Experimental study of the effects of a multistage pore-throat structure on the seepage characteristics of sandstones in the Beibuwan Basin:Insights into the flooding mode

To investigate the relationship between grain sizes, seepage capacity, and oil-displacement efficiency in the Liushagang Formation of the Beibuwan Basin, this study identifies the multistage pore-throat structure as a crucial factor through a comparison of oil displacement in microscopic pore-throat experiments. The two-phase flow evaluation method based on the Li-Horne model is utilized to effectively characterize and quantify the seepage characteristics of different reservoirs, closely relating them to the distribution of microscopic pores and throats. It is observed that conglomerate sandstones at different stages exhibit significant heterogeneity and noticeable differences in seepage capacity, highlighting the crucial role played by certain large pore throats in determining seepage capacity and oil displacement efficiency. Furthermore, it was found that the displacement effects of conglomeratic sandstones with strong heterogeneity were inferior to those of conventional homogeneous sandstone, as evidenced by multiple displacement experiments conducted on core samples with varying granularities and flooding systems. Subsequently, core-based experiments on associated gas flooding after water flooding were conducted to address the challenge of achieving satisfactory results in a single displacement mode for reservoirs with significant heterogeneity. The results indicate that the oil recovery rates for associated gas flooding after water flooding increased by 7.3%-16.4% compared with water flooding alone at a gas-oil ratio of approximately 7000 m^(3)/m^(3). Therefore, considering the advantages of gas flooding in terms of seepage capacity, oil exchange ratio, and the potential for two-phase production, gas flooding is recommended as an energy supplement mode for homogeneous reservoirs in the presence of sufficient gas source and appropriate tectonic angle. On the other hand, associated gas flooding after water flooding is suggested to achieve a more favorable development effect compared to a single mode of energy supplementation for strongly heterogeneous sandstone reservoirs.

Control of micro-wettability of pore-throat on shale oil occurrence:A case study of laminated shale of Permian Lucaogou Formation in Jimusar Sag,Junggar Basin,NW China

The control of micro-wettability of pore-throat on shale oil occurrence in different types of reservoir spaces remains unclear.Take the shale oil reservoir of the Permian Lucaogou Formation in the Jimusar Sag,Junggar Basin as an example,the reservoir space in laminated shale and the control of micro-wettability of pore-throat on shale oil occurrence were studied by using scanning electron microscope(SEM),multi-stage pyrolysis,quantitative fluorescence,nuclear magnetic resonance(NMR)and other techniques.The results show that there are mainly two types of laminated shale in the Lucaogou Formation,namely laminated shale rich in volcanic materials+terrigenous felsic,and laminated shale rich in volcanic materials+carbonate.The former type contains feldspar dissolution pores and intergranular pores,mainly with felsic mineral components around the pore-throats,which are water-wet and control the free shale oil.The latter type contains carbonate intercrystalline pores and organic pores,mainly with oil-wet mineral components around the pore-throats,which control the adsorbed shale oil.The oil-wet mineral components around the pore-throats are conducive to oil accumulation,but reduce the proportion of free oil.In the Lucaogou Formation,free oil,with high maturity and light quality,mainly occurs in the laminated shale rich in volcanic materials+terrigenous felsic.

Experimental analysis of matrix moveable oil saturation in tight sandstone reservoirs of the south Ordos Basin,China

