Application of the Material Balance Method in Paleoelevation Recovery: A Case Study of the Longmen Mountains Foreland Basin on the Eastern Margin of the Tibetan Plateau

We applied the material balance principle of the denudation volume and sedimentary flux to study the denudation-accumulation system between the Longmen Mountains （Mts.） and the foreland basin. The amount of sediment in each sedimentation stage of the basin was estimated to obtain the denudation volume, erosion thickness and deposit thickness since the Late Triassic Epoch, to enable us to recover the paleoelevation of the provenance and the sedimentary area. The results show the following： （1） Since the Late Triassic Epoch, the elevation of the surface of the Longmen Mts. has uplifted from 0 m to 2751 m, and the crust of the Longmen Mts. has uplifted by 9.8 km. Approximately 72% of the materials introduced have been denuded from the mountains. （2） It is difficult to recover the paleoelevation of each stage of the Longmen Mts. foreland basin quantitatively by the present-day techniques and data. （3） The formation of the Longmen Mts. foreland basin consisted of three stages of thrust belt tectonic load and three stages of thrust belt erosional unload. During tectonic loading stages （Late Triassic Epoch, Late Jurassic-Early Cretaceous, Late Cretaceous-Miocene）, the average elevation of Longmen Mts. was lower （approximately 700-1700 m）. During erosional unloading stages （Early and Middle Jurassic, Middle Cretaceous and Jiaguan, Late Cenozoic）, the average elevation of Longmen Mts. was high at approximately 2000-2800m.

A New Material Balance Equation Model for Analyzing Dynamic Performance of C_2 Flooding

Implementing a CO2 flooding scheme successfully requires the capacity to get accurate information of reservoir dynamic performance and fluids injected. Despite some numerical simulation studies, the complicated drive mechanisms and actual reservoir performance have not been fully understood. There is a strong need to develop models from different perspectives to complement current simulators and provide valuable insights into the reservoir performance during CO2 flooding. The aim of this study is to develop a model by using an improved material balance equation （MBE） to analyze quickly the performance of CO2 flooding. After matching the historical field data the proposed model can be used to evaluate, monitor and predict the overall reservoir dynamic performance during CO2 flooding. In order to account accurately for the complex displacement process involving compositional effect and multiphase flow, the PVT properties and flowability of reservoir fluids are incorporated in the model. This study investigates the effects of a number of factors, such as reservoir pressure, the amount of CO2 injected, the CO2 partition ratios in reservoir fluids, the possibility of the existence of a free CO2 gas cap, the proportion of reservoir fluids contacted with CO2, the starting time of CO2 flooding, oil swelling, and oil flowability improvement by mixing with CO2. The model was used to analyze the CO2 flooding project in Weyburn oil field, Saskatchewan, Canada. This study shows that the proposed model is an effective complementary tool to analyze and monitor the overall reservoir performance during CO2 flooding.

The generalized method for estimating reserves of shale gas and coalbed methane reservoirs based on material balance equation

As the main unconventional natural gas reservoirs,shale gas reservoirs and coalbed methane(CBM)reservoirs belong to adsorptive gas reservoirs,i.e.,gas reservoirs containing adsorbed gas.Shale gas and CBM reservoirs usually have the characteristics of rich adsorbed gas and obvious dynamic changes of porosity and permeability.A generalized material balance equation and the corresponding reserve evaluation method considering all the mechanisms for both shale gas reservoirs and CBM reservoirs are necessary.In this work,a generalized material balance equation(GMBE)considering the effects of critical desorption pressure,stress sensitivity,matrix shrinkage,water production,water influx,and solubility of natural gas in water is established.Then,by converting the GMBE to a linear relationship between two parameter groups related with known formation/fluid properties and dynamic performance data,the straight-line reserve evaluation method is proposed.By using the slope and the y-intercept of this straight line,the original adsorbed gas in place(OAGIP),original free gas in place(OFGIP),original dissolved gas in place(ODGIP),and the original gas in place(OGIP)can be quickly calculated.Third,two validation cases for shale gas reservoir and CBM reservoir are conducted using commercial reservoir simulator and the coalbed methane dynamic performance analysis software,respectively.Finally,two field studies in the Fuling shale gas field and the Baode CBM field are presented.Results show that the GMBE and the corresponding straight-line reserve evaluation method are rational,accurate,and effective for both shale gas reservoirs and CBM reservoirs.More detailed information about reserves of shale gas and CBM reservoirs can be clarified,and only the straight-line fitting approach is used to determine all kinds of reserves without iteration,proving that the proposed method has great advantages compared with other current methods.

