SPE 67293

Water Sensitivity and Swelling Characteristics of Petroleum-Bearing Formations:

Kinetics and Correlation
Faruk Civan, SPE, The University of Oklahoma

Copyright 2001, Society of Petroleum Engineers Inc.

the undesirable consequences of swelling in petroleum reser-
This paper was prepared for presentation at the 2001 SPE Production and Operations Sympo- voirs.
sium held in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, 24-27 March 2001.

This paper was selected for presentation by an SPE Program Committee following review of Introduction
information contained in an abstract submitted by the author(s). Contents of the paper, as
presented, have not been reviewed by the Society of Petroleum Engineers and are subject to The composition of most petroleum-bearing formations in-
correction by the author(s). The material, as presented, does not necessarily reflect any posi-
tion of the Society of Petroleum Engineers, its officers, or members. Papers presented at SPE cludes certain minerals and clays, the swelling of which in
meetings are subject to publication review by Editorial Committees of the Society of Petroleum
Engineers. Electronic reproduction, distribution, or storage of any part of this paper for com-
contact with water-based drilling and completion fluids, may
mercial purposes without the written consent of the Society of Petroleum Engineers is prohib- cause formation damage and adversely affect the wellbore
ited. Permission to reproduce in print is restricted to an abstract of not more than 300 words;
illustrations may not be copied. The abstract must contain conspicuous acknowledgment of stability. Therefore, the characterization and correlation of the
where and by whom the paper was presented. Write Librarian, SPE, P.O. Box 833836, properties of the water-sensitive clayey petroleum-bearing
Richardson, TX 75083-3836, U.S.A., fax 01-972-952-9435.
formations are important for successful drilling and comple-
tion of wells, mitigation of formation damage, and designing
Abstract
of treatment strategies for formation stabilization in petroleum
Frequently, the composition of petroleum-bearing formations
reservoirs. Clay swelling phenomenon has attracted numerous
includes certain minerals and clays, the swelling of which in
researchers. Civan1 presents a comprehensive review of the
contact with water-based drilling and completion fluids, may
previous attempts related to the swelling of clayey formations.
cause formation damage and adversely affect the wellbore
The majority of the theoretical modeling studies have focused
stability. This paper presents a kinetic model for correlation
either on the hydro-mechanical interactions, including Yama-
and prediction of the water sensitivity and swelling character-
tomi et al.2 and Wong3, or the physico-chemical interactions,
istics of petroleum-bearing formations and its verification by
including Kleijn and Oster4, and Mohan and Fogler5. To the
experimental data.
author’s knowledge, attempts for kinetic modeling of the
The swelling of petroleum-bearing formations is perceived
properties of practical importance of swelling formations, such
to occur via the absorption of water by a water-exposed sur-
as the water content, permeability, volume expansion or po-
face hindered diffusion mechanism. Hence, a theory of swel-
rosity, and basal spacing of clay (cation clay stabilizing ability
ling and alteration of petroleum-bearing clayey formations is
indicator), are scarce.
developed and applied for correlation of various properties of
Swelling of clay in petroleum-bearing formations primar-
practical importance, including water content, permeability,
ily occurs by crystalline and osmotic swelling mechanisms,
volume expansion or porosity, and basal spacing of clay. An
resulting in volumetric expansion by separation of the clay
analytical solution is derived and reformulated for convenient
platelets (Norrish6, Zhou7, Mohan and Fogler5, and Yamatomi
straight-line plotting of experimental data. It is demonstrated
et al.2). Swelling is caused by imbibition and diffusion of wa-
that this model accurately represents the swelling characteris-
ter through clayey formation (Civan and Knapp8, Civan et al.9,
tics of petroleum-bearing formations, successfully correlates
and Ballard et al.10). In spite of many experimental studies of
various experimental data, and allows for accurate determina-
the swelling of petroleum-bearing formations, there have been
tion of the swelling rate parameters.
only a few reported attempts to mathematically model and
The theoretical treatment provides insights into the mecha-
correlate their swelling characteristics. The majority of the
nism of the swelling of petroleum-bearing formations and
reported studies primarily focused on experimental measure-
leads to the development of a practical and theoretically rigor-
ment and development of empirical correlations with no or
ous method for accurate straight-line correlation of experi-
little theoretical bases. Accurate theoretical description of the
mental data and determination of the swelling rate parameters.
properties of swelling formations received less attention. The
This model can be used for accurate description of the swel-
analytical models for interpretation and correlation of meas-
ling characteristics of petroleum-bearing formations, predic-
urements of swelling-dependent properties of soils and petro-
tion of conditions causing wellbore stability problems, and
leum-bearing rocks containing swelling clays are of immense
development of optimal strategies for effective mitigation of
practical importance, because they provide insight into the
2 FARUK CIVAN SPE 67293

