A Novel Method to Calculate Water Influx Parameters and Geologic Reserves for Fractured-Vuggy Reservoirs with Bottom/Edge Water

Chao Yao, Ruofan Yan, Fei Zhou, Qi Zhang, Ge Niu, Fangfang Chen, Wen Cao and Jing Wang ()
Additional contact information
Chao Yao: Tarim Oilfield Company, PetroChina, Korla 841000, China
Ruofan Yan: State Key Laboratory of Oil and Gas Resources and Engineering, China University of Petroleum (Beijing), Beijing 102249, China
Fei Zhou: Tarim Oilfield Company, PetroChina, Korla 841000, China
Qi Zhang: Research Institute of Petroleum Exploration and Development, Beijing 100083, China
Ge Niu: Tarim Oilfield Company, PetroChina, Korla 841000, China
Fangfang Chen: Tarim Oilfield Company, PetroChina, Korla 841000, China
Wen Cao: Tarim Oilfield Company, PetroChina, Korla 841000, China
Jing Wang: State Key Laboratory of Oil and Gas Resources and Engineering, China University of Petroleum (Beijing), Beijing 102249, China

Energies, 2024, vol. 17, issue 12, 1-16

Abstract: In practical oilfield production, the phenomenon of water influx typically shortens the water-free recovery period of wells, leading to water flooding and causing a sharp decline in the production well yields, bringing great harm to production. Water invasion usually occurs as a result of the elastic expansion of the water as well as the compaction of the aquifer pore space. However, it can be due to the special characteristics of fractured-vuggy reservoirs such as non-homogeneity and the discrete distribution of the pore spaces. It is challenging to use traditional seepage flow theories to analyze the characteristics of water influx. Also, reservoir numerical simulation methods require numerous parameters which are difficult to obtain, which significantly reduces the accuracy of the results. In this study, considering the driving energy for water influx, a water influx characteristic model was obtained by fitting a graph plate. Subsequently, an iterative calculation method was used to simultaneously obtain water influx volume and OOIP. The aquifer to hydrocarbon ratio was determined by fitting the water influx curve with the graphic plate. Results show that the calculation method is sensitive to the values of reservoir pressure and the crude oil formation volume factor. After applying the method to one field case, it was discovered that water influx performance can be characterized into two types, i.e., linear water influx and logarithmic water influx. In the early stages, the water influx rate of logarithmic water influx is greater compared to linear water influx. However, the volume and energy of waterbody are limited, and the water invasion phenomenon occurs almost exclusively within a short period after the invasion. On the other hand, the volume of waterbody invaded by linear water influx is larger, and it can maintain a stable rate of water influx. The results of the study can provide theoretical support for the waterbody energy evaluation and dynamic analysis of water influx, as well as the control and management of water in these types of reservoirs.

Keywords: water influx; material balance; OOIP; aquifer to hydrocarbon ratio (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/17/12/2822/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/17/12/2822/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jeners:v:17:y:2024:i:12:p:2822-:d:1411229

Access Statistics for this article

Energies is currently edited by Ms. Agatha Cao

More articles in Energies from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().