Shepherd, M.

, 2009, Factors influencing recovery from oil and gas fields, in

M. Shepherd, Oil field production geology: AAPG Memoir 91, p. 37 -46.

Factors Influencing Recovery from Oil

and Gas Fields

INTRODUCTION chart (Figure 31). These categories are residual oil, cu-
mulative production, remaining recoverable reserves,
As mentioned at the start of the book, more oil is and unrecovered mobile oil (UMO).
left behind in oil fields than will be recovered from Residual oil saturation is the component of the oil
them by the end of their field life. Numerous factors that remains trapped within the pores after an oil-bearing
influence recovery from an oil field including the geo- sandstone has been swept by water. Somewhere between
logical complexity, fluld phy ics, and econom ics. Cer- about 15 and 35% of the total oil in sandstones can end
tain operations can be carried u t to enhance il recovery up as residual oil.
by changing the physical and chemical n,atwe of the The second category comprises ultimate recoverable
formation fluids. The factors influencing gas recovery oil; this is the reservoir engineer's best estimate of what
are also discussed in this chapter. Gas field recoveries are the field will produce by the predicted end of field life.
significantly higher than is the case with oil fields. This figure can be split into the volume of oil that has
been produced so far (the cumulative production of hydro-
carbons to date), and the estimate of what is left to pro-
RECOVERY FACTORS duce (the reserves).
The last category is unrecovered mobile oil (UMO),
Oil companies will want to maximize the value of a oil that is movable by primary recovery or water injec-
field by getting as much of the hydrocarbons out of it as tion, but which will be left behind at the end of field
possible. However, it is not feasible to recover all of the life under current reckoning (Tyler and Finley, 1991).
hydrocarbons from a reservoir. Only a certain percent- If an oil company wants to improve the recovery fac-
age of the total hydrocarbons will be recovered from a tor in a field, then this category is where the oil will
field, and this is known as the recovery factor. normally come from.
Recovery factors are higher in gas fields than they The unrecovered mobile oil can be subdivided into
are in oil fields. Typical recovery factors for gas are three subcategories (Figure 32). Target oil is oil that has
about 50-80% Qahn et al., 1998). There is more scope a large enough volume to justify the cost of a well to
to improve oil recovery. Global recovery factors for oil recover it. The phrase locate the remaining oil has been
are thought to be in the range of 30-35% (e.g. Conn, used for the workflow involved in finding these vol-
2006). If, for example, you can recover 35% of the oil umes (Wetzelaer et al., 1996). This is discussed in more
from an oil field, why can you not produce the other detail in Section 5 of this publication. Marginal oil is the
65%? As mentioned earlier, the answer to this is not category of trapped oil found in volumes just below the
simple. The magnitude of the recovery factor for an oil economic threshold to justify an infill well. These
field depends on a complex interplay of geological, volumes will become target oil if the oil price increases
physical, and economic elements. or if less expensive ways can be found to access them. The
A starting point is to look at the various categories third subcategory is uneconomic oil, small volumes of
of oil volumes within a typical oil field (i.e., a water- bypassed oil or low oil saturations that cannot be pro-
flooded oil field) and represent them on a maturity pie duced economically (Weber, 1999).

Copyright 2009 by The American Association of Petroleum Geologists.

DOI:10.1306/13161187M913:}72

37
38 Shepherd
Factors Influencing Recovery From Oil and Gas Fields 39

FIGURE 31. An oil volume in fiGURE 33. A depositional

a waterflooded reservoir can dead end within a barrier-bar Trapped oil in back-barrier sands
Residual oil pinching out in~p lagoonal shales.
be divided into categories depositional environment.
306 MMSTB (25%) of residual oil, produced oil 1
Unrecovered mobile oil
577 MMSTB (47.2%)
oil reserves, and unrecover~d
mobile oil. These can be
illustrated on a maturity pie
chart. Unrecovered mobile
oil is the remaining mobile
oil left behind at the end of
field life if nothing is done to
Cumulative production
target it. The maturity pie
260 MMSTB (21.3%)
chart illustrates the volumes
from the Miocene reservoirs
of the Miocene Norte Area
Reserves Lake Maracaibo, Venezuel~
80 MMSTB (6.5%) (modified from Ambrose et al., Depositional Dead End
1997),with permission from
Maturity Pie Chart the Society of Petroleum
Engineers'.

deltas, show recovery factors of between 20 and 40rJ11 One type of structural dead end is an attic oil ac-
(e.g., Tyler and Finley, 1991). Carbonates tend to show cumulation. This is where oil is trapped by a structural
GEOLOGICAL FACTORS a_l dead ends like this commonly repeat in different lower recovery factors than siliclastic reservoir sediments culmination above the highest producing interval in a
CONTROLLING RECOVERY f~elds with ~imilar_ depositional environments (see Sec- (e.g., Sun and Sloan, 2003). well (Figure 34).
tJon 7 of th1s publication for a detailed discussion). An extra degree of complexity will result if the res-
A key variable controlling the amount of oil re-
Analysis by the Texas-based Bureau of Economic ervoir rock has significant volumes of diagenetic cement,
covered from a field is the degree of geological heteroge- Geolo_g~ on Tex~n oil fields indicates that the type of particularly pore-filling cement. Diagenesis, processes that
depos1t10nal envuonment has a major influence on the PHYSICAL FACTORS
neity. Oil will tend to be stranded within dead ends and modify sediments after deposition, can create barriers
low-permeability rock intervals as a consequence of this recovery f~ctor in a reservoir. The less complex and and baffles within a reservoir in addition to those re- CONTROLLING RECOVERY
heterogeneity. An example of a depositional dead end is mor~ c~ntmuous depositional environments such as
sulting from primary depositional heterogeneity. Mod-
barner-1sland and wave-dominated deltas commonly Oil Recovery from Primary Depletion
a ?ac_k-barrier sandstone thinning and pinching out updip erate volumes of cement may not cause too many prob-
Wlthm a lagoonal shale (Figure 33). Patterns of deposition- show recovery factors of more than 50D;iJ. By contrast the lems with recovery from reservoirs in thick, continuous When hydrocarbons are produced from a reservoir,
more complex environments, such as fluvial-domin~ted sandstone intervals. However, in depositional systems the fluid pressure decreases. As the reservoir pressure is the
where the flow pathways in the reservoir are tortuous force pushing the hydrocarbons up to the surface, produc-
and through restricted sand-on-sand apertures, pore- tion rates will start to fall off at the wellheads. Never-
FIGURE 32. The remaining filling cement can destroy large-scale connectivity. The theless, there are mechanisms of natural energy inherent
mobile oil in a fi eld can be
result may be a reservoir with numerous, small, dis- within the reservoir itselt which help to reduce the rate of
s~bdivided into three catego-
Marginal oil
connected compartments. pressure decline in the wells (Figure 35). The magnitude
nes. Target oil columns are
large enough to drill with a Structural complexity influences the recovery fac- of this reservoir energy can have a significant influence
new well. Marginal oil col- tor from oil fields. Heavily faulted reservoirs will contain on primary recovery factors (Levorsen, 1967; Sills, 1992).
umns are just below the numerous structural dead ends, especially if the faults A major source of energy is supplied by a large water
threshold of profitability to are sealing. If there is a low density of widely spaced aquifer in direct contact with an oil zone. This is known
justify an infill well. Uneco- sealing faults, the drainage volumes may still end up as water drive. As the oil is produced and the pressure
nomic oil comprises bypassed large enough to remain as oil targets. With an increasing drops, the low-pressur area r ulting from production
volumes or patches of low density of faults at a closer spacing, there will be a greater spread outward into the aquifer. Water has a small com-
oil saturation that cannot be number of marginal and uneconomic volumes, with less pre. sibiUly, and Lbe aquifer water will. expand as the pres-
produced economically. target oil volumes. sure lecrea es, llowtng int<J the pore space previously
Uneconomic oil
Where faults are nonsealing and conductive to flow occupied by the oil. Because water compressibility is
across them, they can increase reservoir connectivity in small, a large aquifer is required for the increase in the
certain situations. Small nonsealing faults, cutting thick- volume of the water to be big enough to significantly
layered, high net-to-gross reservoir intervals, can create compress and displace the oil toward the production
vertical connectivity. However, faults will tend to dis- wells. The volume of aquifer should be at least 10 times
connect reservoirs comprising thin, low net-to-gross the volume of the oil in the oil leg Qahn et al., 1998). If
channelized systems (Bailey et al., 2002). A network of the water is part of an artesian system with free flowing
open fractures can also create widespread connectivity water, this can also provide a significant source of en-
Remaining Mobile Oil Categories
in highly heterogeneous reservoirs such as the more ergy. The primary recovery of oil from water drive res-
complex carbonate systE;ms. ervoirs ~an be high (35-75ll1J) (Clark, 1969).
10 Shepherd
Factors Influencing Recovery From Oil and Gas Fields 41

FIGURE 34. Attic oil is oil fiG URE 35. Vari us me~ ha
trapped in a structural dead nism of natural reservmr
end above the highest perfo-
rated interval in a well. The
drive ene rgy can su1 port re -
l'rvoir ptessu res Lo , .n ex-
j
"
well can be sidetracked updip tcn l. The magnitude of this
to recover this oil. ene rgy can have a ignificant
innuence n pri mary r av-
ery factor for il.
t

Sidetrack to recover
the attic oil
I Original well

Gas cap drive

t
Oil swept to the top of
the producing interval
1 in the original well
~
~: . ': . . .I ..
.. '. ~ . ~ -
.. .. . .:. . .: r _: ~-- ... _. .. :.. ._. .
..~ - .:~--=~~-::..t. _;.' ~ c '. -. ~ ~ ~
:: -- "- - .

