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AbstractIn a well fractured reservoir that has a gas cap, after commencement of production the gas cap expands and the gas-oil contact (GOC) in the fracture system descends. The oil contained within the matrix of the gas invaded zone begins to drain down into the fracture system and into the lower matrix blocks, due to the force of gravity. Some of the oil that is drained out of the upper matrix blocks can reinfiltrate into the lower matrix blocks from the top or side surfaces and can flow down through the areas of contact between blocks.In this study, data on a set of experiments that center on reinfiltration process are presented. The experiments cover fully saturated and desaturated blocks in vertical and inclined positions. The results of our experimental works reveal that the reinfiltration process depends mainly on the physical properties of the matrix block, the rate of oil supplied, and the drainage stage of the block.When oil is trickled at the top of a desaturated block, initially due to an extra capillary pressure gradient the infiltration rate can be higher than the maximum drainage rate of the block. After some time the rate of the drainage approaches that of the infiltration and an almost steady state flow is established. At this condition, the lower portion of the block could drain oil, while the upper portion could be under infiltration process.When the oil is directly supplied on the top of the vertical fracture, its crossflow from fracture to the adjacent matrix is demonstrated. In other words, under certain conditions the high conductivity vertical fractures are not necessarily the primary flow path of the supplied oil. The purpose of this study is to provide a basic understanding of reinfiltration process in fractured porous media.
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