Local Equilibrium Mechanistic Simulation of CO2-Foam Flooding

Mapping Intimacies ◽

10.2118/203922-ms ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Muhammad Majid Almajid ◽

Zuhair A. AlYousef ◽

Othman S. Swaie

Keyword(s):

Local Equilibrium ◽

Computational Cost ◽

Population Balance ◽

Newton Iteration ◽

Foam Flow ◽

Co2 Foam ◽

Foam Model ◽

Bubble Density ◽

Grid Block ◽

Foam Flooding

Abstract Mechanistic modeling of the non-Newtonian CO2-foam flow in porous media is a challenging task that is computationally expensive due to abrupt gas mobility changes. The objective of this paper is to present a local equilibrium (LE) CO2-foam mechanistic model, which could alleviate some of the computational cost, and its implementation in the Matlab Reservoir Simulation Tool (MRST). Interweaving the LE-foam model into MRST enables users quick prototyping and testing of new ideas and/or mechanistic expressions. We use MRST, the open source tool available from SINTEF, to implement our LE-foam model. The model utilizes MRST automatic differentiation capability to compute the fluxes as well as the saturations of the aqueous and the gaseous phases at each Newton iteration. These computed variables and fluxes are then fed into the LE-foam model that estimates the bubble density (number of bubbles per unit volume of gas) in each grid block. Finally, the estimated bubble density at each grid block is used to readjust the gaseous phase mobility until convergence is achieved. Unlike the full-physics model, the LE-foam model does not add a population balance equation for the flowing bubbles. The developed LE-foam model, therefore, does not add much computational cost to solving a black oil system of equations as it uses the information from each Newton iteration to adjust the gas mobility. Our model is able to match experimental transient foam flooding results from the literature. The chosen flowing foam fraction (Xf) formula dictates to a large extent the behavior of the solution. An appropriate formula for Xf needs to be chosen such that our simulations are more predictive. The work described in this paper could help in prototyping various ideas about generation and coalescence of bubbles as well as any other correlations used in any population balance model. The chosen model can then be used to predict foam flow and estimate economic value of any foam pilot project.

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Modeling Foam Displacement with the Local-Equilibrium Approximation: Theory and Experimental Verification

SPE Journal ◽

10.2118/116735-pa ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 15 (01) ◽

pp. 171-183 ◽

Cited By ~ 63

Author(s):

Q.. Chen ◽

M.G.. G. Gerritsen ◽

A.R.. R. Kovscek

Keyword(s):

Porous Media ◽

Local Equilibrium ◽

Population Balance ◽

Entrance Region ◽

Balance Model ◽

Population Balance Model ◽

Gas Bubble ◽

Foam Generation ◽

Foam Model ◽

Bubble Sizes

Summary The gas-mobility-control aspects of foamed gas make it highly applicable for improved oil recovery. Gas-bubble size, often referred to as foam texture, determines gas-flow behavior in porous media. A population-balance model has been developed previously for modeling foam texture and flow in porous media. The model incorporates pore-level mechanisms of foam-bubble generation, coalescence, and transport. Here, we propose a simplified foam model to reduce computational costs. The formulation is based on the assumption of local equilibrium of foam generation and coalescence and is applicable to high- and low-quality foams. The proposed foam model is compatible with a standard reservoir simulator. It provides a potentially useful, efficient tool to predict foam flows accurately at the field scale for designing and managing foamed-gas applications. There are three main contributions of this paper. First, foam-displacement experiments in a linear sandstone core are conducted. A visualization cell is employed to measure the effluent foam-bubble sizes for a transient flow as well as to estimate the in-situ foam-bubble sizes along the length of the core during steady-state flow. These appear to be the first measurements of foam-bubble texture in the entrance region of a core. Additionally, the evolution of aqueous-phase saturation is monitored using X-ray computed tomography (CT), and the pressure profile is measured by a series of pressure taps. Second, the population-balance representation of foam generation by gas-bubble snap-off is modified to extend the capability of the population-balance approach to predict foam-flow behaviors in both the so-called high-quality and low-quality regimes. Third, a simplified population-balance model is developed and implemented with the local-equilibrium approximation. Good agreement is found between the experimental results and the predictions of the simplified model, with a minor mismatch in the entrance region.

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Modeling Polymer Enhanced Foam Flow in Porous Media Using An Improved Population-Balance Foam Model

10.2118/190162-ms ◽

2018 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Haishan Luo ◽

Kun Ma ◽

Khalid Mateen ◽

Guangwei Ren ◽

Gilles Bourdarot ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Porous Media ◽

Population Balance ◽

Flow In Porous Media ◽

Foam Flow ◽

Foam Model

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Mobility of Ethomeen C12 and Carbon Dioxide (CO2) Foam at High Temperature/High Salinity and in Carbonate Cores

SPE Journal ◽

10.2118/179726-pa ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 21 (04) ◽

pp. 1151-1163 ◽

Cited By ~ 44

Author(s):

Leyu Cui ◽

Kun Ma ◽

Maura Puerto ◽

Ahmed A. Abdala ◽

Ivan Tanakov ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Carbon Dioxide ◽

High Temperature ◽

High Salinity ◽

Local Equilibrium ◽

Co2 Flooding ◽

Sweep Efficiency ◽

Co2 Foam ◽

Foam Model ◽

Wide Range ◽

Carbon Dioxide Co2

Summary The low viscosity and density of carbon dioxide (CO2) usually result in the poor sweep efficiency in CO2-flooding processes, especially in heterogeneous formations. Foam is a promising method to control the mobility and thus reduce the CO2 bypass because of the gravity override and heterogeneity of formations. A switchable surfactant, Ethomeen C12, has been reported as an effective CO2-foaming agent in a sandpack with low adsorption on pure-carbonate minerals. Here, the low mobility of Ethomeen C12/CO2 foam at high temperature (120 °C), high pressure (3,400 psi), and high salinity [22 wt% of total dissolved solids (TDS)] was demonstrated in Silurian dolomite cores and in a wide range of foam qualities. The influence of various parameters, including aqueous solubility, thermal and chemical stability, flow rate, foam quality, salinity, temperature, and minimum-pressure gradient (MPG), on CO2 foam was discussed. A local-equilibrium foam model, the dry-out foam model, was used to fit the experimental data for reservoir simulation.

