Experimental Research on the Millimeter-Scale Distribution of Oil in Heterogeneous Reservoirs

Oil saturation is a critical parameter when designing oil field development plans.This study focuses on the change of oil saturation during water flooding.Particularly,a meter-level artificial model is used to conduct relevant experiments on the basis of similarity principles and taking into account the layer geological characteristics of the reservoir.The displacement experiment’s total recovery rate is 41.35%.The changes in the remaining oil saturation at a millimeter-scale are examined using medical spiral computer tomography principles.In all experimental stages,regions exists where the oil saturation decline is more than 10.0%.The shrinkage percentage is 20.70%in the horizontal well production stage.The oil saturation reduction in other parts is less than 10.0%,and there are regions where the oil saturation increases in the conventional water flooding stage.

Visualization of Water Plugging Displacement with Foam/Gel Flooding in Internally Heterogeneous Reservoirs

During the displacement of water plugging with binary flooding in internally heterogeneous reservoirs,it is essential to understand the distributions of remaining oil as well as the oil displacement mechanisms at different stages.In this study,two types of internally heterogeneous systems,i.e.,vertical and horizontal wells are investigated experimentally through a microscopic approach.The results show that plugging agent types have a greater impact on oil recovery than well types,and foam injection can enhance oil recovery more effectively than gel injection.Additionally,the injection sequence of plugging agents significantly affects oil displacement efficiency.Injecting gel after foam is more beneficial.According to the present results,the main formation mechanisms of remaining oil in each displacement stage are influenced by:capillary force,viscous force,inertial force,shear force,microscopic fingering&channeling.

A well test model for stress-sensitive and heterogeneous reservoirs with non-uniform thicknesses

In view of the anisotropy,heterogeneity and stress-sensitive permeability in low permeability reservoirs,an analytical well test model was established by introducing the concept of permeability modulus.This model considered the permeability stress-sensitivity,wellbore storage effect,and the skin effect.The perturbation technique and Laplace transformation were used to solve the mathematical model analytically in Laplace space,and the bottom-hole pressure type curves were plotted and analyzed in real space by using the Stehfest numerical inversion.

A semi-analytical rate-transient analysis model for light oil reservoirs exhibiting reservoir heterogeneity and multiphase flow

Rate-transient analysis(RTA)has been widely applied to extract estimates of reservoir/hydraulic fracture properties.However,the majority of RTA techniques can lead to misdiagnosis of reservoir/fracture information when the reservoir exhibits reservoir heterogeneity and multiphase flow simultaneously.This work proposes a practical-yet-rigorous method to decouple the effects of reservoir heterogeneity and multiphase flow during TLF,and improve the evaluation of reservoir/fracture properties.A new,general,semi-analytical model is proposed that explicitly accounts for multiphase flow,fractalbased reservoir heterogeneity,anomalous diffusion,and pressure-dependent fluid properties.This is achieved by introducing a new Boltzmann-type transformation,the exponent of which includes reservoir heterogeneity and anomalous diffusion.In order to decouple the effects of reservoir heterogeneity and multiphase flow during TLF,the modified Boltzmann variable allows the conversion of three partial differential equations(PDE's)(i.e.,oil,gas and water diffusion equations)into ordinary differential equations(ODE's)that are easily solved using the Runge-Kutta(RK)method.A modified time-power-law plot is also proposed to estimate the reservoir and fracture properties,recognizing that the classical square-root-of-time-plot is no longer valid when various reservoir complexities are exhibited simultaneously.Using the slope of the straight line on the modified time-power-law plot,the linear flow parameter can be estimated with more confidence.Moreover,because of the new Boltzmann-type transformation,reservoir and fracture properties can be derived more efficiently without the need for defining complex pseudo-variable transformations.Using the new semi-analytical model,the effects of multiphase flow,reservoir heterogeneity and anomalous diffusion on rate-decline behavior are evaluated.For the case of approximately constant flowing pressure,multiphase flow impacts initial oil rate,which is a function of oil relative permeability and well flowing pressure.However,multiphase flow has a minor effect on the oil production decline exponent.Reservoir heterogeneity/anomalous diffusion affect both the initial oil production rate and production decline exponent.The production decline exponent constant is a function of reservoir heterogeneity/anomalous diffusion only.The practical significance of this work is the advancement of RTA techniques to allow for more complex reservoir scenarios,leading to more accurate production forecasting and better-informed capital planning.

