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ENHANCING THE UNDERSTANDING OF ASPHALTENE PRECIPITATION: A N

Flow assurance is a vital challenge that affects the viability of an asset in all oil-producing environments. A proper understanding of asphaltene deposition lends itself to reliable completions planning and timely remediation efforts. This ultimately dictates the production life of the reservoir. Wireline formation testing (WFT) has traditionally aided the understanding of asphaltene composition in reservoir fluids through the collection of pressurized fluid samples. Moreover, the use of downhole fluid analysis (DFA) during a fluid pumpout has augmented the understanding of soluble asphaltenes under in-situ flowing conditions. However, an accurate and representative measurement of asphaltene onset pressure (AOP) has eluded the industry. Traditionally, this measurement has been determined post-acquisition through different laboratory techniques performed on a restored fluid sample. Although sound, there are inherent challenges that affect the quality of the answer, namely, the need to restore samples to reservoir conditions, maintaining samples at equilibrium composition, and the destruction of fluid samples through inadvertent asphaltene precipitation during transporting and handling. Hence, there is a need for WFT operations to deliver a source of reliable analysis, particularly in high-pressure and high-temperature reservoirs, that can avoid costly miscalculations. This study presents an industry-premiere method to determine AOP under in-situ producible conditions. Demonstrated in a Gulf of Mexico (GOM) reservoir, this novel technique mimics the gravimetric method, where a fluid sample is isothermally depressurized from initial reservoir pressure; simultaneously, DFA monitors asphaltene precipitation from solution, and a high-precision pressure gauge records the onset of asphaltene precipitation. This measurement is provided continuously and in real time. An added advantage is that experiments are performed individually after obtaining a pressurized sample in distinct oil zones. Therefore, the execution of this downhole AOP experiment is independent of an already captured fluid sample and does not impact the quality of any later laboratory-based analysis. This approach benefits from the unique capability of a customizable and modular WFT system and has the potential to create a step-change in reservoir analysis by providing AOP measurements at the sandface. The results of which have tremendous economic implications on production planning.
Standard price: 10.00
Discounted price: 1.00
10.00
You could save: 90%
Year: 2021
Author(s): Rohin Naveena-Chandran, Farrukh Hamza, Gibran Hashmi, Jason Rogers, John Meyer, Sara Chapman
Company(s): Halliburton, Kosmos Energy
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