Tight oil reservoirs in the south Ordos Basin are characterized by fractured,heterogeneous oil-bearing strata(an oil saturation of less than 55%on average),normal pressure(0.8±)and extra-low permeability(less than 0.3 mD).In the Chang 8 tight sandstone reservoir in Honghe oilfield,micro-and nanopores,especially those with a pore-throat radius of less than 1 mm,account for more than 90%.Fluid flow in the matrix is non-linear and crude oil flow rates are very low under normal pressure gradients.An improved understanding of oil mobility in a tight matrix is key to further development of normalpressure tight-oil resources in the continental basin.In this study,constant-velocity and high-pressure mercury injection experiments were conducted using samples of typical tight sandstone cores obtained from the south of Ordos Basin.A new method for reconstructing the full-scale pore-throat distribution characteristics of tight sandstone reservoirs was established successfully,based on which multistage centrifugal tests,tests of low-pressure differential displacement of oil by water,and nuclear magnetic resonance tests were conducted in order to obtain the distribution characteristics of moveable fluid in different pores.The moveable oil saturation(MOS)and degree of oil recovery(i.e.ratio of accumulative oil production to producing geologic reserves)of the core samples under different differential pressures for displacement were determined.As for the tight oil reservoirs in the south Ordos Basin,the moveable fluids are mainly stored in sub-micron(0.10-0.5 mm)pores.For Type I reservoirs(k>0.1 mD),the volume percentage of moveable fluid in pores with a radius larger than 0.5 mm is relatively high(greater than 40%).The degree of oil recovery of water flooding serves as the basis for forecasting recoverable reserves for tight oil reservoirs.Recoverable reserves under water flooding,mainly occur in pores with a radius greater than 0.5 mm.The contribution of Type I reserves to oil production is observed to be greater than 60%,and the degree of oil recovery reaches up to 17.1%.These results help improve our understanding on the evaluation and classification of Chang 8 tight sandstone reservoirs in Honghe oilfield and serve as theoretical basis for pilot tests to explore effective injection media and development methods to improve the matrix-driven pressure differences and displacement efficiency for oil.

Pore Size Distribution of a Tight Sandstone Reservoir and its Effect on Micro Pore-throat Structure: A Case Study of the Chang 7 Member of the Xin’anbian Block, Ordos Basin, China

Pore distribution and micro pore-throat structure characteristics are significant for tight oil reservoir evaluation, but their relationship remains unclear. This paper selects the tight sandstone reservoir of the Chang 7 member of the Xin’anbian Block in the Ordos Basin as the research object and analyzes the pore size distribution and micro pore-throat structure using field emission scanning electron microscopy(FE-SEM), high-pressure mercury injection(HPMI), highpressure mercury injection, and nuclear magnetic resonance(NMR) analyses. The study finds that:(1) Based on the pore size distribution, the tight sandstone reservoir is characterized by three main patterns with different peak amplitudes. The former peak corresponds to the nanopore scale, and the latter peak corresponds to the micropore scale. Then, the tight sandstone reservoir is categorized into three types: type 1 reservoir contains more nanopores with a nanopore-to-micropore volume ratio of 82:18;type 2 reservoir has a nanopore-to-micropore volume ratio of 47:53;and type 3 reservoir contains more micropores with a nanopore-to-micropore volume ratio of 35:65.(2) Affected by the pore size distribution, the throat radius distributions of different reservoir types are notably offset. The type 1 reservoir throat radius distribution curve is weakly unimodal, with a relatively dispersed distribution and peak ranging from 0.01 μm to 0.025 μm. The type 2 reservoir’s throat radius distribution curve is single-peaked with a wide distribution range and peak from 0.1 μm to 0.25 μm. The type 3 reservoir’s throat radius distribution curve is single-peaked with a relatively narrow distribution and peak from 0.1 μm to 0.25 μm. With increasing micropore volume, pore-throat structure characteristics gradually improve.(3) The correlation between micropore permeability and porosity exceeds that of nanopores, indicating that the development of micropores notably influences the seepage capacity. In the type 1 reservoir, only the mean radius and effective porosity have suitable correlations with the nanopore and micropore porosities. The pore-throat structure parameters of the type 2 and 3 reservoirs have reasonable correlations with the nanopore and micropore porosities, indicating that the development of these types of reservoirs is affected by the pore size distribution. This study is of great significance for evaluating lacustrine tight sandstone reservoirs in China. The research results can provide guidance for evaluating tight sandstone reservoirs in other regions based on pore size distribution.