Quantitative Description of the Effects of Sweep Efficiency and Displacement Efficiency during Chemical Flooding on a Heterogeneous Reservoir

The processes of flooding—water flooding, polymer flooding and ternary combination flooding—were simulated respectively on a 2-D positive rhythm profile geological model by using the ASP numerical modeling software developed by RIPED (Yuan, et al. 1995). The recovery coefficient, remaining oil saturation, sweep efficiency and displacement efficiency were calculated and correlated layer by layer. The results show that the sweep efficiency and displacement efficiency work different effects on different layers in the severely heterogeneous reservoir. The study shows that the displacement efficiency and sweep efficiency play different roles in different layers for severely heterogeneous reservoirs. The displacement efficiency contributes mainly to the high permeability zones, the sweep efficiency to the low permeability zones, both of which contribute to the middle permeable zones. To improve the sweep efficiency in the low permeability zones is of significance for enhancing the whole recovery of the reservoir. It is an important path for improving the effectiveness of chemical flooding in the severely heterogeneous reservoirs to inject ternary combination slug after profile control.

Reservoir heterogeneity analysis using multi-directional textural attributes from deep learning-based enhanced acoustic impedance inversion:A study from Poseidon,NW shelf Australia

Reservoir heterogeneities play a crucial role in governing reservoir performance and management.Traditionally,detailed and inter-well heterogeneity analyses are commonly performed by mapping seismic facies change in the seismic data,which is a time-intensive task.Many researchers have utilized a robust Grey-level co-occurrence matrix(GLCM)-based texture attributes to map reservoir heterogeneity.However,these attributes take seismic data as input and might not be sensitive to lateral lithology variation.To incorporate the lithology information,we have developed an innovative impedance-based texture approach using GLCM workflow by integrating 3D acoustic impedance volume(a rock propertybased attribute)obtained from a deep convolution network-based impedance inversion.Our proposed workflow is anticipated to be more sensitive toward mapping lateral changes than the conventional amplitude-based texture approach,wherein seismic data is used as input.To evaluate the improvement,we applied the proposed workflow to the full-stack 3D seismic data from the Poseidon field,NW-shelf,Australia.This study demonstrates that a better demarcation of reservoir gas sands with improved lateral continuity is achievable with the presented approach compared to the conventional approach.In addition,we assess the implication of multi-stage faulting on facies distribution for effective reservoir characterization.This study also suggests a well-bounded potential reservoir facies distribution along the parallel fault lines.Thus,the proposed approach provides an efficient strategy by integrating the impedance information with texture attributes to improve the inference on reservoir heterogeneity,which can serve as a promising tool for identifying potential reservoir zones for both production benefits and fluid storage.

Impact of Reservoir Heterogeneity on Bitumen Content in the Mackay River Oil Sands,Athabasca(Canada)

The Lower Cretaceous Manville Group of Upper Mc Murray Formation is one of the main bitumen reservoirs in Athabasca.In this study,the relationship between reservoirs heterogeneity and bitumen geochemical characteristics were analyzed through core and microscopic observation,lab analysis,petrophysics and logging data.Based on the sedimentology framework,the formation environment of high-quality oil sand reservoirs and their significance for development were discussed.The results indicate that four types lithofacies were recognized in the Upper Mc Murray Formation based on their depositional characteristics.Each lithofacies reservoirs has unique physical properties,and is subject to varying degrees of degradation,resulting in diversity of bitumen content and geochemical composition.The tidal bar(TB)or tidal channel(TC)facies reservoir have excellent physical properties,which are evaluated as gas or water intervals due to strong degradation.The reservoir of sand bar(SB)facies was evaluated as oil intervals,due to its poor physical properties and weak degradation.The reservoir of mixed flat(MF)facies is composed of sand intercalated with laminated shale,which is evaluated as poor oil intervals due to its poor connectivity.The shale content in oil sand reservoir is very important for the reservoir physical properties and bitumen degradation degree.In the context of regional biodegradation,oil sand reservoirs with good physical properties will suffer from strong degradation,while oil sand reservoirs with relatively poor physical properties are more conducive to the bitumen preservation.

