From Palm Oleochemicals to the Reservoir: Molecular Design, Compatibility Windows and the Missing Path to Field Deployment of Palm-Derived Green Surfactants for Enhanced Oil Recovery- A Critical Review

Abstract

Palm oil, palm-kernel oil, and oil-palm processing residues provide a potentially strategic renewable platform for chemicals used in enhanced oil recovery (EOR). Among the resulting products, methyl ester sulfonate (MES), lignin-derived lignosulfonates, palm fatty-acid-derived soaps, polymeric surfactants, and biomass-derived alkaline materials have attracted increasing attention because they combine interfacial activity with possibilities for renewable sourcing and local manufacturing. This critical qualitative review evaluates why encouraging laboratory performance has not yet translated into widespread field deployment. The analysis integrates molecular architecture, critical micelle concentration, interfacial tension reduction, phase behavior, wettability alteration, adsorption and retention, salinity and divalent-ion tolerance, thermal stability, surfactant–polymer and alkali–surfactant–polymer formulations, nanoparticle hybrids, environmental performance, manufacturing scalability, and economics. Evidence published during 2020–2026 indicates that palm-derived MES currently has the strongest reservoir-relevant evidence, including performance under high-salinity and elevated-temperature conditions, whereas oil-palm lignosulfonates and palm-biomass-derived alkalis remain at less mature stages. The review argues that low interfacial tension alone is an inadequate criterion for technological readiness. A Palm-EOR Field Readiness Framework is therefore proposed, linking feedstock consistency and molecular function to reservoir compatibility, porous-media transport, formulation engineering, sustainability, technoeconomics, pilot qualification, and commercial implementation. Future research should prioritize representative formation brines, reservoir cores, dynamic adsorption, long-duration aging, produced-fluid management, reservoir simulation, life-cycle assessment, and progressively scaled field pilots.