Pore-Throat Combination Types and Gas-Water Relative Permeability Responses of Tight Gas Sandstone Reservoirs in the Zizhou Area of East Ordos Basin, China

With the aim of better understanding the tight gas reservoirs in the Zizhou area of east Ordos Basin,a total of 222 samples were collected from 50 wells for a series of experiments.In this study,three pore-throat combination types in sandstones were revealed and confirmed to play a controlling role in the distribution of throat size and the characteristics of gas-water relative permeability.The type-I sandstones are dominated by intercrystalline micropores connected by cluster throats,of which the distribution curves of throat size are narrow and have a strong single peak(peak ratio>30%).The pores in the type-II sandstones dominantly consist of secondary dissolution pores and intercrystalline micropores,and throats mainly occur as slice-shaped throats along cleavages between rigid grain margins and cluster throats in clay cement.The distribution curves of throat size for the type-II sandstones show a bimodal distribution with a substantial low-value region between the peaks(peak ratio<15%).Primary intergranular pores and secondary intergranular pores are mainly found in type-III samples,which are connected by various throats.The throat size distribution curves of type-III sandstones show a nearly normal distribution with low kurtosis(peak ratio<10%),and the micro-scale throat radii(>0.5μm)constitute a large proportion.From type-I to type-III sandstones,the irreducible water saturation(Swo)decreased;furthermore,the slope of the curves of Krw/Krg in two-phase saturation zone decreased and the two-phase saturation zone increased,indicating that the gas relative flow ability increased.Variations of the permeability exist in sandstones with different porethroat combination types,which indicate the type-III sandstones are better reservoirs,followed by type-II sandstones and type-I sandstones.As an important factor affecting the reservoir quality,the pore-throat combination type in sandstones is the cumulative expression of lithology and diagenetic modifications with strong heterogeneity.

Pore-throat structure characteristics and its impact on the porosity and permeability relationship of Carboniferous carbonate reservoirs in eastern edge of Pre-Caspian Basin

Carboniferous carbonate reservoirs at the eastern edge of the Pre-Caspian Basin have undergone complex sedimentation,diagenesis and tectonism processes,and developed various reservoir space types of pores,cavities and fractures with complicated combination patterns which create intricate pore-throats structure.The complex pore-throat structure leads to the complex porosity-permeability relationship,bringing great challenges for classification and evaluation of reservoirs and efficient development.Based on the comprehensive analysis on cores,thin sections,SEM,mercury intrusion,routine core analysis and various tests,this paper systematically investigated the features and main controlling factors of pore-throats structure and its impact on the porosity-permeability relationship of the four reservoir types which were pore-cavity-fracture,pore-cavity,pore-fracture and pore,and three progresses are made.(1)A set of classification and descriptive approach for pore-throat structure of Carboniferous carbonate reservoirs applied to the eastern edge of the Pre-Caspian Basin was established.Four types of pore-throat structures were developed which were wide multimodal mode,wide bimodal mode,centralized unimodal mode and asymmetry bimodal mode,respectively.The discriminant index of pore-throat structure was proposed,realizing the quantitative characterization of pore-throat structure types.(2)The microscopic heterogeneity of pore reservoir was the strongest and four types of pore-throat structures were all developed.The pore-fracture and pore-cavity-fracture reservoirs took the second place,and the microscopic heterogeneity of pore-cavity reservoir was the weakest.It was revealed that the main controlling factor of pore-throat structure was the combination patterns of reservoir space types formed by sedimentation,diagenesis and tectonism.(3)It was revealed that the development of various pore-throat structure types was the important factor affecting poroperm relationship of reservoirs.The calculation accuracy of permeability of reservoirs can be improved remarkably by subdividing the pore-throat structure types.This study deepens the understanding of pore-throat structure of complicated carbonate reservoirs,and is conducive to classification and evaluation,establishment of precise porosity-permeability relationship and highly efficient development of carbonate reservoirs.