. . . :-. tnitiai Oil'yvater contact ..

,. ~ ...

Combination drive

Attic Oil

t
Water drive is a characteristic of reservoirs with lat-
Solution gas drive is a characteristic of laterally re-
:rally extensive reservoir continuity. A study of fields
stricted reservoirs, which do not have a gas cap and are Types of Reservoir Drive Energy
m Texas found that barrier-island, shoreline and wave-
not extensive enough to have a significant aquifer. As the
dominated delta sand bodies, which extend over large
pressure drops with production, the oil will have a small
areas, show strong water drives with high oil recoveries
compressibility and will expand by a limited amount.
(Ambrose et al., 1991). A classic example of a water drive
Gas in solution in the oil is liberated once the pressure in solution gas drive reservoirs, normally in the range of A weak source of energy results from compaction
reservoir is the giant East Texas field in the United States
decreases below the bubble point. When this happens, S- 3Q!J.b fthe oil in p ia e. drive. Reduction in pore pressure with production re-
(Halbout_Y: :991). Layer-cake reservoir geometry, high
gas bubbles emerge as a separate phase from the oil. Gas Wbe.re a ga ap exists above the oil leg, ga cap frive sults in an increase in the effective stress as the weight of
permeabllitles, and a large aquifer serve to create an ef-
has high compressibility and will expand on decreasing provi d s a sour e of natmal reservolr nergy. A the the rock lying above the reservoir is incrementally trans-
fective water drive. This has resulted in a very high re-
pressure. This results in the compression and displace- pr ssure drops in U1 reservoir, the ga cap expands and ferred to the grain framework ofthe reservoir. Although
covery factor with 81.8% of the 7326 MMbbls of oil in
ment of the oil toward the production wells. Once a a<:Ll. to low down the rate of pressme d dine. The ex- this happens to some extent in most producing fields,
place e~pected to be recovered. Highly heterogeneous
critical saturation has built up, the gas starts to move pans! n of the gas als di place the oil downward to- the effects are more pronounced in relatively unconsol-
re_servous are less likely to be in good communication
toward the pressure sink in the reservoir, driving some ware! the producing .well . The efO iency with which idated reservoir rock. The pores compact in response to
With an aquifer and will have weaker drive mechanisms. of the oil along with the gas (Dake, 1978).
Another ~ource of energy in oil reservoirs is provided thi :; occurs depends 11 the verti al permeability f the the increased effective stress, compressing the contained
Solution gas drive is a weaker source of energy than res rvoi.r rot:k. Where th vertical permeability is high, fluids and giving some support to the reservoir pressure.
by gas. Gas Will expand as the pressure decreases during
water drive. The reservoir pressure declines rapidly and igniflcant recoveries can r sult. Th produdngwell will. An example of compaction drive is the San Diego Norte
depletion. North (1985) commented that although a bar-
continuously. Dake (1994) described production at pres- be rcrf rated at sam distance below the gas-oil contact Pilot Project from the Orinoco Heavy Oil belt of Vene-
~el contains 5.6 ft of oil (0.159 m 3 ), solution gas/oil ratios
3
sures below the bubble point as "messy." Gas viscosity to avoid the ga breaking through too early. If this hap- zuela (de Rojas, 1987). The reservoir sandstones are friable
m the reservoir converted to surface conditions are often
is typically 50 times less than oil viscosities, and gas will pell.S, Lhe we.lli; an "gas ut"; that is, they will produce with high porosity and permeability. An analysis of the
expressed as values of about several hundred standard
flow much faster than oil through the pore space. The Only ga and none o f Lh remaining oil. Pressures are rock compressibility indicates that the oil recovery re-
cu~ic feet per barrel. This shows the enormous degree to
gas is nonwetting and will move through the center of rn aintalned more effic.ie nUy with a gas cap drive than in sulting from compaction could be 8%. An additional
whrch gas can be compressed within oil at reservoir pres-
the pores, leaving much of the oil undisplaced. Accord- a solu li n gas drive reservoir. Primary recoveries are in 4% is expected to come from solution gas drive, leading
sures and the large amount of energy stored here.
ing to Clark (1969), primary recoveries are always low the rder of 20- 40% (Cla.rk, 1969). to a tota'l recovery factor from primary production of 12%.
 Shepherd
Factors Influencing Recovery From Oil and Gas Fields 43

FIGURE 36. Areal sweep is !Umate re very i en itive to the offtake rate_ In res- ENHANCED OIL RECOVERY
~1voirs with
Producer the fraction of the areal extent ign llicanl ertical permeability variations I
of the reservoir that has been
or fra ture , v ry hi gh ini tial production rates can lead At th e rn a tur phuse f fi eld life, method. f en-
contacted by injected fluid.
Vertical sweep is the fraction- 10
ra pid water breaktl1 ro ugh, po01sweep efficiency, and lwncerl oil recovery (EOR} may be instigated. This is also
Injector al part of the reservoir cross Jowc r Lhan cx p ted recoveries. Practical reservoir man- ca Ll ed l'ertiat)' recovery. C. R proj ec ts are de igned t
section that has been con- ageme nt involves findin g~ b.a~ance between economic ch ange the fundamen tal phy i s or chemistry of th e res-
tacted by injected fluid. )J'od u tion rates and muxtmlzmg the recovery. ervoir co nditi ns in ord r Lo im pr e the recovery. Th e
owe = oil-water contact. l Cross-bedd d sandston es are not efficiently swept method used will depend on the fluid type and the
b cau e til e for et and the lo w-p rmea bili ty botto m- reservoir.
set!> can a t to im pede now Web r, 1982). In eros - The most common EOR operation uses thermal meth-
bedded sandstones, al ternating finer and coarse.t grain ed ods, involving steam, heat, or combustion to improve
fo re Llamin a ca n re ul t in ignificant quantHi e f oil recovery. These account for 70% of the world's pro-
Vertical sweep capillary-trapped oil (Korteka as, 1 85; m()elt et al., duction by EOR techniques (Nind, 1989). Thermal meth-
1992). Weber (1982) quoted an early article by llling ods are used for recovering heavy (and viscous) oils
Cross section view
(1939) in which it is recognized that the most difficult with gravities between 10 and 25 API units (Nind, 1989).
sediments to sweep with water are those with numer- The operation is used in areas with heavy oil such as
ous coarse and fine interfaces. The low-permeability, Venezuela, Canada, the United States, Russia, China,
finer grained laminae rapidly imbibe water and physi- and Indonesia.
cally trap oil in the coarser grained laminae. The oil is Steam can be continuously injected as a flood called
effectively immobilized in the coarser grained laminae a steam drive. An alternative method is steam soaking,
\
as the interfacial tension between the water in the finer also known as huffand puff. This involves a cyclic opera-
1 Injector
grained laminae and the oil prevents the oil from moving tion whereby steam is injected into a production well,

--- --.a- Line of cross section

through the pores. Oil is produced more readily parallel
to the cross-bedding than across it because of this effect.
allowed to soak for a few days to distribute the heat, and
is then followed by a period of oil production from the
Huang et al. (1995) found that between 30 and 55% of well. Production is increased by several mechanisms.
I oil was trapped this way in a coreflood experiment on The steam heats the oil and reduces the viscosity al-
Map view cross-laminated eolian sandstone under conditions of lowing it to flow more easily. In addition, the oil ex-
Initial oil-wate,:-;;-ontact - low-rate flooding. Van Lingen and Knight (1997) consid- pands by swelling, and changes in the surface tension
ered that because of the predominance of cross-bedding also improves the flow (Briggs, 1987).
Areal sweep in meandering fluvial sediments, capillary-trapped oil In-situ combustion of the oil in the reservoir has also
could range from 10% to more than 40% of the movable been used, a technique sometimes known as fire flooding
oil volume, depending on the flow direction and the ef- (Matthews, 1983; Briggs et al., 1987). The oil is ignited
Sweep Patterns fect of the bottomsets. In braided river systems, the effect in the subsurface with the fire fed by a continuous sup-
is slightly less with an estimated 10-20% capillary-trapped ply of air via an injector well. The resultant combustion
oil. For shoreface sediments, an estimate of 5% capillary- front moves away from the air injection well toward the
Gravity drive results from the segregation of oil and trapped oil is made (Van Lingen and Knight, 1997). production wells. The heat of the fire reduces the oil
tiona! part of a reservoir cross section that has been con- viscosity and vaporizes the water within the reservoir to
gas in a reservoir because of their density differences. It tacted by injected fluid (Figure 36).
is particularly effective in thick, high-permeability res- steam.
The waterflood performance in water-wet reservoirs For lighter oil, miscible drive operations are used for
ervoirs or thin reservoirs with steep dips (Sills, 1992). is largely controlled by the permeability layering at the THE EFFECT OF OIL
Many reservoirs show significant primary produc- incremental oil recovery. The idea is to inject a fluid such
bed and laminae scale. Water will edge ahead quickly VISCOSITY ON RECOVERY as methane, liquid petroleum gas, C0 2 , or nitrogen that
tion resulting from more than one of these processes and through high-permeability intervals and more slowly
this is referred to as a combination drive. is miscible with the oil phase and thus reduce or elim-
through lower permeability rocks. There will then be Oil viscosity has an impact on the recovery factor. inate the interfacial tension between the injected fluid
some readjustment as capillary forces pull water into Water will readily displace low-viscosity oil to form a and the oil. The oil mixes with the injected miscible
Oil Recovery from the smaller pores of the lower permeability intervals; in stable flood front. The oil is pushed ahead of an exten- fluid and flows readily to the producers (Nind, 1989).
Waterflooded Reservoirs turn, oil is displaced into the higher permeability rock. sive cushion of water. Carbon dioxide miscible floods have proved so effective
The absorption of the wetting phase into a porous rock Where the oil is heavier and more viscous, the in oil fields in North America that oil companies are
Waterfloods increase the recovery from oil fields. is called imbibition. Once the displaced oil finds a high-
Reservoir engineers often refer to the volumetric sweep wa ter will tend to fing r thr ugb t he oil column in an willing to transport carbon dioxide long distances to
permeability pathway through a continuous stream of oil, In gular m nner, brea.king thro ugh to the production enable this. For example, a 205-mi (330-km)-long pipe-
efficiency of a waterflooded reservoir. This is the fraction there is an increased probability of the oil being produced.
of the total pore volume in a given part of the reservoir Wells rapidly. Large volum e of wate r wHJ need to be line brings C02 from a coal gasification plant in North
If the hydrocarbons are produced too quickly, the dis- ircu !ated through the reservoir in rd r to ob ta in eco- Dakota across the United States-Canada border to the
that has been contacted by the injected fluid (Craig,
placing water volume will advance too fast for efficient nornlc oil recovery. Thi may n ot be practi al off bore Weyburn field in Saskatchewan.
1971). Common terms used are areal sweep and vertical recovery by this mechanism. Consequently, many iso-
sweep (Sarem, 1992). Areal sweep is the fraction of the giv n th e high production rales required to ke p th e A variation on the theme is a water alternating gas
lated volumes of oil will be left behind in low-permeability infrastructure profitable (Da ke, 1994). nshore, lt is mor (WAG) flood (Christensen et al., 1998), which is ape-
areal extent of the reservoir that has been contacted by
rock after the production wells have watered out (Buckley elfidenl to u e method u<:h a team floodin or in- riod of water injection alternated with a period of mis-
the injected fluid. Similarly, vertical sweep is the frac-
and Leverett, 1942). Thus, in waterflood reservoirs, the situ combustion to recover ~iscous, heavy oils. cible gas in1ection. A WAG flood is in operation in the
44 Shepherd Factors Influencing Recovery From Oil and Gas Fields 45

