A review on the applications of nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) in the oil and gas industry: laboratory and field-scale measurements

Abstract

This review presents the latest update, applications, techniques of the NMR tools in both laboratory and field scales in the oil and gas upstream industry. The applications of NMR in the laboratory scale were thoroughly reviewed and summarized such as porosity, pores size distribution, permeability, saturations, capillary pressure, and wettability. NMR is an emerging tool to evaluate the improved oil recovery techniques, and it was found to be better than the current techniques used for screening, evaluation, and assessment. For example, NMR can define the recovery of oil/gas from the different pore systems in the rocks compared to other macroscopic techniques that only assess the bulk recovery. This manuscript included different applications for the NMR in enhanced oil recovery research. Also, NMR can be used to evaluate the damage potential of drilling, completion, and production fluids laboratory and field scales. Currently, NMR is used to evaluate the emulsion droplet size and its behavior in the pore space in different applications such as enhanced oil recovery, drilling, completion, etc. NMR tools in the laboratory and field scales can be used to assess the unconventional gas resources and NMR showed a very good potential for exploration and production advancement in unconventional gas fields compared to other tools. Field applications of NMR during exploration and drilling such as logging while drilling, geosteering, etc., were reviewed as well. Finally, the future and potential research directions of NMR tools were introduced which include the application of multi-dimensional NMR and the enhancement of the signal-to-noise ratio of the collected data during the logging while drilling operations.

Oil Recovery Performance by Surfactant Flooding: A Perspective on Multiscale Evaluation Methods

“…NMR, for example, suffers from the effect of paramagnetic ions on measurements in addition to the capillary forces induced by the removal of the core samples from the core holder used to carry out those measurements. Additionally , NMR measurements require rock samples shorter than 4 in., which is a limitation since, as stated earlier, a short core sample creates capillary end effects. Some of these limitations can be alleviated by using in situ measurement techniques such as MRI.…”

“…for more representative results and to eliminate the capillary end effects. 143 Long core samples entail larger pore volumes, which require long injection times, especially when experiments are conducted at low flow rates.…”

“…Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) is an effective, quick, and accurate method utilized to quantify the saturations of fluids in rock samples and characterize the pore structure. Elsayed et al 143 presented a review on the applications of NMR in the oil and gas industry. Among those application is the inclusion of NMR in the evaluation of different EOR methods.…”

“…Moreover, coreflooding experiments are time-consuming and not cost-effective, as they require long core samples (typically from 6–20 in.) for more representative results and to eliminate the capillary end effects . Long core samples entail larger pore volumes, which require long injection times, especially when experiments are conducted at low flow rates.…”

Barite Removal Using Macropa: Simulation and Solubility Investigations

“…The microscopic structure of the barite scale can be used to determine the positions and severity of barium sulfate deposition. Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) can be used to assess the changes in the porous medium due to the accumulation of barite minerals within the pore space. , Permeability measurement presents an effective approach to quantifying the damage induced by barite minerals . A higher pressure drop and lower rock permeability will be obtained once the barite minerals are deposited within the porous medium.…”