scholarly journals Analysis and Simulation of Polymer Injectivity Test in a High Temperature High Salinity Carbonate Reservoir

Polymers ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (11) ◽  
pp. 1765
Author(s):  
Mohamed Adel Alzaabi ◽  
Juan Manuel Leon ◽  
Arne Skauge ◽  
Shehadeh Masalmeh
Keyword(s):  
Porous Media ◽  
High Temperature ◽  
Polymer Solutions ◽  
High Salinity ◽  
Shear Thickening ◽  
Shear Thinning ◽  
Polymer Flooding ◽  
Carbonate Reservoir ◽  
Polymer Injection ◽  
The Impact

Polymer flooding has gained much interest within the oil industry in the past few decades as one of the most successful chemical enhanced oil recovery (CEOR) methods. The injectivity of polymer solutions in porous media is a key factor in polymer flooding projects. The main challenge that faces prediction of polymer injectivity in field applications is the inherent non-Newtonian behavior of polymer solutions. Polymer in situ rheology in porous media may exhibit complex behavior that encompasses shear thickening at high flow rates in addition to the typical shear thinning at low rates. This shear-dependent behavior is usually measured in lab core flood experiments. However, data from field applications are usually limited to the well bottom-hole pressure (BHP) as the sole source of information. In this paper, we analyze BHP data from field polymer injectivity test conducted in a Middle Eastern heterogeneous carbonate reservoir characterized by high-temperature and high-salinity (HTHS) conditions. The analysis involved incorporating available data to build a single-well model to simulate the injectivity test. Several generic sensitivities were tested to investigate the impact of stepwise variation in injection flow rate and polymer concentration. Polymer injection was reflected in a non-linear increase in pressure with injection, and longer transient behavior toward steady state. The results differ from water injection which have linear pressure response to rate variation, and quick stabilization of pressure after rate change. The best match of the polymer injection was obtained with complex rheology, that means the combined shear thickening at high rate near the well and moving through apparent Newtonian and shear thinning at low rate.

Bulk Rheology and Injectivity Assessments of Potential Biopolymer and Synthetic Polymer for Applications in Carbonates Under Harsh Conditions

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Deena A. Elhossary ◽  
Anoo Sebastian ◽  
Waleed Alameri ◽  
Emad W. Al-Shalabi
Keyword(s):  
High Temperature ◽  
High Salinity ◽  
Shear Thickening ◽  
Shear Thinning ◽  
Polymer Injection ◽  
Temperature Conditions ◽  
Chemical Eor ◽  
Reservoir Conditions ◽  
Rheological Experiments ◽  
The Stability

Abstract Polymer flooding is a well-established chemical EOR technology that is used to overcome challenges associated with conventional waterflooding including viscous fingering and early breakthrough. Nevertheless, polymers tend to perform poorly under harsh reservoir conditions of high temperature and high salinity (HTHS). The main objective of this study is to evaluate and compare the performance of two potential polymers, an ATBS-based polymer and a biopolymer (Scleroglucan), in carbonates under harsh reservoir conditions. This comparative study includes an analysis of polymer rheological experiments as well as polymer injectivity tests. The effects of water salinity and temperature on the performance of these two polymers was also investigated in this study. Rheological experiments were carried out on polymer samples at both ambient (25 °C) and high temperature conditions (90 °C). Polymer viscosity was measured as function of concentration, temperature, and salinity at different shear rates ranging from 1 to 1000 s−1. Injectivity characteristics of both polymers were also assessed through coreflooding experiments using high permeability carbonate outcrops at room (25 °C) and high (90 °C) temperature conditions. The injectivity tests included two stages of brine pre-flush and polymer injection, which allowed assessing the resistance factor (RF) of these polymers. These tests were conducted using high salinity formation water (167,114 ppm TDS) at both temperature conditions. The bulk rheological tests showed that both ATBS-based and Scleroglucan polymers exhibit a shear-thinning behavior. However, the shear-thinning effect is far more evident at higher concentrations in the case of Scleroglucan as opposed to that of the ATBS-based polymer. Viscosity measurements of the polymer samples at different salinities demonstrated the detrimental impact of salinity and divalent ions on the stability of ATBS-based whereas Scleroglucan was not much affected. Scleroglucan exhibited better filterability at the high temperature as opposed to the room temperature. From the injectivity tests, the shear-thinning behavior of the biopolymer in the porous media was confirmed as RF decreased with increasing the flow rate applied at both temperature conditions. Meanwhile, the ATBS-based polymer exhibited a shear-thickening behavior at 25 °C, but a shear-thinning one at 90 °C. Compared to the biopolymer, the ATBS-based polymer showed better injectivity at both the room and the high temperatures as the differential pressure stabilized within the first few pore volumes injected. This study highlights the importance of polymer screening for EOR applications in carbonate reservoirs under HTHS conditions.

scholarly journals Polymer Optimisation- Shear Thinning or Thickening?

