Themis Carageorgos

Size exclusion deep bed filtration: Experimental and modelling uncertainties

A detailed uncertainty analysis associated with carboxyl-modified latex particle capture in glass bead-formed porous media enabled verification of the two theoretical stochastic models for prediction of particle retention due to size exclusion. At the beginning of this analysis it is established that size exclusion is a dominant particle capture mechanism in the present study: calculated significant repulsive Derjaguin-Landau-Verwey-Overbeek potential between latex particles and glass beads is an indication of their mutual repulsion, thus, fulfilling the necessary condition for size exclusion. Applying linear uncertainty propagation method in the form of truncated Taylors series expansion, combined standard uncertainties (CSUs) in normalised suspended particle concentrations are calculated using CSUs in experimentally determined parameters such as: an inlet volumetric flowrate of suspension, particle number in suspensions, particle concentrations in inlet and outlet streams, particle and pore throat size distributions. Weathering of glass beads in high alkaline solutions does not appreciably change particle size distribution, and, therefore, is not considered as an additional contributor to the weighted mean particle radius and corresponded weighted mean standard deviation. Weighted mean particle radius and LogNormal mean pore throat radius are characterised by the highest CSUs among all experimental parameters translating to high CSU in the jamming ratio factor (dimensionless particle size). Normalised suspended particle concentrations calculated via two theoretical models are characterised by higher CSUs than those for experimental data. The model accounting the fraction of inaccessible flow as a function of latex particle radius excellently predicts normalised suspended particle concentrations for the whole range of jamming ratios. The presented uncertainty analysis can be also used for comparison of intra- and inter-laboratory particle size exclusion data.

Stimulation of Unconventional Naturally Fractured Reservoirs by Graded Proppant Injection: Experimental Study and Mathematical Model

The coal permeability declines due to fracture closure during the production and pressure depletion. The recently proposed technique for stimulation of natural coal cleats consists of the injection of microsized high-strength particles into a coal natural fractured system below the fracturing pressure. Coupling this technique with hydraulic fracturing treatment resulted in particles entering cleats under leal-off condition. In the current paper it is shown that the particles must be deposited at specific conditions of the particle-coal repulsion, ensuring the absence of external cake formation. The new method was successfully validated through laboratory injection of microsized glass particles into fractured coal cores. Application of Derjaguin-Landau-Verwey-Overbeek (DLVO) theory resulted in determination of experimental conditions favourable for particle-particle and particle-coal repulsion; these conditions also immobilize the natural fines. At these conditions, no particle attachment to coal surface and no particle agglomeration were observed, thus the conditions exclude formation damage due to external cake formation, particle attraction to coal rock and fines migration. The previously developed mathematical model was used for determination of the duration of particle injection into a coal core at minimum effective stress. Particle placement resulted in almost three-time increase in coal permeability, thus confirming the mathematical model used. The curve for well productivity index-vs-stimulation zone radius reaches maximum at some critical value of stimulation radius; the maximum is determined by the mathematical model. Placing particles beyond this critical radius results in reduction of well productivity index, due to significant hydraulic losses experienced by suspension flowing through narrowing cleat apertures during production stage. Applying the proposed novel technology during hydraulic fracturing treatment leads to improvement in productivity of coal seam gas wells and other unconventional resources (shales, tight gas and geothermal reservoirs) through enhancement of interConnectivity among microfractures around the hydraulically induced fractures.

A new laboratory method for evaluation of sulfate scaling parameters from pressure measurements

Sulfate scaling in offshore waterflood projects, in which sulfate from the injected seawater (SW) reacts with metals from the formation water (FW), forming salt deposit that reduces permeability and well productivity, is a well known phenomenon. Its reliable prediction is based on mathematical models with well-known parameters. Previous research presents methods for laboratory determination of model coefficients using breakthrough concentration during coreflooding. The concentration measurements are complex and cumbersome, while the pressure measurements are simple and require standard laboratory equipment. In the present work, a new laboratory method is developed for determination of the model coefficients from pressure measurements. Several laboratory core-floods have been performed. The tests show that the proposed method is more precise for artificial cores than for the natural reservoir cores. Further development of the method is required to determine parameters of formation damage caused by sulfate scaling for reservoir core samples.

