Reservoir Engineering

PETE 3200

Ch.2
Rock and Fluid Properties

Mohamed Mohamed

1
Reservoir Rock Properties

Porosity: Storage capacity of rocks.

Permeability: Ability to transmit fluids

Relative Permeability: If several phases are flowing together

Saturation: Fluid volume occupies pore volume of rock.

2
Reservoir Rock Properties

Porosity
Pore
Porosity is defined as the Throat
ratio of the pore volume
(PV) to the bulk volume.

Pores provide the volume

to
Scanning Electron Micrograph
contain hydrocarbon fluids

3
Reservoir Rock Properties

Porosity
Porosity depends on grain packing, not grain size
Rocks with different grain sizes can have the same
percentage porosity

Rhombohedral packing Cubic packing

Pore space = 26 % of total volume Pore space = 47 % of total volume

4
Reservoir Rock Properties

Factors tend to reduce porosity ?

Poor sorting
Cementation
Angularity
Over burden stress

5
Reservoir Rock Properties

Permeability
The rate of fluid flow through a reservoir depends on
Pressure drop
Fluid viscosity
Permeability
Permeability is a measure of the conductivity of a
reservoir rock to fluid flow
Large grains may lead to high permeability and large flow rates
Small grains may lead to low permeability and small flow rates
Permeability and porosity may be related

6
Reservoir Rock Properties
Darcys Law
p2 L p1

q
A
Direction of flow

In Darcy units:

kA p1 p2 L = length, cm

q q = flow rate, cc/sec

L p1, p2 = pressures, atm

kA dp A = area perpendicular to flow, cm2

q
= viscosity, cp
dl k = permeability, Darcy
7
Reservoir Rock Properties

Darcys Law (field units)

3 kA dp
qo 1.127 10
o Bo dl
In field units:
L = length, ft
qo = oil flow rate, STB/D (at stock tank conditions)
p = pressure, psi
A = area perpendicular to flow, ft2
=oil
o viscosity, cp

k = permeability, mD
Bo = oil formation volume factor, RB/STB

8
Reservoir Rock Properties

Fluid Saturation
Fluid saturation is defined as the fraction of pore volume occupied by a given fluid

Volume of fluid in pore

Fluid saturation
Volume of pore space

Definitions
Sw = water saturation
So = oil saturation
Sg = gas saturation
Sh = hydrocarbon saturation = So + Sg

9
Reservoir Rock Properties
Amount of water per unit volume = Sw
Amount of hydrocarbon per unit volume = (1 - Sw)

(1-Sw)
Hydrocarbon
Sw Water

Matrix

10
Reservoir Rock Properties

Relative Permeability
Ability of a fluid to flow in a porous media when it is in the
presence of other fluids.
Measured by doing core analysis in lab
In in steady state method,
The cores is first saturated with water then the water is displaced with
oil, to the irreducible water saturation
At Constant pressure drop, phase production rates are measured
Then the oil is displaced by water to residual oil saturation.
Relative permeability is also a function of wettability

11
Reservoir Rock Properties

Relative Permeability
Relative permeability is also a function of wettability
Water wet rock have higher Kro than oil wet
Water wet rock have lower Krw than oil wet

12
Reservoir Rock Properties

Capillary Pressure
Is a rock/fluid interactions caused by interfacial tension

Leverret J-function

13
Reservoir Rock Properties

Formation
Compressibility
- Should be determined in the lab.
- Different formations gives different compressibility.

Fluids Compressibility
- Important parameter to measure the relative change in volume of fluid, solid or gas
with changing pressure.
- Fluid Compressibility
- Total compressibility:

Pore-Volume Compressibility

- pg(Grain pressure) =pc(confining pressure) pp(pore pressure)

14
Reservoir Gas Properties
Ideal- and Real-Gas Laws
Vactual
z
Gas-deviation factor is a ratio
Videal

EOS of real-gas pV znRT

Gas-deviation factor can be measured

in LAB and also can be estimated from
specific gravity
Reservoir Gas Properties
Gas density and FVF

Gas FVF VR znRT psc p zT

Bg sc
Vsc p zscnRTsc Tsc p

For gas-deviation factor is 1.0 at standard conditions

So Gas density can be derived by

mg nM g nM a g 28.97 g p
g
VR znRT / p znRT / p zRT
Reservoir Gas Properties
Isothermal Compressibility of Gases

