Abstract
The use of LSWF (Low Salinity Water Flooding) is becoming more prevalent in recent years which can both improve the recovery factor and reduce the cost compared to other EOR (enhanced oil recovery) technics. This is especially important for the offshore oilfield development at present. Moreover, good quality of injected water is more applicable to low permeability sand which is characterized as smaller pore-throat radius and is easier damaged. Therefore, LSWF technology is proposed to address the above production problem while reduce the investment of equipment upgrade.
In this paper, we presented the optimization and implementation of LSWF for offshore low permeability reservoir. Firstly, we provided a critical review of LSWF included the main mechanisms, laboratory test and field effect. Secondly, we designed and conducted several laboratory core flood tests. Thirdly, a lot of synthetic models were established to simulate the effects of LSWF and to optimize the field program. Finally, the production performance of the pilot wells was discussed.
After LSWF, the water injection well presents the phenomenon of "scissors" - the injection pressure drops significantly below the safety pressure while the injection volume increases. Moreover, the decline of pilot well groups decreased by 20% ~ 26% compared with non-water flooded. The estimated recovery factor increased by 12%, which is consistent with other field tests worldwide. In summary, LSWF is a feasible, neconomic and efficient method for offshore low permeability reservoir production.