Graded Proppant Injection into Coal Seam Gas and Shale Gas Reservoirs for Well Stimulation

Alireza Keshavarz, Alexander Badalyan, Themis Carageorgos, Pavel Bedrikovetsky, and Ray Johnson Jr.

Effect of Suspension Fluid Chemistry on Fracture System Stimulation Using Micro-Sized Proppant Placement

The physical model and experimental data support the beneficial technology of graded proppant injection into naturally fractured reservoirs to stimulate natural fracture permeability. Injection of particles with increasing size, at poroelastic and hydraulic fracturing conditions, yield deeper penetration and gradual filling of natural fractures with a resulting increase in permeability. This work expands on the concepts and outlines steps to maximize the benefit of graded proppant injection to enhance coal seam gas stimulation by focusing on the effect of the chemistry of injected fluid on the overall performance and the use in conjunction with hydraulic fracturing. Low productivity indices can be observed in many moderate- to low-permeability coal bed methane (CSG) reservoirs due to low aperture and poor connectivity of natural cleats. Graded proppant injection in CSG environments can: stimulate a stress sensitive cleat system below the fracturing pressure as well as enhance a fracturing treatment by invading cleats, lowering fluid leakoff, and maintaining aperture during production. Further, periodic or remedial treatments could to counter effective stress on the cleats improving production by maintaining cleat aperture. Laboratory tests on coal core flooding by water under increasing pore pressure with proppant injection at the maximum pressure have been carried out under different salinities of the injected water. Proppantproppant and proppant-coal Derjaguin-Landau-Verwey-Overbeek (DLVO) total interaction energies were calculated to optimise the condition for successful proppant placement. Results on the DLVO total energy of interaction showed that conditions favourable for successful proppant placement in coal cleats are suspension ionic strengths between 0.05 M and 0.1 M NaCl. At these conditions no proppant agglomeration and proppant-coal attachment are observed, allowing deeper penetration of proppant into the natural coal cleat system. Lower suspension ionic strengths can lead to natural coal fines migration, cleat plugging and coal permeability reduction. Based on the experimental results and previously developed model a case study has been conducted to evaluate the productivity enhancement using this technique. The results show about four-fold increase in well productivity index at injections below fracturing pressures and may further improve the stimulated reservoir volume when used in conjunction with low permeability coal hydraulic fracturing treatments.

Fines Migration in Aquifers and Oilfields: Laboratory and Mathematical Modelling

Migration of natural reservoir fines is one of the main causes of formation damage in oil and gas fields. Yet, fines migration can be employed for enhancing reservoir sweep and water production control. Permeability decline due to fine particles’ detachment from reservoir rocks, mobilisation, migration and straining has been widely reported in the petroleum industry since the 1960s and is being researched worldwide. The topic of colloidal-suspension flows with particle detachment is also of wide interest in environmental, chemical and civil engineering. The current work begins with a detailed introduction on laboratory and mathematical modelling of fines migration, along with new mathematical models and experimental results. Each of the next three sections explores a particular cause of fines mobilisation, migration and straining. Section 2 covers high flow velocity that causes particle detachment accompanied by consequent permeability decline. Section 3 covers low-salinity water injection, where the decreased electrostatic attraction leads to particle mobilisation. Section 4 covers the effect of high temperature on production rate and low-salinity water injection in geothermal reservoirs. We attribute the long permeability stabilisation period during coreflooding with fines migration, to slow fines rolling and sliding and to diffusive delay in particle mobilisation. We derive the analytical models for both phenomena. Laboratory fines-migration coreflood tests are carried out, with the measurement of breakthrough fines concentration and pressure drop across the whole core and the core’s section. Treatment of the experimental data and analysis of the tuned coefficients show that the slow-particle model contains fewer coefficients and exhibits more typical strained concentration dependencies of the tuned parameters than does the delay-release model.