Magnus field in the UK North Sea; water is injected into production rate is still relatively high. Production tends FIGURE 37. Factors influ-
three wells for a 6-month cycle followed by gas in- to decline asymptotically in a predictable manner, and encing why oil is left behind Why Oil is Left Behind in Oil Fields
jection for 6 months (MacGregor and Trussell, 2003). when an offshore field is abandoned at a high rate of in oil fields. il
1
The water injection provides a stable floodfront to sweep production, there is a long tail of potential production Geological Complexity
the oil, whereas the gas displaces residual and bypassed beyond this point that would be economic onshore.
mobile oil at the pore scale. The combined effect can be - Reservoir dead ends will trap oil uncontactable by existing wells
the recovery of significant volumes of oil. An increase in - structural dead ends
recovery of between about 5 and 20% has been reported UNECONOMIC OIL - stratigraphic dead ends
in reservoirs using WAG floods. Examples of where WAG - Number of reservoir compartments
- Permeability layering
schemes have been implemented include the Dollar- The volume deemed to be uneconomic oil is sen-
hide, Rangeley Weber, and Slaughter Estate fields in the sitive to the prevailing economic environment. Oil price,
United States. equipment costs, taxation, and other factors will deter- Fluid Physics
Polymer flooding is an operation whereby suitable mine the nature of oil field economics.
chemicals are added to injection water to increase the A subsurface team can influence economic factors - Residual oil saturation
viscosity of the waterflood. The use of polymers is in- so as to produce more hydrocarbons. An example of this i - Capillary-trapped oil in cross-bedded sandstone
tended to create a more stable flood front and thus im- is the Angus field redevelopment in the UK Central North - Oil viscosity
-Type of reservoir drive mechanism
prove recovery in fields containing moderately viscous Sea. Previously produced through an FPSO vessel, the
- water drive
oil Gahn et al., 1998). field was shut in and abandoned once the oil rate had
- solution gas drive
Much effort was put into investigating the use of dropped below 7000 BOPD. The operating expenditure - gas cap drive
surfectants as an EOR method in the 1980s. Surfectants (OPEX), which is the cost of the vessel, manpower, and - compaction drive
were added to injection water to reduce the water-oil associated logistics, was considered too high at these oil - gravity drive
interfacial tension. Surfactants can be expensive to use rates for the project to make an economic return. The
in quantity. More recent methods involve combining field was reopened 7 yr later. By building a pipeline back
surfactant with alkali and polymer chemicals. The alkali to another producing field, the OPEX was minimized as Economics
chemicals react with acids in the oil to form surfectants the hub field covered this. The new operation involved
-Oil price
within the reservoir. The polymer helps to move the the capital expenditure (CAPEX) of building a 21-km (13-mi) -Taxation, etc.
mixture along with the water flood. pipeline and the drilling of a new well. Renewed pro- - Onshore vs. offshore
Bacteria have also been used to produce incremental duction from the Angus field paid back the CAPEX with- - Operating expenditure for the infrastructure
oil recovery. Bacterial activity in the reservoir can re- in 6 months. Production thereafter continued to provide - Number of wells
lease gases, polymers, acids, surfactants, and other com- revenue. The expected reserves were an extra 5.2 MMbbls -Wells become uneconomic at low production rates (varies onshore vs. offshore)
pounds that may mobilize oil (Moses and Springham, of oil that had been previously categorized as uneco-
1982). nomic movable oil (Shepherd et al., 2003).
Another way of changing the economic environ-
ment is to reduce the drilling costs using cheaper tech- get a good knowledge of well productivity and flow rates will stay trapped in a reservoir dead end, whereas gas
ECONOMIC FACTORS niques such as coiled tubing or through tubing drilling (Ikoku, 1984). may not remain trapped for too long. The gas will ex-
(see chapter 28 of this publication). The reduced costs Recovery factors are higher for gas than they are for pand on decreasing pressure and a significant propor-
An important economic factor controlling the re- can change marginal opportunities into economic oil, commonly in the range of 50-80% Qahn et al., 1998). tion of the trapped volume will eventually escape
covery from fields is whether they are onshore or off- targets (Figure 3 7). The recovery factor for gas fields is dependent on factors around the edges of the dead end. This is an important
shore. Wells are much cheaper to drill onshore, and the such as the abandonment pressure, the initial pressure, and factor contributing to high recovery factors in gas fields.
overall cost of the operation is substantially less. the type of reservoir drive mechanism. Recovery can also Another factor is that gas has a lower viscosity than
Recovery factors are higher for onshore fields com- be sensitive to the engineering of the surface plant. In oil and will flow through low-permeability rocks that
pared to offshore fields. Onshore fields tend to be drilled RESERVOIR MANAGEMENT big gas fields, the installation of compression equipment would not produce oil. Hence, gas can be produced eco-
with a closer well spacing than is practical offshore. Typ- OF GAS FIELDS can lead to higher recoveries. nomically from poorer quality reservoir rocks. A wider
ical well spacings are 200-500 m (656-1640 ft) onshore A key property of a gas is its compressibility; gas com- spectrum of rock types will produce gas by comparison
and 500-1000 m (1640-3280 ft) offshore (North and Gas fields are managed differently from oil fields. presses readily with increasing pressure. Conversely with to oil.
Prosser, 1993). The greater density of wells in onshore Oil is relatively easy to transport in bulk volumes long decreasing pressure, the gas will expand. The measure of A strong water drive is unfavorable to gas recovery
fields increases the chance that oil in a reservoir dead end distances, whereas this is difficult for gas, unless a very how much a gas will expand between the reservoir and as water breakthrough to the production wells will make
will be found when a producer is drilled (Weber, 1999). expensive liquid natural gas (LNG) plant is built or there surface conditions is the gas expansion factor. A typical flow rates sluggish and uneconomic at higher pressures
The second reason for better recoveries onshore is is an extensive regional gas pipeline network. A gas field Value for this is 200 Qahn et al., 1998). Expansion is the than with closed gas reservoirs (lkoku, 1984). The inten-
that the wells are profitable much longer than offshore will typically be developed once a gas sales contract has main mechanism by which gas is produced to the sur- sity of the water drive can be a major factor behind the
wells. For instance, it has been estimated by the U.S. been made to supply the gas to customers living close to face. Once the pressure drops to reduced levels, then ultimate recovery of gas; a slower encroachment of wa-
Department of Energy that 20% of all the oil produced in the gas field. The contract will involve a commitment to surface flow rates may be too low to be profitable. This is ter will result in higher recoveries. Permeability is also a
the United States comes from wells producing less than supply a daily volume of gas over a certain period of time. the abandonment pressure, which effectively defines critical factor in gas reservoirs. Higher permeability re-
15 BO PD. No offshore well would make any money from Thus, there is a requirement to be reasonably sure of the economic limit of flow from a gas field. sults in a high flow rate for a given pressure drop. Thus,
rates as low as this. Offshore fields are expensive to run what a gas field will produce before it starts production. One difference between gas and oil is that, as the the abandonment pressure can be lower for a high-
and will be shut in as uneconomic even when the oil It will be necessary to test every well preproduction to Pressure decreases, oil with its limited compressibility permea"Qility gas reservoir (lkoku, 1984).
46 Shepherd

350 .-------------------------------. then the pressure will drop in a predictable manner.

