Experimental Analysis and Numerical Modeling of Polymer Flooding in Heavy Oil Recovery Enhancement: A Pore-Level Investigation

Khalilinezhad, Seyed Shahram; Hashemi, Abdolnabi; Mobaraki, Sina; Zakavi, Mahdi; Jarrahian, Khosro

doi:10.1007/s13369-019-04005-3

Cited by 14 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 58 publications

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“…This phenomenon, commonly known as the "snap-off" of the oil column into oil ganglia, takes place when there are minor deformations in the water/oil interface, resulting in a reduction of interfacial energy. It is important to mention that some researchers call this capillary-trapped residual oil as bypassed oil 144 , 145 . In contrast, we use the term "bypassed oil" to refer to the mobile oil that remained bypassed in porous media after waterflooding due to reservoir heterogeneities or mobility contrast (Fig.…”

Section: Residual Oil Saturation Reduction By Viscoelastic Polymersmentioning

confidence: 99%

A comprehensive review of viscoelastic polymer flooding in sandstone and carbonate rocks

Zeynalli,

Mushtaq,

Al-Shalabi

et al. 2023

Sci Rep

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Polymer flooding is a proven chemical Enhanced Oil Recovery (cEOR) method that boosts oil production beyond waterflooding. Thorough theoretical and practical knowledge has been obtained for this technique through numerous experimental, simulation, and field works. According to the conventional belief, this technique improves macroscopic sweep efficiency due to high polymer viscosity by producing moveable oil that remains unswept after secondary recovery. However, recent studies show that in addition to viscosity, polymer viscoelasticity can be effectively utilized to increase oil recovery by mobilizing residual oil and improving microscopic displacement efficiency in addition to macroscopic sweep efficiency. The polymer flooding is frequently implemented in sandstones with limited application in carbonates. This limitation is associated with extreme reservoir conditions, such as high concentrations of monovalent and divalent ions in the formation brine and ultimate reservoir temperatures. Other complications include the high heterogeneity of tight carbonates and their mixed-to-oil wettability. To overcome the challenges related to severe reservoir conditions, novel polymers have been introduced. These new polymers have unique monomers protecting them from chemical and thermal degradations. Monomers, such as NVP (N-vinylpyrrolidone) and ATBS (2-acrylamido-2-methylpropane sulfonic acid), enhance the chemical resistance of polymers against hydrolysis, mitigating the risk of viscosity reduction or precipitation in challenging reservoir conditions. However, the viscoelasticity of these novel polymers and their corresponding impact on microscopic displacement efficiency are not well established and require further investigation in this area. In this study, we comprehensively review recent works on viscoelastic polymer flow under various reservoir conditions, including carbonates and sandstones. In addition, the paper defines various mechanisms underlying incremental oil recovery by viscoelastic polymers and extensively describes the means of controlling and improving their viscoelasticity. Furthermore, the polymer screening studies for harsh reservoir conditions are also included. Finally, the impact of viscoelastic synthetic polymers on oil mobilization, the difficulties faced during this cEOR process, and the list of field applications in carbonates and sandstones can also be found in our work. This paper may serve as a guide for commencing or performing laboratory- and field-scale projects related to viscoelastic polymer flooding.

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Section: Residual Oil Saturation Reduction By Viscoelastic Polymersmentioning

confidence: 99%

A comprehensive review of viscoelastic polymer flooding in sandstone and carbonate rocks

Zeynalli,

Mushtaq,

Al-Shalabi

et al. 2023

Sci Rep

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“…Heavy oil with the viscosity of less than 300 MPa·s can be effectively developed by water flooding, chemical flooding, well pattern thickening, and so on. 4,5 While for heavy oil with viscosity greater than 350 MPa·s, steam injection shows its unique advantages and high recovery. 6,7…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Heavy oil with the viscosity of less than 300 MPaÁs can be effectively developed by water flooding, chemical flooding, well pattern thickening, and so on. 4,5 While for heavy oil with viscosity greater than 350 MPaÁs, steam injection shows its unique advantages and high recovery. 6,7 Affected by the size limit of the offshore platform, the offshore mechanical oil extraction mostly uses submersible electric pumps as the main lifting equipment.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Research on mechanical characteristics and safety of working platform in rod pumping process

Dehua

Liu

et al. 2022

Advances in Mechanical Engineering

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Rod pumping on offshore platform provides a solution to low efficient extraction of offshore heavy oil and the safety of working platform is the prerequisite for the implementation of this new technology. In this paper, a coupling dynamics model of rod pumping system and the jacket platform is established, and the dynamic characteristics of the pumping unit excitation, rod pumping system, and jacket platform is studied. Based on the analysis of the multi-body dynamics model, the three frequencies (pumping unit excitation, rod pumping system, jacket platform) are far apart, so the dynamic effect of rod pumping on the platform can be analyzed according to static load. Based on the limit working state and the cumulative damage theory of the structure, the safety evaluation standard for the increased load of the jacket platform is established. Under the extreme marine environment once in 50 years, the safety factor of the main structure of the platform is greater than 4, and the overall safety factor is 3% lower than that before the rod pumping operation. Offshore rod pumping has less influence on the jacket platform from analysis, and which lays a theoretical and safety foundation for offshore oil pumping.

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Polymers for enhanced oil recovery: fundamentals and selection criteria revisited

Mahajan

Yadav

Rellegadla

et al. 2021

Appl Microbiol Biotechnol

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Experimental Analysis and Numerical Modeling of Polymer Flooding in Heavy Oil Recovery Enhancement: A Pore-Level Investigation

Cited by 14 publications

References 58 publications

A comprehensive review of viscoelastic polymer flooding in sandstone and carbonate rocks

A comprehensive review of viscoelastic polymer flooding in sandstone and carbonate rocks

Research on mechanical characteristics and safety of working platform in rod pumping process

Polymers for enhanced oil recovery: fundamentals and selection criteria revisited

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