THE UNIVERSITY OF TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO

Improved Oil Recovery

RESR6014

Homework #1 DUE DATE: 8th February 2019

TOTAL: 100 MARKS

INSTRUCTIONS: Attempt all questions and write calculations to receive full mark
Homework should be written in word document, converted to pdf and
submitted through Canvas

Question 1: (25 marks)

The following data apply to a laboratory scale linear low-tension displacement.
 Diameter of the core plug = 2.5 cm
 Length of the core plug = 10 cm
 Porosity = 0.25
 Residual saturation in ordinary waterflood = 30 %
 Injection rate of low tension fluid = 50 cm3/hr
 Viscosity of the injected fluid = 1 mPa.s
 Endpoint permeability to water = 100 md
 IFT between oil and low-tension fluid = 0.113 mN/m

Estimate the residual oil saturation that will be left behind in the plug at end of the low
tension flood, assuming the system to be strongly water-wet.
Question 2: (25 marks)
The surface tension of a liquid can be measured with a simple technique called drop weight
method. It relies on the fact that a drop of liquid being formed at the tip of a capillary tube
will stay attached to the tube as long as the weight of the drop can be supported by the
surface tension force acting at the point of attachment. If the liquid is injected continuously
through the capillary tube, the drop will eventually become too big to be supported by the
surface tension and it will detach from the capillary tip. If the liquid is injected at a constant
rate, a series of drops will form at the tip, grow to certain size, and then detach. The time
elapsed between detachment of two successive drops will depend on the surface tension of
the liquid, its density, the tip diameter and the rate of liquid injection.

The following data is given for an experiment in which a liquid was injected downward
through a small capillary tube that was held in vertical directions and whose lower end was
open to the atmosphere.
 Density of liquid = 800 kg/m3
 Diameter of the wetted capillary tip = 0.0001 m
 Liquid injection rate = 0.01 ml/min
 Rate of drop formation 6 drops per minute
 Density of surrounding air negligible
 Acceleration due to gravity (g) = 9.81 m/s2

Calculate the surface tension of the liquid by equating the gravitational force acting on an
individual drop to the surface tension force acting at the neck of the drop.
Question 3: (25 marks)
Consider the situation shown in the figure at the right hand side. Air is being injected very
slowly into a liquid column using two capillary tubes. The smaller tube has a diameter of
0.25 mm and the larger tube has a diameter of 0.75 mm. Very sensitive pressure transducers
are connected to the gas tubes to continuously monitor the gas injection pressures, which
vary according to the size and shape of the bubbles at the tip. The pressure peaks when the
bubble is just emerging from the tube, i.e. its diameter is equal to the diameter of the tube
and it decreases as the bubble grows. The pressure measurements show that the peak
pressure in the smaller tube is 5.0 kPa larger than the peak pressure in the larger tube. From
this information, calculate the surface tension of the liquid.
Question 4: (25 marks)
The following data are given for a linear waterflood.
 Pore volume of the linear reservoir = 1.0 E06 m3
 Length of the reservoir = 1000 m
 Water injection rate = 500 m3/d
 Connate water saturation = 0.25
 Residual oil saturation = 0.26
 Bo = 1.20

The fractional flow curve for this system is given below. A non-adsorbing tracer has been
injected with the flood water continuously from the start.
(a) Calculate the arrival time of the tracer at the production end.
(b) Calculate the surface volume of oil produced before arrival of the tracer at the production
end.

END