300
Two parameters <He crossplotted on a graph: pressure,
divided by the gj~ deviation (dimensionless compress-
N' 250 - ibility) factor Z, used in the equation for the nonideal
E
~ 200- gas law; and cumulative gas production. In closed sys-
6 150 - tem reservoirs, the values will plot on a straight-line
~ trend. The trend is extrapolated to the abandonment
a.. 100 -
50 - pressure to estimate the contactable volume of gas
o +---.---.---.---.---.---.-~~--4
(Figure 38). For example, in the Novillero gas field in the
0 200 400 600 BOO 1000 1200 1400 1600 Veracruz basin of Mexico, the P/Z plot extrapolates to
Cumulative gas production (MMm3) the base line at a total gas volume of close to 1400 MMm 3
(49.4 bcf) (Holtz et al., 2002). If an aquifer is present, the
P/ZPiot
system cannot be considered closed, and the P/Z plot
FIGURE 38. P/Z plots are used by reservoir engineers to will deviate from a straight-line trend.
estimate the contacted volumes in a gas field. This ex-
ample is from the Novillero gas field in the Veracruz
basin, Mexico (from Holtz et al., 2002), reprinted with GAS CONDENSATE
permission from the Gulf Coast Association of Geological
Societies. MMm 3 =million cubic meters. Gas condensate is a type of petroleum fluid that ex-
ists in the reservoir as a gas at initial conditions but once
the pressure drops to the dew point, liquids will start to
Gas reservoirs without an aquifer have been called condense Gahn et al., 1998). Produced to the surface,
volumetric (or depletion) reservoirs. This is because the both gas and condensate liquids are separated out in the
elementary physics of the gas laws allow the volume of production plant.
gas in the reservoir to be calculated once a certain amount Pressures can fall below the dew point in the reser-
of gas has been produced. Recoveries are higher (-80- voir, with liquid condensate dropping out near the well
90o/o) as pressure depletion is much more efficient than bore. This condensate banking can lead to a reduction in
a water drive regime, because the wells do not load up the gas relative permeability, and gas flow rates can drop
with water. off significantly as a result (Ayyalasomayajula et al., 2005).
A material balance technique used by reservoir Therefore, there is an incentive with a gas condensate
engineers to estimate gas volumes is the P/Z plot (Dake, reservoir to keep the pressure above the dew point so as
1978). This is based on the gas law relationship whereby to prevent this from happening. A typical strategy is to
if the volume of a gas is reduced within a closed system, recycle gas back into the reservoir to maintain pressure.
 24
Petroleum Production

World Oil reported an average global oil production rate of73.6 million
bbljd (11.7 m 3/d) in 2010. Of that, Saudi Arabia averaged 8.2 million bbljd
(1.3 million m 3/d) (11%) and the United States averaged 5.5 million bbljd
(0.9 million m 3/d) (7.4%).
The API reported that in 2008 there were a total of 1,004,606 producing
wells in the United States. Of those, 48% were gas and condensate wells and
52% were oil wells. Texas had the most wells. More than half(54%) of all the
world's producing oil wells were located in the United States. Russia was
second, followed by China and Canada. The average oil production per oil
well in the United States was 10.2 bbljd (1.6 m 3/d).
A petroleum engineer is an engineer who is trained in drilling, testing, and
completing a well and producing oil and gas. A reservoir petroleum engineer
is in charge of maximizing the production from a field to obtain the best
economic return.

Well and Reservoir Pressures

Tubing pressure is measured on the fluid in the tubing, whereas casing
pressure is measured on the fluid in the tubing-casing annulus. The pressure
gauge at the top of a Christmas tree measures tubing pressure. Bottomhole
431
 C:h<lpLcr :H Petroleum Production
Nontec hni ca l Guide to Petroleum Geology, Exploration, Drilling, and Producti on :> ;d L>li; ion

pressure is measured at the b ttom f the well. It ts measured eith,.1 . c1 s. Jlotential tests can also run periodically during production and may
flowing, vvith rhc wll pr du ing, or shut-in or static aft r the well has 1 as nul .. 'd by some crovermnent regulatory agenoes.
be r c C[iiJlt: o . . .
shut in and stabi lized for a period of cim s u h s 24 h m (fig. 2 4 ~en lt ,, ...111ry tesL is run to determme the effect of different product10n
A prot~''' . . . . .
Doumdm111is th e difference b tween shu t- in
and fl owing pres ure i11 a Well.
l). che res rv01r. l t 1s made wtth porta bl well te.;t equ1pm enr (fig.
,a.re. 0 Lha
11 f t 1e we ll wn
I .. n 1t
01 easttres the Allld pressur at th e b cra m
24-Z) and tb 11 during everal dilli rent stab ilized racc.s of producti n.
's huHil
1 sw ments are used to cal ulate the abso lucc open fl w an d d1.
!h ,nca . .
ORIGINAL PRESSURE m prod uction rate th a t be well can produ e ' td1 o ur am agm g
111 a,x1111LL
chc n':;erv0\1'.

w
a:
;:)
C/)
C/) SHUT IN PRESSURE
w
a:
~
SHUT IN

TIME
Fig. 24-1. Flowing and shut-in pressure in a well

The original pressure in a reservoir before any production has occuiTt~d WIRELINE
1s called uirgin, initi<d, or origi11.t.l pressme. During production , reservoir
press ure usually decreases. Reservoir pressure can be measured at ;1ny
time during production by shut-in bottomhole pressure in a well. A
pressure bomb, an instrument that m easures bottomhole pressure, can IJc
run into the well on a wircline. A common pressure bomb con sists of a
pressure sensor, recorder, and a clock-driven m echanism for the record er.
It is contained in a metal tube about 6ft (1.8 m) long. The chart records BOTTOM HOLE
pressure with time as th e test is being conducted. Temperature can also he PRESSURE GAUGE

recorded on a similar instrument. Another instrument, an electronic p1essure

recorder, can be run on a conductor wire.

Fig. 24-2. Productivity test equipment

Well Testing For wells that have a central processing unit, periodic prodHction tests
em be made to determine how much each well is producing. These tests
Tests on a well are run by the well operator, a specialized well tester, or ; I
<1r e run manually or automatically. Oil well test data typically include
service company to determine the optimum production rate. They can usc
oil production, water production, gas rate, gasj01l ratio, and flowmg
equipment available on the site or portable tes t equipment. After the we:! I
has been completed, a potential test can be run. The potential test determines 111bing pressure. Gas well test data typically include gas rate, condensate
production, water production, flowing tubing pressure, and condensate/
the maximum gas and oil chat che well can produce in a 24-hour periocl .
It uses the separator and tank battery on the site to hold the produced gas ratio.
v 433 .
' 432 .
Nontechnical Guide to Petroleum Geology, Exploration, Drilling, and Production 3rd Editi on
Chapter 24 Petroleum Production

g Pressure transient testing n a weU inv lve mea urin g pres ures a n CiJ t 1l CJt. Production Logs
1: _~ r~t'e . ne 1:)'! e, a dra1Pdo11m test, measures_ the shu t-in boctomhole
ptessut.c an d then the pressw-e change as tbe w II t put n produccio
, d. . . n and Production logs are run in producing wells to evaluate a problem. They are
nj c pressUI e .1 O f s Lo a stab le, flowmg pre sur>. A lmildt'P test n1 eas
11e .a- owmg
- bocrom hole pressure and th n th e pressure change
as the' Ures run either on a wireline through the tubing or on a tubing string. There are
. h . . ' . We1l several types of production logs.
t ~ s _ut u1. an~ rhe pt:essm rises to a stable, s~ut-i n pressure. !\ nwltirate
t(.st, such as a four-po tn t rest, measures ch flc wtng b coml10le pre su .. Tracer logs are used to detect fluid movement in a well. A radioactive
~
iJ IJc:reren t , seabil'tze d how rare . re ar tracer is injected into the well at a specific location, and its movement is
tracked by recording gamma rays. A continuous flowmeter uses propellers
Deliverability is the ability of the reservoir at a given flowing bottomh l
fl d 00 a vertical shaft to measure fluid flow up a well to make a continuous
pressure to move . ur s Into . the well. Maximum potential flow or abm~ loe
record of flow versus depth in the well. A packer flowmeter uses a packer to
open flow (AOF) ts the. maxtmum flow rare into a well when the bottoml10 le
. seal the well at that depth to ensure that all the fluids flow up through the
pressure. IS ze ro . I t ts a theoretical flow rare thar: is ca.lculated from a
flo wmeter in the packer and are measured.
multwan at~ cesr. T he production. index (Pl) of a well is [he downho le prcssute
drawdown tn potmds per sq uare inch (psi) divid ed by rhe pr ducci 11 in A noise log uses a microphone to detect and amplify any sounds in
barreLs per day (bb!jd). Wells on land u ually hn.ve a PJ Fgreater than a well. The log can locate where fluids are flowing into the well, and the
0.1 pst/bbljday, whereas offs~or~ ~ells have a PI greater than 0.5 . Inflow fr q uency frh e und can be LJS d to distinguis h between liquid and gas.
performance rela~onshzp (IPR) IS stmtlar to PI because it plots drawdown A temparatu1'e log mcasuJ'es the te mperature of fluid filling a well. Before the
agamst productwn but ts more accurate in that it also accounts fi t '111 t eramre log is run th l! w lL is shut in for a p riod of rime ro allow the
reservoir driv~, increasing gas/ oil ratios, and relative permeability chan :~ temperatures to m e to egu.i.libriLun. Because expandin g gas coo ls when
wtth productton. g entering a well, it can be located by a temperature log.
Gas wells are tested with routine production tests that measure the A manometer measures pressure in the well at a specific depth, and a
amount ~f gas, condensate, and water produced. A backpressure test measures grucliometer measures a continuous profile of the pressure gradient. A
the sht:t-m pressure and the pressures at different stabilized flow rates to llldler-wt meter measures the amount of water in the fluid filling the well. A
determme the well deliverability. collar log has a casing-collar locator that uses either a magnetic detector or
scratcher to locate the casing collars in a well. It is used to accurately find
locations in the well. A collar log is used with a natural gamma ray log to
locate where to perforate the casing.
Cased-Hole Logs
~fter a reservoir in a well has been depleted, a decision must be made
t~ etther plug and abandon or recomplete the well. To recomplete, a new Decline Curves
ml or gas rese rvmr must be identified behind the casing. Only the natural
gamma ray_ and neutron porosity logs can be run in a cased-hole. A pulsed A decline curve is a plot of oil or gas production rate with time made
neutron_ log ts a type of neutron log that emits pulses of neutrons into the for a single well or an entire field (fig. 24- 3). Production rate will decline
f~rmatwn and ~easures returning gamma rays. It can distinguish gas and with time as the reservoir pressure decreases. The initial production (IP) of
ml from water m the reservoir and is used to find gas and oil reservoirs a well is the first 24 hours of production and is usually the highest. As
located behind the casing. the production rate declines, the well eventually becomes a stripper well
that is barely profitable. Stripper wells are defined in the United States as
producing less than 10 bbl (1.6 m 3 ) of oil per day over a 12-month period
or 60 Mcf (2,000 m 3) of gas per day at maximum flow rate, and they receive
special tax advantages. The API reported that in 2007 there were a total of
396,537 stripper oil wells in the United States that accounted for about