From real-gas law

Gas Viscosity
Viscosity of gas mixtures
N N
ga yi i M gi y i M gi
i 1 i 1
Reservoir Oil Properties
Oil Properties
Bubblepoint pressure
It is the pressure below which two phases exist and the gas bubbles out of
the oil
Rsb 0.83 y g
pb 18( ) 10
Standings correlation g
yg 0.00091T 0.0125 o , API
Where =mole fraction of gas=

Levitan and Murthas correlation

Reservoir Oil Properties
FVF
Bo
The oil FVF, ,is defined as

p for
Standings correlation for oil FVF pb is

Levitan and Murthas correlation is

WhereBob is oil FVF at bubblepoint

And forp pb Bo Bob
, the relation between and is
Reservoir Oil Properties
Isothermal Compressibility
The compressibility(bulk modulus of elasticity) of oil is defined by

Written in terms of FVF

The above equations only work for oils above the bubblepoint

Below the bubblepoint, the equation becomes to

Reservoir Oil Properties
Solution Gas/Oil Ratio
The solubility of natural gas in crude oil depends on :
Pressure
Temperature
Composition of the gas
Crude oil

A crude oil is called saturated with gas, if

Gas is released when reservoir pressure is decreased
However, if no gas is released when pressure decreases, then the
crude oil is unsaturated.
A reservoir that has a gas cap in contact with the oil is saturated.
Reservoir Oil Properties
Oil viscosity

Oil viscosity is usually measured in the LAB

Below the bubblepoint, viscosity decreases with increasing pressure

Above the bubblepoint, viscosity increases with increasing pressure

Reservoir Water Properties
Water properties
FVF
McCains correlation for water FVF

Unlike oil FVF, water FVF increases as the pressure is

decreased when below the bubblepoint
Reservoir Classification

Why do we need to classify reservoir fluids?

Reservoir fluid classification helps determine:
Fluid sampling type
Types and sizes of surface equipment
Depletion strategy
Selection of EOR method
Techniques to predict oil & gas reserves
Material Balance calculations

24
Reservoir Classification

Pressure vs. Temperature Diagrams

Used to visualize the fluid production path from the reservoir

to the surface
To classify reservoir fluids
To develop different strategies to produce oil/gas from
reservoir

25
Reservoir Classification
Phase Diagram - Mixture

Liquid C

Vol. %
liquid
100
Pressure

75
e
in
n tl
p oi
le
Bu
bb 50 tl
in
e
in
po
w
25 D
e Gas
0

Temperature
26
Reservoir Classification
Phase Diagram - Mixture
Critical point
45 45
0 4

Bubblepoint
400
Pressure, psia 425

400
300
Dew
p oint
350
200

300

0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4

Volume, cu ft/lb
27
Reservoir Classification
Phase Diagrams of Mixtures of Ethane and n-
Heptane Composition
No. Wt % ethane
1 100.00
2 90.22
1400 3 70.22
4 50.25
4 5 29.91
6 9.78
1200 7 6.14
Pressure, psia 3 5 8
9
3.27
1.25
10 n-Heptane
1000
2
800
1
6
600
7
8
400
9

200 10

0
100 200 300 400 500

Temperature, F
28
Reservoir Classification

Phase Diagram of a Reservoir Fluid (Light)

1400
1300
1200
1100 Critical
1000 point
Pressure, psia

900
800
700
600
500
400
300
200
100
0
-200 -150 -100 -50 0 50
29
Temperature, F
Reservoir Classification
Phase Diagram of a Reservoir Fluid
(Heavy)
Estimated critical
point Dewpoint
Bubblepoint line
5000
line 0%
5%
10%
4000 15%
100
Pressure, psia

