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Simulation of Polymer Chemical Enhanced Oil Recovery in Ghawar Field

Author

Listed:
  • Maaike Berger

    (Department of Chemical Engineering, ENTEG, University of Groningen, Nijenborgh 4, 9747 AG Groningen, The Netherlands
    These authors contributed equally to this work.)

  • Francesco Picchioni

    (Department of Chemical Engineering, ENTEG, University of Groningen, Nijenborgh 4, 9747 AG Groningen, The Netherlands)

  • Pablo Druetta

    (Department of Chemical Engineering, ENTEG, University of Groningen, Nijenborgh 4, 9747 AG Groningen, The Netherlands
    These authors contributed equally to this work.)

Abstract

This paper presents a 2D model of the Ghawar field and investigates the flow behavior in the field during secondary and tertiary recoveries using a simplified well scheme. For the latter, the focus is on chemical Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR), using polymer solutions. The difference in efficiency between secondary and tertiary recovery and the influence of factors such as degradation are analyzed and presented. Furthermore, the influence of oil viscosity on the recovery factor is investigated as well as the efficiency of the well placement of the model studied. In order to do this, a combined shear-thinning/-thickening model, the Unified Viscosity Model (UVM), is used. COMSOL Multiphysics is used in order to study the model, combining the fluid flow and mass transfer in one study, showing the interdependence of both physics transport phenomena. The results show how the influence of the polymer properties and the rock formation affect the recovery behavior. The particle tracing study allows us to determine the percentage of the chemical agent recovered in the producing wells. This paper shows how EOR agents works coupled with advanced numerical models in real-scale fields.

Suggested Citation

  • Maaike Berger & Francesco Picchioni & Pablo Druetta, 2022. "Simulation of Polymer Chemical Enhanced Oil Recovery in Ghawar Field," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(19), pages 1-31, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jeners:v:15:y:2022:i:19:p:7232-:d:931508
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Druetta, P. & Raffa, P. & Picchioni, F., 2019. "Chemical enhanced oil recovery and the role of chemical product design," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 252(C), pages 1-1.
    2. Pablo Druetta & Francesco Picchioni, 2020. "Surfactant-Polymer Interactions in a Combined Enhanced Oil Recovery Flooding," Energies, MDPI, vol. 13(24), pages 1-23, December.
    3. Huiying Zhong & Weidong Zhang & Jing Fu & Jun Lu & Hongjun Yin, 2017. "The Performance of Polymer Flooding in Heterogeneous Type II Reservoirs—An Experimental and Field Investigation," Energies, MDPI, vol. 10(4), pages 1-19, April.
    4. Vladimir Alvarado & Eduardo Manrique, 2010. "Enhanced Oil Recovery: An Update Review," Energies, MDPI, vol. 3(9), pages 1-47, August.
    5. Qiong Wang & Xiuwei Liu & Lixin Meng & Ruizhong Jiang & Haijun Fan, 2020. "The Numerical Simulation Study of the Oil–Water Seepage Behavior Dependent on the Polymer Concentration in Polymer Flooding," Energies, MDPI, vol. 13(19), pages 1-19, October.
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