Measurement and Prediction of Volumetric and Transport Properties of Reservoir Fluids At High Pressure Mesure et prédiction des propriétés volumétriques et des propriétés de transport des fluides de gisement à haute pression

• Published in: Oil & gas science and technology 2006-12, Vol.53 (3), p.265-281
• Main Authors: De Sant'ana H. B., Ungerer P., Batut C., Moracchini G., Sanchez J., Carrier J., Jensen D. M.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 1294-4475; 1953-8189
• DOI: 10.2516/ogst:1998024

Discoveries of oil and gas fields under severe conditions of temperature (above 150°C) or pressure (in excess of 50 MPa) have been made in various regions of the world. In the North Sea, production is scheduled from deep reservoirs at 190°C and 110 MPa. This brings with it important challenges for predicting the properties of reservoir fluids, both from an experimental and a theoretical standpoint. In order to perform fluid studies for these reservoir conditions, IFP has developed a specific mercury-free high pressure apparatus with sapphire windows, a phase sampling device and viscosity determination by the capillary tube method. Its application is illustrated here using examples of real fluids and model mixtures. This equipment was first used to measure volumetric properties for gases. It has been shown that very high compressibility factors can be found with HP-HT gas condensates. This has a strong influence on recovery factors during primary depletion. In order to predict more accurately the volumetric properties of mixtures under these conditions, we propose to use a conventional equation of state, such as Peng-Robinson, with two improvements :- a modified temperature-dependent volume translation method, calibrated for high pressure density data; the method is simple, more accurate than other volume translation methods and fully consistent with lumping procedures;- a quadratic mixing rule on the covolume. Specific phase behavior can also be found. At low temperatures, wax crystallization can occur from a fluid which is a gas condensate at reservoir temperature. This feature is due to the simultaneous presence of abundant methane and heavy paraffins. A study of model fluids in a sapphire cell has allowed us to identify the possible types of phase diagrams. Although generally not considered to be an important parameter, gas viscosity may have some importance in the production of HP-HT accumulations, because of high flow rates. Viscosity models exhibit significant uncertainties because of large viscosity contrasts between the individual components of the reservoir fluid. In order to test and improve prediction methods, we started the acquisition of viscosity data under representative conditions. Special care was taken in the implementation of the capillary tube method, so that low viscosities (down to 0. 02 mPa. s) could be measured with high accuracy at pressures up to 120 MPa on simple systems, such as methane, n-pentane, nitrogen, and nitrogen-pentane