90
80
70
3000 60 15%

50

2000 40 10%
35
30
25
20 5%
1000 15
10
5
0
50 100 150 200 250 300 350

Temperature, F 30
Reservoir Classification

The Five Reservoir Fluids

Black Volatile Retrograde Wet Dry

Oil Oil Gas Gas Gas

31
Reservoir Classification
Phase Diagram - Typical Black Oil

Pressure path
in reservoir
Critical Dewpoint line
Pressure, psia point
Black Oil

e 90 0 % Liquid
t Lin 8
oin 70 0
p 6
le-
bb

50
u

40
B

30
20

10
Separator

Temperature, F
32
Reservoir Classification

Phase Diagram of a Typical Volatile Oil

Dewpoint line
Pressure path 1 Critical
point
in reservoir

2
Volatile oil

0
80 9
70
60
Pressure

50
% Liquid

e
in

40
tl
in
po

30
le
bb

20
Bu

10
3
5

Separator
i nt line
De wpo

Temperature, F 33
Reservoir Classification
Phase Diagram of a Typical Retrograde Gas
Pressure path
in reservoir
1
Retrograde gas
2

e
in
tl
in
po
w
De
Pressure

Critical point
e
in
% Liquid
l
nt

300
oi

4
ep

20
l
bb

15
3
Bu

10

Separator 5
0

Temperature 34
Reservoir Classification
Phase Diagram of Typical Wet Gas
Pressure path
in reservoir
1

ne
Wet gas
Pressure

t li
oin
wp
De

% Liquid
Critical
point
2
e int
lin epo

30
l
bb

25

1
Bu

Separator

Temperature 35
Reservoir Classification
Phase Diagram of Typical Dry Gas
Pressure path
in reservoir
1

Pressure

l in e
nt
poi Dry gas
Dew

% Liquid
2
50
25

Separator
1

Temperature 36
Reservoir Classification
Black Oil Volatile Oil
Dewpoint line
Pressure path 1 Critical
point
in reservoir

Pressure path 2
in reservoir Dewpoint line

The Five

0
Critical Volatile oil

80 9
60 0
point

7
Pressure, psia

50
Pressure
Black Oil

e
% Liquid

lin

40
t
n
90

30
oi
e % Liquid

Reservoir
80

p
lin

le
nt 0

b
oi 90

20
7

b
lep 60

u
B
bb
Bu

50
10

40
3

30
5

Fluids
20

10
Separator Separator
line
p oint
Dew
Temperature, F Temperature

Pressure path
in reservoir Pressure path
Pressure path
1 in reservoir in reservoir

Retrograde gas 1 1
2
e
in
tl
in
po

ne
w

e
t li
De

t lin
Pressure
Wet gas
Pressure

oin

Pressure

oin
wp
Dry gas
Critical

p
De
e
lin

Dew
point
nt

% Liquid
oi

300
4
ep

% Liquid
20

Critical % Liquid
bl

15
b

point
3n0e int
Bu

30 2
li epo

1 2
l
bb

25

1
Bu

50
5 Separator Separator

1
Separator 0

25
Temperature Temperature Temperature

Retrograde Gas Wet Gas Dry Gas

37
Reservoir Classification

Primary Production Trends

Black Volatile Retrograde Wet Dry
Oil Oil Gas Gas Gas
GOR

GOR

GOR

GOR

GOR
No
liquid

Time Time Time Time Time

API

API

API

API

API
No
liquid

Time Time Time Time Time

38
 Reservoir Classification
Components of Naturally Occurring Petroleum Fluid
Component Composition,
mole percent
Hydrogen sulfide 4.91
Carbon dioxide 11.01
Nitrogen 0.51
Methane 57.70
Ethane 7.22
Propane 4.45
i-Butane 0.96
n-Butane 1.95
i-Pentane 0.78
n-Pentane 0.71
Hexanes 1.45
Heptanes plus 8.35
100.00
Properties of heptanes plus
Specific Gravity 0.807
Molecular Weight 142 lb/lb mole

39
Reservoir Classification

Field Identification
Black Volatile Retrograde Wet Dry
Oil Oil Gas Gas Gas
Initial <1750 1750 to > 3200 > 15,000* 100,000*
Producing 3200
Gas/Liquid
Ratio, scf/STB
Initial Stock- < 45 > 40 > 40 Up to 70 No
Tank Liquid Liquid
Gravity, API
Color of Stock- Dark Colored Lightly Water No
Tank Liquid Colored White Liquid

*For Engineering Purposes

40
Chapter Assignment

What is gas formation volume factor (FVF) and how does it change
with pressure?

Is gas FVF defined for free gas or dissolved gas? What is the value
for gas FVF for pressures greater that bubble-point pressure?

Is absolute permeability a property of rock? Does it depend on the type of

reservoir fluid?

What is the difference between total and effective porosity?

What is formation compressibility?

How oil and gas properties change with pressure? 41