OPTIMIZING PRODUCTION FROM GAS CONDENSATE

RESERVOIRS

F.B. THOMAS N. HOLOWACH X. ZHOU D.B. BENNION

this article begins on the next page F

PETROLEUM SOCIETY OF CIM & AOSTRA PAPER NO. 94-04S ATMA-03 Optimizing Production from Gas Condensate Reservoirs F.B. Thomas N. Holowach X. Zhou D.B. Bennion Hycal Energy Research Laboratories Ltd. This paper is to be presented at the 45th annual technical meeting of the Petroleum Society of CIM organized by the Petroleum Society of CIM, Co-sponsored by AOSTRA in Calgary, Canada, June 12-15, 1994. Discussion of this paper is invited and may be presented at the meeting if filed in writing with the technical program chairman prior to the conclusion of the meeting. This paper and any
discussion filed will be considered for publication in CIM journals. Publication rights are reserved. This is a preprint and is subject to correction. ABSTRACT Increased interest in gas condensate reservoirs, which exhibit complexities due to the production of gas, condensates and many times, an in-situ ed As expecte4 there are definite production problems and exploitation concerns which are at issue with gas condensate reservoirs, or reservoirs which exhibit a combination of gas condensate and oil characteristics. This work seeks to describe some of the phenomena which are at
work in rich gas condensate reservoirs. In this context, specific parameters such as interfacial tension, mobility effects, pore size distribution and compositional changes all contribute to the optimization of gas condensate wells. 7 This work summarizes the experience which the authors have gained over a five year period and includes data sets, theoretical calculations, along with inferences associated with many of the phenomena which must be accounted for in optimizing production from a gas condensate system. TECHNICAL BACKGROUND The problems associated with gas condensate systems
are as (or more) challenging as those associated with oil reservoirs. Figure 1 shows a typical pressure-temperature diagram. To the left side of the critical point one observes bubblepoint systems. Heavy and conventional oils are examples of these. To the right of the critical point one observes dewpoint systems. The literature is replete with discussions of P-T diagrams wherein one observes the maximum pressure as the cricondenbar and the maximum temperature as the cricondentherm. If the pressure and temperature of the specific composition place the material in tile reservoir to the
right of the phase loop (at a reservoir temperature greater than the cricondentherm) then one can perform any pressure manipulation whatsoever and a single phase is the result. These are normally called dry gases. The region in between the critical point and the cricondentherm is where gas condensates appear. The quality lines describe the amount of liquid and gas which are at equilibrium at a specified pressure and temperature. For reservoirs whose behavior is very close to the critical point, very high liquid dropout can be incurred at pressures close to saturation pressure. If
production by primary depletion is chosen, as the liquid condenses from the gas phase and accumulates in the reservoir, cash flow decreases. By leaving the retrograde condensate behind in the reservoir, one has not only decreased the total hydrocarbon which will be produced, but the components remaining in the reservoir are of the highest value. This forms the basis for the two phase Z factor material balance
 PETROLEUM SOCIETY OF CIM & AOSTRA PAPER NO. 94-04S

Optimizing Production from Gas

Condensate Reservoirs
"

=;.
F.B. Thomas
N. Holowach
X.Zhou
D.B. Bennion
Hycal Energy Research Laboratories Ltd.

This paper is to be presented at the 45th annual technical meeting or the Petroleum Society of elM organized by the Petroleum Society of elM,
co-sponsored by AOSTRA in Galgary, Canada. June 12-15,1994. Discussion of this paper is invited and may be presented at the meeting if filed
in writing with the technical program chairman prior to the conclusion at the meeting. This paper and any discussion filed will be considered for
pUblication in elM journals. Publication rights are reserved. This is a pre-print and is subject to correclion.
. .,.'

ABSTRACT
Increased interest in gas condensate reservoirs, which
exhibit complexities due ro rhe production ofgas, condensates
and many times, an in-situ oil phase has been observed. As
expected, there are definite production problems and
exploitation concerns which are at issue with gas condensate
reservoirs, or reservoirs which exhibit a combination of gas
condensate and oil characteristics.
This work seeks to describe some ofthe phenomena which
are at work in rich gas condensate reservoirs. In this
context, specific parameters such as inrerfacial tension,
mobility effects, pore size distribution and compositional
~ .'
bubblepoint systems. Heavy and conventional oils are
examples of these~ To the right of the critical point one
observes dewpoint systems~ The literature is replete with
discussions of PoT diagrams wherein one observes the
maximum pressure as the cricondenbar and the maximum
temperature as the cricondentherm(l~"~ If the pressure and
temperature of the specific composition place the material in
the reservoir to the right of the phase loop (at a reservoir
temperature greater than the cricondentherm) then one can
perform any pressure manipulation whatsoever and a single
phase is the result. These are normally called dry gases. The
region in between the critical point and the cricondentherm is
where gas condensates appear.
.~

