Some practical aspects of waterflooding

Conference · Fri Jan 01 04:00:00 EST 1971 · 8. World Petrol. Congr. preprint; (United States)

OSTI ID:5378172

Wade, J E

The world's largest potential supply of crude oil exists in the form of residual oil in fields currently being produced by primary methods. Waterflooding can more than double the recoverable reserves of many developed oilfields at low capital investment. Outstanding success has been achieved recently in water-flooding multiple-sand reservoirs in the coastal region of Calif. These floods indicate that waterflooding is applicable over a wide range of reservoir conditions. Preliminary evaluation of waterflood prospects depends upon the ability to predict future performance and economics. Several analytical and empirical methods are available to predict reservoir performance and to design effective water injection programs for various types of oil reservoirs. Design of water injection programs involves determination of water injection rates and location of injectors. Water injection rates area based on estimated peak gross production rates with allowance for fluid losses. Location of injectors depends upon the type of waterflood and the design injection rate. Waterflooding introduces new operational problems such as water treatment, corrosion control, water handling, sand production, water-oil ratio control, waste water disposal and hydrogen sulfide problems. (10 refs.)

• OSTI ID: 5378172
• Report Number(s): CONF-710677-
• Conference Information: Journal Name: 8. World Petrol. Congr. preprint; (United States) Journal Volume: PD9(3)
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

02 PETROLEUM
020300* -- Petroleum-- Drilling & Production
CALIFORNIA
CHALCOGENIDES
CHEMICAL REACTIONS
CORROSION
ECONOMICS
EFFICIENCY
ENERGY SOURCES
FEDERAL REGION IX
FLUID INJECTION
FOSSIL FUELS
FUELS
GEOLOGIC DEPOSITS
HYDROGEN COMPOUNDS
HYDROGEN SULFIDES
MATHEMATICAL MODELS
MINERAL RESOURCES
NORTH AMERICA
OIL FIELDS
OIL WELLS
PERFORMANCE
PETROLEUM
PETROLEUM DEPOSITS
PLUGGING
RESOURCES
SAND
SULFIDES
SULFUR COMPOUNDS
USA
WATER TREATMENT
WATERFLOODING
WELL SPACING
WELLS