mechanisms and parameters of the governing processes and Eqs. 1 and 2 lead to the analytic solution
allow for extrapolation beyond the range of the experimental
data.  f − ft 
ln  o  = k f S ....................................................... (3)
In this article, an aqueous solution-exposed-surface-  f − ft 
hindered-diffusion of water into water-absorbing and swelling
solids is considered, and models and analytical solutions are where S is the cumulative water diffusing into the solid sur-
developed for swelling dependent properties of formations. It face given below by Eq. 9. Thus, by means of Eq. 3, a prop-
is demonstrated and verified by various experimental data that erty of f ∈ ( w,α , φ , K , X ) can be related to another property
these analytic models accurately correlate the experimental
data. The values of the various parameters, such as the rate of g∈ ( w,α , φ , K , X ) for f ≠ g using
coefficients and the terminal swelling properties that will be
attained at equilibrium water saturation of the formation, are
(k f kg )
also accurately determined by straight-line fitting of the ana- f o − f t  g o − gt 
=  .............................................. (4)
lytical solutions to experimental data. This application is an f − ft  g − gt 
extension of Civan’s11-18 theory of rate processes, dealing with
formation damage, wettability and contact angle alteration,
water freezing and thawing in wet soils, and water imbibition Water Absorption. Inferred by experimental observations, it
into naturally fractured oil reservoirs. is perceived that the stagnant liquid film present over the con-
Civan13 developed the swelling models for clays and tact surface of swelling solids hinders the water diffusion into
clayey formations. The resulting models were verified and the the solid. The one-dimensional transient-state water diffusion
process rate parameters were determined by the nonlinear into the solid is given by (Civan1, 13):
least-squares regression of their analytical solutions to ex-
perimental data. However, nonlinear regression is less accu- ∂ c ∂ t = D∂ 2 c ∂ z 2 , 0 ≤ z < ∞, t > 0 ............................. (5)
rate than linear regression. Therefore, in the following, the The initial and boundary conditions are given, respectively,
analytical solutions are used for straight-line correlation of by:
various reported experimental data. This allows for accurate
determination of the parameters and correlation of data by the c = c0 , 0 ≤ z < ∞, t = 0 ................................................... (6)
linear least-squares regression to experimental data and,
hence, leads to an improved and practical approach for accu- S ≡ − D∂ c ∂ z = k ( c1 − c ) , z = 0, t > 0 ......................... (7)
rate description of the swelling properties of petroleum-
bearing formations.
c = c0 , z → ∞, t > 0 ........................................................ (8)
Formulation c0 and c are the initial and instantaneous water concentra-
Civan’s1,13 clay swelling model, comprising the kinetics of tions, respectively, in the solid, c1 is the water concentration
swelling solids and water absorption rate, is applied and a of the aqueous solution contacting the solid surface, z is the
straight-line plotting scheme is developed to accommodate for inward distance from the solid surface into the solid, t is the
straight-line plotting of experimental data and accurate deter- contact time with the aqueous solution, k is the film mass
mination of the swelling rate parameters. transfer coefficient, and D is the diffusivity coefficient of wa-
ter in the solid. Using the analytical solution of Eqs. 5-8 the
Swelling Kinetics. Applying the rate equation for non-
cumulative water diffusing into the solid surface is given by
equilibrium processes, given by Civan11-18, the variation of the
(Crank19):
properties of clayey formations exposed to water is described
by: t
c1 − c0
 ∂c 
−d ( f − ft ) d t = k f S ( f − ft ) .................................. (1) o
∫
S ≡ −  −D
∂ z dt = h

