A Single-Well Gas-Assisted Gravity Drainage Enhanced Oil Recovery Process for U.S. Deepwater Gulf of Mexico Operations

Saikia, Bikash D.; Rao, Dandina N.

doi:10.3390/en14061743

Cited by 4 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 16 publications

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“…Their research findings indicate that as the well spacing increases, the steam chamber rise rate and the oil production rate also increase. However, considering the combined influence of heavy oil fluid properties and thermal conductivity characteristics, the optimal spacing between well pairs was determined to be 100 m [17]. The amount of steam injection directly determines the magnitude of energy supplied to the reservoir.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Study on Characteristics of Steam Chamber and Factors Influencing Nitrogen-Assisted Vertical–Horizontal Steam Drainage Development

Zheng,

Yu,

Huang

et al. 2024

Processes

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With the notable achievements attained through the implementation of steam-assisted gravity drainage (SAGD), the vertical–horizontal steam drive (VHSD) emerges as a pivotal technological advancement aimed at significantly enhancing the efficiency of thin reservoir heavy oil recovery subsequent to steam cyclic stimulation. The inclusion of nitrogen assistance has proven effective in enhancing the efficacy of gravity drainage techniques in reservoir development. However, it is noteworthy that this method has only led to improvements in approximately 50% of the well groups within the observed field. The comprehensive evaluation index of VHSD was proposed, and as the objective function, it was determined that the greatest contribution to the VHSD technique lies in oil saturation, accounting for 40% of the overall evaluations. This differs from conventional SAGD operations, where reservoir thickness serves as the primary determinant. Building upon an enhanced physical simulation similarity criterion, two comparative injection scheme experiments were conducted to explore the impact of nitrogen injection on the performance of VHSD and the characteristics of the steam chamber. Nitrogen is distributed in the vicinity of the steam chamber, leading to the formation of a dual mechanism characterized by ‘top heat insulation and lateral traction’ on the steam chamber. The lateral traction accounts for approximately 25% of the team chamber volume. Additionally, the inducement of nitrogen causes a downward displacement of crude oil, resulting in its accumulation within the high-temperature region of the steam chamber. This, in turn, enhances the contact area between the high-temperature steam and the crude oil, ultimately leading to improvement in production efficiency. Further validation of the impact of nitrogen on steam lateral traction and interlayer steam drainage within the reservoir was confirmed using Xinjiang oilfield testing. The well temperature increased from 75 °C to 130 °C.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Study on Characteristics of Steam Chamber and Factors Influencing Nitrogen-Assisted Vertical–Horizontal Steam Drainage Development

Zheng,

Yu,

Huang

et al. 2024

Processes

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Development of a Multi-Completion Gas and Downhole Water Sink-Assisted Gravity Drainage (MC-DWS-AGD) to Improve Oil Recovery and Reduce Water Cut in Reservoirs with Strong Water Aquifers

Al-Obaidi

Wood

Al‐Mudhafar³

et al. 2023

Day 2 Tue, April 18, 2023

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Gas and downhole water sink assisted gravity drainage (GDWS-AGD) is a promising gas-based enhanced oil recovery (EOR) process applicable for reservoirs associated with infinite aquifers. However, it can be costly to implement because it typically involves the drilling of multiple vertical gas-injection wells. The drilling and well-completion costs can be substantially reduced by using additional completions for gas injection in the oil production wells through the annulus positioned at the top of the reservoir. Multi-completion-GDWS-AGD (MC-GDWS-AGD) can be configured to include separate completions for gas injection, oil, and water production in individual wells. This study simulates the MC-GDWS-AGD process applied to the synthetic reservoir (PUNQ-S3, based on a real North Sea Field) by placing multiple completions in two wells, which include a gas injection loop, and 2-horizontal wells with a diameter of 2⅜ inch, first one for producing oil located above the oil/water contact and the second one for water sink placed below the oil/water contact. Hydraulic packers are positioned to isolate the multiple completions and an electric submersible pump are positioned to produce the water zone. These results compare to a base case involving no MC-GDWS-AGD wells, which achieved 55.5% oil recovery and 70% water cut.

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Experimental Characterization of Oil/Gas Interface Self-Adjustment in CO2-Assisted Gravity Drainage for Reverse Rhythm Reservoir

Han

Chen

et al. 2022

Energies

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Worldwide practices have proven that gas-assisted gravity drainage can obviously enhance oil recovery, and this technology can be especially effective for reservoirs with a thick formation and large inclination angle. For the successful implementation of this process, a key technology is the stable control of gas–oil interface during gas injection. For a detailed exploration of this technique, a three-stage permeable visual model was designed and manufactured, with permeability decreasing from top to bottom, thus, a reverse rhythm reservoir was effectively modeled. Then the experiment concerning CO2-assisted gravity drainage was carried out with the adoption of a self-developed micro visual displacement device. This study mainly focused on the micro migration law of gas–oil interface and the development effects of CO2-assisted gravity drainage. According to the experiments, CO2 fingering somewhat happens in the same permeable layer from the beginning of gas injection. However, phenomena of “wait” and “gas–oil interface self-adjustment” occur instead of flowing into the next layer when the injected CO2 reaches the boundary of the next lower permeability layer through the dominant channel. By the “gas–oil interface self-adjustment”, the injected CO2 first enters into the pores of the relative higher permeability layer to the greatest extent, and thus expands the sweep volume. Futhermore, in the process of CO2 injection, obvious gas channeling occurs in the low permeability layer directly connected to the outlet, resulting in low sweep efficiency and poor development effect. After connecting the core with lower permeability at the outlet, the development indexes of the model, such as the producing degree of the low permeability layer, the oil recovery before and after gas breakthrough, are significantly improved, and the recovery degrees of the medium permeability layer and the high permeability layer are also improved, and the overall recovery factor is increased by 12.38%. This “gas–oil interface self-adjustment” phenomenon is explained reasonably from the two scales of macroscopic flow resistance and microscopic capillary force. Finally, the enlightenments of the new phenomenon are expounded on the application of gas-assisted gravity drainage on site and the treatment of producers with gas breakthrough in gas injection development.

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A Single-Well Gas-Assisted Gravity Drainage Enhanced Oil Recovery Process for U.S. Deepwater Gulf of Mexico Operations

Cited by 4 publications

References 16 publications

Study on Characteristics of Steam Chamber and Factors Influencing Nitrogen-Assisted Vertical–Horizontal Steam Drainage Development

Study on Characteristics of Steam Chamber and Factors Influencing Nitrogen-Assisted Vertical–Horizontal Steam Drainage Development

Development of a Multi-Completion Gas and Downhole Water Sink-Assisted Gravity Drainage (MC-DWS-AGD) to Improve Oil Recovery and Reduce Water Cut in Reservoirs with Strong Water Aquifers

Experimental Characterization of Oil/Gas Interface Self-Adjustment in CO2-Assisted Gravity Drainage for Reverse Rhythm Reservoir

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