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Results
Abstract Particle deposition is a complex problem in oil fields which affects all aspects of petroleum production, processing, and transportation. Asphaltene deposition has been repeatedly reported in various oil fields with interest on how it impacts the development of a reservoir. In many of the reported cases, it has been indicated that asphaltene deposition damages the wellbore and production facilities more severely than the formation. A great deal of research has been conducted to study the phase behavior and dynamic aspect of asphaltene deposition. However, there is a lack of comprehensive integrated modeling of asphaltene deposition in the wellbore during the multiphase fluid flow. In this paper, we present an implementation of asphaltene precipitation and deposition models into a thermal, multiphase, multi-component wellbore simulator that can be coupled with a compositional reservoir simulator. A key contribution of this work is the development of a simulator for predicting the detrimental effects of asphaltene in a well. Simulation results can show where and when the presence of asphaltene particles severely damages the efficiency and the productivity of the wells. This prediction is highly crucial if it is aimed to control the well performance and to optimize productivity.
- Africa > Middle East > Algeria > Ouargla Province > Hassi Messaoud > Oued Mya Basin > Hassi Messaoud Field (0.99)
- Africa > Middle East > Algeria > Ouargla Province > Hassi Messaoud > Berkine Basin (Trias/Ghadames Basin) > Hassi Messaoud Field (0.99)
- Reservoir Description and Dynamics > Reservoir Simulation (1.00)
- Reservoir Description and Dynamics > Reservoir Fluid Dynamics (1.00)
- Production and Well Operations > Production Chemistry, Metallurgy and Biology > Inhibition and remediation of hydrates, scale, paraffin / wax and asphaltene (1.00)
- Facilities Design, Construction and Operation > Flow Assurance > Precipitates (paraffin, asphaltenes, etc.) (1.00)
Summary A great deal of research has been focused on transient two-phase flow in wellbores. However, there is lack of a comprehensive two-fluid model in the literature. In this paper, we present an implementation of a pseudo-compositional, thermal, fully implicit, transient two-fluid model for two-phase flow in wellbores. In this model, we solve gas/liquid mass balance, gas/liquid momentum balance, and two-phase energy balance equations to obtain five primary variables: liquid velocity, gas velocity, pressure, holdup, and temperature. This simulator can be used as a stand-alone code or can be used in conjunction with a reservoir simulator to mimic wellbore/reservoir dynamic interactions. In our model, we consider stratified, bubbly, intermittent, and annular flow regimes using appropriate closure relations for interphase and wall-shear stress terms in the momentum equations. In our simulation, we found that the interphase and wall-shear stress terms for different flow regimes can significantly affect the model's results. In addition, the interphase momentum transfer terms mainly influence the holdup value. The outcome of this research leads to a more accurate simulation of multiphase flow in the wellbore and pipes, which can be applied to the surface facility design, well-performance optimization, and wellbore damage estimation.