...................... (9)
 
The initial value of a formation property is specified as
( ) (
exp h Dt erfc h Dt − 1 +

2 2
π
h Dt 

)
f = f o , t = 0 .................................................................. (2)
f represents the various properties of clayey formations that The rate of water absorption is given by:
may vary by swelling, that is f ∈ ( w, α , φ , K , X ) . S = d S d t ................................................................... (10)
w, α , φ , K and X denote the water content, volume ex-
pansion coefficient, porosity, permeability, and clay basal where h ≡ k D is a combined parameter.
spacing, respectively. t is time, f o and ft denote the initial
(t = 0 ) and final or terminal (t → ∞ ) values of f , k f is the Straight-line Plotting Scheme. Substituting Eq. 9 into Eq. 3
rate constant for the property f, and S is the rate of water ab- yields:
sorption by the formation.
SPE 67293 WATER SENSITIVITY AND SWELLING CHARACTERISTICS OF PETROLEUM-BEARING FORMATIONS: KINETICS AND CORRELATION
 f − ft  Clay Expansion Coefficient. The volume of the swelling
ln  o  = At D ........................................................ (11)
 f − ft  tion of the terminal swollen volume, that will be attained at
in which the dimensionless water diffusion time and the coef-
ficient are defined, respectively, by
( ) (
t D = exp h 2 Dt erfc h Dt − 1 + ) 2
π
h Dt ............... (12)
A = k f ( c1 − co ) h ........................................................ (13)
The best estimates of the A and h D parameters can be de-
termined by the linear least-squares regression of experimental
data on a semi-log scale according to Eq. 11 to obtain the best
straight-line fit of data.
Applications
The applications and validation of the above-derived equations
are demonstrated by various experimental data involving the
effect of swelling on the properties of practical importance for
petroleum-bearing clayey formations. The reported experi-
mental data of the water content, clay expansion coefficient,
permeability reduction, and basal spacing of clay are analyzed
and correlated, and the best estimate values of the relevant
process parameters are determined by the least-squares linear
regression method.
Water Content. The rate of water retainment by clay minerals
is assumed proportional with the water absorption rate, S , and
the difference between their equilibrium saturation and in-
stantaneous water contents. Thus, applying Eq. 3, the water
content of formation is given by:
w = wt − ( wt − wo ) exp ( −kw S ) ................................. (14)
where k w is a water absorption rate constant. w denotes the
weight percent of water in clay.
Osisanya and Chenevert20 measured the variation of the
water content of the Wellington shale exposed to deionized
water. Fig. 1 shows the correlation of their data using Eq. 11.
The best fits were obtained using wo = 2.7 wt. % ,
wt = 3.3 wt.% , A = 0.20 and h D = 1 for their Gage 1 data,
wo = 2.77 wt.% , wt = 3.7 wt.% , A = 0.02 and h D = 1 for
their Gage 2 data, and wo = 2.77 wt.% , wt = 3.9 wt.% ,
A = 0.011 and h D = 1 for their Gage 3 data.
Brownell21 reports the moisture content of a dried clay
piece containing montmorillonite soaked in water. Fig. 1
shows a correlation of the data using Eq. 11. The best fit was
obtained using wo = 0% , wt = 14.2 wt.% , A = 0.17 , and
h D = 0.8 . Note that Brownell21 only provides a smoothed
curve of the experimental data without indicating the actual
data points on this curve. Therefore, the data points shown in