Effect mechanism of seepage force on the hydraulic fracture propagation

The flow of fluid through the porous matrix of a reservoir rock applies a seepage force to the solid rock matrix.Although the seepage force exerted by fluid flow through the porous matrix of a reservoir rock has a notable influence on rock deformation and failure,its effect on hydraulic fracture(HF)propagation remains ambiguous.Therefore,in this study,we improved a traditional fluid–solid coupling method by incorporating the role of seepage force during the fracturing fluid seepage,using the discrete element method.First,we validated the simulation results of the improved method by comparing them with an analytical solution of the seepage force and published experimental results.Next,we conducted numerical simulations in both homogeneous and heterogeneous sandstone formations to investigate the influence of seepage force on HF propagation.Our results indicate that fluid viscosity has a greater impact on the magnitude and extent of seepage force compared to injection rate,and that lower viscosity and injection rate correspond to shorter hydraulic fracture lengths.Furthermore,seepage force influences the direction of HF propagation,causing HFs to deflect towards the side of the reservoir with weaker cementation and higher permeability.

Influence of reservoir heterogeneity on immiscible water-alternating-CO_(2)flooding:A case study

Currently,limited studies of immiscible water-alternating-CO_(2)(imWACO_(2))flooding focus on the impact of reservoir heterogeneity on reservoir development outcomes.Given this,using the heterogeneous reservoirs in the Gao 89-1 block as a case study,this study conducted slab core flooding experiments and numerical simulations to assess the impact of reservoir heterogeneity on imWACO_(2)flooding efficiency.It can be concluded that imWACO_(2)flooding can enhance the sweep volume and oil recovery compared to continuous CO_(2)flooding.As the permeability difference increases,the difference in the swept volume between zones/layers with relatively high and low permeability increases.To optimize the exploitation of reservoirs in the Gao 89-1 block,the optimal timing and CO_(2)injection rate for imWACO_(2)flooding are determined at water cut of 40%and 10000 m^(3)/d,respectively.A short injection-production semi-period,combined with multiple cycles of water and CO_(2)injection alternations,is beneficial for enhanced oil recovery from imWACO_(2)flooding.

Enhanced oil recovery mechanisms of polymer flooding in a heterogeneous oil reservoir

Taking reservoir rocks and fluids of the Daqing,Dagang and Changqing oilfields as research objects,the EOR mechanisms and technical approach of polymer flooding were discussed.By comparing the displacement performances of ordinary polymer,glycerol,polymer in"sheet-net"structure and heterogeneous weak gel at the same viscosity and concentration,the relationship between the viscosity of polymer displacement agents and displacement performance was demonstrated,and the method of improving polymer flooding effect was worked out.The main mechanism of polymer flooding to increase oil recovery is the swept volume expansion of water injection due to polymer retention in porous media.The viscosity of polymer agents has no positive correlation with polymer flooding effect.Although polymer of"sheet-net"structure has strong capacity in increasing viscosity,it has poor compatibility with pore throat structure of reservoir rock,low injectivity and low shear resistance.Heterogeneous weak gel system has higher adsorption and capture capacity in porous media,which is easy to retain in porous media,and can effectively establish seepage resistance in high permeability layers(zones).Compared with polymer solutions with the same viscosity or concentration,it has stronger ability to expand swept volume.Long term injection of polymer flooding agents will inevitably lead to fluid entry profile reversal,and thus worsening of polymer flooding effect.Alternate injection of high retention and low or non-retention displacement agents can further improve the displacement effect of polymer flooding agents.

