[en] Graphical abstract: Zeta potential of oil-wet quartz powder treated with different surfactants at different concentrations. - Highlights: • Mechanisms of wettability alteration during surfactant flooding were studied. • Different analytical instruments were used to study sandstone wettability alteration. • Surfactants’ structure plays a great role in wettability alteration of solid surface. • CTAB irreversibly desorbs carboxylic acid from solid surface by ionic interaction. • Cationic surfactant is more effective in wettability alteration of sandstone surface. - Abstract: Different analytical methods including Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), atomic force microscopy (AFM), zeta potential measurements, contact angle measurements and spontaneous imbibition tests were utilized to make clear the mechanism for wettability alteration of oil-wet sandstone surface using different surfactants. Results show that among three types of surfactants including cationic surfactants, anionic surfactants and nonionic surfactants, the cationic surfactant CTAB demonstrates the best effect on the wettability alteration of oil-wet sandstone surface. The positively charged head groups of CTAB molecules and carboxylic acid groups from crude oil could interact to form ion pairs, which could be desorbed from the solid surface and solubilized into the micelle formed by CTAB. Thus, the water-wetness of the solid surface is improved. Nonionic surfactant TX-100 could be adsorbed on oil-wet sandstone surface through hydrogen bonds and hydrophobic interaction to alter the wettability of oil-wet solid surface. The wettability alteration of oil-wet sandstone surface using the anionic surfactant POE(1) is caused by hydrophobic interaction. Due to the electrostatic repulsion between the anionic surfactant and the negatively charged surface, POE(1) shows less effect on the wettability alteration of oil-wet sandstone surface