Synthesis and Evaluation of a New Cationic Surfactant for Oil‐Well Drilling Fluid

A new additive cationic surfactant for drilling fluid was synthesized by alkylation of coal tar phenol with tetradecyl alcohol; then, the alkyl phenol reacts with formaldehyde and amine to produce the Mannich base product. This product was reacted with sodium chloroacetate to produce the cationic surfactant; the structure of the synthesized surfactant was confirmed by FTIR analysis, evaluation of the prepared surfactant by surface properties such as surface tension, emulsification power, and wetting power. The prepared cationic surfactant showed good results when utilized in the formulation of both oil‐based mud and synthetic‐based mud as the primary emulsifier.