scholarly journals Experimental Study of Foam Generation, Sweep Efficiency and Flow in a Fracture Network

2014 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin Anders Ferno ◽  
Jarand Gauteplass ◽  
Monrawee Pancharoen ◽  
Asmund Haugen ◽  
Arne Graue ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Experimental Study ◽  
Fracture Network ◽  
Sweep Efficiency ◽  
Foam Generation

Experimental Study of Foam Generation, Sweep Efficiency, and Flow in a Fracture Network

SPE Journal ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 21 (04) ◽  
pp. 1140-1150 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. A. Fernø ◽  
J.. Gauteplass ◽  
M.. Pancharoen ◽  
A.. Haugen ◽  
A.. Graue ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Flow Behavior ◽  
Fractured Reservoirs ◽  
Surfactant Solution ◽  
Fracture Network ◽  
Mobility Control ◽  
Fractional Flow ◽  
Sweep Efficiency ◽  
Foam Generation ◽  
Gas Mobility ◽  
Mobility Reduction

Summary Foam generation for gas mobility reduction in porous media is a well-known method and frequently used in field applications. Application of foam in fractured reservoirs has hitherto not been widely implemented, mainly because foam generation and transport in fractured systems are not clearly understood. In this laboratory work, we experimentally evaluate foam generation in a network of fractures within fractured carbonate slabs. Foam is consistently generated by snap-off in the rough-walled, calcite fracture network during surfactant-alternating-gas (SAG) injection and coinjection of gas and surfactant solution over a range of gas fractional flows. Boundary conditions are systematically changed including gas fractional flow, total flow rate, and liquid rates. Local sweep efficiency is evaluated through visualization of the propagation front and compared for pure gas injection, SAG injection, and coinjection. Foam as a mobility-control agent resulted in significantly improved areal sweep and delayed gas breakthrough. Gas-mobility reduction factors varied from approximately 200 to more than 1,000, consistent with observations of improved areal sweep. A shear-thinning foam flow behavior was observed in the fracture networks over a range of gas fractional flows.

Direct Visualization and Quantification of NCF-Strengthened CO2 Foam Generation, Propagation and Sweep in a 2D Heterogeneous Fracture Network Model

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bing Wei ◽  
Qiong Yang ◽  
Runxue Mao ◽  
Qingtao Tian ◽  
Dianlin Wang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Surfactant Solution ◽  
Gravitational Effect ◽  
Fracture Network ◽  
Co2 Injection ◽  
Sweep Efficiency ◽  
Foam Generation ◽  
Co2 Foam ◽  
Fracture Systems ◽  
Reservoir Conditions ◽  
Reduction Of Co2

Abstract CO2 foam holds promising potential for conformance improvement and mobility reduction of CO2 injection in fractured systems. However, there still exists two main issues hampering its wide application and development, 1. Instability of CO2 foam lamellae under reservoir conditions, and 2. Uncertainties of foam flow in fracture systems. To address these two issues, we previously developed a series of functional nanocellulose materials to stabilize the CO2 foam (referred to NCF-st-CO2 foam), while the primary goal of this paper is to thoroughly elucidate foam generation, propagation and sweep of NCF-st-CO2 foam in fractured systems by using a self-designed visual heterogeneous fracture network. We found that NCF-st-CO2 foam produced noticeably greater pressure drop (ΔP) than CO2 foam during either co-injection (COI) or surfactant solution-alternating-gas (SAG) injection, and the threshold foam quality (fg*) was approximately 0.67. Foam generation was increased with total flow rate for CO2 foam and stayed constant for NCF-st-CO2 foam in fracture during COI. CO2 breakthrough occurred at high flow rates (>8 cm3/min). For SAG, large surfactant slug could prevent CO2 from early breakthrough and facilitate foaming in-situ. The increase in sweep efficiency by NCF-st-CO2 foam was observed near the producer for both COI and WAG, which was attributed to its better foaming capacity. Film division and behind mainly led to foam generation in the fracture model. Gravity segregation and override was insignificant during COI but became noticeable during SAG, which caused the sweep efficiency decreased by 3~9% at 1.0 fracture volume (FV) injected. Due to the enhanced foam film, the NCF-st-CO2 foam was able to mitigate gravitational effect, especially in the vicinity of producer.

