A comprehensive review of polymer and alkaline/surfactant/polymer flooding  applied and researched in Kazakhstan

Naukenova, A.Zh.; Sarsenbekov, N.D.; Bekbauov, Bakhbergen

doi:10.31489/2019ch3/96-101

Cited by 2 publications

(1 citation statement)

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“…This paper noted that if the polymer bank is too large or too viscous during a polymer flood, the pressure drop from the injection well to the polymer front may act as a pressure barrier by usurping most of the downstream driving force for oil displacement. Some possible improvements for polymer floods design are suggested: (a) For the successful polymer floods in the Grimbeek oil field in Argentina or Nuraly in [65,66], the injected polymer viscosity ranged from 50 to 135 cP. The polymer/oil mobility ratios appeared to be less than 0.1.…”

Section: Discussion Of Additionalmentioning

confidence: 99%

Pressure Modification or Barrier Issues during Polymer Flooding Enhanced Oil Recovery

2022

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Effective oil displacement from a reservoir requires adequate and properly directed pressure gradients in areas of high oil saturation. If the polymer bank is too large or too viscous during a polymer flood, the pressure drops from the injection well to the polymer front may act as a pressure modification or barrier by usurping most of the downstream driving force for oil displacement. Polymer injection pressures must be limited. The maximum allowable injection pressure is commonly constrained by caprock integrity, injection equipment, and/or regulations, even though fractures can be beneficial to polymer injectivity. This paper examines when the pressure-barrier concept limits the size and viscosity of the polymer bank during a polymer flood. Analytical and numerical methods are used to address this issue. We examine the relevance of the pressure modification concept for a wide variety of circumstances, including oil viscosities ranging from 10 cp to 1650 cp, vertical wells versus horizontal wells, single versus multiple layered reservoirs, permeability contrast, and crossflow between layers. We also examine the relation between the pressure-barrier concept and fractures and fracture extension during polymer injection. We demonstrate that in reservoirs with single layers, the pressure-barrier concept only limits the optimum viscosity of the injected polymer if the mobility of the polymer bank is less than the mobility of the displaced oil bank. The same is true for multizoned reservoirs with no crossflow between layers. Thus, for these cases, the optimum polymer viscosity is likely to be dictated by the mobility of the oil bank, unless other factors intervene. For multizoned reservoirs with free crossflow between layers, the situation is different. A compromise must be reached between injected polymer viscosity and the efficiency of oil recovery. This work is particularly relevant to viscous oil reservoirs where polymer viscosities are substantially lower than the oil viscosity.

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Section: Discussion Of Additionalmentioning

confidence: 99%

Pressure Modification or Barrier Issues during Polymer Flooding Enhanced Oil Recovery

2022

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A pragmatic approach to polymer flooding to accelerate field implementation

Thomas¹

2023

Kazakhstan journal for oil & gas industry

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Background: Polymer flooding is a well-known enhanced oil recovery technique which can increase recovery factors in mature oilfields above 10% of the oil originally in place. Despite a lengthy history and many published field cases, the speed of deployment is still rather slow. With the need to boost energy production while minimizing energy wastes and carbon emissions, considering this technique known to reduce water usage and accelerate oil recovery should be a must. Aim: This short publication aims at providing guidelines to accelerate deployment of polymer injection in various oilfields and a couple of pragmatic approaches recognizing the need for field data instead of poorly constrained simulations or incomplete laboratory studies. Materials and methods: After a brief review of the technique and current implementation workflows, we will discuss new approaches to foster the deployment of injection pilots by showing how polymer injection can reduce emissions and energy wastes while accelerating oil production. Results: We provide a different perspective on polymer injection with pragmatic tools and ideas showing that going to the field fast provides more information than any laboratory study. Conclusion: Given the current need for mitigating oil production declines, polymer flooding is a technique of choice which can be deployed fast if basic criteria explained in this paper are met.

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A comprehensive review of polymer and alkaline/surfactant/polymer flooding applied and researched in Kazakhstan

Cited by 2 publications

References 0 publications

Pressure Modification or Barrier Issues during Polymer Flooding Enhanced Oil Recovery

Pressure Modification or Barrier Issues during Polymer Flooding Enhanced Oil Recovery

A pragmatic approach to polymer flooding to accelerate field implementation

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