24/10/2023 The biannual SPE IOR conference will be held in Tulsa, OK, USA from April 23rd to 25th 2024. More news about the technical program expected beginning of next year. Link to the website
SPE IOR conference 2024 Read More »
Microgels and nanogels used for conformance are trending on some parts of the world. When facing significant permeability contrasts (think 10:1), spot treatments with these particles might be an interesting idea to explore before heading straight into polymer flooding. But this isn’t a simple plug-and-inject operation.
A conversation on microgels, nanogels, and other products in inverse emulsion form Read More »
I tried to revisit the polymer selection workflows for chemical EOR, showing that a majority of tests could be more representative of the reality in the field. Working on new industry standards would greatly benefit all the researchers. Also, understanding the logic behind the tests and what they were initially designed for would save time and avoid disappointments.
Revisiting polymer selection workflows for chemical EOR Read More »
Difficulty to predict injectivity in polymer floods Difficulty to predict injectivity in polymer floods. 📄 Analyzing the 2019 Paper: “Why is it Challenging to Predict Polymer Injectivity During Chemical EOR Processes?” Difficulty to predict injectivity in polymer floods. Injectivity remains one of the most debated topics in polymer flooding, often misunderstood or oversimplified in simulations.
Why is it difficult to predict polymer injectivity ? Read More »
21/02/2023 A great paper – straight to the point! Seright & Wang, 2023. “This review presents our perspective on the factors that have brought polymer flooding to its current state. Insights are provided on why HPAM is the dominant polymer used as well as what is needed to make alternative polymers and mobility-control methods viable.
Polymer flooding: Current status and future directions Read More »
Polymer retention is one of the most critical parameters for the success of a polymer flooding project. A high retention means a poor propagation and therefore a delay in the oil bank production but also a much lower viscosity at the front, creating instability.
For instance, @1000ppm and with a retention of 50 µg/g in a sandstone, that’s already a 40% delay factor in % of pore volume. At 3$/kg of polymer in a 40 acres/20ft thick zone, it’s a bit more than 1,2 million USD to satisfy retention… (you can do your own spreadsheet using the SPE166265 for instance)
The benefits of ATBS on retention Read More »
The first time I was confronted to the way polymer flooding was modeled, I was struck by the number of parameters needed and the complexity of the whole thing. It feels like everyone wanted to be sure to capture absolutely everything: from the molecular interactions to the rheological behavior. The first image that came to my mind was a DJ mixing table: a lot of buttons and no idea which to touch to obtain the desired music without the help of an “expert”.
Pressure drop & corefloods Read More »
09/11/2022 The Norwegian petroleum directorate and the University in Stavanger presents the IEA EOR TCP workshop and symposium. This year the event will take place in Stavanger on the NPD’s premises, 21st to 24th of November 2022. The two first days (22nd and 23rd of November) the workshop will focus on projects within the following
IEA EOR TCP workshop and joint EOR/GOT-symposium Read More »
In a previous post, I wrote that resuming water injection after polymer would only lead to a deterioration of the project economics/benefits. Now, how much to inject and when to stop?
Stop ou encore – a.k.a. how much pore volume Read More »
Sometimes you run into something that you wish you had discovered a bit earlier in your journey, something that could have helped you avoid doing stupid things or, let’s say, optimize your life. For me, the latest examples were Kahneman’s “Thinking fast, Thinking Slow” and Taleb’s “ Black Swan” which I discovered a few years ago…
Prediction & forecasting Read More »