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Reservoir Engineering 1 Course (1 Ed.)
Reservoir Engineering 1 Course (1 Ed.)
Reservoir Engineering 1 Course (1 Ed.)
)
1. Recovery Efficiency
2. Displacement Efficiency
3. Frontal Displacement
4. Fractional Flow Equation
1. Water Fractional Flow Curve
2. Effect of Dip Angle and Injection Rate on Fw
3. Reservoir Water Cut and the Water–Oil Ratio
4. Frontal Advance Equation
5. Capillary Effect
6. Water Saturation Profile
Parameters Affecting
on the Water Fractional Flow Curve
Therefore, the objective is to select the proper
injection scheme that could possibly reduce the
water fractional flow.
This can be achieved by investigating the effect of
The injected water viscosity,
Formation dip angle, and
Water-injection rate on the water cut.
2013 H. AlamiNia Reservoir Engineering 1 Course: W5L19 Fractional Flow / Frontal Advance 5
Fw: Viscosity Effect
Next slide shows the general effect of oil viscosity
on the fractional flow curve for both water-wet and
oil-wet rock systems.
This illustration reveals that regardless of the system
wettability, a higher oil viscosity results in an upward
shift (an increase) in the fractional flow curve.
2013 H. AlamiNia Reservoir Engineering 1 Course: W5L19 Fractional Flow / Frontal Advance 6
Effect of Oil Viscosity on Fw
2013 H. AlamiNia Reservoir Engineering 1 Course: W5L19 Fractional Flow / Frontal Advance 7
Fw: Water Viscosity Effect
Water viscosity:
The apparent effect of the water viscosity on the water
fractional flow is clearly indicated by following Equation.
(Higher injected water viscosities = reduction in fw (i.e.,
a downward shift)).
2013 H. AlamiNia Reservoir Engineering 1 Course: W5L19 Fractional Flow / Frontal Advance 8
Fw: Dip Angle Effect
To study the effect of the formation dip angle α and the
injection rate on the displacement efficiency, consider
the water fractional flow equation as represented by
the Equation.
Assuming a constant injection rate and realizing that
(ρw – ρo) is always positive and in order to isolate the
effect of the dip angle and injection rate on fw, the
Equation is expressed in the following simplified form:
(where the variables X and Y are a collection of different
terms that are all considered positives.)
2013 H. AlamiNia Reservoir Engineering 1 Course: W5L19 Fractional Flow / Frontal Advance 10
Effect of Dip Angle on Fw
2013 H. AlamiNia Reservoir Engineering 1 Course: W5L19 Fractional Flow / Frontal Advance 11
Updip Flow, i.e., sin(α) is Positive
When the water displaces oil updip (i.e., injection
well is located downdip), a more efficient
performance is obtained.
This improvement is due to the fact that the term X
sin(α)/iw will always remain positive, which leads to a
decrease (downward shift) in the fw curve.
A lower water-injection rate iw is desirable since the nominator
1 – [X sin(α)/iw] of the Equation will decrease with a lower
injection rate iw, resulting in an overall downward shift in the
fw curve.
2013 H. AlamiNia Reservoir Engineering 1 Course: W5L19 Fractional Flow / Frontal Advance 12
Downdip Flow, i.e., sin(α) is Negative
When the oil is displaced downdip (i.e., injection
well is located updip), the term X sin(α)/iw will
always remain negative and, therefore, the
numerator of the Equation will be 1+[X sin(α)/iw].
Which causes an increase (upward shift) in the fw curve.
It is beneficial, therefore, when injection wells are
located at the top of the structure to inject the water at
a higher injection rate to improve the displacement
efficiency.
2013 H. AlamiNia Reservoir Engineering 1 Course: W5L19 Fractional Flow / Frontal Advance 13
Downdip Flow, Counterflow
It is interesting to reexamine the Equation when
displacing the oil downdip. Combining the product
X sin(α) as C, it can be written:
2013 H. AlamiNia Reservoir Engineering 1 Course: W5L19 Fractional Flow / Frontal Advance 14
Downdip Flow, Counterflow (Cont.)
This could only occur when displacing the oil
downdip at a low water injection rate iw.
The resulting effect of this possibility is called a
counterflow,
Where the oil phase is moving in a direction opposite to that of
the water (i.e., oil is moving upward and the water downward).
When the water injection wells are located at the top of a tilted
formation, the injection rate must be high to avoid oil migration
to the top of the formation.
2013 H. AlamiNia Reservoir Engineering 1 Course: W5L19 Fractional Flow / Frontal Advance 15
Effect of Injection Rate
for a Horizontal Reservoir
Note that for a horizontal reservoir, i.e., sin(α) = 0,
the injection rate has no effect on the fractional
flow curve.
