Applying proven technology to control the production of water and gas has become necessary to extend the life of very light-oil reservoirs while optimizing economics. Traditional inflow control devices (ICDs) can help balance the flow of oil, but are not helpful once water and gas breakthrough occurs. Multiphase data and field-evaluation applications show that low-viscosity, fluidic-diode, autonomous ICDs (AICDs) support the production of very light oil while restricting gas and water. Testing has proven that the low-viscosity, fluidic-diode AICD can differentiate oil from water and gas, even very light oils. Tool performance was characterized by measuring the pressure differential vs. the flow rate of diverse oil viscosities representing very light-oil formations in Canada, Russia, Malaysia, and Brazil. The AICD was flow tested with very light oils, water, and gas, as well as multiphase testing simulating mixtures of oil/water for different water cuts and oil/gas at diverse gas-volume fractions. The characterization of flow performance was embedded into sophisticated reservoir simulators for steady and transient evaluations. The multiphase condition of the test fluids was achieved by increasing water cuts and gas-volume fractions. The flow performance tests indicated that the highly sensitive fluidic sensor of the low-viscosity AICD enhances the production of very light oil and restricts water and gas as the water cut and gas-volume fraction increase. The restriction process gradually increases as per the water and gas ratio in the mixture and is reversible if water and gas production recede. Comparisons of the low-viscosity, fluidic-diode AICD vs. a traditional ICD show approximately 25% less water production and 40% less gas production with the AICD. The ability of the low-viscosity AICD to produce very light oils while restricting the flow of gas and water extends the life of light-oil reservoirs by increasing the production of hydrocarbons while helping to lower costs. For optimum reliability, this unique fluidic-sensor technology has no moving parts or control lines, but uses fluid dynamics to distinguish fluids. Multiphase-flow performance testing and field simulation of light-oil reservoirs indicate that the low-viscosity, fluidic-diode AICD favors the production of light oil (0.3 cP–1.5 cP) and restricts the flow of gas and/or water in a multiphase production-flow environment.
Multilateral completions are vital in the oilfield development of thin-layered reservoirs by enhancing field economics and oil productivity through improved reservoir exposure while reducing operating costs. Gas and water coning in thin oil columns can compromise production longevity. The first successful subsea implementation of dual-lateral infill horizontal wells completed with autonomous inflow control devices (AICDs) is discussed. The reservoir is located in an offshore field in the North West Shelf, Australia, and includes a thin oil rim with gas and water breakthrough challenges. Long horizontal wells are typically completed as open hole with standalone screens (SAS) or gravel packs, which can create nonuniform reservoir influx along the wellbore. Water or gas coning can cause uneven reservoir drainage that can result in valuable bypassed oil being left in the reservoir. Advanced well architecture using multilateral horizontal wells with AICDs has been used to extend production life while also reducing production costs and handling and treating unwanted fluid. Technical Advancement of Multilaterals (TAML) Level 5 dual-lateral AICD completion design considerations along with the implementation methodology and well flow performance with AICD completion are discussed. The primary objective when designing these infill wells was to access bypassed oil. Two dual-lateral horizontal wells were successfully drilled with a total reservoir length of approximately 10 km. Both of the sandface completions were enhanced with the deployment of fluidic diode AICDs and swellable isolation packers placed along the main bore and lateral to create a uniform drawdown while also limiting both gas and water production sourced from an existing gas cap and water aquifer. The first case study in the offshore field in Australia where advanced completion techniques were used in combination with a TAML Level 5 dual-lateral AICD completion to maximize reservoir exposure, enhance oil production, and control gas/water breakthrough to increase oil recovery is discussed.
Many gas wells in unconsolidated sandstone reservoirs have been completed with stand-alone screens (SAS) that use either wire-wrapped screens (WWS) or mesh screens. This method is a cost-effective sand-control method for completions, especially in horizontal (Hz) wells where gravel packing (GP) may not be attractive for economic, operational, or logistical reasons. Because there are annular-flow failure concerns with this type of completion, a simple well-modeling study was conducted to look at the potential for application of inflow control devices (ICDs) to minimize annular velocity in Hz gas wells. This paper will discuss the annular flow results. The purpose of the study was to investigate methods that could mitigate ‘hot spotting,’ a type of screen failure that can occur in an SAS completion, especially in high-rate gas wells. This type of failure occurs when fluid flow carrying abrasive particles is concentrated over a small area such that the entrance velocity is above the threshold for erosion. Swellable packers have been used to compartmentalize the SAS completion into many segments in an attempt to control annular movement of abrasive particles by minimizing annular velocity. However, the well modeling study discussed in this paper has shown that compartmentalization alone may not be sufficient. This paper discusses the nodal-analysis software modeling tool that was used to build the well hydraulic models and to investigate the following flow behaviors: Annular velocityEffect of compartmentalization on annular velocityAnnular velocity in SAS-ICD completionEffect of compartmentalization on annular velocity in SAS-ICD completionEffect of ICD resistance on annular velocity The study will show that 1) an SAS-ICD completion can be effective in minimizing annular flow, and 2), it appears to be the most effective means of minimizing annular flow in gas wells, ultimately reducing the chance of failure.