434. 435.
Nontechnical Guide to Petroleum Geology, Exploration Drillino and Production 3rd Ed.
' b' 1t1on Chapt ' r 24 Petroleum Production

~l
77% of the total US oil wells. They produced an average of 2 bbljd (
1
~~
3 032 0 06 0
m /d) and accounted for 15.7% of total US oil production. 0
o o 0 0 0 0 0 0 Waterdrive

''
~ o ooooooo

\
100
\\ ' Free gas cap drive

',' ' \
Barrels
of
....J
....J oil/day
w
~ Dissolved-gas, , \
......
drive -...., \
~
0 0 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15
......
~ so Years
0 Fig. 24-4. Reservoir drive decline curves
V)
~
w X
01::
Oc::
<(
CQ

I
I
I
PRODUCTION I
I
\

Fig. 24-3. Decline curve

YEARS ,_-------------- --- ------.
0 TIME----+-
Fig. 24-5. Decline curve for a fractured reservoir
Th economic limitof a well is wh en pr duction costs equal net production
revenue. [t depends on how de p thew ll is, how much water it produces,
where th e well is located, and several otber factors. When the economic
limit of a well is reached , it is plugged and abandoned, or improved oil
recovery is i11 itiated. J\llost vvelL~ are designed with a 15- to 20-year life.
Bypassing and Coning
The shape of the oil decline curve depends on the reservoir drive (fig.
24-4). Solution-gas reservoirs have a very sharp decline, whereas water- Drilling and completing a well is an economic investment. The best
drive reservoirs have almost constant production for the life of the wells. return on that investment is to produce the gas and oil as fast as possible
The shape of a free gas cap expansion drive curve is between the curves to recover costs and make a profit as soon as possible.
for solution-gas and water-drive reservoirs. The decline curves for wells Many reservoirs, however, are not homogeneous, and there are pockets
producing from a fractured reservoir in a tight sandstone or dense of oil or gas in less permeable areas. In a water-drive reservoir, the water
limestone such as the Spraberry field of Texas, or a gas shale such as the flows in to replace the oil or gas as it is being produced. If the oil and gas
Ban~err ~hale ~:e very djstinctive (fig. 24-5). The well can have a high IP are produced too fast, the water can flow around pockets of oil and gas in
as Jl. drams rap rdly through th very permeable fractures. As the fractures less permeable areas in a process called bypassing (fig. 24-6). Bypassing seals
drain the production rapidly drops. Within a short period, the production the oil (bypassed oi[) and gas (bypassed gas) in that area and prevents it from
settles to along and steady rate as the if drains slowly from the relatively being produced from existing wells. To prevent significant bypassing and
impermeable rock into the fractures.
have maximum ultimate production, the oil and gas should be produced at
a slower rate to allow less permeable zones time to drain .
436. 437
Nontechnical Guide to Petroleum Geology, Exploration, Drilling, and Production 3rd Edition ChapLcr 24 Petroleum Production

~ 1
anent damage to the well. Horizontal wells can be used to prevent
~~:ng. If coning does occur on a horizontal well, it is called cresting.
. . ..
.. ..
. . .. .
...

---
- - - ---
..

.. .. .

. .. .
...

Fig. 24-7. Coning

. . . . .. .. . . . . . ..
~: . -- ,
-~

Cycling
As reservoir pressure drops during gas production from a retrograde gas
reservoir, condensate separates out of the gas in the reservoir. The liquid
coats the subsurface grain surfaces and is very difficult, if not impossible,
to recover. To prevent condensate from separating in the subsurface
.. . . reservoir, cycling is used. Produced gas is stripped of natural gas liquids on
.. the surface. The dry gas is then reinjected through injection wells into the
... reservoir to maintain the reservoir pressure .

Fig. 24-6. Bypassing (a) before production and (b) after production Well Stimulation
Several well stimulation methods can be used to increase the well
Coning is caused by oil being produced too fast. The oil-water contact is production rate. These include acidizing, explosive fracturing, and
sucked up in a bottom water drive reservoir (fig. 24-7), or the gas-oil contact hydraulic fracturing.
is sucked down in a free gas cap expansion drive reservoir. This can cause

438 . 439.
 Ch :'l,n; 2i Petroleum Production
Nontechnical Guide to Petroleum Geology, Explotation, Drilling, and Production :>rd Fd il i,

Acidizing ~ ~ ..,.1.,._.,...~~"
"A ,. e 11 ca.n be tG'I:<-~J I Zed ol g1ven
an aCI'd ;o
b by pumpmg
' act'd d own in ~----~~~
~-
ch e well to di so lv" limes tone, dolomite r any cal ice , m m becw~.:~o ..J~-~~LJ:::!.l!l':.!L--t:t--..:l\::~"-~::::.&-=----"""--
s d.imenr g rai ns. HCI (regul tr acid), H I mixed with HF (mud acid), nn~
HF (h drofl1W7'ic acid) a.re co mm nly used. H ~1 is effective on lim stones
and dol ontites and HF is used for sandsrones. Fo r formati ns With
high temperatures, ac tic and fo rmic acids a r w;ed . To pr venr chc acid
Crom corroding the St:ee l casing and tubin g in t h ' we l_l a n additive called
an inhibit.or is used. A seqHest.eri?lg agent is an additive used to pr vent the
formation of ge ls or pr ' ipicares f iron tha t w ul cl g rh e res of he
reservoir uring an acid job.
T\VO types of a id treatment are marrix and fra tmc acidizing. Du 1ing
matrix acidi:dng, t h e a id i pumped down the well ~ enlarge t h e natural
p res of the reserv ir. Durin gfi~ctw'e acidiz.it1g, th e acid LS pumped d(')wn.
thew 11 under high ' 1. press m e to fracture a nd dissolve the reserv ir r ck.
After an acid job, rhe jJen t acid, di s o lved r ck, a nd sediments a.ie pumped
ba.ck out fthe well during the bacl?jlush. An acid job is al.s us d o ren1edy Fig. 24-8. Hydrau lic fracturing
s kin damag n a weJJbo re and is called a UJctsh job.

Explosive fracturing
From th e 1860s until th late l940s, ex pl .sives were commonly
d etonaced in wells to inaease pr duccio n. 1Vell shooting or explositJe fractn ring
was dotlc with liquid rtitr glyc rin in a tin cylinder cal led a torpedo. ft was
run down the weLL and d eton ated on rb bote 111 . Th e xpl sioo crcat d a
I. rg cavity thar was then l aned out, and the well was comp l ted 01 en
h le. T h e person in charg f th e nitro wa. called the shoote1. Th cec lm ique
was both effective an Ldan ge ro u .

Hydraulic fracturing
Hydraulic fracru ri ng was developed in 1 48 and bas effecci vel)' repl aced
ex plosive fracturing. in 2010, er 0% of al.l wells completed in the Uni t 'U
Stares were fra ed. llli n a jh1c job r hydraulic fractf11ing (fig. 24-8), a
service company injects large volumes of frac fluids under high pr ssu re
into the weU to tiacrure rhe rcservoi1 r ck (plate 24- 1). Frac jobs are don~::
eith r u1 an open-hole or a cased well wirh perforations. A comm n fi-ac
fluid .is a gel form ed by water and polymers long orgaoi c mol ec ul s t hat
form a thick liquid when mixed with water. il-bascd fmc fiuid and fo am-
based f ra flwids using Lubb les of nitmgen or carbon dioxid e can be used
to minin.1iz fi rmation damage. Typically, abour 0.5% of the frac flu id is Plate 24-1. Hydraulic fracturing an oil wel l
composed of additives similar t rh sc used in drilling fluids. The frac Auid
is tnmsp rted o u r o d1c fra j bin large trail rs.