2019 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Gloria Gyanfi ◽  
Wilberforce Nkrumah Aggrey ◽  
Ernest Ansah Owusu ◽  
Kofi Ohemeng Prempeh
Keyword(s):  
Shear Rate ◽  
Enhanced Oil Recovery ◽  
Oil Recovery ◽  
Shear Thickening ◽  
Shear Thinning ◽  
Injection Rate ◽  
Injection Well ◽  
Polymer Injection ◽  
Well Pattern ◽  
The Impact

With most polymers employed in polymer enhanced oil recovery exhibiting one or both non-Newtonian behaviours that is shear thickening and thinning at different shear rate, it is expedient to analyse the impact of these non-Newtonian behaviours in polymer optimisation. CMG simulation suite was employed to analyse the permeability pinch-out formation with a five (5) spot injection well pattern for a 360days simulation run using a 90days polymer injection well cycling. Shear thinning polymer was found not to be conducive for lower permeable formation as a high percentage of the polymer was retained. NPV was affected by polymer injection rate which controlled polymer optimisation

scholarly journals Impact of Mechanical Degradation on Polymer Injectivity in Porous Media

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Badar Al-Shakry ◽  
Tormod Skauge ◽  
Behruz Shaker Shiran ◽  
Arne Skauge
Keyword(s):  
Porous Media ◽  
Oil Recovery ◽  
Polymer Solutions ◽  
Shear Thickening ◽  
Economic Cost ◽  
High Viscosity ◽  
Polymer Flooding ◽  
Mechanical Degradation ◽  
Thickening Behavior

Polymer flooding is an established enhanced oil recovery (EOR) method, still many aspects of polymer flooding are not well understood. This study investigates the influence of mechanical degradation on flow properties of polymers in porous media. Mechanical degradation due to high shear forces may occur in the injection well and at the entrance to the porous media. The polymers that give high viscosity yields at a sustainable economic cost are typically large, MW > 10 MDa, and have wide molecular weight distributions. Both MW and the distributions are altered by mechanical degradation, leading to changes in the flow rheology of the polymer. The polymer solutions were subjected to different degrees of pre-shearing and pre-filtering before injected into Bentheimer outcrop sandstone cores. Rheology studies of injected and produced polymer solutions were performed and interpreted together with in-situ rheology data. The core floods showed a predominant shear thickening behavior at high flow velocities which is due to successive contraction/expansion flow in pores. When pre-sheared, shear thickening was reduced but with no significant reduction in in-situ viscosity at lower flow rates. This may be explained by reduction in the extensional viscosity. Furthermore, the results show that successive degradation occurred which suggests that the assumption of the highest point of shear which determines mechanical degradation in a porous media does not hold for all field relevant conditions.

Injectivity and Propagation of Sulfonated Acrylamide-Based Copolymers in Low Permeability Carbonate Reservoir Cores in Harsh Salinity and Temperature Conditions : Challenges and Learnings from a Middle East Onshore Case Study

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicolas Gaillard ◽  
Matthieu Olivaud ◽  
Alain Zaitoun ◽  
Mahmoud Ould-Metidji ◽  
Guillaume Dupuis ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Middle East ◽  
Polymer Solutions ◽  
Carbonate Reservoir ◽  
Core Material ◽  
Low Permeability ◽  
The Core ◽  
Reservoir Conditions ◽  
Carbonate Cores ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Mobility Reduction

Abstract Polymer flooding is one of the most mature EOR technology applied successfully in a broad range of reservoir conditions. The last developments made in polymer chemistries allowed pushing the boundaries of applicability towards higher temperature and salinity carbonate reservoirs. Specifically designed sulfonated acrylamide-based copolymers (SPAM) have been proven to be stable for more than one year at 120°C and are the best candidates to comply with Middle East carbonate reservoir conditions. Numerous studies have shown good injectivity and propagation properties of SPAM in carbonate cores with permeabilities ranging from 70 to 150 mD in presence of oil. This study aims at providing new insights on the propagation of SPAM in carbonate reservoir cores having permeabilities ranging between 10 and 40 mD. Polymer screening was performed in the conditions of ADNOC onshore carbonate reservoir using a 260 g/L TDS synthetic formation brine together with oil and core material from the reservoir. All the experiments were performed at residual oil saturation (Sor). The experimental approach aimed at reproducing the transport of the polymer entering the reservoir from the sand face up to a certain depth. Three reservoir coreflood experiments were performed in series at increasing temperatures and decreasing rates to mimic the progression of the polymer in the reservoir with a radial velocity profile. A polymer solution at 2000 ppm was injected in the first core at 100 mL/h and 40°C. Effluents were collected and injected in the second core at 20 mL/h and 70°C. Effluents were collected again and injected in the third core at 4 mL/h and 120°C. A further innovative approach using reservoir minicores (6 mm length disks) was also implemented to screen the impact of different parameters such as Sor, molecular weight and prefiltration step on the injectivity of the polymer solutions. According to minicores data, shearing of the polymer should help to ensure good propagation and avoid pressure build-up at the core inlet. This result was confirmed through an injection in a larger core at Sor and at 120°C. When comparing the injection of sheared and unsheared polymer at the same concentration, core inlet impairment was suppressed with the sheared polymer and the same range of mobility reduction (Rm) was achieved in the internal section of the core although viscosity was lower for the sheared polymer. Such result indicates that shearing is an efficient way to improve injectivity while maximizing the mobility reduction by suppressing the loss of product by filtration/retention at the core inlet. This paper gives new insights concerning SPAM rheology in low permeability carbonate cores. Additionally, it provides an innovative and easier approach for screening polymer solutions to anticipate their propagation in more advanced coreflooding experiments.