This paper provides an overview of an engineering design methodology which uses a tubular design analysis validation software program that provides an analytical method for assessing tubing loads, design integrity, and buckling behavior under complex mechanical, fluid-pressure, and thermal-loading conditions. The design methodology is applied to complex wells (e.g., multizone, multistring completions, and intelligent completions). Tubing load evaluation cases for different operating phases are presented for two complex completion types viz. Intelligent Completion and Mutlizone Dual Completion. Two (2) well study models are presented for discussion and evaluation of thermal and stress-loading analysis: the first model analyses a dual string completion, and the second model analyses an intelligent well completion. Thermal simulation is first performed followed by tubular stress modeling for tubular selection and design. Well models are focused to present tubing-design integrity analysis for multistring and intelligent completions with various anticipated operating loads during the life of the well. Analysis includes scenarios for simultaneous production/injection, commingled zonal flow control with multiposition interval control valves (ICV), and various other well-operating conditions. Results show temperature/pressure changes for each simulated load scenario in the modeled wells. Also discussed are the impacts of well-operating temperature and pressure change on tubular axial loading, burst and collapse limitations, pipe movement and buckling potential, and resultant forces on completion packers in a multistring (dual completion) caused by tubular stress loading. Furthermore, tubular thermal and stress analysis is discussed for a multizone commingling intelligent well completion having multiposition ICVs with varying flow/injection rates. Results of thermal and stress modeling are evaluated to select and optimize the well completion design as well as identify well operating limits with respect to a set of combined ICV opening positions during commingled well operations. Dynamic and complex offshore conditions can cause variations in operating temperatures and pressures in multistring and intelligent well completions in which design margins are slim because of production-casing diameter limitations. A detailed stress-loading analysis aided by thermal- and stress-analysis software provides methods for balancing completion design vs. risk. This process provides savings by optimizing well design to meet design integrity standards without being overdesigned.
Well completions with downhole inflow control technologies are used to defer and control water or gas breakthrough thereby maximizing recovery. Active and passive inflow control devices dominate this technology. The paper presents the performance of these technologies in different well conditions and provides recommendations on their selection. Passive inflow control devices (ICDs), combined with compartmentalization of the wellbore, balance inflow along the wellbore by creating a desired pressure regulation and prevent high-permeability sections from dominating the inflow. ICDs delay water and gas breakthrough and extend well life. Active inflow-control completions consist of well equipment with multiple downhole packers and valves that segment the wellbore into multiple sections. The valves can be operated during the life of the well to regulate or shut off inflow from the section(s) that experience water or gas breakthrough while producing the remaining sections. The active valves may range from conventional sliding side doors to intelligent completions with remotely operated downhole valves and sensors. Hybrid Completions integrate active control features with passive device systems within a single wellbore to leverage the value for both technologies to enhance well performance. Simple static wellbore analysis and advanced transient analysis coupling of reservoir simulators to wellbore models was performed to review the performance of different completion technologies. The simulations cover different completion options from a base design of screens in barefoot completions to more advanced passive, active, and Hybrid Completions. Different reservoir and well conditions were simulated to analyze the performance of the completion systems. The proposed methodology will help in selecting a fit-for-purpose completion design for the life of the well ensuring that the performance objectives will not only be achieved, but also that the completion type selected has not been " over-designed?? for its intended purpose. INTRODUCTION The completion design for a horizontal well begins with an inflow control requirement at the sandface. Typical reasons for inflow control are significant permeability contrasts, presence of lost circulation or fracture zones, high frictional losses, and thin oil columns bounded by water and gas zones with high coning tendency and/or significant viscosity/mobility variations along the zones. In newer, undeveloped reservoirs, the inflow control is selected by analytical, semi-analytical assessments or based on parametric sensitivity-based modeling. Alternatively, in developed fields, inflow control requirements are more accurately determined by field experience, from the historical performance of adjacent wells. Several papersi (Al-Khelaiwi et.al, 2010 and Birchenko et.al 2009) have presented methodologies for selecting inflow control technologies based on factors like bore hole size, production rates, number of zones etc.
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