Fig. 1 are the discrete point readings of this curve.
3
solid increases by the water absorption rate, S , and the devia-
equilibrium saturation, from the instantaneous volume,
(Vt − V ) . Thus, applying Eq. 3, the solid volume is given by:
V = Vt − (Vt − Vo ) exp ( − kV S ) ....................................... (15)
Therefore, the expansion coefficient of the solid is given by:
α ≡ V Vo − 1 = α t 1 − exp ( −kV S ) ............................... (16)
where α t is the terminal expansion coefficient at saturation.
kV is the expansion rate coefficient.
Seed et al.22, Blomquist and Portigo23, Chenevert24, and
Wild et al.25 measured the rates of expansion of the samples of
compacted sandy clay, hydrogen soil, typical shales, and lime-
stabilized kaolinite cylinders containing gypsum and ground
granulated blast furnace slag, respectively.
As shown in Fig. 2, the least-squares linear regressions of
the data were obtained using Eq. 11 with A = 0.087 ,
h D = 0.67 , and αt = 100 (Vt − Vo ) Vo = 3.7 vol.% for the
Fig. 2 data of Seed et al.22, A = 2.5 , h D = 1 , and
αt = (Vt − Vo ) Vo = 95 Vo volume fraction for the Fig. 9 data
of Blomquist and Portigo23, and A = 0.56 , h D = 1 , and
α t = 0.55% for the Fig. 4 (Curve F) data of Chenevert24. Note
that the initial sample volume Vo was not given in the original
data. However, this value was not required for the plots of
(1 − α αt ) because the Vo value cancels out in the ration of
α αt .
Wild et al.25 tested lime-stabilized compacted kaolinite cylin-
ders containing gypsum and ground granulated blast furnace
slag. After moist-curing over prescribed time periods, they
soaked these samples in water and measured the linear expansion
of the samples. Fig. 3 shows the representation of the three typi-
cal data sets selected from their Figs. 5, 6, and 8 using Eq. 11.
The first set of data was obtained using a 7-day moist-cured kao-
linite containing 6% lime and 4% gypsum. The second set of
data is for a 28-day moist-cured kaolinite containing 6% lime
and 4% gypsum. The third set of data represents a 28-day moist-
cured kaolinite containing 2% lime, 4% gypsum and 8% ground
granulated blast furnace slug. The least-squares linear regres-
sions of Eq. 11 to the first, second, and third data sets were ob-
tained with the best estimates of the parameters, given by
A = 0.65 , h D = 1.0 and α t = 13 vol.% , A = 2.2 , h D = 1
and α t = 1.46 vol.% , and A = 1.4 , h D =1 and
α t = 0.655 vol.% , respectively.
Ladd26 measured the volume change and water content of
the compacted Vicksburg Buckshot clay samples exposed to
water. For a linear plot of Ladd’s data first, Eq. 4 is applied as:
( kV kw )
α  wt − w 
1− =  ............................................. (17)
α t  wt − wo 
4 FARUK CIVAN
Then, Ladd’s data are correlated on a log-log scale by a
straightline as shown in Fig. 4. The best linear fit of Eq. 17
was obtained using wo = 0.8g , wt = 32g , α t = 13.2 Vo and
kV k w = 1.907 . Note that the value of Vo was not given and
not required because the α α t ration is used here.
Permeability Reduction. The permeability reduction of po-
rous formation by swelling depends on the water absorption
rate and the difference between the instantaneous permeability
and terminal permeability that will be attained at equilibrium
saturation. Thus, applying Eq. 3, the permeability variation by
swelling is given by:
K = K o − ( K o − K t ) 1 − exp ( −k K S ) .......................... (18)
where k K is the rate constant for permeability reduction by