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The effect of nanosilica sizes in the presence of nonionic TX100 surfactant on CO2 foam flooding

Petroleum Research ◽

10.1016/j.ptlrs.2021.06.004 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Suriatie Mat Yusuf ◽

Radzuan Junin ◽

Mohd Akhmal Muhamad Sidek ◽

Muhammad A. Manan ◽

Mohd Fazril Irfan Ahmad Fuad ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Co2 Foam ◽

Foam Flooding

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Study on the regional characteristics during foam flooding by population balance model

Energy Exploration & Exploitation ◽

10.1177/0144598720983614 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 014459872098361

Author(s):

Zhongbao Wu ◽

Qingjun Du ◽

Bei Wei ◽

Jian Hou

Keyword(s):

Numerical Simulation ◽

Simulation Model ◽

Oil Recovery ◽

Population Balance ◽

Growth Zone ◽

Balance Model ◽

Population Balance Model ◽

Liquid Ratio ◽

One Dimensional ◽

Foam Flooding

Foam flooding is an effective method for enhancing oil recovery in high water-cut reservoirs and unconventional reservoirs. It is a dynamic process that includes foam generation and coalescence when foam flows through porous media. In this study, a foam flooding simulation model was established based on the population balance model. The stabilizing effect of the polymer and the coalescence characteristics when foam encounters oil were considered. The numerical simulation model was fitted and verified through a one-dimensional displacement experiment. The pressure difference across the sand pack in single foam flooding and polymer-enhanced foam flooding both agree well with the simulation results. Based on the numerical simulation, the foam distribution characteristics in different cases were studied. The results show that there are three zones during foam flooding: the foam growth zone, stable zone, and decay zone. These characteristics are mainly influenced by the adsorption of surfactant, the gas–liquid ratio, the injection rate, and the injection scheme. The oil recovery of polymer-enhanced foam flooding is estimated to be 5.85% more than that of single foam flooding. Moreover, the growth zone and decay zone in three dimensions are considerably wider than in the one-dimensional model. In addition, the slug volume influences the oil recovery the most in the foam enhanced foam flooding, followed by the oil viscosity and gas-liquid ratio. The established model can describe the dynamic change process of foam, and can thus track the foam distribution underground and aid in optimization of the injection strategies during foam flooding.

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Differences in the Upscaling Procedure for Compositional Reservoir Simulations of Immiscible and Miscible Gas Flooding

10.2118/203970-ms ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Victor de Souza Rios ◽

Arne Skauge ◽

Ken Sorbie ◽

Gang Wang ◽

Denis José Schiozer ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Computational Cost ◽

Specific Treatment ◽

Dynamic Responses ◽

Scale Model ◽

Small Scale ◽

Coarse Scale ◽

Reservoir Models ◽

Permeability Upscaling ◽

Gas Flooding ◽

Grid Block

Abstract Compositional reservoir simulation is essential to represent the complex interactions associated with gas flooding processes. Generally, an improved description of such small-scale phenomena requires the use of very detailed reservoir models, which impact the computational cost. We provide a practical and general upscaling procedure to guide a robust selection of the upscaling approaches considering the nature and limitations of each reservoir model, exploring the differences between the upscaling of immiscible and miscible gas injection problems. We highlight the different challenges to achieve improved upscaled models for immiscible and miscible gas displacement conditions with a stepwise workflow. We first identify the need for a special permeability upscaling technique to improve the representation of the main reservoir heterogeneities and sub-grid features, smoothed during the upscaling process. Then, we verify if the use of pseudo-functions is necessary to correct the multiphase flow dynamic behavior. At this stage, different pseudoization approaches are recommended according to the miscibility conditions of the problem. This study evaluates highly heterogeneous reservoir models submitted to immiscible and miscible gas flooding. The fine models represent a small part of a reservoir with a highly refined set of grid-block cells, with 5 × 5 cm2 area. The upscaled coarse models present grid-block cells of 8 × 10 m2 area, which is compatible with a refined geological model in reservoir engineering studies. This process results in a challenging upscaling ratio of 32 000. We show a consistent procedure to achieve reliable results with the coarse-scale model under the different miscibility conditions. For immiscible displacement situations, accurate results can be obtained with the coarse models after a proper permeability upscaling procedure and the use of pseudo-relative permeability curves to improve the dynamic responses. Miscible displacements, however, requires a specific treatment of the fluid modeling process to overcome the limitations arising from the thermodynamic equilibrium assumption. For all the situations, the workflow can lead to a robust choice of techniques to satisfactorily improve the coarse-scale simulation results. Our approach works on two fronts. (1) We apply a dual-porosity/dual-permeability upscaling process, developed by Rios et al. (2020a), to enable the representation of sub-grid heterogeneities in the coarse-scale model, providing consistent improvements on the upscaling results. (2) We generate specific pseudo-functions according to the miscibility conditions of the gas flooding process. We developed a stepwise procedure to deal with the upscaling problems consistently and to enable a better understanding of the coarsening process.

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