Patents by Inventor Mark A. Plummer

Mark A. Plummer has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 4147638
    Abstract: Petroleum sulfonates are obtained by treating whole crude oil or topped crude oil or mixtures thereof with sulfur trioxide, removing unreacted hydrocarbon, e.g., by addition of water, and neutralizing the sulfonic acids formed with a base, e.g., sodium or ammonia. The products have particular utility for the preparation of micellar systems for use in secondary-type petroleum recovery.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 6, 1976
    Date of Patent: April 3, 1979
    Assignee: Marathon Oil Company
    Inventor: Mark A. Plummer
  • Patent number: 4147637
    Abstract: Flooding hydrocarbon-bearing, subterranean formations with micellar systems containing crude oil sulfonates is improved by extracting wax from the micellar system before it is injected into the formation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 2, 1977
    Date of Patent: April 3, 1979
    Assignee: Marathon Oil Company
    Inventors: Mark A. Plummer, Stanley C. Jones
  • Patent number: 4144266
    Abstract: Petroleum sulfonates are obtained by treating whole crude oil or topped crude oil or mixtures thereof with sulfur trioxide, removing unreacted hydrocarbon, e.g., by addition of water, and neutralizing the sulfonic acids formed with a base, e.g., sodium hydroxide or ammonia. The products have particular utility for the preparation of micellar systems for use in secondary-type petroleum recovery.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 5, 1973
    Date of Patent: March 13, 1979
    Assignee: Marathon Oil Company
    Inventors: Mark A. Plummer, Donald E. Schroeder, Jr.
  • Patent number: 4013125
    Abstract: Flooding of a subterranean formation with micellar dispersions containing petroleum sulfonates obtained by sulfonating whole or topped crude oil is improved through the use of a micellar dispersion of a predetermined viscosity containing an amount of cosurfactant in excess of that required to cause the micellar dispersion to have the highest viscosity possible for the particular micellar dispersion with the particular cosurfactant used. Preferably, the cosurfactant is an alcohol and the cosurfactant concentration is sufficiently high to control the micellar dispersion to have a predetermined mobility when injected into a hydrocarbon-bearing formation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 27, 1975
    Date of Patent: March 22, 1977
    Assignee: Marathon Oil Company
    Inventors: Mark A. Plummer, Donald E. Schroeder, Jr., Wayne O. Roszelle
  • Patent number: 3997451
    Abstract: Improved oil recovery is realized by flooding oil-bearing subterranean formations with an aqueous mixture, preferably a micellar dispersion, comprised of at least two different petroleum sulfonates, the sulfonates have an average equivalent weight within the range of about 390-450, and have an aliphatic to aromatic proton (A/AP) ratio within the range of 4-20 moles per mole but the two sulfonates have a difference in their respective A/AP ratio of at least 2.5 moles per mole.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 23, 1974
    Date of Patent: December 14, 1976
    Assignee: Marathon Oil Company
    Inventors: Mark A. Plummer, Wayne O. Roszelle
  • Patent number: 3964548
    Abstract: Improved oil recovery by flooding subterranean formations with micellar dispersions; comprised of hydrocarbon, water, cosurfactant, electrolyte, and petroleum sulfonate obtained by sulfonating whole or topped crude oil; is obtained by incorporating within the micellar dispersion about 1.5 to about 4.5 wt. % of active sulfonate groups (e.g. --SO.sub.3 NH.sub.4 or --SO.sub.3 Na) which are attached to the petroleum sulfonate. The micellar dispersions of this invention contain an amount of cosurfactant in excess of the amount required to produce a viscosity maximum with the particular micellar dispersion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 27, 1975
    Date of Patent: June 22, 1976
    Assignee: Marathon Oil Company
    Inventors: Donald E. Schroeder, Jr., Mark A. Plummer, Wayne O. Roszelle
  • Patent number: 3956372
    Abstract: Petroleum sulfonates useful to impart micellar characteristics to mixtures of hydrocarbon and aqueous medium are obtained by reacting a hydrocarbon gas oil feedstock (average molecular weight 250-700; A/AP aliphatic to aromatic proton) ratio 5-50 moles/mole, 30-100% of the feedstock molecules contain aromatic portions and the A/AP ratio of the aromatic portion being about 3-20 moles/mole) with a solution of EDC (ethylene dichloride) containing 0.1-0.3 lb. liquid SO.sub.3 /lb EDC. The SO.sub.3 concentration is about 0.1-0.3 lb. of SO.sub.3 /lb of gas oil feedstock. Reaction takes place in a back-mix tubular reactor wherein at least about 4 parts of reaction products are recycled per 1 part of reaction products withdrawn and wherein the gas oil feedstock plus recycled reaction products and the SO.sub.3 /EDC streams entering the reaction zone are in turbulent flow. Velocity ratio of the feedstock plus recycled reaction products stream to the SO.sub.3 /EDC stream is at least 4:1, respectively.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 2, 1973
    Date of Patent: May 11, 1976
    Assignee: Marathon Oil Company
    Inventors: John R. Coleman, Jr., Mark A. Plummer, Carle C. Zimmerman, Jr., Henry J. Pietrzak, Wayne E. Luetzelschwab, Kent W. Robinson, Donald E. Schroeder, Jr.
  • Patent number: 3951828
    Abstract: The injectivity of micellar dispersions containing wax within the hydrocarbon phase is improved by incorporating into this phase about 0.01-10 percent by weight of a low molecular weight paraffinic hydrocarbon. This invention is especially useful with micellar dispersions obtained from petroleum sulfonates that have been cooled, e.g. to about 40.degree.F., and thereafter heated during injection into a subterranean reservoir for secondary or tertiary oil recovery purposes.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 29, 1973
    Date of Patent: April 20, 1976
    Assignee: Marathon Oil Company
    Inventor: Mark A. Plummer