Mobility control for CO/sub 2/ floods: a literature survey

Technical Report · Wed Oct 01 04:00:00 EDT 1980

OSTI ID:5122071

Of all the Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) processes, flooding by carbon dioxide offers the brightest promise, both of significant increases to the Nation's oil supply, and of availability in the near term. A way must be found to control severe frontal instabilities which seriously degrade the efficiency of the displacement of crude oil through the pore space of the reservoir rock by the less viscous CO/sub 2/. Of currently operational EOR projects, CO/sub 2/ floods are second in number only to those heavy oil recovery projects which use steam. However because of frontal instability, CO/sub 2/ floods are liable to early CO/sub 2/ breakthrough, and to flooding inefficiency that will cause premature production decline. This Literature Survey is part of a laboratory research project which seeks practical methods of mobility control for CO/sub 2/ floods. The development of such methods should be very cost effective because the dissemination of information about them throughout the industry will persuade operators that enhance oil production from CO/sub 2/ floods can be sustained by increased displacement efficiency. 151 references.

• Research Organization: New Mexico Inst. of Mining and Technology, Socorro (USA). New Mexico Petroleum Recovery Research Center
• DOE Contract Number: AC21-79MC10689
• OSTI ID: 5122071
• Report Number(s): DOE/MC/10689-3
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

02 PETROLEUM
020300* -- Petroleum-- Drilling & Production
020500 -- Petroleum-- Products & By-Products
CARBON COMPOUNDS
CARBON DIOXIDE
CARBON DIOXIDE INJECTION
CARBON OXIDES
CHALCOGENIDES
DOCUMENT TYPES
EFFICIENCY
ENERGY SOURCES
ENHANCED RECOVERY
FLUID INJECTION
FLUID MECHANICS
FOSSIL FUELS
FUELS
INTERFACES
MATERIALS
MECHANICS
MISCIBLE-PHASE DISPLACEMENT
OIL WELLS
OPTIMIZATION
OXIDES
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
PETROLEUM
POROSITY
POROUS MATERIALS
REVIEWS
WELLS