The Effect of Temperature on Irreducible Water Saturation of Water-wet Cores

The conventional measurement of a relative permeability curve (RPC) is usually conducted at room temperature, which is much lower than the reservoir temperature. Previous research work on high temperature relative permeability mainly take oil-wetted cores as objective. In this paper, laboratory test and measurement are conducted using water-wet cores from the Lunnan Oilfield. Since irreducible water saturation (Swi) is a critical factor that affects and controls the relative permeability curve, special tests are conducted to measure Swi at different temperatures for water-wet cores in the course of the experiment of relative permeability. The experimental results indicate that for the water-wet cores Swi decreased with the increasing temperature from ambient to 105℃,and the relative permeability curve shifted in a low water saturation direction, i.e. moved toward the left, while it moved toward the right for oil wetness reservoirs. Seen from both macroscopic and microcosmic view, the reasons and mechanisms of relative permeability change with temperature are discussed, and factors including core wetness, viscosity force, capillary forces, contact angle, interfacial tension change are considered.

Effects of Temperature and Water Saturation on CO_2 Production and Nitrogen Mineralization in Alpine Wetland Soils

Relationships between carbon (C) production and nitrogen (N) mineralization were investigated in two alpine wetland soils of the Tibetan Plateau using laboratory incubation under different temperatures (5, 15, 25, and 35 ℃) and water saturation (noninundation and inundation). A significant positive relationship was found between CO2 production and N mineralization under increasing temperatures from 5 to 35 ℃ with the same water saturation condition in the marsh soil (r2 > 0.49, P < 0.0001) and the peat soil (r2 > 0.38, P < 0.002), and a negative relationship with water saturation increasing at the same temperature, especially 25 and 35 ℃, in the marsh soil (r2 > 0.70, P < 0.009) and the peat soil (r2 > 0.61, P < 0.013). In conclusion, temperatures and water saturation could regulate the relationship between CO2 production and net N mineralization in the Tibetan alpine marsh and peat soils.

A new model for predicting irreducible water saturation in tight gas reservoirs

The irreducible water saturation(Swir) is a significant parameter for relative permeability prediction and initial hydrocarbon reserves estimation.However,the complex pore structures of the tight rocks and multiple factors of the formation conditions make the parameter difficult to be accurately predicted by the conventional methods in tight gas reservoirs.In this study,a new model was derived to calculate Swir based on the capillary model and the fractal theory.The model incorporated different types of immobile water and considered the stress effect.The dead or stationary water(DSW) was considered in this model,which described the phenomena of water trapped in the dead-end pores due to detour flow and complex pore structures.The water film,stress effect and formation temperature were also considered in the proposed model.The results calculated by the proposed model are in a good agreement with the experimental data.This proves that for tight sandstone gas reservoirs the Swir calculated from the new model is more accurate.The irreducible water saturation calculated from the new model reveals that Swir is controlled by the critical capillary radius,DSW coefficient,effective stress and formation temperature.

Effects of water saturation and loading rate on direct shear tests of andesite

For estimating the long-term stability of underground framework,it is vital to learn the mechanical and rheological characteristics of rock in multiple water saturation conditions.However,the majority of previous studies explored the rheological properties of rock in air-dried and water saturated conditions,as well as the water effects on compressive and tensile strengths.In this study,andesite was subjected to direct shear tests under five water saturation conditions,which were controlled by varying the wetting and drying time.The tests were conducted at alternating displacement rates under three vertical stresses.The results reveal that the shear strength decreases exponentially as water saturation increases,and that the increase in shear strength with a tenfold increase in displacement rate is nearly constant for each of the vertical stresses.Based on the findings of the shear tests in this study and the compression and tension tests in previous studies,the influences of both water saturation and loading rate on the Hoek-Brown failure criterion for the andesite was examined.These results indicate that the brittleness index of the andesite,which is defined as the ratio of uniaxial compressive strength to tensile strength,is independent of both water saturation and loading rate and that the influences of the water saturation dependence and the loading rate dependence of the failure criterion can be converted between each other.

