Xinjiang Petroleum Geology ›› 2024, Vol. 45 ›› Issue (2): 228-234.doi: 10.7657/XJPG20240212

• RESERVOIR ENGINEERING • Previous Articles     Next Articles

Study on Water Flooding With Self-Emulsification in Heavy Oil Reservoirs

SHI Lanxiang1(), TANG Wenjun2, ZHOU You1, WANG Bojun1   

  1. 1. Research Institute of Petroleum Exploration & Development, PetroChina, Beijing 100083, China
    2. Zhundong Oil Production Plant, Xinjiang Oilfield Company, PetroChina, Fukang, Xinjiang 831511, China
  • Received:2023-12-06 Revised:2023-12-22 Online:2024-04-01 Published:2024-03-26

Abstract:

Influenced by crude oil properties, water flooding with self-emulsification in heavy oil reservoirs is different from conventional water flooding, and the conventional theories for light oil water flooding are not applicable to heavy oil reservoirs. Taking a heavy oil reservoir with self-emulsification water flooding and the reservoir fluid parameters in China as cases, the water flooding with heavy oil self-emulsification was studied through laboratory experiments and numerical simulations to clarify key mechanisms and main influencing factors. The new numerical simulation method reveals that the stable displacement stage of the self-emulsification water flooding is a quasi-piston oil displacement pattern. The development process can be divided into four stages, namely pure oil, transition, plateau and rapid WOR increase. Permeability ratio and crude oil viscosity are the main factors affecting the water cut in self-emulsification water flooding, followed by permeability and water injection rate.

Key words: heavy oil, self-emulsification, water flooding, water cut, plateau stage, key mechanism, influencing factor, numerical simulation

CLC Number: