Synergistic anionic/zwitterionic mixed surfactant system with high emulsification efficiency for enhanced oil recovery in low permeability reservoirs

Emulsification is one of the important mechanisms of surfactant flooding. To improve oil recovery for low permeability reservoirs, a highly efficient emulsification oil flooding system consisting of anionic surfactant sodium alkyl glucosyl hydroxypropyl sulfonate(APGSHS) and zwitterionic surfactant octadecyl betaine(BS-18) is proposed. The performance of APGSHS/BS-18 mixed surfactant system was evaluated in terms of interfacial tension, emulsification capability, emulsion size and distribution, wettability alteration, temperature-resistance and salt-resistance. The emulsification speed was used to evaluate the emulsification ability of surfactant systems, and the results show that mixed surfactant systems can completely emulsify the crude oil into emulsions droplets even under low energy conditions. Meanwhile,the system exhibits good temperature and salt resistance. Finally, the best oil recovery of 25.45% is achieved for low permeability core by the mixed surfactant system with a total concentration of 0.3 wt%while the molar ratio of APGSHS:BS-18 is 4:6. The current study indicates that the anionic/zwitterionic mixed surfactant system can improve the oil flooding efficiency and is potential candidate for application in low permeability reservoirs.

A novel profile modification HPF-Co gel satisfied with fractured low permeability reservoirs in high temperature and high salinity

Conformance control and water plugging are a widely used EOR method in mature oilfields.However,majority of conformance control and water plugging agents are unavoidable dehydrated situation in high-temperature and high-salinity low permeability reservoirs.Consequently,a novel conformance control system HPF-Co gel,based on high-temperature stabilizer(CoCl_(2)·H_(2)O,CCH)is developed.The HPF-Co bulk gel has better performances with high temperature(120℃)and high salinity(1×10^(5)mg/L).According to Sydansk coding system,the gel strength of HPF-Co with CCH is increased to code G.The dehydration rate of HPF-Co gel is 32.0%after aging for 150 d at 120℃,showing excellent thermal stability.The rheological properties of HPF gel and HPF-Co gel are also studied.The results show that the storage modulus(G′)of HPF-Co gel is always greater than that of HPF gel.The effect of CCH on the microstructure of the gel is studied.The results show that the HPF-Co gel with CCH has a denser gel network,and the diameter of the three-dimensional network skeleton is 1.5-3.5μm.After 90 d of aging,HPF-Co gel still has a good three-dimensional structure.Infrared spectroscopy results show that CCH forms coordination bonds with N and O atoms in the gel amide group,which can suppress the vibration of cross-linked sites and improve the stability at high temperature.Fractured core plugging test determines the optimized polymer gel injection strategy and injection velocity with HPF-Co bulk gel system,plugging rate exceeding 98%.Moreover,the results of subsequent waterflooding recovery can be improved by 17%.

Numerical Simulation of Oil-Water Two-Phase Flow in Low Permeability Tight Reservoirs Based on Weighted Least Squares Meshless Method

In response to the complex characteristics of actual low-permeability tight reservoirs,this study develops a meshless-based numerical simulation method for oil-water two-phase flow in these reservoirs,considering complex boundary shapes.Utilizing radial basis function point interpolation,the method approximates shape functions for unknown functions within the nodal influence domain.The shape functions constructed by the aforementioned meshless interpolation method haveδ-function properties,which facilitate the handling of essential aspects like the controlled bottom-hole flow pressure in horizontal wells.Moreover,the meshless method offers greater flexibility and freedom compared to grid cell discretization,making it simpler to discretize complex geometries.A variational principle for the flow control equation group is introduced using a weighted least squares meshless method,and the pressure distribution is solved implicitly.Example results demonstrate that the computational outcomes of the meshless point cloud model,which has a relatively small degree of freedom,are in close agreement with those of the Discrete Fracture Model(DFM)employing refined grid partitioning,with pressure calculation accuracy exceeding 98.2%.Compared to high-resolution grid-based computational methods,the meshless method can achieve a better balance between computational efficiency and accuracy.Additionally,the impact of fracture half-length on the productivity of horizontal wells is discussed.The results indicate that increasing the fracture half-length is an effective strategy for enhancing production from the perspective of cumulative oil production.

An overview of efficient development practices at low permeability sandstone reservoirs in China

Low permeability sandstone reservoirs in China typically have more complicated geological conditions, pore structures, and flow characteristics as compared to medium-to-high-permeability sandstone reservoirs. Traditional geological and seepage theories, and engineering methods are not applicable to the development of these low permeability reservoirs, and wells drilled into them often produce oil and gas at very low rates. Recent breakthroughs in reservoir exploitation technology have greatly improved the productivity of low permeability reservoirs, making them the primary target for oil exploration and extraction in China. The development theories and practices applied to low permeability reservoirs in China are reviewed in this study— based on relevant geological and engineering practices, including drilling, fracturing, recovery, and surface engineering. A unique series of technological advances that aid the development of low permeability reservoirs in China are summarized here. This study may serve as a meaningful guide in achieving scale efficiency for the development of low permeability reservoirs.

Research on Well Testing Interpretation of Low Permeability Deformed Dual Medium Reservoir

Considering the influence of quadratic gradient term and medium deformation on the seepage equation, a well testing interpretation model for low permeability and deformation dual medium reservoirs was derived and established. The difference method was used to solve the problem, and pressure and pressure derivative double logarithmic curves were drawn to analyze the seepage law. The research results indicate that the influence of starting pressure gradient and medium deformation on the pressure characteristic curve is mainly manifested in the middle and late stages. The larger the value, the more obvious the upward warping of the pressure and pressure derivative curve;the parameter characterizing the dual medium is the crossflow coefficient. The channeling coefficient determines the time and location of the appearance of the “concave”. The smaller the value, the later the appearance of the “concave”, and the more to the right of the “concave”.

Numerical study on gas production via a horizontal well from hydrate reservoirs with different slope angles in the South China Sea

It is important to study the effect of hydrate production on the physical and mechanical properties of low-permeability clayey–silty reservoirs for the largescale exploitation of hydrate reservoirs in the South China Sea.In this study,a multiphysical-field coupling model,combined with actual exploration drilling data and the mechanical experimental data of hydrate cores in the laboratory,was established to investigate the physical and mechanical properties of low-permeability reservoirs with different slope angles during 5-year hydrate production by the depressurization method via a horizontal well.The result shows that the permeability of reservoirs severely affects gas production rate,and the maximum gas production amount of a 20-m-long horizontal well can reach186.8 m3/day during the 5-year hydrate production.Reservoirs with smaller slope angles show higher gas production rates.The depressurization propagation and hydrate dissociation mainly develop along the direction parallel to the slope.Besides,the mean effective stress of reservoirs is concentrated in the near-wellbore area with the on-going hydrate production,and gradually decreases with the increase of the slope angle.Different from the effective stress distribution law,the total reservoir settlement amount first decreases and then increases with the increase of the slope angle.The maximum settlement of reservoirs with a 0°slope angle is up to 3.4 m,and the displacement in the near-wellbore area is as high as2.2 m after 5 years of hydrate production.It is concluded that the pore pressure drop region of low-permeability reservoirs in the South China Sea is limited,and various slope angles further lead to differences in effective stress and strain of reservoirs during hydrate production,resulting in severe uneven settlement of reservoirs.

Advances in enhanced oil recovery technologies for low permeability reservoirs

Low permeability oil and gas resources are rich and have great potential all over the world, which has gradually become the main goal of oil and gas development. However, after traditional primary and secondary exploitation, there is still a large amount of remaining oil that has not been recovered.Therefore, in recent years, enhanced oil recovery(EOR) technologies for low permeability reservoirs have been greatly developed to further improve crude oil production. This study presents a comprehensive review of EOR technologies in low permeability reservoirs with an emphasis on gas flooding, surfactant flooding, nanofluid flooding and imbibition EOR technologies. In addition, two kinds of gel systems are introduced for conformance control in low permeability reservoirs with channeling problems. Finally,the technical challenges, directions and outlooks of EOR in low permeability reservoirs are addressed.

The coupling of dynamics and permeability in the hydrocarbon accumulation period controls the oil-bearing potential of low permeability reservoirs:a case study of the low permeability turbidite reservoirs in the middle part of the third member of Shahejie

The relationships between permeability and dynamics in hydrocarbon accumulation determine oil- bearing potential （the potential oil charge） of low perme- ability reservoirs. The evolution of porosity and permeability of low permeability turbidite reservoirs of the middle part of the third member of the Shahejie Formation in the Dongying Sag has been investigated by detailed core descriptions, thin section analyses, fluid inclusion analyses, carbon and oxygen isotope analyses, mercury injection, porosity and permeability testing, and basin modeling. The cutoff values for the permeability of the reservoirs in the accumulation period were calculated after detailing the accumulation dynamics and reservoir pore structures, then the distribution pattern of the oil-bearing potential of reservoirs controlled by the matching relationship between dynamics and permeability during the accumulation period were summarized. On the basis of the observed diagenetic features and with regard to the paragenetic sequences, the reservoirs can be subdivided into four types of diagenetic facies. The reservoirs experienced two periods of hydro- carbon accumulation. In the early accumulation period, the reservoirs except for diagenetic facies A had middle to high permeability ranging from 10 × 10-3 gm2 to 4207 × 10-3 lain2. In the later accumulation period, the reservoirs except for diagenetic facies C had low permeability ranging from 0.015 × 10-3 gm2 to 62× 10-3 -3m2. In the early accumulation period, the fluid pressure increased by the hydrocarbon generation was 1.4-11.3 MPa with an average value of 5.1 MPa, and a surplus pressure of 1.8-12.6 MPa with an average value of 6.3 MPa. In the later accumulation period, the fluid pressure increased by the hydrocarbon generation process was 0.7-12.7 MPa with an average value of 5.36 MPa and a surplus pressure of 1.3-16.2 MPa with an average value of 6.5 MPa. Even though different types of reservoirs exist, all can form hydrocarbon accumulations in the early accumulation per- iod. Such types of reservoirs can form hydrocarbon accumulation with high accumulation dynamics; however, reservoirs with diagenetic facies A and diagenetic facies B do not develop accumulation conditions with low accumu- lation dynamics in the late accumulation period for very low permeability. At more than 3000 m burial depth, a larger proportion of turbidite reservoirs are oil charged due to the proximity to the source rock, Also at these depths, lenticular sand bodies can accumulate hydrocarbons. At shallower depths, only the reservoirs with oil-source fault development can accumulate hydrocarbons. For flat surfaces, hydrocarbons have always been accumulated in the reservoirs around the oil-source faults and areas near the center of subsags with high accumulation dynamics.

Study on Reducing Injection Pressure of Low Permeability Reservoirs Characterized by High Temperature and High Salinity

In view of the problems of high injection pressure and low water injection rate in water injection wells of low permeability reservoirs featuring high temperature and high salinity,two new surfactants were synthesized,including a quaternary ammonium surfactant and a betaine amphoteric surfactant.The composite surfactant system BYJ-1 was formed by mixing two kinds of surfactants.The minimum interfacial tension between BYJ-1 solution and the crude oil could reach 1.4×10^(-3) mN/m.The temperature resistance was up to 140℃,and the salt resistance could reach up to 120 g/L.For the low permeability core fully saturated with water phase,BYJ-1 could obviously reduce the starting pressure gradient of low permeability core.While for the core with residual oil,BYJ-1 could obviously reduce the injection pressure and improve the oil recovery.Moreover,the field test showed that BYJ-1 could effectively reduce the injection pressure of the water injection well,increase the injection volume,and increase the liquid production and oil production of the corresponding production well.

Model building for Chang-8 low permeability sandstone reservoir in the Yanchang formation of the Xifeng oil field

In order to build a model for the Chang-8 low permeability sandstone reservoir in the Yanchang formation of the Xifeng oil field,we studied sedimentation and diagenesis of sandstone and analyzed major factors controlling this low permeability reservoir.By doing so,we have made clear that the spatial distribution of reservoir attribute parameters is controlled by the spatial distribution of various kinds of sandstone bodies.By taking advantage of many coring wells and high quality logging data,we used regression analysis for a single well with geological conditions as constraints,to build the interpretation model for logging data and to calculate attribute parameters for a single well,which ensured accuracy of the 1-D vertical model.On this basis,we built a litho-facies model to replace the sedimentary facies model.In addition,we also built a porosity model by using a sequential Gaussian simulation with the lithofacies model as the constraint.In the end,we built a permeability model by using Markov-Bayes simula-tion,with the porosity attribute as the covariate.The results show that the permeability model reflects very well the relative differences between low permeability values,which is of great importance for locating high permeability zones and forecasting zones favorable for exploration and exploitation.

Timing of advanced water flooding in low permeability reservoirs

It is very important to design the optimum starting time of water injection for the development of low permeability reservoirs. In this type of reservoir the starting time of water injection will be affected by a reservoir pressure-sensitive effect. In order to optimize the starting time of water injection in low permeability reservoirs, this effect of pressure change on rock permeability of low permeability reservoirs was, at first, studied by physical simulation. It was shown that the rock permeability decreases exponentially with an increase in formation pressure. Secondly, we conducted a reservoir engineering study, from which we obtained analytic relationships between formation pressure, oil production rate, water production rate and water injection rate. After our physical, theoretical and economical analyses, we proposed an approach which takes the pressure-sensitive effect into consideration and designed the optimum starting time of water injection, based on the principle of material balance. Finally, the corresponding software was developed and applied to one block of the Jiangsu Oilfield. It is shown that water injection, in advance of production, can decrease the adverse impact of the pressure-sensitive effect on low permeability reservoir development. A water-flooding project should be preferably initiated in advance of production for no more than one year and the optimum ratio of formation pressure to initial formation pressure should be maintained at a level between 1.05 and 1.2.

Study on the Variation Rule of Produced Oil Components during CO_(2) Flooding in Low Permeability Reservoirs

CO_(2) flooding has been widely studied and applied to improve oil recovery from low permeability reservoirs.Both the experimental results and the oilfield production data indicate that produced oil components(POC)will vary during CO_(2) flooding in low permeability reservoirs.However,the present researches fail to explain the variation reason and rule.In this study,the physical model of the POC variation during CO_(2) flooding in low permeability reservoir was established,and the variation reason and rule were defined.To verify the correctness of the physical model,the interaction rule of the oil-CO_(2) system was studied by related experiments.The numerical model,including 34 components,was established based on the precise experiments matching,and simulated the POC variation during CO_(2) flooding in low permeability reservoir at different inter-well reservoir characteristics.The POC monitoring data of the CO_(2) flooding pilot test area in northeastern China were analyzed,and the POC variation rule during the oilfield production was obtained.The research results indicated that the existence of the inter-well channeling-path and the permeability difference between matrix and channeling-path are the main reasons for the POC variation during CO_(2) flooding in low permeability reservoirs.The POC variation rules are not the same at different inter-well reservoir characteristics.For the low permeability reservoirs with homogeneous inter-well reservoir,the variation of the light hydrocarbon content in POC increases initially followed by a decrease,while the variation of the heavy hydrocarbon content in POC is completely opposite.The carbon number of the most abundant component in POC will gradually increase.For the low permeability reservoirs with the channeling-path existing in the inter-well reservoir,the variation rule of the light hydrocarbon content in POC is increase-decrease-increase-decrease,while the variation rule of the heavy hydrocarbon content in POC is completely opposite.The carbon number variation rule of the most abundant component in POC is increase-decrease-increase.

Characteristics of Chang 2~1 Low PermeabilitySandstone Reservoir in Shunning Oil Field

Characteristics of Chang 21 low permeability sandstone reservoir of Shunning oil field are analyzed and evaluated based on the data of well logging and experiment. The result shows that 1) the Chang 21 low permeability reservoir belongs to the classification of middle-to-fine sized feldspar sandstone, with its components being low in ma- turity, deposited in distributary rivers in the front of the delta; 2) the reservoir is obviously dominated by a low or a very low permeability with a linear variation tendency different from that of the ultra-low permeability reservoir; 3) the spa- tial variation in lithology and physical properties of the reservoir are controlled by the sedimentary facies zones, and 4) the physical property of the reservoir is significantly influenced by clastic constituents and their structure, and the con- stituent of cement materials and their content. The result also shows that the diagenesis action of the reservoir is quite strong in which dissolution greatly modified the reservoir In addition, the inter-granular dissolved pores are the mainly developed ones and the micro-structure is dominated by the combination of middle-to-large sized pores with fine-to-coarse throats. Finally, the radius of the throats is in good exponential correlation with permeability and the seepage capacity comes from those large sized throats.

Mechanisms of water block removal by surfactant micellar solutions in low permeability reservoirs

The existing researches on surfactant micellar solutions mainly focus on the formulation optimization and core flooding test, and the types and mechanisms of cleanup additives suitable for low permeability reservoir remain unclear. The flowback efficiencies of different types of surfactant micellar solutions were evaluated by core experiments, a multi-level pore-throat system micromodel characterizing pore-throat structures of low permeability reservoir was made, and flooding and flowback experiments of brine and surfactant micellar solutions of different salinities were conducted with the micromodel to show the oil flowback process in micron pores under the effect of surfactant micellar solution visually and reveal the mechanisms of enhancing displacement and flowback efficiency of surfactant micellar solution. During the displacement and flowback of brine and low salinity surfactant micellar solution, many small droplets were produced, when the small droplets passed through pore-throats, huge percolation resistance was created due to Jamin’s effect, leading to the rise of displacement and flowback pressure differences and the drop of flowback efficiency. The surfactant micellar solutions with critical salinity and optimal salinity that were miscible with crude oil to form Winsor Ⅲ micro-emulsion didnot produce mass small droplets, so they could effectively reduce percolation resistance and enhance oil displacement and flowback efficiency.

An evaluation method of volume fracturing effects for vertical wells in low permeability reservoirs

To evaluate the fracturing effect and dynamic change process after volume fracturing with vertical wells in low permeability oil reservoirs, an oil-water two-phase flow model and a well model are built. On this basis, an evaluation method of fracturing effect based on production data and fracturing fluid backflow data is established, and the method is used to analyze some field cases. The vicinity area of main fracture after fracturing is divided into different stimulated regions. The permeability and area of different regions are used to characterize the stimulation strength and scale of the fracture network. The conductivity of stimulated region is defined as the product of the permeability and area of the stimulated region. Through parameter sensitivity analysis, it is found that half-length of the fracture and the permeability of the core area mainly affect the flow law near the well, that is, the early stage of production;while matrix permeability mainly affects the flow law at the far end of the fracture. Taking a typical old well in Changqing Oilfield as an example, the fracturing effect and its changes after two rounds of volume fracturing in this well are evaluated. It is found that with the increase of production time after the first volume fracturing, the permeability and conductivity of stimulated area gradually decreased, and the fracturing effect gradually decreased until disappeared;after the second volume fracturing, the permeability and conductivity of stimulated area increased significantly again.

Test evaluation for vertical fracture wells in low permeability reservoir

As flow environment is poor in low permeability reservoirs, wells are always fractured in order to gain better economic benefits. Well testing analysis is very necessary for fracturing wells. However, available test analysis methods are of slow fitting speed and low fitting precision. In this paper, we first use a comprehensive evaluation method of analytical well testing, numerical well testing and well testing design. Many dynamic parameters such as fracture length, fracture conductivity, skin factor, etc are obtained. An example to illustrate accurate results of this method is given.

Fracturing-flooding technology for low permeability reservoirs:A review

The development of low-permeability oil and gas resources presents a significant challenge to traditional development methods.To address the problem of“no injection and no production”in low-permeability reservoirs,a novel fracture-injection-production integration technology named fracturing-flooding has been proposed by oilfield sites.This technology combines the advantages of conventional fracturing,water flooding,and chemical flooding,resulting in improved reservoir physical properties,increased injection,replenished energy,and increased oil displacement efficiency.The technology is especially suitable for low-permeability reservoirs that suffer from lack of energy,and strong heterogeneity.Fracturing-flooding technology has shown significant results and broad development prospects in some oilfields in China.This paper analyzes the development status of fracturing-flooding technology from its development history,technical mechanism,technical characteristics,process flow,types of fracturing and oil displacement fluids,and field applications.Physical and numerical simulations of fracturingflooding technology are also summarized.The results suggest that fracturing-flooding technology is more effective than conventional fracturing,water flooding,and chemical flooding in stimulating lowpermeability tight reservoirs and improving oil recovery.Moreover,it has a high input-output ratio and can be utilized for future reservoir stimulation and transformation.

Effect of absorption boundary layer on nonlinear flow in low permeability porous media

Taking low permeability cores of Daqing oilfield for example,the flow characteristics at low velocity were studied with the self-designed micro-flux measuring instrument.Considering the throat distribution and capillary model,the thickness of fluid boundary layer under different pressure gradients was calculated,and the mechanism and influencing factors of nonlinear percolation were discussed.The results show that the percolation curve of ultra-low rocks is nonlinear,and apparent permeability is not a constant which increases with pressure gradient.The absorption boundary layer decreases with the increase of pressure gradient,and changes significantly especially in low pressure gradient,which is the essence of nonlinear percolation.The absorption boundary layer is also found to be impacted by the surface property of rocks.

Feasibility of Gas Drive in Fang-48 Fault Block Oil Reservoir

The Fang-48 fault block oil reservoir is an extremely low permeability reservoir, and it is difficult to produce such a reservoir by waterflooding. Laboratory analysis of reservoir oil shows that the minimum miscibility pressure for CO2 drive in Fang-48 fault block oil reservoir is 29 MPa, lower than the formation fracture pressure of 34 MPa, so the displacement mechanism is miscible drive. The threshold pressure gradient for gas injection is less than that for waterflooding, and the recovery by gas drive is higher than waterflooding. Furthermore, the threshold pressure gradient for carbon dioxide injection is smaller than that for hydrocarbon gas, and the oil recovery by carbon dioxide drive is higher than that by hydrocarbon gas displacement, so carbon dioxide drive is recommended for the development of the Fang-48 fault block oil reservoir.

Experimental Investigation on the Pressure Propagation Mechanism of Tight Reservoirs

Low permeability tight sandstone reservoirs have a high filtrational resistance and a very low fluid flow rate.As a result,the propagation speed of the formation pressure is low and fluid flow behaves as a non-Darcy flow,which typically displays a highly non-linear behavior.In this paper,the characteristics and mechanism of pressure propagation in this kind of reservoir are revealed through a laboratory pressure propagation experiment and through data from an actual tight reservoir development.The main performance mechanism is as follows:A new pressure cage concept is proposed based on the pressure variation characteristics of the laboratory experiments.There are two methods of energy propagation in the actual water injection process:one is that energy is transmitted to the deep reservoir by the fluid flowing through the reservoir,and the other is that energy is transmitted by the elasticity of the reservoir.For one injection well model and one production well model,the pressure distribution curve between the injection and production wells,as calculated by the theoretical method,has three section types,and they show an oblique“S”shape with a straight middle section.However,the actual pressure distribution curve is nonlinear,with an obvious pressure advance at the front.After the injection pressure increases to a certain level,the curve shape is an oblique and reversed“S”shape.Based on the research,this paper explains the deep-seated reasons for the difference in pressure distribution and proposes that it is an effective way to develop low permeability tight reservoirs using the water injection supplement energy method.