Assessment of residual oil saturation with time-differentiated variable multiple material balance model

This study aims to improve the evaluation of residual oil saturation in water flooded zones based on the material balance model(MBM)with variable multiple for injected water.We investigated the change patterns of rock-electro parameters during waterflooding through the analysis of displacement tests.Our work differentiated the waterflooding into numerous displacement processes and accordingly propose an improved time-differentiated variable multiple MBM.The calculation results of the improved model are more consistent with the displacement experiment data of cores.Furthermore,the improved method was integrated into the comprehensive interpretation platform of offshore logging to analyze water flooded zones of a well in the A oilfield.As a result,the residual oil saturation calculated is in close agreement with the results of experiments on cores.Our results indicate that the time-differentiation and variable multiplier for injected water can effectively enhance the assessment accuracy of the residual oil saturation of water-flooded zones.

Anaerobic co-digestion of municipal biomass wastes and waste activated sludge: Dynamic model and material balances

The organic matter degradation process during anaerobic co-digestion of municipal biomass waste （MBW） and waste-activated sludge （WAS） under different organic loading rates （OLRs） was investigated in bench-scale and pilot-scale semi-continuous stirred tank reactors. To better understand the degradation process of MBW and WAS co-digestion and provide theoretical guidance for engineering application, anaerobic digestion model No. 1 was revised for the co-digestion of MBW and WAS. The results showed that the degradation of organic matter could be characterized into three different fractions, including readily hydrolyzable organics, easily degradable particulate organics, and recalcitrant particle organics. Hydrolysis was the rate-limiting step under lower OLRs, and methanogenesisis was the rate-limiting step for an OLR of 8.0 kg volatile solid （VS）/（m^3·day）. The hydrolytic parameters of carbohydrate, protein, and lipids were 0.104, 0.083, and 0.084 kg chemical oxygen demand （COD）/（kg COD·hr）, respectively, and the reaction rate parameters of lipid fermentation were 1 and 1.25 kg COD/（kg COD.hr） for OLRs of 4.0 and 6.0 kg VS/（m^3·day）. A revised model was used to simulate methane yield, and the results fit well with the experimental data. Material balance data were acquired based on the revised model, which showed that 58.50% of total COD was converted to methane.

Identification of the lower limit of high-quality source rocks and its relation to hydrocarbon accumulation——Taking the Beier Sag in the Hailaer Basin as an example

The theory of ＂source rock control＂ has evolved from source-rock-control hydrocarbon accumulation, to effective source-rock-control hydrocarbon accumulation, and to high-quality source- rock-control hydrocarbon accumulation. However, there are problems, such as whether high-quality source rocks exist or not？ What high-quality source rocks are, and how to identify them, are yet to be agreed upon. Aimed at this issue of concern to explorationists, and taking the Beier Sag in the Hailaer Basin as an example, this paper defines the high-quality source rocks and the lower limit for evaluation of high-quality source rocks, by using the inflection point on the relationship curve of hydrocarbon （oil） expulsion, which is calculated by the material balance principle, versus total organic carbon （TOC）. The results show that when TOC is low, all source rocks have limited hydrocarbon expulsion and slow growth rate, thus they cannot be high-quality source rocks. However, when TOC rises to some threshold, hydrocarbon expulsion increases significantly with TOC. This inflection point should be the lower limit of high-quality source rocks： those with TOC greater than the inflection-point value are high-quality source rocks. In addition, the lower limit of high-quality source rocks is also related to the type and maturity of organic matters in the source rocks, as well as the mineral components of the source rocks affecting the residual hydrocarbons. Theoretically, the lower limit of high-quality source rocks depends on geological conditions rather than being a constant value. However, for the sake of simplicity and practicability, in this paper TOC=2.0% is regarded as the lower limit of high-quality source rocks. The examination of such standard in the work area indicates that the high-quality source rocks in members K^n2 and K^n~ of the Nantun formation contribute 76% and 82% to oil generation, and 96% and 91% to oil expulsion, respectively. The distribution of high-quality source rocks is also closely related to the distribution of hydrocarbon reservoirs in the region, demonstrating that high-quality source rocks control hydrocarbon accumulation.