swelling. Eq. 18 can be applied to interpret the Hart et al.27
data for permeability reduction by injection of a suspension of
bacteria in aqueous solution. The bacteria is essentially re-
tained at the near injection side of the core. Therefore, the
permeability reduction in the outlet side of the core is consid-
ered to occur by swelling and is used here. The least-squares
linear fit of Eq. 11 to Hart et al.27 data is obtained using the pa-
rameter values of A = 0.93 , h D = 1 , and K t K o = 0.57 , as
shown in Fig. 5.
Ngwenya et al.28 conducted core flood experiments by in-
jecting an artificial seawater into the Hopeman (Clashach)
sandstone. The core samples used in their experiments con-
tained trace amounts of clays. Their Table 1 data plotted ac-
cording to Eq. 11 in Fig. 5 indicates that the swelling of the
sandstone formation caused a permeability reduction. The
linear least-squares fit of Eq. 11 to data was obtained using the
best estimates of the parameter values, given as A = 0.04 ,
h D = 0.9 , and K t K o = 0.087 .
Reed29 measured the permeability reduction in micaceous
sand formations exposed to 3% CaCl2 and 3% NaCl aqueous
solutions, and deionized water. The best least-squares linear fits
of Eq. 11 to Reed’s29 data were obtained using the best esti-
mates of the parameter values, given by A = 1.96 , h D = 1 ,
and K t K o = 0.58 for CaCl2 , A = 1.87 , h D = 1 , and
K t K o = 0.39 for NaCl , and A = 60.6 , h D = 1 , and
K t K o = 0.29 for H 2 O , as shown in Fig. 6.
Basal Spacing of Clay. The basal spacing of clay varies by
crystalline and osmotic swelling when clay contacts with
aqueous solutions (Norrish6, Himes et al.30, Zhou 7, and Mohan
and Fogler5). The osmotic and crystalline swelling phenomena
occur at the low and high concentrations sides of the transition
salt concentration range, respectively. The clay is dispersed in
the aqueous solution when the basal spacing exceeds a critical
limit, for example 20 A for the smectite clay (Himes et al.30).
Therefore, there is no terminal limit on the clay basal spacing.
The basal spacing can be expressed as a function of the aque-
SPE 67293
ous solution salt concentration by a formulation similar to
Civan16, who correlated the unfrozen water content of wet soil
as a function of temperature. The rate of increase of the basal
spacing is proportional to the water absorption rate and the
instantaneous basal spacing minus the clay platelet thickness,
representing the gap between the clay platelets. Thus, applying
Eq. 1 without any limit on the basal spacing yields
d ( X − X * ) d t = k x S ( X − X * ) ................................... (19)
where X and X * denote the instantaneous clay basal spacing
and the clay platelet thickness, respectively, and k x is a rate
coefficient.
The rate of decrease of the salt concentration of the aque-
ous solution by exchange of cations between the clay and the
aqueous solution is proportional to the water absorption rate
S and the salt concentration C, given by
dC
−  ................................................................ (20)
= kc SC
dt
Hence, eliminating S between Eqs. 19 and 20 yields
d ( X − X* ) dC
= − ( k x / kc ) ......................................... (21)
( X − X* ) C
subject to an initial or reference basal spacing at a prescribed
aqueous solution salt concentration, given by
X = X o , C = Co ............................................................ (22)
The analytical solution of Eqs. 20 and 21 is given by
( k x / kc )
 C −(kx / kc ) ........................ (23)
X = X * + ( X o − X * ) Co 