Classification of microscopic pore-throats and the grading evaluation on shale oil reservoirs

On the basis of the characterization of microscopic pore-throats in shale oil reservoirs by high-pressure mercury intrusion technique, a grading evaluation standard of shale oil reservoirs and a lower limit for reservoir formation were established. Simultaneously, a new method for the classification of shale oil flow units based on logging data was established. A new classification scheme for shale oil reservoirs was proposed according to the inflection points and fractal features of mercury injection curves: microscopic pore-throats(less than 25 nm), small pore-throats(25-100 nm), medium pore-throats(100-1 000 nm) and big pore-throats(greater than 1 000 nm). Correspondingly, the shale reservoirs are divided into four classes, I, II, III and IV according to the number of microscopic pores they contain, and the average pore-throat radii corresponding to the dividing points are 150 nm, 70 nm and 10 nm respectively. By using the correlation between permeability and pore-throat radius, the permeability thresholds for the reservoir classification are determined at 1.00× 10^(-3) μm^2, 0.40×10^(-3) μm^2 and 0.05×10^(-3) μm^2 respectively. By using the exponential relationship between porosity and permeability of the same hydrodynamic flow unit, a new method was set up to evaluate the reservoir flow belt index and to identify shale oil flow units with logging data. The application in the Dongying sag shows that the standard proposed is suitable for grading evaluation of shale oil reservoirs.

Experimental investigation on migration and retention mechanisms of elastic gel particles(EGPs)in pore-throats using multidimensional visualized models

Knowledge of migration and retention mechanisms of elastic gel particles(EGPs)in pore-throats is essential for the effective application of EGPs as a smart sweep improvement and profile control agent for enhanced oil recovery(EOR).The matching coefficient(defined as the ratio of particle size to pore-throat size)is used to investigate its influence on migration,retention and profile control performance of EGPs.A 1-D continuous pore-throat visualization model(PTVM),a 2-D heterogeneous PTVM and a 3-D heterogeneous core model were constructed and used to investigate pore-scale migration,retention and controlling mechanism of migration and retention characteristics on EGPs profile control.The results of the 1-D continuous PTVM indicated that while the matching coefficient was in the optimal range(i.e.,0.20-0.32),the EGPs could not only smoothly migrate to the deeper pore-throats,but also form stable retention in the pores to resist the erosion of injected water,which was conducive to the effective indepth profile control.The results of the 2-D heterogeneous PTVM verified that the sweep efficiency in low-permeability regions could be significantly improved by in-depth migration and stable retention of EGPs in the pore-throats with an optimal matching coefficient(0.29),which was much better than that in cases with a smaller matching coefficient(0.17)or an excessive matching coefficient(0.39).Moreover,the NMR displacement experiments of 3-D heterogeneous cores were carried out to simulate the EGPs profile control in actual reservoir porous media.Saturation images and T2 spectrum curves of crude oil showed that EOR in the low-permeability layer was highest(56.1%)using EGPs profile control with an optimal matching coefficient,attributing to the in-depth migration and stable retention of EGPs.

致密砂岩储层微观结构表征及发展趋势

致密砂岩储层微观结构发育微米级和纳米-亚微米级两大孔喉体系,可以通过图像表征技术、非图像表征技术和数字岩心技术等进行表征。以苏里格气田致密砂岩储层为例,对3类表征技术的原理、研究内容、适用性及研究进展进行讨论,以期进一步推动在致密砂岩气勘探开发生产中应用。

Experimental study and theoretical analysis of fluid resistance in porous media of glass spheres

Porous media have a wide range of applications in production and life, as well as in science and technology. The study of flow resistance in porous media has a great effect on industrial and agricultural production. The flow resistance of fluid flow through a 20-mm glass sphere bed is studied experimentally. It is found that there is a significant deviation between the Ergun equation and the experimental data. A staggered pore-throat model is established to investigate the flow resistance in randomly packed porous media. A hypothesis is made that the particles are staggered in a regular triangle arrangement. An analytical formulation of the flow resistance in random porous media is derived. There are no empirical constants in the formulation and every parameter has a specific physical meaning. The formulation predictions are in good agreement with the experimental data. The deviation is within the range of 25%. This shows that the staggered pore-throat model is reasonable and is expected to be verified by more experiments and extended to other porous media.

