24-10-2012, 11:43 AM
Conformance Improvement Using Gels
ABSTRACT
This report describes work performed during the second year of the project, ‘Conformance Improvement Using Gels.’
This three-year research project has two objectives. The first objective is to identify gel compositions and conditions that
substantially reduce flow through fractures that allow direct channeling between wells, while leaving secondary fractures open
so that high fluid injection and production rates can be maintained. This goal will be reached by (1) characterizing gel
propagation through fractures as a function of fracture width, length, and height, injection rate, gel composition, and
temperature, (2) correlating rheology in fractures with that in a viscometer, and (3) using the experimental results to develop
an appropriate model for gel placement and treatment sizing. The second objective is to optimize treatments in fractured
production wells, where the gel must reduce permeability to water much more than that to oil. Within this objective, the
specific goals are to (1) determine the correct mechanism(s) for the disproportionate permeability reduction, (2) identify
conditions that maximize the phenomenon, (3) find materials and methods that make the phenomenon predictable and
controllable, and (4) establish a methodology to determine how much gelant should be injected in a given fractured production
well.