Methods for simultaneously evaluating reserve and permeability of undersaturated coalbed methane reservoirs using production data during the dewatering stage

In this work,a flowing material balance equation(FMBE) is established for under saturated coalbed methane(CBM) reservoirs,which considers immobile free gas expansion effect at the dewatering stage.Based on the established FMBE,five straight-line methods are proposed to determine the control area,initial water reserve,initial free gas reserve,initial adsorbed gas reserve,original gas in place,as well as permeability at the same time.Subsequently,the proposed FMBE methods for undersaturated CBM reservoirs are validated against a reservoir simulation software with and without considering free gas expansion.Finally,the proposed methods are applied in a field case when considering free gas expansion effect.Validation cases show that the straight-line relationships for the proposed five FMBE methods are excellent,and good agreements are obtained among the actual reserves and permeabilities and those evaluated by the proposed five FMBE methods,indicating the proposed five FMBE methods are effective and rational for CBM reservoirs.Results show that a small amount of free gas will result in a great deviation in reserve evaluation;hence,the immobile free gas expansion effect should be considered when establishing the material balance equation of undersaturated CBM reservoirs at the dewatering stage.

Investigation of flue gas water-alternating gas (flue gas–WAG) injection for enhanced oil recovery and multicomponent flue gas storage in the post-waterflooding reservoir

Flue gas fooding is one of the important technologies to improve oil recovery and achieve greenhouse gas storage.In order to study multicomponent fue gas storage capacity and enhanced oil recovery(EOR)performance of fue gas water-alternating gas(fue gas-WAG)injection after continuous waterfooding in an oil reservoir,a long core fooding system was built.The experimental results showed that the oil recovery factor of fue gas-WAG fooding was increased by 21.25%after continuous waterfooding and fue gas-WAG fooding could further enhance oil recovery and reduce water cut signifcantly.A novel material balance model based on storage mechanism was developed to estimate the multicomponent fue gas storage capacity and storage capacity of each component of fue gas in reservoir oil,water and as free gas in the post-waterfooding reservoir.The ultimate storage ratio of fue gas is 16%in the fue gas-WAG fooding process.The calculation results of fue gas storage capacity showed that the injection gas storage capacity mainly consists of N_(2) and CO_(2),only N_(2) exists as free gas phase in cores,and other components of injection gas are dissolved in oil and water.Finally,injection strategies from three perspectives for fue gas storage,EOR,and combination of fue gas storage and EOR were proposed,respectively.

Seasonal variations and sources of mass and chemical composition for PM_(10) aerosol in Hangzhou,China

Aerosol observation was conducted for four seasons from September 2001 to August 2002 at five sampling sites in Hangzhou, South China, on PM10 mass, 22 elements （Na, Mg, AI, Si, P, S, K, Ca, Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Ni, Cu, Zn, As. Se, Br, Cd, Ba, and Pb）, 5 major ions （F^-, Cl^ , NO3^-, SO4^2- , and NH4^＋）, and organic and elemental carbon （OC and EC）, showing that PM10 mass ranged from 46.7 to 270.8 μg/m^3, with an annual average of 119.2 μg/m^3. Na, AI, Si, S, K, Ca, and Fe were the most abundant elements in PM10, most of S being in the form of SO4^2- . SO4^2-, NO3^-, and NH4^＋ were the major ions, which contributed to about 20% of the PM10 mass. The mean seasonal concentrations for SO4^2- , averaged over all sites, were found to be 18.0, 18.5, 24,Z and 21.4 μg/m^3, for spring, summer, autumn, and winter, respectively, while the corresponding loadings for NO3^- were 7.2, 4.7, 7.1, and 11.2 μg/m^3, and for NH4^＋ were 6.0, 5.9, 8.2, and 9.3 μg/m^3, in the form mostly of NH4NO3 in spring, autumn, and winter, and mostly of （NH4）2SO4 in summer. The low NO3^-/SO4^2- ratio found indicates coal combustion as the major source throughout the year. The mean annual concentrations of OC and EC in PM10 were found to be 21.4, and 4.1 μg/m^3, respectively. Material balance calculation indicated that fugitive dust, the secondary aerosol, and carbonaceous matter were the most abundant species in PM10 for the four seasons, as is characteristic for cities in South China.