0 441 ,
0 440 0
 Chapter 24 Petroleum Production

A frac job is done in three step . Firsr., a pad of fra fluid is inj
into the well by s veral lar:>e pumping units mounted on trucks t in~~Lcct
fracturing the reservoir. Next, a s.lurry r fra fluid and propping ::tgllatc
ents
are pumped down rhe well c extend the frJcturcs and fill thc 111 , .
' \lith
propping agents. Propping agents or proppants arc small spheres th at h
01
op n the fra turs afrer: pumping has stopped. The pr pping agents cl
' ate
commonly well-sorred quartz sand grains. fn high-pressure wells, ccranJ.
r a luminum oxide micr spheres are used. The well i rhen b,tckjlusbec{ lc
111
the third stage to remove ab ur 10 w 0% of th original frac fluid.
rosslinla:cl frac fluids that have a high vis osity necessary to cany th
pmpping agents down the' ell an be us d. A breakerfluid is then injectc~
into the well to make the r s .linked frac fluid more fluid and ea ier t~
remove during backflusb.
Medium and bard (brittle) Formations are best for fracnuing becau e
loose formations (uncor1solidated) do nor p rmit the pr pping age rus
co hold open the fractures. All the equipment used during the frac j b is
driven onto che ite. The frac flu.i.d is mixed and stored in frac tanl?..f. The
frac Ouid is mixed wirh proppanr in a blender. Pump trucks 31 c IUlected
c a manifold to pressurize the pad and th lurry and pump rhem cl( wn
the well. A t11e/lhead isolation tool can be onnecred to rhe top of che well to late 24-2 Aerial photograph of a massive frac job. The well is in the ce~ter with
protect rbe wellhead from rhe high pressures and abrasive propping agents. ~nes of pu~ping units and frac fluid trailers on either side. (Courtesy ofHalliburton.)
Th frar job is monitored and regul.atedfrom rhefract'a11.
Frac jobs 31e describ d by the amount offrac fluid and proppanrs used.
The average mo rn frac job use 60,000 gallon (227,000 Lirers) of frac
fluid and 100,000 pounds (45 000 kg) of sand. A rnassi11e Jrac job is a v ry
la1ge frac job (plate 24- 2). There is no exact definition of a massive fra job, Disposal of Oilfield Brine and Solution Gas
but it typically uses more than 1 million gallon (3.8 million liters) of fiac
fluid and 5 million lb (2.3 million kg) of sand. The natural gas produced with oil often creates a disposal problem. It
comes from the separators at very Low (atmospheric) pressure, ~nd the~e
Afmcpaclwrfracfpacle u es a vis us gel and arelative.ly high concentration
of sand proppants. It forms relatively short bur wide fracrw-es. Frac packs
is usually no market for it. Even with a market, the gas would ~ve(jlto d)
com ressed to pipeline pressure. In the past, it was often bur~e a~e
are comJJlOD in offshore wells.
. hp 1'1 fields. This is against the law today in most countnes. F~armg
Hydraulic fracruriog is a very common wcll-scimuJation te hnique char m t e 0 d' 1 ethod 1s not
still occurs in some situations when any other gas 1sposa m .
i_ncreases both the ra e of production aJld ul6mate produ tion. It increases . . Th duced gas can be used to mcrease
practical or durmg well testmg. e pro . . . . . h
rh roduccioo rate from 1112 to 30 times rhe in.itial rate with the h.igbcst the ultimate oil production from the reservoir by remJectmg tt mtod t e
increa..<;es in right reservoirs. Ultimate production is increa,sed fr m 5 to t (fig 24- 9) Produce wet
subsurfacereservoirinapressuremazntenancesys em . 'd
lS%. Ic is used in all ighc gas sand reservoirs and as a ommon remedy For . 11 . ed of valuable natura1 gas 1tqut s.
gas is first gathered an d 1s usua Y stnpp d 1
skin damage in a wellbore. It is then compressed and pumped into an injection well. In a saturate 01
A wel.l C311 be fraced several times dttring its life. In som instances, field, the gas is injected into the free g_as cap. In an undersaturated o11 field,
however, hydraulic fracturing C311 harm a well by fracirtg into watct. Th e the gas is injected into the oil reservotr.
hydraulica!Jy induced fmc we extend verticaJJy int a water reservoir rha t
floods the well. with wa ter.
443
442.
 Chaptel' 24 Petroleum Production
Nontechnical Guide to Petroleum Geo logy, E<ploration, Drilling, and Production 3rd Edition

injection wells separator ~ ~ Separator

\~
0

. . ..
. . :
- ... -~

Fig. 24-9. Pressure maintenance system

Gas from the separators can also be given to the landowner to heat his
o r her home and p ra te i.rriga ti n pumps. This jimner's gas can be pa rt of Fig. 24-10. A saltwater tank and disposal well
the !.ease agreement before any wells are drilled . Gas fro m th e se parato r
could also be used to operat equipmenl in th e field su b as the engi ne
used co drive a bcam -pLUnping unit.
Oilfield brine from the separators can also be pumped down another
injection well into the subsurface reservoir below the oil-water contact Surface Subsidence
as part of the pressure maintenance system. If there is no injection well
system available for the well or field, the oilfield brine or the water removed During production, reservoir pressure decreases, and w~ter usually flows
from natural gas is stored in a metal (see chap. 20, plate 20-4) or fiberglass in from the sides and bottom to replace the produced ~mds. If water does
saltwater tank. The fiberglass tank is more resistant to corrosion. not replace the produced fluids, the subsurface reservmr r~ck can compact
and the surface of the ground subsides (fig. 24-.11). !hts h.as happened
A saltwater disposal well is used to pump the brine or water into a in the Wilmington oil field in Long Beach, Cahforma, whtch ?as be~n
subsurface reservoir rock (fig. 24-10). The disposal well has to be permitted smce
the 1930s . Beginning in the 1940s, surface substdence
pro d ucmg . m
by a government agency and must meet specific criteria. The oilfield brine the shape of a bowl was noted. The center of the bowl has now substded
cannot be injected into a subsurface freshwater reservoir. The reservoir must a total of 29 ft (8.8 m) leaving much of the oty below sea level. ~ n:asstve
already contain naturally saline waters that cannot be used for drinking or water injection program has stopped the subsidence, and the ctty tS now
irrigation. The reservoir must also be able to sustain the increased pressure
protected from seawater flooding by a dike.
of the injected water without leaking into another freshwater reservoir.
If there is no disposal well, the brine is stored in an open fiberglass or
metal tank to evaporate and reduce the volume. When the tank is eventually
filled, a service company (a water hauler) is used to transport the brine to a
commercial saltwater disposal well.

445
444.
 Chapter 24 Petroleum Production
Nontechnical Guide to Petroleum Geol ogy, Exploration, Drilling, and Production 3rd Ed iti on

~ . ld d by cathodic protection. It involves charging the

- oo f oo

... ..
SUBSIDENCE
. .t.. . . . . . ...
..............
strLI
5rr..-
crures can b e s h te e
,,crure
. h n electrical charge to prevent corroswn.
wtt a
.

.' .. .. ---
Production Maps
. ........... ......................... .
.. ..... .. ... .. . . ... ..., - .... .. ' . _ d from a field and identify
A II' II )tatm lmtp ts used to ann.1y7.e pro ucnon fi ld p d .
-lis The map s hows the lo arion of all wells in a e . ro ucmg
pr tl~tnv w~b . '.w II o umber, barrels of oil and water production per day, and
\,rel ~ ,_a 'I rati o nex t th m. lnje ion wells have the wellnu~ber, barrels
th~ g ~~- . . - d Jcr day pres u re, and cumulative injection m thousands
0 fwat'1 !OJ cte E . . h 1 nt of water gas,
fl els A cul?ttdatit;e productzon mafl hsts t e tota amou '
,a~-;~ rbac ach well has produced up to a specific date. Bubble m~ps a~e
and r.o show how much each w II has produced (fig. 24-12). A or~le ts
used . ., oun d cac h well with t he radius of the circle (bubble) proportw~al
drawn .._. - (CUM) t itial productwn
Fig. 24-11. Surface subsidence due to production . let
co ett 1
Lh well . umulative productiOn or L s m
(IP) of gas, oil, or water.