Field Demonstration of the Impact of Fractures on Hydrolyzed Polyacrylamide Injectivity, Propagation, and Degradation

SPE Journal ◽  
2022 ◽  
pp. 1-18
Author(s):  
Marat Sagyndikov ◽  
Randall Seright ◽  
Sarkyt Kudaibergenov ◽  
Evgeni Ogay
Keyword(s):  
Polymer Solutions ◽  
Mechanical Stability ◽  
Field Operator ◽  
Oil Field ◽  
Low Flow ◽  
Mechanical Degradation ◽  
Injection Wells ◽  
Polymer Injection ◽  
Step Rate ◽  
The Impact

Summary During a polymer flood, the field operator must be convinced that the large chemical investment is not compromised during polymer injection. Furthermore, injectivity associated with the viscous polymer solutions must not be reduced to where fluid throughput in the reservoir and oil production rates become uneconomic. Fractures with limited length and proper orientation have been theoretically argued to dramatically increase polymer injectivity and eliminate polymer mechanical degradation. This paper confirms these predictions through a combination of calculations, laboratory measurements, and field observations (including step-rate tests, pressure transient analysis, and analysis of fluid samples flowed back from injection wells and produced from offset production wells) associated with the Kalamkas oil field in Western Kazakhstan. A novel method was developed to collect samples of fluids that were back-produced from injection wells using the natural energy of a reservoir at the wellhead. This method included a special procedure and surface-equipment scheme to protect samples from oxidative degradation. Rheological measurements of back-produced polymer solutions revealed no polymer mechanical degradation for conditions at the Kalamkas oil field. An injection well pressure falloff test and a step-rate test confirmed that polymer injection occurred above the formation parting pressure. The open fracture area was high enough to ensure low flow velocity for the polymer solution (and consequently, the mechanical stability of the polymer). Compared to other laboratory and field procedures, this new method is quick, simple, cheap, and reliable. Tests also confirmed that contact with the formation rapidly depleted dissolved oxygen from the fluids—thereby promoting polymer chemical stability.

scholarly journals The Effect of Rheology of Viscoelastic Polymer on Pressure Transient Response in Near-Wellbore Regions

Geofluids ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 2021 ◽  
pp. 1-12
Author(s):  
Jia Zhang ◽  
Shiqing Cheng ◽  
Jie Zhan ◽  
Qi Han
Keyword(s):  
Shear Thickening ◽  
Shear Thinning ◽  
Polymer Flooding ◽  
High Shear ◽  
Pressure Data ◽  
Transient Pressure ◽  
Pressure Derivative ◽  
Shear Rates ◽  
Viscoelastic Polymer ◽  
Thickening Behavior

Viscoelastic polymer solution shows shear thinning behavior at low shear rates and shear thickening behavior at high shear rates in reservoirs. However, models that ignored shear thickening behavior were commonly employed to interpret transient pressure data derived from tested wells in viscoelastic polymer flooding systems; although, viscoelastic polymer solutions show shear thickening behavior in the near-wellbore region due to high shear rate. To better characterize the oilfield with pressure transient analysis in viscoelastic polymer flooding systems, we developed a numerical model that takes into account both shear thinning behavior and shear thickening behavior. A finite volume method was employed to discretize partially differential flow equations in a hybrid grid system including PEBI mesh and Cartesian grid, and the Newton-Raphson method was used to solve the fully implicit nonlinear system. To illustrate the significance of our model, we compared our model with a model that ignores the shear thickening behavior by graphing their solutions on log-log plots. In the flow regime of near-wellbore damage, the pressure derivative computed by our model is distinctly larger than that computed by the model ignoring shear thickening behavior. Furthermore, the effect of shear thickening behavior on pressure derivative differs from that of near-wellbore damage. We then investigated the influence of shear thickening behavior on pressure derivative with different polymer injection rates, injection rates, and permeabilities. The results can provide a benchmark to better estimate near-wellbore damage in viscoelastic polymer flooding systems. Besides, we demonstrated the applicability and accuracy of our model by interpreting transient pressure data from a field case in an oilfield with viscoelastic polymer flooding treatments.

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