Reservoir Rock Facies──Case Presentation of Sandstone Type

The reservoir rock facies is presented by its principal indieators to show the aspects of sedimentary facies,diagenetic change and oil-gas indication. These indicators used by the author are 1) the petrologic──of which the sedimentary facies and vitrinite reflectance are included, 2) the physical ── pore/throat di-ameter ratio and coordination number of throat connecting pore, and 3) the geochemical──photochemical parameters of individual organic inclusion. Based on the above mentioned quantitative indicators,the defined reservoir rock facies may not only be used for itself evaluation, but also may be put in facies column or facies-palaeogeographic map to predict or to trace oil-gas reservoir. Microscope photometry,micro-FT-IR and Laser Raman methods were used for studying all the aforesaid parameters by means of thinned polished sections from core or cemented cuttings, except the 3-D others, from parallel and vertical to bedding or some duplicate core samples, that the rose fluorescein preparation must be soaked in for the convenience of studying pore throat structure.

Identification of sweet spots in shale-type and siltstone-type“shale oil systems”:A case study of the Chang 7 Member in Ordos Basin

Mid-high maturity shale oil is the most realistic field for the scale breakthrough of terrestrial shale oil production in China.Generally,three deficiencies hinder shale oil development in China:heavy oil density,small sweet spot areas,and poor distribution continuity.Thus,identifying the“sweet spots”in shale oil reservoirs is critical for the efficient exploration and development of terrestrial shale oil.This study targets the siltstone type(Class-Ⅱshale oil)and pure shale type(Class-Ⅲshale oil)of the Chang 7 Member in the Ordos Basin,and identifies three stratigraphic units,namely the hydrocarbon accumulation unit,hydrocarbon generation unit,and hydrocarbon retention unit,which together constitute the in-source“shale oil system”.The hydrocarbon accumulation unit is mainly siltstone,where the hydrocarbons are migrated from shales.It has favorable porethroat network connectivity with a pore connectivity ratio of 32–57%,being the siltstone-type sweet spots.The hydrocarbon generation unit is mainly composed of high-TOC mudstone/shale and is the main contributor to in-source hydrocarbon generation and expulsion.This unit has high three-dimensional connectivity(28–30%),as shown by the pore-throat network model,associated with vertical paths for hydrocarbon expulsion.The hydrocarbon retention unit is mainly composed of low-TOC mudstone/shale retaining self-generated and migrated hydrocarbons.The pore connectivity rate is 17–42%,and the pore-throat network connectivity direction is uneven.Light and low-carbon-number hydrocarbons are preferentially trapped or even sealed in small pores of the retention unit,forming the typical mudstone/shale-type sweet spots.In the process called shale oil intrasource migration,the oil migrates in source rocks causing component fractionation,which allows more shale oil to enrich in the hydrocarbon accumulation and retention units to form sweet spots,compared with the hydrocarbon generation unit.The migration paths include the one from mudstone/shale to siltstone interlayers and that from the high-TOC mudstone/shale intervals to the low-TOC intervals.The in-source accumulation of shale oil shows the differentiated enrichment model featuring“high-TOC mudstone/shale generating hydrocarbons,low-TOC mudstone/shale retaining hydrocarbons,siltstone accumulating hydrocarbons and multiple intra-source migration paths”.In the Ordos Basin,the organic-lean(TOC 1–3%)mudstone/shale intervals appear to be the sweet spots of shale oil,where there are abundant medium-short-chain hydrocarbons retained with high flowability.After fracturing stimulation,their production conditions may be even superior to those of siltstones.This proposed idea changes the previous strategy to look for sweet spots in high-TOC intervals derived from the shale gas industry.