Study on water saturation computation models in complex pore volcanic reservoir

Determination of water saturation is important for reservoir evaluation. When complex pore structures such as fracture and cavity are present in reservoir, Archie equation is no longer suitable. According to different models of pore structure division, the authors studied water saturation conlputation models. The results show that dual porosity system is divided into four models. The first model is based on dual laterolog, the second is Dual Porosity I , the third is Dual Porosity Ⅱ , and the last one is based on the conductive pore. Besides, the triple porosity system is triple porosity model. Compute water saturation was using all the above five models in volcanic reservoir in Songnan gas field. The triple porosity system is the most suitable model for water saturation computation in complex pore structure volcanic reservoir.

Determination of Water Saturation （SW%） by Using P-wave Velocities for Saturated Sandstone

The seismic velocities are strongly influenced by porosity and degree of water saturation, as well as other petrophysical properties, such as density and elastic properties of the rocks. In this paper, the saturation of water percentage for sandstones （SW%） has been calculated by mathematical equation, which is based on the relation between the seismic velocity of water to the seismic velocity obtained in the field （for p-wave velocity only）. The results of this equation which ranged between （30% to 100%） are connected with the results of seismic velocity-porosity relation for saturated sandstone through model, this model can be used for determining the porosity （Φ） and water saturation percentage （SW%） of the sandstones in the same time.

Estimation of water saturation by using radial based function artificial neural network in carbonate reservoir:A case study in Sarvak formation

Water saturation determination in core laboratory is known as a cost and time consuming labor.Hitherto,many scientists attempted to estimate accurately water saturation from well-logging data which has a continuous record without losing information.Therefore,various model were introduced to relate reservoir properties and water saturation.Since carbonate reservoir is very heterogeneous in shape and size of pore throat,the relation between water saturation and other carbonates reservoir properties is very complex,and causes considerable overall errors in water saturation calculation.By increasing the usage and improvement of soft computing methods in engineering problems,petroleum engineers have been attended them to measure the petrophysical properties of the reservoir.In this study,a radial basis function neural network(RBFNN)improved by genetic algorithm has been employed to estimate formation water saturation by using conventional well-logging data.The used logging and core data have been gathered from a carbonated formation from one of oilfield located in south-west Iran,and finally their results of the proposed model were compared with the core analysis results.By checking the testing data from another well,it showed this method had a 0.027 for mean square errors and its correlation coefficient is equal to 0.870.These results implied on high accuracy of this model for oil saturation degree estimation.While the common methods like Archie,had a 0.041 mean square error and 0.720 of the correlation coefficient,which indicate a high ability of RBF model than the other usual empirical methods.

Parameters of new three-water model based on nuclear magnetic experiment and optimization algorithm

Clastic rock reservoir is the main reservoir type in the oil and gas field.Archie formula or various conductive models developed on the basis of Archie’s formula are usually used to interpret this kind of reservoir,and the three-water model is widely used as well.However,there are many parameters in the threewater model,and some of them are difficult to determine.Most of the determination methods are based on the statistics of large amount of experimental data.In this study,the authors determine the value of the parameters of the new three-water model based on the nuclear magnetic data and the genetic optimization algorithm.The relative error between the resistivity calculated based on these parameters and the resistivity measured experimentally at 100%water content is 0.9024.The method studied in this paper can be easily applied without much experimental data.It can provide reference for other regions to determine the parameters of the new three-water model.

Fractal Analysis on Methane Hydrate Formation in Porous Media

The study of the hydrate formation process in porous media is of great significance for hydrate application.In this work,the formation process of methane hydrate in porous media was monitored in situ by a low-field magnetic resonance imaging(MRI)system.The formation characteristics of methane hydrate in porous media and the change of fractal dimension of pore space were studied through the change of residual water saturation and T2 relaxation time distribution.The experimental results show that the hydrate formation process is divided into two stages:fast and slow.During the formation process,the water in the pores is continuously consumed and transformed into hydrate,and the overall T2 distribution gradually shifts to the left.In the formation process of hydrate,the pore space becomes more complex,the change of fractal dimension from top to bottom of the reactor gradually increases,and the hydrate formation rate also gradually increases.

