Improved methods for water shutoff. Annual report, October 1, 1996--September 30, 1997
In the US, more than 20 billion barrels of water are produced each year during oilfield operations. There is a tremendous economic incentive to reduce water production if that can be accomplished without significantly sacrificing hydrocarbon production. In an earlier project, the authors determined that the ability of blocking agents to reduce permeability to water much more than that to oil is critical to the success of these blocking treatments in production wells if zones are not protected during placement of the blocking agent. This research project has three objectives: (1) to identify chemical blocking agents that will during placement, flow readily through fractures without penetrating significantly into porous rock and without screening out or developing excessive pressure gradients and at a predictable and controllable time, become immobile and resist breakdown upon exposure to moderate to high pressure gradients; (2) to identify schemes that optimize placement of blocking agents; and (3) to explain why gels and other chemical blocking agents reduce permeability to one phase (e.g., water) more than that of another phase (e.g., oil or gas). Chapter 2 examines the validity of using water/oil ratio plots to distinguish between coning and channeling water production mechanisms. Chapter 3 develops a method to size gelant treatments in hydraulically fractured production wells. Chapter 4 identifies characteristics of naturally fractured reservoirs where gel treatments have the greatest potential. Chapter 5 reports experimental results from studies of gel properties in fractures. Finally, Chapter 6, the authors investigate the mechanism responsible for gels reducing the permeability to water more than that to oil.
- Research Organization:
- New Mexico Petroleum Recovery Research Center, Socorro, NM (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE Assistant Secretary for Fossil Energy, Washington, DC (United States)
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC22-94PC91008
- OSTI ID:
- 555333
- Report Number(s):
- DOE/PC/91008-4; ON: DE98000453; TRN: AHC29802%%21
- Resource Relation:
- Other Information: PBD: Nov 1997
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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