Pore throat characteristics of tight sandstone of Yanchang Formation in eastern Gansu,Ordos Basin

An important factor to evaluate reservoir quality is the pore-throat size.However,the strong heterogeneity makes it difficult to characterize the pore-throat distribution in tight reservoirs.The field emission scanning electron microscope(FESEM),high pressure mercury injection and rate-controlled mercury injection are used to investigate the pore-throat size distribution in tight sandstone reservoirs of Member 7 of the Yanchang Formation in eastern Gansu,Ordos Basin,and studies of the pore throat size controlling on physical property of the tight sandstone reservoirs are also carried out.The result shows that the pore type is mainly dominated by the residual intergranular pore,dissolution pore,micropore and a few micro-fractures;the high-pressure mercury injection experiment indicates that the pore-throat size ranges from 0.0148 μm to 40mm,the pore throat more than 1 mm is less;the ratecontrolled mercury injection experiment reveals that for samples with different physical properties,the pore radius mainly varies from 80 μm to 350 μm;the throat radius exhibits the strong heterogeneity,and is from 0.12 μm to 30μm;the pore-throat size can be effectively characterized by combination of high-pressure and rate-controlled mercury injections,and it varies from 0.0148 μm to 350 μm.The permeability is mainly controlled by the large pore throat(>R_(50))which accounts for a small proportion;in the tight sandstone with the permeability greater than 0.1 mD,the permeability is mainly controlled by the micropore and mesopore;in the tight sandstone with the permeability smaller than 0.1 mD,the permeability is mainly controlled by the nanopore and micropore;the proportion of small pore throat increases with reduction of permeability,it is important that the small pore throat influences the reservoir storage property though its effect on permeability are small.

Quantitative characterization of pore structure of the CarboniferousePermian tight sandstone gas reservoirs in eastern Linqing depression by using NMR technique

Micro-nano scale pores can accurately and fastly be measured by the nuclear magnetic resonance(NMR)technique,which provides a new method to quantitatively characterize pore structures in tight sandstone.Based on the method of calibration of mercury pressure data for NMR T_(2) spectrum,for the measurement inaccuracy due to the mercury saturation less than 100%in tight sandstone,the mercury pressure curve and T_(2) spectrum is used to cumulate from the maximum pore on the right boundary to the small pores in the left,the range of pore-throat radius measured by the mercury injection in the leftward cumulative curve is selected as a comparable interval of NMR pore-throat radius,and the longitudinal interpolation method and the least square method are utilized to construct the distribution curve of pore-throat radius transformed by T_(2) spectrum.The modified method is used to obtain NMR T_(2) spectrum,conversion coefficient of pore-throat radius and pore-throat radius distribution of the Carboniferous-Permian tight sandstone gas reservoirs in the eastern Linqing depression,and characteristics of reservoir pore structures are quantitatively investigated;in addition,in combination with analysis of thin section and scanning electron microscopy,the reservoir effectiveness and cause of the pore structure variability in the tight sandstone are also well studied.The results show that the NMR pore-throat radius curve obtained by the modified method has a high consistency with the mercury injection curve,and the NMR test accuracy of tight sandstone is significantly improved.In the study area,the pore-throat radius of the Carboniferous-Permian tight sandstone mainly ranges from 0.002 to 2 mm,the pore is generally submicro-nano scale,but the pore-throat radius distribution of different types of sandstone varies significantly.The lithic quartz sandstone is rich in siliceous matter and poor in plastic detritus and matrix,generally dominated by submicro-scale pore-throats including micro-scale porethroats;lithic feldspar sandstone and quartz-rich feldspar lithic sandstone are rich in quartz and poor in plastic detritus and matrix,dominated by submicro-nano scale pore-throats(nano-scale pore-throats predominantly);the lithic fragment-rich feldspar lithic sandstone and lithic sandstone are poor in quartz and rich in plastic detritus and matrix,mainly dominated by nano-scale pore-throats smaller than 0.05 mm.Micropetrographic components are key factors to control pore structure difference and reservoir effectiveness,and the reservoir quality may be macroscopically controlled by sedimentary microfacies;the lithic quartz sandstones of coarse-and fine-grained point bar/riverbed microfacies are the most favorable reservoirs;the lithic feldspar sandstone of fine-grained point bar microfacies,the quartzrich feldspar lithic sandstone of fine-grained distributary channel and barrier bar microfacies are relatively favorable reservoirs,while both lithic fragment-rich feldspar lithic sandstone and lithic sandstone of tidal-flat facies are ineffective reservoirs with very poor porosity and permeability.