Eq. 23 is a theoretical confirmation of the validity of the
Mohan and Fogler5 straight-line plots of the measured basal
spacing versus the reciprocal square root of the salt concentra-
tion for clays exposed to various aqueous salt solutions. This
indicates that k x / kc = 0.5 .
Himes et al.30 facilitated the measurements of the variation
of the basal spacing by water imbibition as an indication of the
clay stabilization ability of various cations. The Himes et al.30
data for smectite basal spacing vs. the aqueous solution con-
centration of NaCl , CaCl2 , KCl , and NH 4 Cl can be cor-
related linearly according to Eq. 23 by straight-line plots, as
shown in Figs. 7-10, respectively. The thickness of the clay
platelet was taken as X ∗ = 9.6 A (van Olphen31). The previ-
ous studies, including Mohan and Fogler5, suggested the pres-
ence of a distinct value of the aqueous solution salt concentra-
tion, referred to as the critical salt concentration, below which
swelling clay destabilization begins. The plots shown in Figs.
7-10 reveal the existence of a transition concentration range.
The data below and above the transition salt concentration
range can be fitted separate straight lines, with different
slopes, indicating different values for the rate coefficients ra-
tion k x / kc . Simultaneously, the transition salt concentration
SPE 67293 WATER SENSITIVITY AND SWELLING CHARACTERISTICS OF PETROLEUM-BEARING FORMATIONS: KINETICS AND CORRELATION
range is identified by the shift from one line to the other. The Nomenclature
best estimate values of k x / kc , i.e. the slopes of the straight
lines obtained by the linear least-squares method, below and
above the critical salt concentration range are 3.1 and 0.36 for
NaCl , non-determined (insufficient data) and 0.17 for CaCl2 , 0.34
and 0.091 for KCl , and 0.28 and 0.16 for NH 4 Cl , respectively.
As can be seen, these values are different than the 0.5 value of
Mohan and Fogler5. Hence, the 0.5 value is specific to their data and
is not generally applicable to other cases. The crystalline swelling
phenomenon occurs at the high concentration side and causes
less clay damage, as indicated by the low k x / kc values for all
the salts. The osmotic swelling phenomenon occurs at the low
concentration side and causes significant clay damage, as indi-
cated by the high k x / kc . Fig. 8 indicates that the transition
salt concentration range for CaCl2 extends to very low concen-
trations. This confirms the Himes et al.30 conclusion that the
calcium ion is an effective clay stabilizer at low salt concen-
trations, but it is less effective at high concentrations.
Conclusions
As demonstrated by the above applications, the various ex-
perimental data could be accurately correlated with the ana-
lytical expressions presented in this article. In all cases, the
straight-line plots of data have been successfully accomplished
with the coefficients of regressions of the linear least-squares
fit very close to the unity. This confirms the validity of the
following considerations of the present swelling model:
1. Swelling of clayey porous rocks is controlled by
absorption of water by a water-exposed-surface
hindered diffusion process.
2. The water content, volume, and permeability of the
swelling clayey formations vary proportionally by
the water absorption rate and the difference be-
tween their instantaneous and terminal (or equilib-
rium) saturation values.
3. The rate laws of various properties allow for cross-
correlation between these properties.
4. A transition region, characterized with distinct
lower and upper-end aqueous salt concentration
values, exists, over which the basal spacing re-
mains unchanged. Aqueous solutions having salt
concentrations below the lower-end point concen-
tration may cause clay swelling and formation
damaging.
Greek
It is concluded that the model presented in this article
adequately describes the mechanism of the swelling process of
clayey formations. This model can be used for accurate corre-
lation of the swelling characteristics and determination of the
swelling parameters of petroleum-bearing formations by
means of straight-line plots of experimental data, which can be
used to predict conditions prone to wellbore stability problems
and to develop optimal strategies to adequately circumvent the Subscripts
undesirable consequences of the swelling phenomenon in pe-
troleum reservoirs.
5
A = a combined coefficient, dimensionless
c = water concentration in the solid, [mole][L]–3
c0 = initial water concentration in the solid, [mole][L]–3
c1 = water concentration of the pore fluid, [mole][L]–3
C = salt concentration in the pore fluid, [mole][L]–3
C0 = initial salt concentration in the pore fluid,
[mole][L]–3
D = coefficient of diffusion of water in the solid, [L]–2•