Failure process and characteristics of three-dimensional high-stress circular tunnel under saturated water content

True-triaxial compression tests were carried out on cubic granite samples with a circular through hole using a true-triaxial testing system to investigate the influence of saturated water content(SWC) on the failure process and characteristics of a circular tunnel of surrounding rocks. The spalling failure under SWC can be divided into four periods: calm period, buckling deformation period, period of rock fragment gradual buckling and exfoliation, and period of formation of symmetrical V-shaped notches. When the horizontal axial and vertical stresses were constant, the spalling failure severity was reduced with the increase in lateral stress. Under natural water content, a strong rockburst with dynamic failure characteristics occurred on the circular hole sidewall. Under SWC, the failure severity was reduced and the circular hole sidewall experienced spalling failure, exhibiting progressive static failure characteristics.Therefore, water can reduce the failure severity of surrounding rocks in deep underground engineering, which has a certain guiding significance for the prevention and control of rockbursts.

Effect of Pisha sandstone on water infiltration of different soils on the Chinese Loess Plateau

The infiltration of water into soil is one of the most important soil physical properties that affect soil erosion and the eco-environment, especially in the Pisha sandstone area on the Chinese Loess Plateau. We studied the one-dimensional vertical infiltration of water in three experimental soils, created by mixing Pisha sandstone with sandy soil, irrigation-silted soil, and loessial soil, at mass ratios of 1：1, 1：2, 1：3, 1：4, and 1：5. Our objective was to compare water infiltration in the experimental soils and to evaluate the effect of Pisha sandstone on water infiltration. We assessed the effect by measuring soil bulk density（BD）, porosity, cumulative infiltration, infiltration rate and saturated hydraulic conductivity（Ks）. The results showed that Pisha sandstone decreased the infiltration rate and saturated hydraulic conductivity in the three experimental soils. Cumulative infiltration over time was well described by the Philip equation. Sandy soil mixed with the Pisha sandstone at a ratio of 1：3 had the best water-holding capacity. The results provided experimental evidence for the movement of soil water and a technical support for the reconstruction and reclamation of mining soils in the Pisha sandstone area.

Dispersion hydrophobic electrolyte enables lithium-oxygen battery enduring saturated water vapor

Li-O_(2) batteries gain widespread attention as a can didate for next-generati on energy storage devices due to their extraordinary theoretic specific energy.The semi-open structure of Li-O_(2) batteries causes many parasitic reactions,especially related to water.Water is a double-edged sword,which destroys Li anode and simultaneously triggers a solution-based pathway of the discharge product.In this work,hexamethyldisilazane(HMDS)is introduced into the electrolyte of an aprotic Li-O_(2) battery.HMDS has a strong ability to combine with a trace of water to gen erate a hydrophobic hexamethyldisiloxa ne(MM),which eliminates water from the electrolyte decomposition and then prevents the Li anode from producing the insulating LiOH with water.In this case,the hydrophobic MM disperses in the ether-based electrolyte,forming a dispersion hydrophobic electrolyte.This electrolyte can anchor water from the environment on the cathode side,which triggers a solution-based pathway and regulates the growth morphology of the discharge product and consequently increases the discharge capacity.Compared with the Li-O_(2) battery without the HMDS,the HMDS-containing Li-O_(2) battery contributes an about 13-fold increase of cyclability(400 cycles,1800 h)in the extreme environment of saturated water vapor.This work opens a new approach for directly operating aprotic Li-O_(2) batteries in ambient air.

