Polymer Sealant for Unwanted Gas in Openhole Gravel-Pack Completion

Bach, T.; Wennberg, K.E.; Mebratu, A.; Hendriks, W.P.; Jr., J.M.; Rolfsvaag, T.

doi:10.2523/68975-ms

Cited by 8 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 2 publications

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“…This gel system was applied in fractured reservoirs at a temperature range of 168 to 264 o F in southern Mexico (Ortiz et al, 2004). The system was also applied in horizontal openhole oil producers in the Middle East (Uddin et al, 2003) and in the North Sea for gas shutoff (Bach et al, 2001). Note that the PAtBA/PEI is a low molecular weight system designed for matrix treatments.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Water Shut-off With Polymer Gels in a High Temperature Horizontal Gas Well: A Success Story

Al-Muntasheri

Sierra

Garzón

et al. 2010

Proceedings of SPE Improved Oil Recovery Symposium

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A horizontal hot deep gas well was not on production due to high water cut. The well had a bottom hole temperature of 300 o F (149 o C) and a bottom hole pressure of 7,000 psi. The well was completed into a carbonate reservoir with an average permeability ranging from 2 to 3 mD. It was completed with a 7 in liner at a measured depth (MD) of 13,611 ft. The open-hole section extends from 13,611 to 16,456 ft. After the well completion operation, water was observed entering the open-hole section at the toe at a depth of 14, 677 ft. The exact water producing zone was identified by the resistivity log run on the subject well. Therefore, a mechanical packer was set in the open-hole section at 14,677 ft to isolate the water producing interval. The packer did not solve the problem. The water production continued to occur.Due to their versatility, polymer gels were considered for remediating this problem and to revive the well. A gel system based on a low molecular weight polymer crosslinked with an organic crosslinker was considered. A serious challenge was the high temperature of the reservoir. The high temperature conditions imposed the use of a retarder to elongate the onset gelation time during the polymer gel placement. The available mixing waters in this field contained significant amounts of salts (a total dissolved solids content of 1,188 ppm). These solids caused compatibility problems upon contact with the commercially available retarder. Therefore, a new retarder was developed. The retarder was cost-effective, efficient and compatible with the available saline mixing water. The retarder's placement was examined in porous media under conditions similar to those encountered in the field (55 minutes placement time). The gel did not show any injectivity problems indicating the efficient nature of the retarder. The initial recommended recipe of the gel showed syneresis due to the extra amount of the crosslinker suggested. This was addressed by reducing the crosslinker concentrations in the gel recipe.The treatment utilized a pre-flush to displace the reservoir fluids around the wellbore and to cool down the near wellbore area. This helped reduce the near wellbore area temperature from 300 to 240 o F according to the temperature simulations. The gelant contained 250 gal/1000 gal of polymer with a 10 gal/1000 gal of crosslinker. After the gelant placement, the well was shut-in for three days. Once opened, the well showed an increase in gas production by a factor of 7.7 with a water cut reduction of 42 %.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Water Shut-off With Polymer Gels in a High Temperature Horizontal Gas Well: A Success Story

Al-Muntasheri

Sierra

Garzón

et al. 2010

Proceedings of SPE Improved Oil Recovery Symposium

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

Water Shut-off with Polymer Gels in A High Temperature Horizontal Gas Well: A Success Story