When the dip angle α is zero, the Equation is
reduced to the following simplified form:
2013 H. AlamiNia Reservoir Engineering 1 Course: W5L19 Fractional Flow / Frontal Advance 16
Water Cut Fw vs. Water–Oil Ratio Wor
In waterflooding calculations, the reservoir water cut fw and the
water–oil ratio WOR are both traditionally expressed in two
different units: bb/bbl and STB/STB.
The interrelationships that exist between these two parameters
are conveniently presented below, where
Qo = oil flow rate, STB/day
qo = oil flow rate, bbl/day
Qw = water flow rate, STB/day
qw = water flow rate, bbl/day
WORs = surface water–oil ratio, STB/STB
WORr = reservoir water–oil ratio, bbl/bbl
fws = surface water cut, STB/STB
fw = reservoir water cut, bbl/bbl
2013 H. AlamiNia Reservoir Engineering 1 Course: W5L19 Fractional Flow / Frontal Advance 18
I) Reservoir Fw – Reservoir WORr
Relationship
2013 H. AlamiNia Reservoir Engineering 1 Course: W5L19 Fractional Flow / Frontal Advance 19
II) Reservoir Fw – Surface WORs
Relationship
2013 H. AlamiNia Reservoir Engineering 1 Course: W5L19 Fractional Flow / Frontal Advance 20
III) Reservoir WORr – Surface WORs
Relationship
2013 H. AlamiNia Reservoir Engineering 1 Course: W5L19 Fractional Flow / Frontal Advance 21
IV) Surface Fws – Surface WORs
V) Surface Fws – Reservoir Fw
IV) Surface Fws – Surface WORs
2013 H. AlamiNia Reservoir Engineering 1 Course: W5L19 Fractional Flow / Frontal Advance 22
Frontal Advance Equation Concept
The fractional flow equation is used to determine
the water cut fw at any point in the reservoir,
assuming that the water saturation at the point is
known.
The question, however, is how to determine the water
saturation at this particular point.
The answer is to use the frontal advance equation.
The frontal advance equation is designed to determine the
water saturation profile in the reservoir at any give time during
water injection.
2013 H. AlamiNia Reservoir Engineering 1 Course: W5L19 Fractional Flow / Frontal Advance 25
Frontal Advance Equation
Buckley and Leverett (1942) presented what is
recognized as the basic equation for describing two-
phase, immiscible displacement in a linear system.
The equation is derived based on developing a material
balance for the displacing fluid as it flows through any
given element in the porous media:
Volume entering the element – Volume leaving the
element
= change in fluid volume
2013 H. AlamiNia Reservoir Engineering 1 Course: W5L19 Fractional Flow / Frontal Advance 26
Water Flow through
a Linear Differential Element
Consider a differential element of porous media,
having a differential length dx, an area A, and a
porosity φ.
2013 H. AlamiNia Reservoir Engineering 1 Course: W5L19 Fractional Flow / Frontal Advance 27
Frontal Advance Equation
Demonstration
During a differential time period dt, the total
volume of water entering the element is given by:
Volume of water entering the element = qt fw dt
The volume of water leaving the element has a
differentially smaller water cut (fw – dfw) and is
given by:
Volume of water leaving the element = qt (fw – dfw) dt
Subtracting the above two expressions gives the
accumulation of the water volume within the
element in terms of the differential changes of the
saturation dfw:
qt fw dt – qt (fw – dfw) dt = Aϕ (dx) (dSw)/5.615
2013 H. AlamiNia Reservoir Engineering 1 Course: W5L19 Fractional Flow / Frontal Advance 28
Velocity of Any Specified Value of Sw
Simplifying:
qt dfw dt = A (dx) (dSw)/5.615
Separating the variables gives:
Where
(υ) Sw = velocity of any specified value of Sw, ft/day
A = cross-sectional area, ft2
qt = total flow rate (oil + water), bbl/day
(dfw/dSw)Sw = slope of the fw vs. Sw curve at Sw
2013 H. AlamiNia Reservoir Engineering 1 Course: W5L19 Fractional Flow / Frontal Advance 29
Velocity of Any Specified Value of Sw
(Cont.)
The above relationship suggests that the velocity of
any specific water saturation Sw is directly
proportional to the value of the slope of the fw vs.
Sw curve, evaluated at Sw.
Note that for two-phase flow, the total flow rate qt
is essentially equal to the injection rate iw, or:
Where
iw = water injection rate, bbl/day.