[T]–1
f,g = general symbols denoting the swelling-dependent
properties of solids
fo,go = initial swelling-dependent properties f and g of
solids
ft,gt = swelling-dependent properties f and g of solids at
saturation
h = k/D, ratio of the film mass transfer coefficient to
the coefficient of diffusion, [L]–1
k = film mass transfer coefficient, [mole]•[L]–2• [T]–1
kK = rate coefficient of permeability reduction by swel-
ling, [L]2[mole]–1
kf,kg = rate coefficients of the f and g swelling-dependent
properties of solids, respectively, [L]2[mole]–1
kV = rate coefficient of solid expansion, [L]2[mole]–1
kw = water pickup rate coefficient, [L]2[mole]–1
K = permeability, [L]2
Ko = initial permeability, [L]2
Kt = permeability at saturation, [L]2
S = cumulative water absorbed by the solid, [mole][L]–2
S = rate of water absorbed by the solid, [mole]•[L]–2•
[T]–1
t = time, [T]
tD = dimensionless water diffusion time
Vo = initial solid volume, [L]3
V = solid volume, [L]3
Vt = solid volume at saturation, [L]3
w = water content of solid, [M]
wt = water content of solid at saturation, [M]
wo = initial water content of solid, [M]
X = basal spacing, [A]
Xo = initial or reference basal spacing, [A]
X* = clay platelet thickness, [A]
z = distance from the pore surface in the solid, [L]
α= volume expansion coefficient, [L]3[L]–3
αt = volume expansion coefficient at saturation, [L]3[L]–3
φ= porosity, [L]3[L]–3
φt = porosity at saturation, [L]3[L]–3
φo = initial porosity, [L]3[L]–3
o = initial
t = terminal at saturation
6 FARUK CIVAN
Mathematical
π = 3.14….
∞ = infinity
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tions by Geochemical and Geomechanical Rock and Fluid Inter-
actions,” Paper SPE 58746, Proceedings of the SPE Interna-
tional Symposium on Formation Damage held in Lafayette,
Louisiana, 23-24 February 2000.
15. Civan, F., “Correlation of the Pit Depth in Crystal Etching by
Dissolution,” J. of Colloid and Interface Science (2000) 222,
No. 1, 156-158.
SPE 67293
16. Civan, F., “Unfrozen Water Content in Freezing and Thawing
Soils- Kinetics and Correlation,” Journal of Cold Regions Engi-
neering (September 2000) 14, No. 3, 146-156.
17. Civan, F., “Modeling and Analysis of Pitting during Crystal
Dissolution,” Encyclopedia of Surface and Colloid Science,
Marcel Dekker, Inc., to appear, 2001.
18. Civan, F., “Effect of Scale on Porosity and Permeability- Kinet-
ics, Model, and Correlation,” AIChE J., to appear, 2001.
19. Crank, J., The Mathematics of Diffusion, Oxford University
Press, London (1956) 347.
20. Osisanya, S.O., and Chenevert, M.E., “Physico-Chemical Mod-
elling of Wellbore Stability in Shale Formations,” J. of Cana-
dian Petroleum Technology (Feb. 1996) 35, No. 2, 53-63.
21. Brownell, W.E., Structural Clay Products Springer-Verlag, New
York (1976) 231.
22. Seed, H.B., Mitchell, J.K., and Chan, C.K., “Studies of Swell
and Swell Pressure Characteristics of Compacted Clays,” Bull.
Highway Res. Board (1962) No. 313, 12-39.
23. Blomquist, G.C., and Portigo, J.M., “Moisture, Density and
Volume Change Relationships of Clay Soils Expressed as Con-
stants of Proportionality,” Bull. Highway Res. Board (1962)
No. 313, 78-91.
24. Chenevert, M.E., “Shale Alteration by Water Adsorption,” JPT
(Sept. 1970) 1141-1148.
25. Wild, S., Kinuthia, J.M., Robinson, R.B., and Humphreys, I.,
“Effect of Ground Granulated Blast Furnace Slag (GGBS) on
the Strength and Swelling Properties of Lime-Stabilized Kao-
linite in the Presence of Sulphates,” Clay Minerals (1996) 31,
423-433.
26. Ladd, C.C., “Mechanisms of Swelling by Compacted Clay,”
Highway Research Board, Bulletin 245, National Academy of
Sciences–National Research Council, Publication 731, Wash-
ington, D.C. (1960) 10-26.
27. Hart, R.T., Fekete, T., and Flock, D.L., “The Plugging Effect of
Bacteria in Sandstone Systems,” Canadian Mining and Metal-
lurgical Bulletin (1960) 53, 495-501.
28. Ngwenya, B.T., Elphick, S.C., and Shimmield, G.B., “Reservoir
Sensitivity to Water Flooding: An Experimental Study of Sea-
water Injection in a North Sea Reservoir Analog,” AAPG Bulle-
tin (Feb. 1995) 79, No. 2, 285-304.
29. Reed, M.G., “Formation Permeability Damage by Mica Altera-
tion and Carbonate Dissolution,” JPT, September 1977, 1056-
1060.
30. Himes, R.E., Vinson, E.F., & Simon, D.E., “Clay Stabilization
in Low-Permeability Formations,” SPE Production Engineering
(August 1991) 252-258.
31. van Olphen, H., “An Introduction to Clay Colloid Chemistry,”
Wiley Interscience, New York, 1977.
SI Metric Conversion Factors
ft × 3.048* E–01 = m
ft2 × 9.290 304* E–02 = m2
psi × 6.894 757 E+00 = kPa
darcy × 9.869 233 E–01 = µm2 = 10–12m2
cp × 1.0* E–03 = Pa.s
SPE 67293 WATER SENSITIVITY AND SWELLING CHARACTERISTICS OF PETROLEUM-BEARING FORMATIONS: KINETICS AND CORRELATION 7