Improving the conductivity of natural fracture systems in conjunction with hydraulic fracturing in stress sensitive reservoirs

The technology of injecting micro-sized proppant particles along with fracturing fluid is proposed to improve the conductivity of naturally fracture systems (e.g., cleats, natural fractures) in stress sensitive reservoirs, by placing graded particles in a larger, preserved stimulated reservoir volume around the induced hydraulical fracture. One of the main parameters determining the efficiency of the proposed technology is the concentration of placed proppant particles in the fracture systems. A laboratory study has been conducted to evaluate the effect of placed proppant concentration on coal permeability enhancement using a one-dimensional linear injection of micro-sized proppant into coal core and varying effective stress. Permeability values are measured for different concentrations of placed particles as a function of effective stress. The results show that there is an optimum concentration of placed particles for which the cleat system permeability reaches a maximum and permeability enhancement is more sensitive to concentration of placed proppant at higher than lower effective stress. The experimental results show maximum permeability enhancement of about 20% for an optimum concentration of placed particles at 490 psi effective stress. Permeability enhancement by 3.2 folds is observed at elevated effective stress of 950 psi. Finally, the paper proposes a field application strategy to apply graded particle injection in field case study.

Laboratory and Mathematical Modelling of Fines Production from CSG Interburden Rocks

Twelve clastic core samples from the Walloon Coal Measures, Surat Basin were tested for disintegration in artificially produced fluids varying in ionic strength. XRD data confirm the presence of smectite (water sensitive clay) in the samples. Flow-through rock disintegration experiments demonstrate that the higher the concentration of smectite and soluble plagioclase is, the quicker rock disintegrates in artificial low ionic strength fluid. Pre-soaking of rocks with high ionic strength fluid reduces rock disintegration rate in low ionic strength fluids. This is explained by very strong clay-clay and clay-sand attraction forces, evidenced through zeta-potential measurements, which inhibit rock degradation. For the studied samples it is clear that rock disintegration rate is proportional to fluid velocity. Experimental rock disintegration data are fitted by a power erosion model with two adjusted parameters: fluid ionic strength and Reynolds number. The experimental results satisfactorily agree with theoretical data. Rock disintegration rates are calculated as released particle volume per thickness of interburden layer per day at a fixed Reynolds number and low ionic strength. The laboratory work suggests that keeping wells under strong ionic fluid during shut-in times and a reduction of water production rate will preserve rock integrity for a longer period of time.

New Laboratory Method to Assess Formation Damage in Geothermal Wells

The new method to assess permeability damage in geothermal reservoirs and predict well productivity decline is presented. The laboratory methodology developed aims to determine permeability decline from mobilisation, migration and straining of natural reservoir fines. Laboratory coreflood testing with constant and stepwise decreasing ionic strength has been performed with measurements of the pressure drop along the core and accumulated effluent particle concentration. Stabilisation of rock permeability occurs after injection of numerous pore volumes, suggesting slow drift of mobilised particles if compared with the carrier water velocity. Low ionic strength water increases electrostatic repulsion forces between clay particles and sand grain surfaces, further mobilising particles and resulting in formation damage. Kaolinite and illite/chlorite mixed layer clay minerals are identified by SEM-EDAX analysis and are the minerals primarily responsible for the permeability damage. The competitive effects of decreasing water viscosity and weakening electrostatic attraction on the attached particle concentration during temperature increase have been observed. The micro-modeling of the fine particle mechanical equilibrium shows that the water viscosity effect on the fine particle attachment dominates. It results in decreased fines detachment and permeability decline at high temperatures.