Pore-to-Core EOR Upscaling for CO2 Foam for CCUS

SPE Journal ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 24 (06) ◽  
pp. 2793-2803 ◽  
Author(s):  
Arthur Uno Rognmo ◽  
Sunniva Brudvik Fredriksen ◽  
Zachary Paul Alcorn ◽  
Mohan Sharma ◽  
Tore Føyen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Oil Recovery ◽  
Apparent Viscosity ◽  
Shear Thinning ◽  
Liquid Films ◽  
Carbonate Reservoir ◽  
Sweep Efficiency ◽  
Reference Case ◽  
Foam Generation ◽  
Co2 Foam ◽  
Gas Fractions

Summary This paper presents an ongoing CO2–foam upscaling research project that aims to advance CO2–foam technology for accelerating and increasing oil recovery, while reducing operational costs and lessening the carbon footprint left during CO2 enhanced oil recovery (EOR). Laboratory CO2–foam behavior was upscaled to pilot scale in an onshore carbonate reservoir in Texas, USA. Important CO2–foam properties, such as local foam generation, bubble texture, apparent viscosity, and shear–thinning behavior with a nonionic surfactant, were evaluated using pore–to–core upscaling to develop accurate numerical tools for a field–pilot prediction of increased sweep efficiency and CO2 utilization. At pore–scale, high–pressure silicon–wafer micromodels showed in–situ foam generation and stable liquid films over time during no–flow conditions. Intrapore foam bubbles corroborated high apparent foam viscosities measured at core scale. CO2–foam apparent viscosity was measured at different rates (foam–rate scans) and different gas fractions (foam–quality scans) at core scale. The highest mobility reduction (foam apparent viscosity) was observed between 0.60 and 0.70 gas fractions. The maximum foam apparent viscosity was 44.3 (±0.5) mPa·s, 600 times higher than that of pure CO2, compared with the baseline viscosity (reference case, without surfactant), which was 1.7 (±0.6) mPa·s, measured at identical conditions. The CO2–foam showed shear–thinning behavior with approximately 50% reduction in apparent viscosity when the superficial velocity was increased from 1 to 8 ft/D. Strong foam was generated in EOR corefloods at a gas fraction of 0.70, resulting in an apparent viscosity of 39.1 mPa·s. Foam parameters derived from core–scale foam floods were used for numerical upscaling and field–pilot performance assessment.

scholarly journals Viscous fingering and its effect on areal sweep efficiency during waterflooding: an experimental study

2018 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
pp. 105-116 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zahra Kargozarfard ◽  
Masoud Riazi ◽  
Shahab Ayatollahi
Keyword(s):  
Experimental Study ◽  
Viscous Fingering ◽  
Sweep Efficiency

Supercritical CO2-Foam Screening and Performance Evaluation for CO2 Storage Improvement in Sandstone and Carbonate Formations

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ying Yu ◽  
Alvinda Sri Hanamertani ◽  
Shehzad Ahmed ◽  
Zunsheng Jiao ◽  
Jonathan Fred McLaughlin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Surface Tension ◽  
Storage Capacity ◽  
Co2 Storage ◽  
Mobility Control ◽  
Zwitterionic Surfactant ◽  
Water Displacement ◽  
Sweep Efficiency ◽  
Foam Generation ◽  
Co2 Foam ◽  
Reservoir Conditions

Abstract Injecting carbon dioxide (CO2) as foam during enhanced oil recovery (EOR) can improve injectate mobility and increase sweep efficiency. Integrating CO2-foam techniques with carbon capture, utilization and storage (CCUS) operations is of recent interest, as the mobility control and sweep efficiency increases seen in EOR could also benefit CO2 storage during CCUS. In this study, a variety of different charge, hydrocarbon chain length, head group surfactants were evaluated by surface tension, bulk and dynamic CO2-foam performance assessments for CCUS. The optimal foam candidate was expected to provide satisfying mobility control effects under reservoir conditions, leading to an improved water displacement efficiency during CO2-foam flooding that favors a more significant CO2 storage potential. All tested surfactants were able to lower their surface tensions against scCO2 by 4-5 times, enlarging the surface area of solution/gas contact; therefore, more CO2 could be trapped in the foam system. A zwitterionic surfactant was found to have slightly higher surface tension against CO2 while exhibiting the highest foaming ability and the most prolonged foam stability with a relatively slower drainage rate among all tested surfactants. The dynamic performance of scCO2-foam stabilized by this zwitterionic surfactant was also evaluated in sandstone and carbonate cores at 13.79 MPa and 90°C. The results show that the mobility control development in carbonate core was relatively slower, suggesting a gradual foam generation process attributed to the higher permeability than the case in sandstone core. A more significant cumulative CO2 storage potential improvement, quantified based on the water production, was recorded in sandstone (53%) over the carbonate (47%). Overall, the selected foam has successfully developed CO2 mobility control and improved water displacement in the occurrence of in-situ foam generation, hence promoting the storage capacity for the injected CO2. This work has optimized the foaming agent selection method at the actual reservoir conditions and evaluated the scCO2-foam performance in establishing high flow resistance and improving the CO2 storage capacity, which benefits integrated CCUS studies or projects utilizing CO2-foam techniques.