Impacts of anisotropy coefficient and porosity on the thermal conductivity and P-wave velocity of calcarenites used as building materials of historical monuments in Morocco

It is essential to study the porosity,thermal conductivity,and P-wave velocity of calcarenites,as well as the anisotropy coefficients of the thermal conductivity and P-wave velocity,for civil engineering,and conservation and restoration of historical monuments.This study focuses on measuring the thermal conductivity using the thermal conductivity scanning(TCS)technique and measuring the P-wave ve-locity using portable equipment.This was applied for some dry and saturated calcarenite samples in the horizontal and vertical directions(parallel and perpendicular to the bedding plane,respectively).The calcarenites were selected from some historical monuments in Morocco.These physical properties were measured in the laboratory to find a reliable relationship between all of these properties.As a result of the statistical analysis of the obtained data,excellent linear relationships were observed between the porosity and both the thermal conductivity and porosity.These relationships are characterized by relatively high coefficients of determination for the horizontal and vertical samples.Based on the thermal conductivity and P-wave velocity values in these two directions,the anisotropy coefficients of these two properties were calculated.The internal structure and the pore fabric of the calcarenite samples were delineated using scanning electron microscopy(SEM),while their chemical and mineral compositions were studied using the energy dispersive X-ray analysis(EDXA)and X-ray diffraction(XRD)techniques.

Influences of pore fluid on gas production from hydrate-bearing reservoir by depressurization

In addition to the temperature and pressure conditions,the pore fluid composition and migration behavior are also crucial to control hydrate decomposition in the exploitation process.In this work,to investigate the effects of these factors,a series of depressurization experiments were carried out in a visible one-dimensional reactor,using hydrate reservoir samples with water saturations ranging from 20%to 65%.The results showed a linear relationship between gas production rates and gas saturations of the reservoir,suggesting that a larger gas-phase space was conducive to hydrate decomposition and gas outflow.Therefore,the rapid water production in the early stage of hydrate exploitation could release more gas-phase space in the water-rich reservoir,which in turn improved the gas production efficiency.Meanwhile,the spatiotemporal evolution of pore fluids could lead to partial accelerated decomposition or secondary formation of hydrates.In the unsealed reservoir,the peripheral water infiltration kept reservoir at a high water saturation,which hindered the overall production process and caused higher water production.Importantly,depressurization assisted with the N2 sweep could displace the pore water rapidly.According to the results,it is recommended that using the short-term N2 sweep as an auxiliary means in the early stage of depressurization to expand the gas-phase space in order to achieve the highest production efficiency.

Experimental Study on the Influence of Fracturing Fluid Retention on Shale Gas Diffusion Law

Shale gas reservoirs have poor physical properties and a large number of micro-nano pores have been developed.Shale gas wells have no natural productivity and need fracturing reconstruction measures to put into production.However,the fracturing fluid will enter the reservoir space of shale matrix after fracturing and affect the production of shale gas.At present,there is no consensus on the influence of fracturing fluid retention on gas well production.Based on this,the paper adopts gas molecular transport analyzer to carry out experimental research on the influence of fracturing fluid on shale gas diffusion law after entering matrix pores.The results show that:(1)Compared with the diffusion capacity of single-phase shale gas,the diffusion capacity of shale gas decreases significantly when fracturing fluid is present in the reservoir;(2)In the process of fracturing fluid flowback,when the water saturation in the reservoir decreases from 50%to 0,the gas well productivity increases by about 60%.(3)When fracturing fluid exists in the reservoir,the pore diameter has an exponential relationship with the shale gas diffusion coefficient,and the diffusion coefficient increases exponentially with the increase of pore diameter.The research of this paper provides theoretical basis for guiding the efficient development of shale gas wells.

A new NMR-data-based method for predicting petrophysical properties of tight sandstone reservoirs

Evaluating the permeability and irreducible water saturation of tight sandstone reservoirs is challenging.This study uses distribution functions to fit measured NMR T_(2)distributions of tight sandstone reservoirs and extract parameters for characterizing pore size distribution.These parameters are then used to establish prediction models for permeability and irreducible water saturation of reservoirs.Results of comparing the fit of the T_(2)distributions by the Gauss and Weibull distribution functions show that the fitting accuracy with the Weibull distribution function is higher.The physical meaning of the statistical parameters of the Weibull distribution function is defined to establish nonlinear prediction models of permeability and irreducible water saturation using the radial basis function(RBF)method.Correlation coefficients between the predicted values by the established models and the measured values of the tight sandstone core samples are 0.944 for permeability and 0.851 for irreducible water saturation,which highlight the effectiveness of the prediction models.