A Review of Formation Mechanism Study on Reservoirs with Tilted Oil-water Contacts

The distribution characteristics of the oil-water contact are the basis for the reservoir exploration and development and reserves evaluation. The reservoir with a tilted oil-water contact has a unique formation mechanism, and the understanding of its distribution and formation mechanism will directly affect the evaluations for the reservoir type, well deployment, selection of well pattern and type, determination of test section, and reserves evaluation. Based on the analysis of reservoir characteristics, petrophysical properties and geological structure in 40 reservoirs worldwide with tilted oil-water contacts, the progress of the research on the formation mechanisms of titled oil-water contacts is summarized in terms of the hydrodynamic conditions, reservoir heterogeneity, neotectonic movement and oil-gas exploitation. According to the formation mechanism of tilted oil-water contacts and the needs of exploration research, different aspects of research methods are summarized and classified, such as the calculation of equipotential surfaces for oil and water in the formation, analysis of formation pressure and analysis of reservoir physical properties and so on. Based upon statistical analysis, it is suggested that the degree of the inclination of the oil-water contact be divided based on the dip of oil-water contact（DipTOWC）. The tilted oil-water contact is divided into three categories： large dip（DipTOWC≥55 m/km）, medium dip（4 m/km≤DipTOWC55 m/km）, and small dip（DipTOWC4 m/km）. The classification and evaluation method can be combined with structure amplitude and reservoir property. The formation mechanism of domestic and international reservoirs with tilted oil-water contacts are summarized in this paper, which have important significance in guiding the exploration and development of the oilfield with tilted oil-water contacts, reserves evaluation, and well deployment.

Heterogeneity and influencing factors of marine gravity flow tight sandstone under abnormally high pressure:A case study from the Miocene Huangliu Formation reservoirs in LD10 area,Yinggehai Basin,South China Sea

The characteristics of reservoir heterogeneity of the marine gravity flow tight sandstone from the Miocene Huangliu Formation under abnormally high pressure setting at LD10 area in Yinggehai Basin are studied,and the influencing factors on reservoir heterogeneity are discussed,based on modular formation dynamics test,thin sections,XRD analysis of clay minerals,scanning electron microscopy,measurement of pore throat image,porosity and permeability,and high pressure Hg injection,as well as the stimulation of burial thermal history.The aim is to elucidate characteristics of the heterogeneity and the evolution process of heterogeneity of the reservoir,and predict the favorable reservoirs distribution.(1)The heterogeneity of the reservoir is mainly controlled by the cement heterogeneity,pore throat heterogeneity,quality of the reservoir heterogeneity,and the diagenesis under an abnormally high pressure setting.(2)The differences in pore-throat structure caused by diagenetic evolution affected the intergranular material heterogeneity and the pore throat heterogeneity,and finally controlled the heterogeneity of reservoir quality.(3)Compared with the reservoir under normal pressure,abnormally high pressure restrains strength of the compaction and cementation and enhances the dissolution of the reservoir to some extent,and abnormally high pressure thus weakening the heterogeneity of the reservoir to a certain degree.The favorable reservoirs are mainly distributed in the gravity flow sand body under the strong overpressure zone in the middle and lower part of Huangliu Formation.

Formation of X-shaped hydraulic fractures in deep thick glutenite reservoirs:A case study in Bohai Bay Basin,East China

Tight glutenite reservoirs are widely developed in Bohai Bay Basin,East China.They are mostly huge thick and rely on hydraulic fracturing treatment for commercial exploitation.To investigate the propagation behavior of hydraulic fractures in these glutenite reservoirs,the geological feature of reservoirs in Bohai Bay Basin is studied firstly,including the reservoir vertical distribution feature and the heterogeneous lithology.Then,hydraulic fracturing treatments in block Yan 222 are carried out and the fracturing processes are monitored by the microseismic system.Results show the hydraulic fractures generated in the reservoirs are mostly in X shape.The cause of X-shaped hydraulic fractures in this study is mainly ascribed to(I)the reservoir heterogeneity and(II)the stress shadow effect of two close hydraulic fractures propagating in the same orientation,which is confirmed by the following numerical simulation and related research in detail.This study can provide a reference for the research on the fracturing behavior of the deep thick glutenite reservoirs.