2013 H. AlamiNia Reservoir Engineering 1 Course: W5L19 Fractional Flow / Frontal Advance 30
Total Distance Any Specified Sw
Travels during t
To calculate the total distance any specified water saturation will
travel during a total time t, the Equation must be integrated:
Where
iw = water injection rate, bbl/day
Winj = cumulative water injected, bbl
t = time, day
(x)Sw = distance from the injection for any given saturation Sw, ft
2013 H. AlamiNia Reservoir Engineering 1 Course: W5L19 Fractional Flow / Frontal Advance 31
Total Distance Any Specified Sw
Travels during t (Cont.)
2013 H. AlamiNia Reservoir Engineering 1 Course: W5L19 Fractional Flow / Frontal Advance 32
Mathematical Difficulty
in the Equation
Next slide shows the typical S shape of the fw curve
and its derivative curve.
However, a mathematical difficulty arises when
using the derivative curve to construct the water
saturation profile at any given time.
Suppose we want to calculate the positions of two
different saturations (shown in the Figure as
saturations A and B) after Winj barrels of water
have been injected in the reservoir. Applying the
Equation gives:
2013 H. AlamiNia Reservoir Engineering 1 Course: W5L19 Fractional Flow / Frontal Advance 34
Fw Curve with Its Saturation Derivative
Curve
2013 H. AlamiNia Reservoir Engineering 1 Course: W5L19 Fractional Flow / Frontal Advance 35
Capillary Pressure Gradient Term
Figure indicates that both derivatives are identical,
i.e., (dfw/dSw) A = (dfw/dSw) B, which implies that
multiple water saturations can coexist at the same
position—but this is physically impossible.
Buckley and Leverett (1942) recognized the physical
impossibility of such a condition.
They pointed out that this apparent problem is due to
the neglect of the capillary pressure gradient term in the
fractional flow equation. This capillary term is given by:
2013 H. AlamiNia Reservoir Engineering 1 Course: W5L19 Fractional Flow / Frontal Advance 36
Effect of the
Capillary Term on the Fw Curve
2013 H. AlamiNia Reservoir Engineering 1 Course: W5L19 Fractional Flow / Frontal Advance 37
Graphical Relationship Correction
Including the above capillary term when
constructing the fractional flow curve would
produce a graphical relationship that is
characterized by the following two segments of
lines, as shown in previous slide:
A straight line segment with a constant slope of
(dfw/dSw)Swf from Swc to Swf
A concaving curve with decreasing slopes from Swf to (1
– Sor)
2013 H. AlamiNia Reservoir Engineering 1 Course: W5L19 Fractional Flow / Frontal Advance 38
Velocity at Lower Values of Sw
Terwilliger et al. (1951) found that at the lower
range of water saturations between Swc and Swf, all
saturations move at the same velocity as a function
of time and distance.
2013 H. AlamiNia Reservoir Engineering 1 Course: W5L19 Fractional Flow / Frontal Advance 39
Stabilized Vs. Nonstabilized Zone
The result is that the water saturation profile will
maintain a constant shape over the range of
saturations between Swc and Swf with time.
Terwilliger and his coauthors termed the reservoir-
flooded zone with this range of saturations the
stabilized zone.
2013 H. AlamiNia Reservoir Engineering 1 Course: W5L19 Fractional Flow / Frontal Advance 41
Stabilized vs. Nonstabilized Zone
(Cont.)
They define the stabilized zone as that particular
saturation interval (i.e., Swc to Swf) where all points
of saturation travel at the same velocity.
The authors also identified another saturation zone
between Swf and (1 – Sor), where the velocity of
any water saturation is variable.
They termed this zone the nonstabilized zone.
2013 H. AlamiNia Reservoir Engineering 1 Course: W5L19 Fractional Flow / Frontal Advance 42
Water Saturation Profile
as a Function of Distance and Time
Figure
illustrates the
concept of the
stabilized
zone.
2013 H. AlamiNia Reservoir Engineering 1 Course: W5L19 Fractional Flow / Frontal Advance 43
Water Saturation at the Front
Experimental core flood data show that the actual
water saturation profile during water flooding is
similar to that of previous Figure.
There is a distinct front, or shock front, at which the
water saturation abruptly increases from Swc to Swf.
Behind the flood front there is a gradual increase in
saturations from Swf up to the maximum value of 1 –
Sor.
Therefore, the saturation Swf is called the water
saturation at the front or, alternatively, the water
saturation of the stabilized zone.
2013 H. AlamiNia Reservoir Engineering 1 Course: W5L19 Fractional Flow / Frontal Advance 44
1. Ahmed, T. (2006). Reservoir engineering
handbook (Gulf Professional Publishing). Ch14
1. Welge Analysis
2. Breakthrough
3. Average Water Saturation