The Effect of Fractures on the Steam-Assisted Gravity Drainage Process

Abstract

This study presents an experimental investigation of the effect of fractures and well configurations on the steam-assisted gravity drainage (SAGD) process in a three-dimensional model, using 12.4°API gravity crude oil. A total of eight runs were conducted, using a 30 cm × 30 cm × 10 cm rectangular-shaped box model. Temperature distributions were observed using 25 thermocouples. Three different well configurations were investigatedsa horizontal injection and production well pair, a vertical injection-vertical production well pair, and a vertical injection-horizontal production well pairswith and without fractures that provided a vertical path through the horizontal producer. The influence of fracture distribution on the steam-oil ratio (SOR) and oil recovery was analyzed using the horizontal well pair scheme, a vertical injection-horizontal production well pair, and a vertical injection and vertical production well scheme. The experimental results indicated that vertical fractures improved SAGD. Maximum oil recovery was observed during the horizontal injection-horizontal production well scheme with a fractured model, because of the favorable steam-chamber geometry. Runs showed that the location of the fractures affects the performance of the process. During the early stages of the runs, the fractured model gave significantly higher SORs than those observed in the uniformpermeability reservoir.

Brine Effluents: Characteristics, Environmental Impacts, and Their Handling

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Impact of well configuration on performance of steam-based gravity drainage processes in naturally fractured reservoirs

“…Although there are some studies investigating the effect of fracture on SAGD performance, almost in all of them the role of fracture could be considered just as a heterogeneity that acts as a path for conduction of fluids, Bagci (2004) and Fatemi (2009).…”

The Effect of Conductive Fracture on the Performance of Steam Assisted Gravity Drainage (SAGD)

“…The steam assisted gravity drainage (SAGD) process is an effective method to exploit heavy oil and bitumen and has been extensively applied successfully to produce bitumen in Alberta tar sands, Canada. This process was developed mainly by Butler (1991). The process involves a long horizontal production well located at the bottom of the reservoir.…”