Shale porosity measurement by the saturated oil method: Removing the contribution from oils dissolved in kerogen

Shale porosity measurements have crucial scientific and economical applications in unconventionalpetroleum systems. As a standard technique, liquid saturation methods, including water saturation (WS)and oil saturation (OS), have been widely used to measure the porosity of many rock types. For clay-richshale reservoirs with high organic matter content, it is well known that the WS method may cause clayswelling and induce structural changes in the pore system. The OS method affects the accuracy ofporosity measurements because of some of the oil being dissolved by kerogen within the shale;however,this has not received sufficient research attention. In this study, we compare the previously reported andnewly tested OS porosities with helium (He) expansion porosity. Results show that OS porosity generallyexceeds the He porosity. Furthermore, the higher the total organic carbon (TOC) content and lower thematurity of shale, the greater the difference between the OS and helium porosities. When using the OSmethod, the effect of kerogen-dissolved oil causes an overestimation of the shale porosity by ~30%. To thebest of our knowledge, this is the first time to note the kerogen-dissolve oil effects on OS porosity. Herein,we propose a new, simple, and effective correction method for estimating OS porosity that involvessubtracting the kerogen-dissolved oil content from raw OS porosity. In addition, the quantification modelof kerogen-dissolved oil capacity is established, taking into account the abundance and maturity oforganic matter. Taking the He porosity as the benchmark, the absolute error of the corrected OS porositydoes not exceed 1% and the average relative error is only ~10%. The obtained results can help improve theaccuracy of shale porosity evaluation methods.

P-wave and S-wave response of coal rock containing gas-water with different saturation: an experimental perspective

The acoustic response of gas and/or water saturated coal rock is fundamental for establishing the correspondence between the physical properties of the coal reservoir and the characteristics of the well-logging response,which is the technology essential for the geophysical exploration of coalbed methane(CBM).This acoustic response depends on water(Sw)and gas(Sg)saturation among other factors.In this study,we performed acoustic tests on dry and different gas-water saturated coal samples with different degrees of metamorphism and deformation,collected from several coal mining areas in China.These tests enabled us to analyze the influence of coal type and gas-water saturation on the acoustic response of CBM formations.Our results show that the acoustic velocity of P-wave and S-wave(Vp and Vs,respectively),and the relative anisotropy of and Vs,increased with increasing vitrinite reflectance,density,Vp and Sw.WithSw increasing from 0 to 100%,the growth rate of the acoustic velocity decreased with increasing vitrinite reflectance.The Vp/Vs ratio of tectonic coal was generally higher than that of primary coal.The growth rate of the relative anisotropy in tectonic coal was markedly higher than that in primary coal.

Study on Geological Genesis and Sedimentary Model of Complex Low Resistivity Reservoir in Offshore Oilfield — A Case of NgIII Formation of X Oilfield in Bohai Sea

In order to study the micro genetic mechanism and main geological controlling factors of low resistivity reservoir in NgIII formation of X oilfield in Bohai sea in China, the clay mineral composition, irreducible water saturation, salinity and conductive minerals of low resistivity reservoir were studied by using the data of core, cast thin section and analysis, and compared with normal resistivity reservoir. At the same time, the control effect of sedimentary environment on low resistivity reservoir was discussed. The results show that the additional conductivity of high bound water content and high montmorillonite content in the reservoir together leads to the significant reduction of reservoir resistivity, which is the main microscopic cause of the formation of low resistance, and is mainly controlled by the sedimentary background such as paleoclimate and sedimentary cycle. During the deposition period of NgIII formation, the paleoclimate was dry and cold, and it was at the end of the water advance of the medium-term sedimentary cycle. The hydrodynamic force of the river channel was weak, the carrying capacity of the riverbed was weak, and the river channel swayed frequently, resulting in fine lithologic particle size, high shale content and complex pore structure of the reservoir, resulting in significant reduction of reservoir resistance. The research conclusion would have strong guiding significance for the development of low resistivity reservoirs in this area.