3D multiphase streamline-based method for interpretation of formation-tester measurements acquired in vertical and deviated wells

Abstract Complex heterogeneous reservoirs penetrated by deviated wells pose significant challenges when modeling and interpreting packer- and probe-type formation-tester measurements. This paper introduces a streamline-based method specifically designed for near-wellbore fluid-flow modeling in vertical and deviated wells. The primary application of the method is for efficient simulation and automatic history matching of formation-tester measurements in the presence of invasion and variable petrophysical and geometrical properties. Based on the spatial distribution of pressure calculated with a previously validated near-wellbore finite-difference model (FDM), the method traces streamlines from the reservoir into fluid sampling probes. The calculated spatial distribution of pressure is input to the streamline-based method to propagate the spatial distribution of water saturation. Subsequently, the calculated spatial distribution of water saturation is input to the FDM to update the spatial distribution of pressure. Streamlines are then recalculated and this repeated pressure-saturation procedure continues until reaching the desired final simulation time. The combined FDM and streamline-based method utilize full-tensor permeability to couple wellbore-reservoir systems during fluid sampling in horizontal and deviated wells. It is shown that the spatial rendering of streamlines permits rapid assessment of the time evolution of fluid saturation near the sampling probe. We successfully test the streamline-based method in the dynamic simulation of fluid contamination into conventional and focused-type probes operating in vertical, horizontal, and deviated wells for the case of multiphase, immiscible fluid-flow in heterogeneous formations. The method implements successive streamline and FDM time steps adaptively to decrease computational time by a factor of four while achieving less than 5% relative difference in the simulation of fluid production measurements when compared to FDM results. For formation testing in deviated wells, the streamline-based method permits more rapid appraisal of anisotropy, bed-boundary, and complex geometrical effects on fluid-sampling times than conventional 3D fluid-flow simulators. It also quantifies the sensitivity of measurements to variations of permeability, invaded zones, anisotropy, and well deviation. Our simulations indicate that fluid sampling in deviated wells subject to mud-filtrate contamination requires adequate positioning of the probe around the perimeter of the wellbore to secure the fasted cleanup possible.

[1]  Akhil Datta-Gupta,et al.  Integrating dynamic data into high-resolution reservoir models using streamline-based analytic sensitivity coefficients , 1998 .

[2]  Mustafa Onur,et al.  A New Pressure Rate Deconvolution Algorithm To Analyze Wireline Formation Tester and Well-Test Data , 2009 .

[3]  Akhil Datta-Gupta.  Streamline Simulation: A Technology Update (includes associated papers 71204 and 71764 ) , 2000 .

[4]  G. H. Grinestaff,et al.  Waterflood Pattern Allocations: Quantifying the Injector to Producer Relationship with Streamline Simulation , 1999 .

[5]  Douglas J. Seifert,et al.  Application for Formation Testing while Drilling in the Middle East , 2005 .

[6]  Cosan Ayan,et al.  A New Pressure/Rate-Deconvolution Algorithm To Analyze Wireline Formation-Tester and Well-Test Data , 2010 .

[7]  Akhil Datta-Gupta,et al.  A Rigorous Compressible Streamline Formulation for Two and Three-Phase Black-Oil Simulation , 2005 .

[8]  A. S. Emanuel,et al.  Applications of 3D Streamline Simulation to Assist History Matching , 2001 .

[9]  Peter S. Hegeman,et al.  Pressure-Transient Analysis of Dual Packer-Probe Wireline Formation Testers in Slanted Wells , 2004 .

[10]  Kamy Sepehrnoori,et al.  Numerical Simulation of Mud-Filtrate Invasion in Deviated Wells , 2004 .

[11]  Mark A. Proett,et al.  Formation Testing and Sampling Using an Oval Pad in Al Hamd Field, Egypt , 2006 .

[12]  Akhil Datta-Gupta,et al.  Integrating dynamic data into high-resolution reservoir models using streamline-based analytic sensitivity coefficients , 1999 .

[13]  Mark A. Proett,et al.  Effects of Highly Laminated Reservoirs On the Performance of Wireline And While-Drilling Formation-Tester Sampling With Oval, Focused, And Conventional Probe Types , 2010 .

[14]  Akhil Datta-Gupta,et al.  A Streamline Approach for Integrating Transient Pressure Data Into High-Resolution Reservoir Models , 2001 .

[15]  Akhil Datta-Gupta,et al.  A Streamline Approach for Integrating Transient Pressure Data into High Resolution Reservoir Models , 2000 .

[16]  A. S. Emanuel,et al.  History Matching Finite Difference Models With 3D Streamlines , 1998 .

[17]  D. W. Pollock.  Semianalytical Computation of Path Lines for Finite‐Difference Models , 1988 .

[18]  Roderick Panko Batycky,et al.  Assisted History Matching of a 1.4-Million-Cell Simulation Model for Judy Creek--A Pool Waterflood/HCMF Using a Streamline-Based Workflow , 2007 .

[19]  Kamy Sepehrnoori,et al.  A high-resolution finite-difference scheme for nonuniform grids , 1995 .

[20]  Michael G. Edwards,et al.  Streamline Tracing on Curvilinear Structured and Unstructured Grids , 2002 .

[21]  C. Torres‐Verdín,et al.  Numerical Simulation of Mud Filtrate Invasion in Deviated Wells , 2001 .

[22]  Angeles Boza,et al.  Simulation and interpretation of formation-tester measurements acquired in the presence of mud-filtrate invasion, multiphase flow, and deviated wellbores , 2009 .

[23]  Mark A. Proett,et al.  Wireline And While-Drilling Formation-Tester Sampling With Oval, Focused, And Conventional Probe Types In The Presence Of Water- And Oil-Base Mud-Filtrate Invasion In Deviated Wells , 2009 .

[24]  S. Sieniutycz.  A variational theory for frictional flow of fluids in inhomogeneous porous systems , 2007 .