changes all contribure to the optimization of gas condensate
wells. This work summarizes the experience which the
authors have gained over a five year period and includes
data sets, theoretical calculLltions, along with inferences
associo.ted >virh many of the phenomena which must be
accounted/or in optimizing praductianjrom a gas condensate
system.
TECHNICAL BACKGROUND
The problems associated with gas condensate systems are
as (or more) challenging as those associated with oil
reservoirs. Figwe 1 shows a typical pressure-temperature
diagram~ To the left side of the critical point one observes
- ....
..
The quality lines describe the amount of liquid and gas
which are at equilibrium at a specified pressure and
.,.'., ''t
temperal:UIe. For reservoirs whose behavior is very close to
the critical point, very high liquid dropout can be incurred at
pressures close to saturation presswe_ IT production by
primary depletion is chosen, as the liquid condenses from the
gas phase and accumulates in the reservoir, cash flow
decreases~ By leaving the retrograde condensate behind in
the reservoir, one has not only decreased the total
hydrocarbon which will be produced, but the components
." .,
remaining in the reservoir are of the highest value~ This ' .. "'"
forms the basis for the two phase Z factor material balance
\ :.~:
_.'.
 correction which is extensively \VTitten of in the lit.erature(l,4).
The high-mobility ga<;;; makes it extremely difficult to produce
the liquid pbase bydrocarbon once it bas condensed;
moreover the condensed components can seriously reduce gas
productivity.
These factors, although hard to overcome, need not
preclude economic operation of a gas condensate reservoir.
Two problems which are commonly observed in gas
condensate systems are now discussed.
Problem 1 What is the character of the fluid in
situ?
Rich condensate reservoirs often exhibit an inherent
difficulty-ebaracterization of the fluid. Oftimes one bas a
rich gas which is in contact with one or more separate and
distinct oil phases in situ. In approximately 50% of the cases
which have been analyzed, when separator gas and liquid
samples are recombined in the laboratory, the saturation
pressure of the recombined fluid exceeds the maximum
pressure of the reservoir. Figure 2 describes the situation.
For example, the GOR observed at the field separator is
sho\\'ll by the GOR asterisk. As one contacts the separator
gas with the separator liquid at reservoir temperature, one
may observe a saturation pressure much higher than the
reservoir pressure. The choice one has is either to increase
or decrease the GaR in order to reduce the saturation
pressure to reservoir pressure. In most cases it is preferred
to decrease the GOR since, due to mobility effects, gas flow
would normally be expected to be higher than that
corresponding to the actual in-situ fluid. Using this
technique provides at least a necessary condition for the
recombination procedure. In no way does this mean that the
sarnration pressure must be equal to the reservoir pressure.
In some cases the saturation pressure of the in-situ fluid may
be lower than the reservoir pressure.
In most of the cases depicted by Figure 2 the much higher
sarnration pressure may be due to excessive preferential gas
flow or contamination from a liquid phase in situ wherein a
free liquid, such as a heavier oil, is produced at the same
time as the gas condensate. In some cases the oil produced
is of a much lower API gravity and very little contamination
may result in an extremely unrealistic dewpoint pressure. In
these cases one can only hope to obtain representative
samples by adhering more closely to sampling techniques
described in the literature.(5.6 j Sometimes bottomhole samples
provide more representative compositions of reservoir fluids.
Systems such as this can normally be evaluated and
confirmed by analyzing the heavier ends of the liquid phase
produced and also by analyzing the saturation pressure
characteristics as have been described_
At this point If one determines that contamination exists,
men there may not be much benefit to performing laboratory
')
studies. This needs to be detailed before lab work begins.
Problem 2 - Retrograde Condensale Effecls
Retrograde condensation results in a number of problems.
The most obvious and serious of these is lost productive
capacity due to accumulation of liquid in the reservoir. This
has two facets: the flISt is associated with not being able to
produce the higher value liquid components and secondly, the
increased liquid saturation results in reduced gas flow rates.
These factors work in concert and the more serious the liquid
dropout, the greater the reduction in gas relative permeability.
For a system which is single phase initially, relative
permeability effects are absent. Relative permeability should
be viewed as a dependent variable derermined by three other
parameters or influences. These general influences are
associated with:
L interfacial tension effects
2. viscosity ratio
3. pore size distribution
By defInition, IFf effects are only involved when cwo
phases are present. The interracial tension is important
because of the capillary pressure equation, which can be
viewed intuitively as equation 1, wherein in order to sweep
through a pore in a two phase scenario, the differential
pressure must be equal to or exceed the capillaI)' pressure.
Interfacial Tension
(1)
radius
One can observe from Equation 1 that as the interfacial
tension decreases, the capillary pressure decreases.
Conversely as the radius of the pore throat which contains the
retrograde liquid decreases, the capillary pressure holding the
liquid in the pore increases. Therefore, to be able to produce
retrograde liquid from small pore throats, one must have
either a ver), high differential pressure driving force or low
interfacial tension.
Extrapolations of this thinking would indicate, therefore,
that for gas condensate systems which exhibit high mterfacial
tensions where the pore throats are very small, which may
correspond either to low permeability rock or higher
permeability rocks but with very large coordination number,
the success of flowing the liquid from the rock, once it has
condensed., will be limited. In such cases vaporization (lean
gas cycling) or injection of 1FT reducing agents (CO,) may
be the only option to enhance the performance. On the other
hand if the equilibrium gas and liquid exhibit low interfacial
tension, then the liquid may flow freely from most of the
porethroats in the rock and very little retrograde condensaLe
relative permeability reduction will be observed.