A Review on Fluids Technology for Near-Wellbore Remediation

Abstract

In the last two decades, the oil industry has dedicated considerable resources and efforts to developing chemical treatments to remove near-wellbore damage. The two main lines of work include formulations with multiple components (either solvent-based or water-based) and multifunctional microemulsion technologies that combine solvent-based and water-based treatments in a single-phase fluid. Microemulsion technology has been applied in onshore and offshore wells, open-hole and cased-hole wells, newly drilled wells, and mature fields with issues of declining production. Various formulations are currently used for near-wellbore remediation in the oil industry. This paper reviews publications relevant to near-wellbore remediation, in particular those that discuss microemulsion treatments. The review covers types of near-wellbore damage (emulsions, drilling fluids damage, sludge, scales, wettability alteration, paraffins and asphaltenes deposits) and the results of microemulsion evaluation and near-wellbore damage treatments. The paper also presents a suite of laboratory tests for microemulsion evaluation and selection for near-wellbore remediation.