SAGD Optimization for Heterogeneous Reservoir

This paper demonstrates the use of a commercial simulator as a tool with which to optimize the SAGD （steam-assisted gravity drainage） start-up phase process. The factors affecting the start-up phase are the prime targets. Among the key investigated factors are wellbore geometry effects, reservoir heterogeneity and circulation phase length. Each of the parameters was investigated via steam chamber development observation along the well pair length and the cross sections in the mid, toe and heel areas. In addition, the cumulative recovery in given time, steam-to-oil ratio and CDOR （calendar day oil rate） production data are used to backup the observations produced in the simulated model. Furthermore, an additional component developed during the research is a statistical modification of a layer cake model with which to create a heterogeneous reservoir to represent real reservoir conditions, based on Monte Carlo＇s simulation.

Geo-Risk of Cap Rock System Associated with Heterogeneous Rock Formation Consisted of Interlaying Sandstone and Shale

The intra-formational seal capability was characterized by multi-layered shale baffles to act as the primary or ultimate cap system, were taken into account by homogeneous and heterogeneous models, respectively. In this study, the relevant ranges of input parameter of porosity （20%-35%） and permeability （0.0001-1,000 mD）, respectively for the sandstone （storage layers） and shale （seals） have been selected, according to results of large amount of laboratory core, test from pilot 3,000 m drilling within Tai-Hsi Foreland Basin in Western Taiwan. By a comprehensive geological model, typical single well injected plume migration scenarios were stochastically simulated which covered a 20-year continuous injection （one Mt-CO2 per year） followed by a 1,000-year post-injection monitoring. The corresponding 2-D MHMD （maximum horizontal migration distances） of CO2 plume in the storage reservoir had been calculated with respect to heterogeneous reservoir models and their homogeneous counterparts. Moreover, the induced pressures at critical monitoring points above the injection zone were also evaluated. As a result, the shale baffles of intra-formational seal in a saline aquifers are proven to play a vital role, and capable of ensuring the safe carbon storage operation within a basin scale with a depth range about 2,100-2,500 mRT.

Sedimentary Micro-facies and Macro Heterogeneity of Reservoir Beds in the Third Member of the Qingshankou Formation,Qian'an Area,Songliao Basin

An analysis of drill cores and well logs shows that the main micro-facies of the third member sand bodies of the Qingshankou Formation in Qian＇an are subaqueous distributary channel facies, sheet sand facies and subaqueous fan facies （olistostrome）. Maps showing the distribution of these micro-facies together with inter-channel bay and prodelta mocro-facies are presented for different time-slices （lower, middle and upper parts of the Qingshankou Formation）. These maps reveal the instability and change of sediment transport in the Baokang sedimentary system during the depositional period. Sediment transport was from the west in the early stage, from the south in the middle stage and from the northwest in the late stage. Values of thickness, porosity and permeability of the sand bodies in the third member of the Qingshankou Formation show that they have low to medium porosity and low permeability, and are characterized by serious reservoir heterogeneity. The joints between micro-facies and subaqueous fan micro-facies are characterized by the highest heterogeneity, the sheet sand and distal sand bar subfacies come next, and the heterogeneity of the subaqueous distributary channel sand bodies is relatively weak.

Remaining oil distribution in models with different heterogeneities after CO_(2) WAG injection:Visual research by nuclear magnetic resonance technique

Water alternating gas(WAG)injection is a widely used strategy for enhancing oil recovery(EOR)during gas flooding,and the mechanisms,operating parameters,and influencing factors of which have been extensively studied.However,with respect to its capacity in expanding macroscopic sweep volume under varying heterogeneities,the related results appear inadequate.In this research,three cores with different heterogeneities were used and flooded by the joint water and CO_(2) WAG,then the effects of heterogeneity on oil recovery were determined.More importantly,the cores after CO_(2) WAG injection were investigated using the nuclear magnetic resonance(NMR)technique for remaining oil distribution research,which could help us to understand the capacity of CO_(2) WAG in enlarging sweep volume at different heterogeneities.The results show that the presence of heterogeneity may largely weaken the effectiveness of water flooding,the more severe the heterogeneity,the worse the water flooding.The WAG injection of CO_(2) performs well in EOR after water flooding for all the cores with different heterogeneities;however,it could barely form a complete or full sweep throughout the low-permeability region,and un-swept bypassed regions remain.The homogeneous core is better developed by the injection of the joint water and CO_(2) WAG than the heterogeneous and fractured cases.