3 6
Gage 3 Wild et al. Fig.5 Wild et al. Fig.6
2.5 y = 0.0111x 5 y = 0.6509x y = 2.151x
R2 = 0.969 R2 = 0.9974 R2 = 0.9499
Brownell
ln[(wt-wo)/(wt-w)]

2 y = 0.1649x 4

−α/α t )
Gage 2
R2 = 0.997

-ln(1−α/α
y = 0.0202x Wild et al. Fig.8
1.5 R2 = 0.987 3 y = 1.4516x
R2 = 0.9873
Gage 1 2
1 y = 0.2024x
R2 = 0.9753
1
0.5
0
0
0 0.5 1 1.5 2 2.5
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 tD
tD
Wild et al. Fig.5
Osisanya and Chenevert (Gage 3) Wild et al. Fig.6
Osisanya and Chenevert (Gage 2) Wild et al. Fig.8

Osisanya and Chenevert (Gage 1)

Fig. 3 - Volume change by swelling.
Brownell

Fig. 1 - Water pickup during swelling.

5
3
Blomquist Seed et al. y = 1.9071x
4
and Portigo y = 0.0869x R2 = 0.9893
2.5 y = 2.4932x R2 = 0.9973
R2 = 0.9496
α t)

3
-ln(1- α / α t )

2
α /α
-ln(1-α

Chenevert
1.5 Ladd
y = 0.5562x 2
R2 = 0.9871
1
Seed et al. 1
0.5 Blomquist and Portigo
Chenevert
0 0
0 5 10 15 20 25 0 1 2 3

tD ln{(wt-wo)/(wt-w)]

Fig. 2 - Volume change by swelling. Fig. 4 - Volume change vs. water

pickup.
8 FARUK CIVAN SPE 67293

1.2
4
y = -3.0964x + 2.1229
Hart et al. 1.1 R2 = 1
Hart et al.
y = 0.9256x
3
ln[(Ko-Kt )/(K-Kt )]

log (X-X*) (X, A)

R2 = 0.8764 Ngwenya et al.
1

2
0.9
Ngwenya et al.
y = 0.0399x
1 R2 = 0.9121
0.8 y = -0.3584x + 1.2603
R2 = 0.8098

0 0.7
0.25 0.5 0.75 1 1.25 1.5
0 10 20 30
log C (C, %)
tD

Fig. 5 - Permeabity reduction by

Fig. 7- Basal spacing of smectite clay
swelling.
vs. aqueous solution NaC l
concentration (Himes et al. data).

1.05

5
log (X-X*) (X, A)

H2O 0.95
Reed (CaCl2)
4 y = 60.613x
R2 = 0.9784 Reed (NaCl)
ln[(Ko-Kt )/(K-Kt )]

Reed (H2O)
3 0.85
CaCl2
y = 1.9606x y = -0.171x + 1.049
2 R2 = 0.9823 R2 = 0.9753

NaCl 0.75
1 y = 1.8688x -1 -0.5 0 0.5 1 1.5 2
R2 = 0.9701 log C (C, %)
0
0.00 0.50 1.00 1.50
tD Fig. 8- Basal spacing of smectite
clay vs. aqueous solution CaC l2
Fig. 6 - Permeabity reduction by concentration (Himes et al. data).
swelling.
SPE 67293 WATER SENSITIVITY AND SWELLING CHARACTERISTICS OF PETROLEUM-BEARING FORMATIONS: KINETICS AND CORRELATION 9

1.2 1.15

y = -0.344x + 0.8132 y = -0.2836x + 0.7497

2
R = 0.9387 1.05 R2 = 0.9726
1.1
log (X-X*) (X, A)

log (X-X*) (X, A)

1 0.95

y = -0.0908x + 0.8733
2
0.85 y = -0.1623x + 0.9123
0.9 R = 0.9288
R2 = 0.9105

0.8 0.75

0.7 0.65
-1 -0.5 0 0.5 1 1.5 -1.50 -1.00 -0.50 0.00 0.50 1.00 1.50 2.00

log C (C, %) log C (C, %)

Fig. 10- Basal spacing of smectite clay

Fig. 9- Basal spacing of smectite clay
vs. aqueous solution NH4C l
vs. aqueous solution KC l
concentration (Himes et al. data). concentration (Himes et al. data).