can be comparable to that of USY catalyst at high temperature and high C/O ratio. The rate of conversion of heavy oil using the ZSM-5 equilibrium catalyst is lower compared with the USY equilibrium catalyst under the general FCC conditions and this can be attributed to the poor steam ability of the ZSM-5 equilibrium catalyst. The difference in pore topologies of USY and ZSM-5 is the reason why the principal products for the above two catalysts is different, namely gasoline and liquid petroleum gas （LPG）, repspectively. So the LPG selectivity, especially the propylene selectivity, may decline if USY is added into the FCC catalyst for maximizing the production of propylene. Increasing the C/O ratio is the most economical method for the increase of LPG yield than the increase of the temperature of the two model catalysts, because the loss of light oil is less in the former case. There is an inverse correlation between HTC （hydrogen transfer coefficient） and the yield of propylene, and restricting the hydrogen transfer reaction is the more important measure in increasing the yield of propylene of the ZSM-5 catalyst. The ethylene yield of ZSM-5/A1203 is higher, but the gaseous side products with low value are not enhanced when ZSM-5 catalyst is used. Moreover, for LPG and the end products, dry gas and coke, their ranges of reaction conditions to which their yields are dependent are different, and that of end products is more severe than that of LPG. So it is clear that maximizing LPG and propylene and restricting dry gas and coke can be both achieved via increasing the severity of reaction conditions among the range of reaction conditions which LPG yield is sensitive to.

Synthesis and mechanism analysis of a new oil soluble viscosity reducer for flow improvement of Chenping heavy oil

Oil soluble viscosity reducers have gradually attracted the attention of petrochemical research due to their cleanliness and high efficiency.Considering the high viscosity and non-Newtonian fluid properties of Chenping heavy oil found in China,a series of new oil soluble viscosity reducers with different proportions and molecular weights were prepared by free radical polymerization using octadecyl acrylate,2-allylphenol and N-methylolacrylamide as monomers.The viscosity reducer was applied to different types of heavy oil and found that it exhibited a better effect on heavy oils with high asphaltene content.The test of rheological behavior of heavy oil with additive was performed at wide range of shear rate(3–90 s^(-1))and temperature range(30–100°C).The apparent viscosity reduction rate was up to 70.09%,which was better than the industrially relevant ethylene–vinyl acetate copolymer under the same test condition.In addition,the effect of viscosity reducers on the components of heavy oil and the energy change of the system simulated by molecular dynamics simultaneously was investigated.The consistency of the simulated and experimental results show that the effect of viscosity reduction closely related to the crystallization process of wax and the viscosity reducer can reconstruct the surface structure of asphaltene and diminish the connection of benzene ring.