Research on reservoir bed heterogeneity,interlayers and seal layers and controlling factors of 2+3 sands of upper second member,Shahejie Formation,in the west of the Pucheng Oilfield

Terminal fans have formed the sedimentary system of the 2＋3 sands of the upper second member, Shahejie formation in the west of the Pucheng Oilfield, Bohai Bay Basin, East China. Based on well logging data and physical properties of the reservoir beds, the 2＋3 sands were divided into 16 sublayers. The heterogeneity of reservoir beds and distribution of interlayers and seal layers in the 2＋3 sands were investigated. The intra-layer heterogeneity and inter-layer heterogeneity primarily belong to the severely heterogeneous classification. The spatial differentiation of sedimentary microfacies resulted in a change of reservoir bed heterogeneity, strong in the middle and southern parts, weak in the northern part. Spatial distribution of interlayers and seal layers is dominated by sedimentary microfacies, and they are thick in north-eastern and middle parts, thin in the south-western part.

Study of the Chemical Flooding Effect in Gao-63 Reservoir

This article is aimed to discuss the impact of using two different kinds of surfactant in enhancing oil recovery in heterogeneous reservoirs. With the background of Jidong oilfield, Rui Feng surfactant which could reach ultra-low interracial tension and combination surfactant RZ-JD80 with strong emulsifying property are chosen to do oil displacement and profile control-oil displacement experiment in homogeneous core and heterogeneous core respectively. The experiment is aimed to study the effect of oil displacement by injecting surfactant individually and the effect after injecting different profile control agent slug before surfactant flooding in heterogeneous cores. The results suggest that injecting Rui Feng surfactant and RZ-JD80 individually could enhance the oil displacement efficiency about 15 percentage points for homogeneous core. For strongly heterogeneous core, it is low efficiency by using either of these two surfactants individually. However, if injected a very little profile control agent slug before surfactant flooding, both of these two kinds of surfactant could enhance the oil recovery by different degree, especially, polymer microsphere plugging^RZ-JD80 flooding composite technology is more adaptable to Gao-63 reservoir. This technology could increase the recovery by 18.52 percentage points aRer surfactant flooding.

Vertical-well-assisted SAGD dilation process in heterogeneous super-heavy oil reservoirs:Numerical simulations

PetroChina’s Karamay heavy oil reservoirs mostly comprise Jurassic deposits of braided fluvial facies that have a low porosity,extremely high bitumen viscosity,and strong heterogeneities within the reservoir.Steam-assisted gravity drainage(SAGD)dilation start-up has been proven an efficient reservoir geomechanical stimulation method as it shortens the steam circulation time,reduces steam usage,and increases the oil production rates.This method worked well on relatively good-quality oil sand reservoirs.However,for reservoirs with heterogeneous reservoir properties along the SAGD well,field well production data indicated the presence of non-uniform steam chambers in post-dilation SAGD wells.Enhanced dilation methods,such as vertical-well-assisted SAGD dilation(VW-SAGD-Dilation)are have been used,and field pilot tests have yielded promising results.This reservoir stimulation process utilizes one or more vertical wells beside the SAGD well to initiate the formation of dilation zones that connect to the dilation zone formed during the conventional SAGD dilation start-up.Compared with the normal SAGD dilation start-up,this composite dilation process creates a uniform dilation zone along the SAGD well,thus improving the thermal conformance and well productivity.The vertical well and SAGD well are connected by this composite dilation zone,which enables the combined use of the SAGD process and cyclic steam stimulation process.This paper presents our understanding and numerical case studies of this enhanced dilation strategy.The well production data from the postdilation wells were positive(uniform steam chamber growth and higher oil rate),which highlights the promising potential of using geomechanical dilation as a reservoir stimulation method to create a large stimulated reservoir volume in heterogeneous super-heavy oil reservoirs.