Visualizing and Quantifying Generation, Propagation, and Sweep of Nanocellulose-Strengthened Carbon Dioxide Foam in a Complex 2D Heterogeneous Fracture Network Model

SPE Journal ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 1-14
Author(s):  
Bing Wei ◽  
Qingtao Tian ◽  
Shengen Chen ◽  
Xingguang Xu ◽  
Dianlin Wang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Carbon Dioxide ◽  
Network Model ◽  
Gravitational Effect ◽  
Fracture Network ◽  
Sweep Efficiency ◽  
Co2 Foam ◽  
Reservoir Conditions ◽  
Foam Film ◽  
Carbon Dioxide Co2

Summary There exist two main issues hampering the wide application and development of carbon dioxide (CO2) foam in conformance improvement and CO2 mobility reduction in fractured systems: (1) instability of foam film under reservoir conditions and (2) uncertainties of foam flow in complex fractures. To address these two issues, we previously developed a series of nanocellulose-strengthened CO2 foam (referred to as NCF-st-CO2 foam), while the primary goal of this work is to thoroughly elucidate generation, propagation, and sweep of NCF-st-CO2 foam in a visual 2D heterogeneous fracture network model. NCF-st-CO2 foam outperformed CO2 foam in reducing gas mobility during either coinjection (COI) or surfactant-alternating-gas (SAG) injection, and the threshold foam quality was approximately 0.67. Foam creation was increased with the total superficial velocity for CO2 foam and almost stayed constant for NCF-st-CO2 foam in fractures during COI. For SAG, large surfactant slug could prevent CO2 from early breakthrough and facilitate foaming in situ. The improved sweep efficiency induced by NCF-st-CO2 foam occurred near the producer for both COI and SAG. Film division and behind mainly led to foam generation in the fracture model. Gravity segregation and override was insignificant during COI but became noticeable during SAG, which caused the sweep efficiency decrease by 3 to 9%. Owing to the enhanced film, NCF-st-CO2 foam enabled mitigation of the gravitational effect, especially around the producer.

Flow Characteristics of Foam in Fractures and Prediction of Preferred Paths

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhengxiao Xu ◽  
Zhaomin Li ◽  
Binfei Li ◽  
Danqi Chen ◽  
Xianghui Zeng ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Network Model ◽  
Fractured Reservoirs ◽  
Flow Characteristics ◽  
Weighted Graph ◽  
Fracture Network ◽  
Dijkstra’S Algorithm ◽  
Sweep Efficiency ◽  
Foam Flow ◽  
Complex Fracture ◽  
Dijkstra's Algorithm

Abstract Foam is widely used in fractured reservoirs. The flow characteristics in complex fracture networks are still unclear, and there are few numerical simulations of foam fluid flow in fractures. In this study, a variety of combined visual fracture models were used to observe the flow characteristics of foam in the fracture. Firstly, based on the parallel fracture model, the foam flow characteristics under different fracture depths were explored, and then based on the complex fracture network model, the foam flow path and sweep efficiency are evaluated. Finally, the Dijkstra’s algorithm was used to determine the weighted graph of the fracture network nodes, and the preferred flow paths of the foam were predicted. The results show that when foam flows in parallel fractures with different depths, it preferentially flows in high permeability (100 μm) fractures, and there is gas trapping in low permeability (50 μm) fractures. In the irregular fracture network model, the sweep efficiency of the foam fluid is greatly affected by the foam quality, and the sweep volume is the widest when the foam quality is about 90%. The simulation results based on the Dijkstra’s algorithm can be fitted to the experimental results to a certain extent. By controlling the number of preferred paths and the weight of nodes, the plugging and regulating performance of the foam are characterized. These findings reflect the necessity of considering fractures when foam flows in reservoirs, and provide a certain experimental basis and theoretical guidance for the development of fractured reservoirs.

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