The bo tom of theN rrh Sea abov ch Ek fisk oil field has subsided
several t us f feet because f compa ci n of the Eko6sk halk reserve it.
The sub ideuce was first noric d in i 984 after the casing in seve ral \vells
had collapsed and th e level f th boat d ck on cl<e platform be ame @
- @
s ubm erged. T he levation f the Ekofi k prod u cion platform bad drop ped
to a dangero us level In 1987, rbe Leg f the platform were cut, the d ck
@ @
jacked up, and extensions spliced in o th e legs.
0
@
@
Corrosion @ @

Corrosion is the chemical degradation of metal. It can be a problem during @ @

both drilling and production. Corrosion occurs when metal is exposed to
air, moisture, or seawater, or by chemicals such as oxygen, carbon dioxide
(sweet corrosion), or hydrogen sulfide (sour corrosion) in the produced fluids .
Total acid number is a measure of the acidity and corrosiveness of a crude oil.
It is a number expressed in mg KOH/ g. Higher numbers are more corrosive.
@
Exposed metal surfaces on equipment are painted for protection.
Inhibitors are chemicals that are injected to coat steel in the well and the @ @ 0-1 MM bbls oil
production facilities with a thin film. The inhibitor can be injected either
- DRY HOLE
0-1Tcfgas
@
@ 1-2 Tcfgas 1-2 MM bbls oU
automatically or manually in periodic batches into the casing-tubing
annulus of the well. A concrete coating can be used to protect the insides
SCAlE

--
OIL WEll

GA> WELL @2-3 Tcfgas 0 2:3 MM bbls oU

of flowlines. The tubing in injection and disposal wells is often lined with
plastic. Large metal structures such as pipelines and offshore production Fig. 24-12. Bubble map
447
446.
Nontechnical Guide to Petroleum Geology, Exploratio n, Drilling, and Production 3rd Edition Cha pter 24 Petroleum Production

Stranded Gas ~
Stranded gas is natural gas th a has no market. Largeres rvoi rs ofs tranq
gas occur in western iberia, n.otthwe tern anada, Alaska, and the lv!icid~d
East. Natural gas can be onverted into aliguid ro decrea e its volttn 1 an~
transport it tO a marke t either as liquefi d namr:tl gas or syn rheti ctltde oil
When methane is compressed and cooled to -269 of (- 167 ), it bec :
0 111
a liquid called liquefied natl/.ra/ gas (LNG). LNG ccupies 1/645 the vo l ume~
natural gas. Special tankers an chen be used to transp n: the LNG ac:ros
d1 sea to rnarkecs. h e largest conventio na l gas field in be world is haret~
by rbe cou nrries of Qatar (Nord1 Dome field) an d Iran (South Pars field)
(fig. 24- 13). Jt will produce 1,200 trillion ft.3 (36 tri lli on m 3 ) of natwat gas.
lt also contain 19 billion bb l (3 billion m 3 ) of recoverab le condensate. The '?
Lrap i a broad amidine, rhe reservoir r ck is rhe KhuffFonnarion with
dolomite a nd limestone, th seal is overlying sal and rbe source rod is a
\--, Iran
Silmian age black hale. Th reservoir rock in rhe South Par 6eld averages
9% porosity and 26 md permeability. ata.r has extensiv' LNG facilities
\
and is rhe w dd's largest LNG e.xpocter.
Gas-to-liquid involves mixing uatu ral gas and air in a reactor to fi rm
S)mthesis gas ( and 1). The synth esis gas is th en put in ao theY 1 actor
to for1,11 syotberic crude oil. Q arar also h as the wo rlds largest gas-to-
liquid facility.

"
0

Norttt\ //
Dome ,
Persian Gulf
--- ------

Fig. 24-13. Map of North Dome (Qatar) and South Pars (Iran) gas fields
T

C H A P T E R
15

Enhanced Oil Recovery

(EOR)

Historically, water flooding and gas

injection have been referred to as secondary recovery techniques and
other, more exotic, techniques have been referred to as tertiary tech-
niques. Today, the term enhanced oil recovery (EOR) includes both sec-
ondary and tertiary recovery techniques.
The worldwide average recovery efficiency for primary oil is on the
order of 33 percent. This means that, after primary recovery, two thirds
of the oil is left in the ground, principally as residual oil in water wet res-
ervoirs. Attempts to recover this oil include:

Secondary recovery techniques

-Water flooding
-Gas injection
Tertiary recovery techniques
-Chemical flooding processes:
Polymer flooding
Surfactant-polymer flooding
Caustic flooding
-Thermal recovery processes:
Steam flooding
Cyclic injection (huff and puff)
Steam drive
In-situ combustion

237
238 C H A P T E R 15 Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) Secondary Recovery Techniques 239

Hot water mobility ratio between normal oil and water is greater than 1, and water
Electromagnetic (microwaves) has a strong tendency to bypass oil. '
-Miscible recovery processes:
Miscible hydrocarbon displacement 15.1.3 Displacement efficiencies
Carbon dioxide injection
Methods that significantly help move oil through rock are:
Inert gas injection (nitrogen or flue gas)
-Microbial EOR 1. Increase the mobility of the oil relative to the water by:
(a ) Increasing the viscosity of the water. This is the principle
15.1 Some EOR Principles behind polymer flooding. Polymers added to water increase
The amount of oil that is recovered by water flooding and by other EOR the viscosity of the water, and thus, they lower the mobility
injection techniques is a function of the following: of the water.
(b) Decreasing the viscosity of the oil. This is part of the princi-
1. The amount of oil in place ple behind steam flooding and in-situ combustion. Viscosity
2. Volumetric sweep efficiency-the percentage of oil that is con- of oil decreas es significantly as it is heated.
tacted by the flood, which is a function of: 2. Help the oil move through the pore throats . This can be helped
(a) Areal sweep efficiency and by:
(b) Vertical sweep efficiency (a) Changing the interfacial tension at the pore throat
3. Displacement efficiency-the percentage of contacted oil that is (b) Changing the wetability characteristics of the rock
moved or displaced. (c) Changing the relative permeability of the fluids

15.1.1 Sweep efficiency Surfactants can play an important role in all three of the above, and
In making estimates of volumetric sweep efficiencies for reservoir simu- when combined with polymers, they can make a very effective (though
lations, geology must be considered. The geologist, through knowledge of expensive) flood.
facies patterns, must attempt to help the engineer to define flow units Another important means of getting oil through the pore throats is
within the reservoir. Flow units (defined later this chapter) are three- to dissolve the oil, in a more mobile solvent or dissolve a solvent in the
dimensional rock bodies in which fluids are likely to behave similarly. oil, either of which makes the oil more mobile . Both carbon dioxide floods
They are not necessarily defined by facies, but are areas of high and low and miscible hydrocarbon displacement methods employ this principle.
permeability that are likely to behave similarly under given flow condi-
tions. 15.2 Secondary Recovery Techniques
15.2.1 Water flooding
15.1.2 Mobility ratio Water flooding is used on a routine basis throughout the world to main-
One of the most important factors in determining sweep efficiency is the tain reservoir pressure and to push oil in front of a water front . Injected
mobility ratio between the two fluids. If the injected fluid is more mobile water is normally taken from the subsurface because surface waters or
than the oil, the injected fluid is very likely to finger ahead through seawater commonly react with formation waters to cause undesirable
zones of high permeability and bypass much ofthe oil. Fluid mobility is a precipitates or expansion of clay minerals. Whatever the origin of the
function of relative permeability for that fluid and the reciprocal of its water, its chemistry must be checked carefully against the chemistry of
viscosity. The mobility ratio is the ratio between the injected fluid the formation fluids to make certain that the fluids are chemically com-
divided by the displaced phase. If the ratio is less than 1, the injected patible. It can be quite embarrassing to start injecting water only to find
fluid should not bypass the displaced fluid. For untreated water the that the formation is now impermeable because of precipitates such as
240 C H A P T E R 15 Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) Secondary Recovery Techniques 241

BaS04 or other insoluble minerals caused by mixing of incompatible flu-

ROWS
ids. Such insoluble precipitates can virtually shut off permeability 5

around injection wells.

Configuration of the reservoir, depth, and cost are important factors
in determining which type of injection pattern to implement in a water
flood. Typically, for thin, steeply dipping reservoirs (Fig. 15-1), an edge u t::.
water drive is expected. Water injectors are placed near the original 0
0
'l:I
3:
0 WATER
INJECTOR
1>.'
water level and producing wells are placed updip. As the oil-water con-
tact moves updip and producing wells water out, the production wells are
progressively converted to water injectors.
0

"
u 0
0
~
~
I

In such a configuration (Fig. 15-1), wells are expected to water out

progressively from row 6 to row 5 to row 4, ~and row 3 if the sweep is good.
u
3:
0
1::.
WATER
INJECTOR
Unfortunately, in poor and inhomogeneous reservoirs it is not uncommon
for an updip well (such as in row 4) to water out first. This commonly
happens when injected water fingers its way up through a zone of high
permeability. This situation is undesirable because oil is commonly
bypassed or left behind in isolated areas. In some cases, the geologist
may be able to identify a facies pattern, such as a distributary channel
A'
within a delta front sand, where such fingering or channeling is likely to
ROWS
occur, and designs can sometimes be adjusted to accommodate for this
occurrence. For thick reservoirs in relatively flat-lying rocks, where bot-
tom water is present, or where no water is present, other configurations ,
such as those shown in Figure 15-2, are commonly used.

15.2.2 Gas injection

For gas reservoir associated with oil, it is of course undesirable (illegal in

some cases) to blow down the gas cap before the oil is produced. Wells
that produce from near the gas-oil contact commonly produce with a high
gas-oil ratio (GOR) as gas is coned downward into the oil perforations. In
order to maintain reservoir pressure, solution gas is commonly com- W11TE!:R INJECTOR

pressed and injected back into the gas cap. Alternatively, the compressed
gas may be injected into the annulus, where it passes through gas lift
mandrels into the tubing. This injected gas helps lighten the oil column Figure 15.1
in the tubing, which in turn helps lift the oil to the surface. Gas lift, like Map and cross section through highly dipping sediments s howing edge water drive.
Wells are expected to water out a nd be converted to water injectors successively from
pumping, is a primary oil recovery technique. rows 6 to 5 to 4.
242 C H A P T E R 15 Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) Tertiary Recovery Techniques 243

Surfactants Oil and water are immiscible, meaning that they

form emulsions in the subsurface that can be very difficult to break.
Emulsions are caused by high surface tension between the two fluids.
Surfactants such as soap or micelles are commonly added to polymer
floods to break the emulsions and decrease interfacial tension between
oil and water. Caustic soda is used to increase the pH of the reservoir,
and, depending on the type of crude, react with the oil to create surfac-
tants that help move the oil through the pore throats. Caustic flooding is
normally applied to relatively acid crudes with high API gravity
numbers.