Al-Muntasheri

Sierra

Garzon

et al. 2010

SPE Improved Oil Recovery Symposium

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A horizontal hot deep gas well was not on production due to high water cut. The well had a bottom hole temperature of 300°F (149°C) and a bottom hole pressure of 7,000 psi. The well was completed into a carbonate reservoir with an average permeability ranging from 2 to 3 mD. It was completed with a 7 in liner at a measured depth (MD) of 13,611 ft. The open-hole section extends from 13,611 to 16,456 ft. After the well completion operation, water was observed entering the open-hole section at the toe at a depth of 14, 677 ft. The exact water producing zone was identified by the resistivity log run on the subject well. Therefore, a mechanical packer was set in the open-hole section at 14,677 ft to isolate the water producing interval. The packer did not solve the problem. The water production continued to occur. Due to their versatility, polymer gels were considered for remediating this problem and to revive the well. A gel system based on a low molecular weight polymer crosslinked with an organic crosslinker was considered. A serious challenge was the high temperature of the reservoir. The high temperature conditions imposed the use of a retarder to elongate the onset gelation time during the polymer gel placement. The available mixing waters in this field contained significant amounts of salts (a total dissolved solids content of 1,188 ppm). These solids caused compatibility problems upon contact with the commercially available retarder. Therefore, a new retarder was developed. The retarder was cost-effective, efficient and compatible with the available saline mixing water. The retarder's placement was examined in porous media under conditions similar to those encountered in the field (55 minutes placement time). The gel did not show any injectivity problems indicating the efficient nature of the retarder. The initial recommended recipe of the gel showed syneresis due to the extra amount of the crosslinker suggested. This was addressed by reducing the crosslinker concentrations in the gel recipe. The treatment utilized a pre-flush to displace the reservoir fluids around the wellbore and to cool down the near wellbore area. This helped reduce the near wellbore area temperature from 300 to 240°F according to the temperature simulations. The gelant contained 250 gal/1000 gal of polymer with a 10 gal/1000 gal of crosslinker. After the gelant placement, the well was shut-in for three days. Once opened, the well showed an increase in gas production by a factor of 7.7 with a water cut reduction of 42 %.

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Laboratory Development and Successful Field Application of a Conformance Polymer System for Low-, Medium-, and High-Temperature Applications

Vasquez

Eoff

2010

SPE Latin American and Caribbean Petroleum Engineering Conference

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This paper presents the laboratory development of an organically crosslinked polymer (OCP) system with a wide temperature range of execution (60 to 350°F). The OCP system is targeted to address conformance problems (water and gas shutoff) to ultimately improve hydrocarbon recovery. This paper presents an overview of case histories in which the OCP system was implemented in various regions of the world in onshore and offshore hydrocarbon-producing wells. The OCP system has been successfully applied to sandstone, carbonate, and shale formations needing a conformance treatment. The OCP system has proven to be resistant to acid and stable in CO2 and H2S environments. In addition, the activation time and gel strength of the system is not affected by lithology, formation fluids, or heavy metals. The OCP system is acceptable to be used in some areas of the North Sea (including UK and Netherlands). Recently, a base polymer (for low temperatures) and a retarder (for high temperatures) have been introduced to the system to allow a wider temperature range of applicability without compromising its effectiveness or thermal stability. With the new base polymer, reasonable gelation times (~4 to 6 hours) can be achieved at 60°F with low crosslinker loadings. In addition, the new retarder allows reasonable placement times up to 350°F, without the need of cooling down the formation to obtain enough pumping time. Neither the new base polymer nor the retarder are detrimental to the thermal stability or gel strength of the system. To date, more than 600 jobs have been performed with the OCP system around the world to address conformance problems, such as water coning/cresting, high-permeability streaks, gravel-pack isolation, fracture shutoff, and/or casing leak repair. Because of the capability of the OCP system to withstand pressure, workover operations have been successfully performed in previously treated wells, including acid stimulation, sand control, and frac-pack treatments, among others. Case histories are presented for onshore and offshore applications.

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Polymer Sealant for Unwanted Gas in Openhole Gravel-Pack Completion

Cited by 8 publications

References 2 publications

Water Shut-off With Polymer Gels in a High Temperature Horizontal Gas Well: A Success Story

Water Shut-off With Polymer Gels in a High Temperature Horizontal Gas Well: A Success Story

Water Shut-off with Polymer Gels in A High Temperature Horizontal Gas Well: A Success Story

Laboratory Development and Successful Field Application of a Conformance Polymer System for Low-, Medium-, and High-Temperature Applications

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