On the importance of gel rigidity and coverage in a smart water shutoff treatment in gas wells

Sharifpour, Elham; Escrochi, Mehdi; Riazi, Masoud; Ayatollahi, Shahab

doi:10.1016/j.jngse.2016.03.001

Cited by 13 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 25 publications

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“…Sharifpour et al (2016) pointed out that during low gas flow rates, gel performance is mainly controlled by the ability of the polymer to fill up the rock space, while at higher gas flow rates, the gel rigidity controls gel performance. 31 We thus hypothesized that (for our particular conditions), two factors control the gel behavior during drainage (as the gas flow rate increases), namely, (a) reduction in the irreducible water saturation (S wir ), and/or (b) polymer layer expansion; these factors were thus examined, and the results are discussed below in Sections 3.3.2 and 3.3.3.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…These observations are considerably different from those reported previously, where the gel formed only in the edges and crevices of grains. 23,31,35 Most likely, in these previous studies, gel layer formation was not observed as the layer was too thin and totally transparent (but still existed, see above).…”

Section: Effect Of Irreducible Water Saturation (S Wir )mentioning

confidence: 88%

“…Furthermore, it was previously shown that the efficiency of a water shutoff treatment strongly depends on the gel quality (i.e., the gel’s rigidity and stability). − Moreover, while there have been recent insights into the mechanism of gel deformation and the associated disproportionate permeability reduction (DPR), ,− further scientific understanding of gel behavior in relation to injection rates is required to guarantee successful gel placement in gas wells. The previous literature works mostly focused on the use of gels to mitigate water production in oil wells.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

A Multiscale Investigation of Cross-Linked Polymer Gel Injection in Sandstone Gas Reservoirs: Implications for Water Shutoff Treatment

et al. 2020

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Excessive water production is a significant challenge during hydrocarbon production from oil and gas reservoirs, and it is typically controlled by polymer gel placement. However, the fundamental process in terms of how precisely this gel reduces water production in gas reservoirs is rarely reported. The objective of paper is to investigate the impact of cross-linked polyacrylamide (poly(acrylamide-co-acrylic acid) partial sodium salt) gel as a relative permeability modifier for a sandstone/gas/water system and provides insights into the detailed in situ gel behavior inside the porous medium. Stronger gels increased water retention inside the porous media yet decreased the lubrication effect of the gel. Moreover, as the water flow rate increased (during imbibition), the water relative permeability reduction decreased, which is attributed to (a) gel shear thinning behavior and (b) reduction in the residual gas saturation. However, the gel showed shear thickening behavior during gas flow. At low gas flow rates, gel performance is mainly controlled by the gel lubrication effect, while at higher gas flow rates, the significance of gel rigidity is greatly increased. These effects were associated by gas diffusion and gas dissolution in the gel, which in turn expanded the gel layer and reduced gas permeability. Moreover, we identified two counteracting mechanisms (i.e., water retention and lubrication effects) responsible for the disproportionate permeability reduction. In addition, we identified a critical flow rate above which the gel treatment becomes unsuccessful as both effects (i.e., water retention and lubrication) were significantly reduced. These findings thus provide novel insights into the factors leading to successful gel placement to better control water production.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Effect Of Irreducible Water Saturation (S Wir )mentioning

confidence: 88%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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A Multiscale Investigation of Cross-Linked Polymer Gel Injection in Sandstone Gas Reservoirs: Implications for Water Shutoff Treatment

et al. 2020

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“… 47 Conformance control consists of injecting an aqueous solution of an activator and a polymer into high-permeability pores to seal off pore throats via polymer cross-linking and gelling. 48 − 51 Microgels and polymer gels have been utilized for conformance control in reservoirs with appreciable disparity in permeability. 52 − 54 On the other hand, cross-linking agents added to polymers achieve more plugging and better permeability reduction.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Conformance Control in Oil Reservoirs by Citric Acid-Coated Magnetite Nanoparticles

et al. 2021

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Reservoir conformance control methods may significantly improve enhanced oil recovery technologies through reduced water production and profile correction. Excessive water production in oil and gas reservoirs leads to severe problems. Water shutoff and conformance control are, therefore, financially and environmentally advantageous for the petroleum industry. In this paper, water shutoff performance of citric acid-coated magnetite (CACM) and hematite nanoparticles (NPs) as well as polyacrylamide polymer solution in a heterogeneous and homogeneous two-dimensional micromodel is compared. A facile one-step technique is used to synthesize the CACM NPs. The NPs, which are reusable, easily prepared, and environmentally friendly, are characterized using Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, field emission scanning electron microscopy, dynamic light scattering, and X-ray diffraction. The results confirm uniform spherical Fe 3 O 4 NPs of an average diameter of 40 nm, well coated with citric acid. CACM NPs provide a high pressure drop coupled with an acceptable resistance factor and residual resistance factor owing to NP arrangement into a solid-/gel-like structure in the presence of a magnetic field. A resistance factor and a residual resistance factor of 3.5 and 2.14, respectively, were achieved for heavy oil and the heterogeneous micromodel. This structure contributed to an appreciable plugging efficiency. CACM NPs respond to ∼1000 G of magnetic field intensity and display a constant resistance factor at intensities between 4500 and 6000 G. CACM NPs act as a gel, forming a solid-/gel-like structure, which moves toward the magnetic field and thereby shuts off the produced water and increases the oil fraction. The findings of this study suggest the ability to shut off water production using specially designed magnetic field-responsive smart fluids. The application would require innovative design of field equipment.

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“…Furthermore, and importantly, the application of 2D micromodels have seen a remarkable growth in the fields of science and engineering, and to investigate the fluid flow in porous media at a microscopic scale. 13,14,22,[33][34][35][36][37] The micromodel literally works as "lab on a chip," and thus allows a systematic investigation of microscale mechanisms responsible for displacement and/or retention in porous media.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Impact of prolonged water‐gas flow on the performance of polyacrylamide

Al‐Shajalee

Seyyedi

Verrall

et al. 2021

J of Applied Polymer Sci

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On the importance of gel rigidity and coverage in a smart water shutoff treatment in gas wells

Cited by 13 publications

References 25 publications

A Multiscale Investigation of Cross-Linked Polymer Gel Injection in Sandstone Gas Reservoirs: Implications for Water Shutoff Treatment

A Multiscale Investigation of Cross-Linked Polymer Gel Injection in Sandstone Gas Reservoirs: Implications for Water Shutoff Treatment

Conformance Control in Oil Reservoirs by Citric Acid-Coated Magnetite Nanoparticles

Impact of prolonged water‐gas flow on the performance of polyacrylamide

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