15.3.2 Thermal recovery processes

Steam flooding consists of two principal types. In relatively small r eser-

voirs or reservoirs that do not have good lateral permeability, a steam
, .... ..o ... , \ , .. -o .......,

~ a : {
I
6
I

~
,r --tt... o /~---a soak is commonly used. Steam is injected into the reservoir and allowed
\ .... ,._.,. / I
' ... --o--... ~'
I
' 0 ;;;- --cf.. 0 to soak into the formation for a period of time, commonly a week. The
Two-spot Threespot ~-- t( 0 'p- -ll
, 0 '~---~' 0
steam heats the oil and reduces its viscosity. The injection well is then
4 Injection well
o Production well '
"A--d
I
0
I
b--0
produced for a period of time, also commonly a week. This procedure is
--- Pat tern boundary
fourapol Five-spot Seven-spot referred to as a "huff and puff' process, as the well or wells are alter-
nately used as injection wells and then as producing wells. In a conven-
'i' c a a o
tional steam flood, steam is injected through injection wells and
o---0\ o. .~ --o 0 0 ~ Q
' ' '
P---c{ o
-6---...6--b
.
0.-~ --~-- - o---~
' ' production occurs through production wells. Usually, this is a patterned
1:1.

0---({ ll. ~---0

o a

A-~----~
o 6
t a ~ a
~---o--~-0 -<?
t flood such that the entire reservoir is swept. Surfactants are commonly
' I
o' o' o'
6 9---0: A
D 0. 0 6 6 a
added to help mobilize the oil. Steam floods are normally used at rela-
o---(/ 6 ''o---o tively shallow depths because, as pressure increases with depth , higher
Inverted sevenspol Norma I nine.spol Inverted nine-spot Staggered line drive
temperatures are required to keep water in vapor form.
Figure 15.2
Cross section view of a bottom water drive reservoir and map view of typical well spot pat- In-situ combustion is a process whereby air or oxygen is injected
terns for water flood injection design.
into the formation where combustion of reservoir oil and gas can occur.
The heat generated by the combustion creates a steam bank that drives
15.3 Tertiary Recovery Techniques the oil to producing wells.
15.3.1 Chemical floods Hot water injection is much like a water flood, except that the water
is heated to reduce the viscosity of the oil.
Polymer flooding Polymers are commonly added to injection
water to make the water more viscous, thus reducing the water's mobil- Electromagnetic or heating by microwaves has been considered by a
ity. This tends to plug up the high-permeability zones which will number of companies. Microwaves are very efficient at heating surfaces,
normally improve sweep efficiency. Foam is another way to decrease but they do not penetrate more than a few centimeters past the surface.
the mobility of the displacing fluid and create a more uniform sweep To date, no one has discovered a method to transmit the energy deep into
efficiency. the formation where it can do some real good in terms of mobilizing oil.
244 C H A P T E R 15 Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) Reservoir Modeling 245

15.3.3 Miscible recovery processes (a) External shape

Miscible hydrocarbon displacement Oil and some natural gases, (b) Internal configuration of j:JOrosity and permeability:
such as ethane, are miscible, meaning that the surface tension between Horizontal permeability
the two phases is very low. Some natural gases tend to dissolve in oil, Vertical permeability
which can reduce the viscosity of the oil. Both of these processes can sig- Distribution oflow permeability zones
nificantly help move relatively heavy and viscous oils through pore Distribution of fluid saturations
throats. Miscible floods tend to be quite expensive, but they can be Internal configurations of flow units
attractive if the majority of the injected gas is ultimately recovered. Orientation and distribution of fractures
Carbon dioxide, nitrogen, and flue gases are the most commonly 2. Location of injectors and producing wells
injected gases because they are cheap, they are often readily available as 3. Pressure, volume, and temperature (PVT) data on the fluids to be
waste products, and they reduce the surface tension of the oil.
produced
4. Type of recovery technique to be employed
15.3.4 Microbial EOR
5. Flow rates for injectors and producing wells
'Ib date, no large-scale microbial projects have been attempted. There are
two principal ideas behind microbial EOR. In the first method, microbes 15.4.1 Reservoir characterization
plus nutrients are injected into the formation . The microbes decompose
Some reservoir modelers assume that the internal configuration of the
the oil to produce detergents, C0 2 , and new cells which either mechani-
reservoir is either isotropic and homogeneous, or so unpredictable that
cally or chemically release oil from the reservoir pores.
the geologist need not be consulted. The development geologist, based on
In the second method, microbes and nutrients are injected into the
correlation of well logs, petrographic data including porosity, and perme-
reservoir, where they partially degrade the oil. Through this mechanism,
ability data, plus regional data , almost always has some depositional and
the degraded oil and microbes block off areas of highest permeability
diagenetic models in mind for every reservoir. Rarely do those models
such that further injection of other fluids causes the zones of lower per-
assume an isotropic and homogeneous internal configuration. In order to
meability to be selectively flushed.
model a reservoir properly the geologist and engineer must describe or
characterize the reservoir in terms of all of the above characteristics. The
15.3.5 Comments on recovery
geologist, in particular, must describe flow units .
Finally, the injection of anything that increases a pressure gradient in
the reservoir should help additional amounts of oil pop through the pore 15.4.2 Flow units
throats of the reservoir. Once oil is in discontinuous phase, it becomes
Flow units are reservoir units in the subsurface that are in hydrody-
very difficult to move. All of the above methods are enhanced by the
namic communication and have similar porosity and permeability char-
injection of fluids in slugs such that the oil moves through the rock in
acteristics. Commonly they are facies-dependent, but they need not be.
zones of continuous phase oil.
For example, Figure 15-3 shows an example from the Pennsylvanian of
the central U.S. where a prograding delta-front sandstone is overprinted
15.4 Reservoir Modeling by a meandering stream sequence. Although five general facies can be
When secondary and tertiary recovery techniques are being considered, identified, only three flow units are important. From lower to upper, they
reservoir engineers commonly develop computer programs that model are:
each ofthe reservoirs. To work properly, such programs must consider all
of the following: 1. Submarine delta front:. This facies is composed of either silt-
stone or thinly bedded alternating sandstone and mudstone . It is
1. Overall geometry of the reservoir: a transition zone between prodelta mudstone and delta front
246 C H A P T E A 15 Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) Reservoir Modeling 247

T A deterministic model is a m qdel where the geologist is asked to

h
ell.:~
make the best interpretation possible from the existing data. A deter-
~::~
ministic model for the clay plugs may be possible if three-dimensional
~s~ seismic imaging is available (Fig. 14-11), but more commonly the geolo-
~~
~ ~!~ gist knows that the permeability barriers are present in the reservoir,
-~- - - - -- ~-- __ _r
..... PROGRADING DELTA FOLLOW!IO !'I' M~DERING STREAM
but has no way of knowing exactly where they are.
Newer probabilistic models (sometimes referred to as stochastic
models) allow the geologist to assign statistical probabilities to the
model. For example, in the point bar sequence example, the development
geologist may be able to make the following probabilistic statements:

1. The lower part of the reservoir will have good horizontal perme-
Figure 15.3 ability, and has an 80 percent chance of being in communication
Map and cross section view of a typical Pennsylvanian river-dominated delta. The prograd- with a well located 1000 feet away.
ing delta front is overprinted by a meandering stream sequence. Flow units consist oflower,
poor quality submarine delta-front siltstone or thin-bedded alternating sandstone and mud- 2. A well drilled 1000 feet away has a 20 percent chance of being
stone; high-quality delta-front sandstone and lower, point bar channel fill sequence; and up- totally isolated from the first well by a clay plug that may cut
per point bar sequence which will have poor lateral continuity and highly partitioned down through the whole sequence.
reservoirs.
3. The upper part ofthe reservoir, while having good horizontal per-
meability as determined from cores , is very likely to have
sandstone. It is composed of poor quality reservoir rock and will
extremely poor lateral continuity because of clay drapes. The
be very difficult to both produce and water flood.
upper part of the reservoir has a 90 percent chance that it will be
2. Delta-front sandstone and lower point bar sequence: This shingled by impermeable clay drapes, and lateral continuity of
is the best quality reservoir rock and, even though depositional the reservoir should not be expected to exceed 300 feet.
environments are very different, their flow characteristics are
4. There is a 10 percent chance that the clay drapes have been
similar for transmission of fluids.
destroyed by a chute cutoff. If this has happened, the upper part
3. Upper point bar sequence: Although oriented core samples of of the reservoir should have good lateral continuity.
sandstone show high horizontal permeability, this area is likely
to have clay plugs and clay drapes (see Chapter 12 for details)
These geologic models, coupled with the flow unit concept and res-
and have highly partitioned reservoirs. Horizontal permeability
ervoir simulation models, can create probabilistic (or statistical) models
is likely to be highly restricted even though core data say other-
that are far superior to the older deterministic models. Not only are the
wise.
models better, but they give full-range statistics that can be interpreted
for errors.
15.4.3 Models
The concept of reservoir characterization and definition of flow
To model this reservoir as a homogeneous reservoir would certainly give units within reservoirs are fundamental to all secondary recovery and
incorrect results. The problem for the geologist is that, although it is EOR programs. Geologic input is one of the most important aspects of
known that the clay plugs and clay drapes are present, there is com- reservoir characterization, and if there is any place where the geologist,
monly no way of knowing exactly where they are. engineer, and statistician must work together, this is it.