Phase diagram

The phase behavior of petroleum fluids is best described by a phase diagram. A generalized
version of the phase diagram is presented in Figure 1. It must be noted that each reservoir fluid,
due to varying composition of hydrocarbons and impurities, has unique properties and phase
behavior. Hence, a reservoir fluid is represented by its own phase diagram.

Figure 1. A generalized phase diagram showing volatilization of oil and retrograde

condensation of gas that affects reservoir performance.

The important aspects of the phase diagram are summarized as follows:

• Single- and two-phase regions: The two regions are distinguished by the phase envelope.
Within the phase envelope, petroleum fluid exists in two phases, liquid and vapor. Outside the
phase envelope, petroleum fluid exists in single phase, either in liquid or in vapor form.
• Isosaturation lines: The curved lines within the phase envelope, referred to as isosaturation
lines, represent the relative percentages of liquid and vapor at the specific pressure and
temperature. Along an isosaturation line, liquid and vapor fractions present in the fluid are
constant.
• Bubble point curve: The outer periphery of the phase envelope toward the upper left. Fluid at
any pressure above the line only exists in liquid form.
• Dew point curve: The outer periphery of the phase envelope toward the lower right. Fluid at
any temperature beyond the line only exists in vapor form.
• Critical point: Bubble point and dew point curves meet at critical point C where liquid and
vapor phases are in equilibrium and indistinguishable from each other. At the critical point, the
properties of liquid and vapor phases are identical. Moreover, liquid and vapor phases are
indistinguishable at the critical point. The critical point changes with the composition of
hydrocarbons.
• Cricondenbar: The maximum pressure over which fluid can only exist in liquid form.
• Cricondentherm: The maximum temperature over which fluid can only exist as vapor.
It is again noted that the phase diagram is dependent upon the composition of the oil and gas. In
situ fluid in each reservoir will have its own phase diagram having different bubble point and
dew point curves. The shape of the phase diagram for highly volatile oil is quite different to that
of heavy oil. In Figure 2, phase diagrams for light and heavy oils are shown for comparison.

Figure 2. Phase diagram of volatile oil (composition A) compared to black oil (composition
B). Reservoir fluids have unique compositions; hence, they exhibit unique phase behavior.

Reservoir types and recovery efficiency

Petroleum reservoirs are commonly classified according to the composition of petroleum fluids.
In this section, the phase behavior of each fluid type is summarized with the help of a
generalized phase diagram. Performance of a reservoir is dependent on the type of fluid,
pressure, and temperature. The recovery efficiencies from each type of reservoir are also
discussed.
In the order of increasing presence of heavier hydrocarbon components, petroleum reservoirs are
classified as follows:
• Dry gas reservoir
• Wet gas reservoir
• Gas condensate reservoir
• Volatile oil reservoir
• Black oil reservoir
• Heavy oil reservoir

• Dry gas reservoir: Dry gas has only the lighter components, and no liquid phase is formed as
reservoir pressure declines. The path taken by the dry gas reservoir is shown as G-G’ in the
phase diagram (Figure 1). The line does not enter the two-phase region inside the phase
envelope. The reservoir drive mechanism is the expansion of gas. Recovery efficiency from
conventional dry gas reservoirs having good porosity and permeability is quite high, in the range
of 70–85%, due to the fact that gas is significantly less viscous than oil and water. In
unconventional shale gas reservoirs, however, recovery is significantly less due to ultralow rock
permeability, typically less than 10%.
• Wet gas reservoir: Wet gas is distinguished by the presence of certain heavier components that
are converted to liquid under stock-tank conditions at the surface. However, the gas phase
essentially remains as vapor in the reservoir as pressure declines due to production.
• Gas condensate reservoir: In gas condensate reservoirs, gas has relative abundance of heavier
components, which condense out in the reservoir as the pressure declines. Gas traces a path
where it enters the shaded retrograde condensation region within the two-phase region R–R’. In
order to minimize the loss of enriched hydrocarbon components, gas recycling is implemented
where the certain amount of produced gas is injected back in the reservoir. The path traced by
gas condensate reservoirs is shown by the line R-R’. The recovery efficiency of retrograde
condensate reservoirs is less than that of dry and wet gas reservoirs.

• Saturated and under-saturated oil reservoirs: An oil reservoir can either be saturated or
under-saturated. Initially, the reservoir pressure may be above the bubble point pressure and the
petroleum fluid is completely in liquid phase (under-saturated oil reservoir), or at or below the
bubble point (saturated oil reservoir). The term under-saturated denotes that the liquid phase is
not fully saturated with gas and has the capacity to dissolve more gas. With regards to the phase
diagram, the initial point of under-saturated oil reservoir is above the bubble point curve. On the
other hand, saturated oil is located on the bubble point curve or within the phase envelope.
• Volatile oil reservoir: Volatile oil is relatively high in lighter hydrocarbon components
compared to black oil reservoirs and has higher API gravity (40˚ or more). Let us first consider a
saturated oil reservoir. The path traced by volatile oil is closer to the critical point than heavier
oil. In the phase diagram, the path has two distinct portions and characteristics as shown in Table
1.
Table 1. Phase behavior of volatile oil

• Black oil reservoir: “Black” oil is less volatile due to the presence heavier hydrocarbons. The
path of the black oil is labeled as B–B’–B’’. Like in volatile oil reservoirs, recovery above and
below the bubble point is based on expansion and solution drive, respectively. As black oil
has higher viscosity, recovery can be somewhat less than that of volatile oil reservoirs given all
other factors remaining the same.
• Heavy oil reservoir: Heavier and complex hydrocarbons are abundant in heavy oil leading to
very high viscosity, in the order of 10,000 cp or more. Heavy oil is much less volatility. The path
traced by heavy oil is further to the left of the phase diagram. Recovery is quite low, unless
thermal enhanced oil recovery methods are implemented.
 Oil Recovery
Oil may be recovered from primary, secondary, and tertiary recovery methods. During
primary recovery, petroleum reservoirs produce naturally. However, during secondary and
tertiary recovery, energy is provided by injecting water or gas or chemicals into the reservoir to
drive oil and gas. External energy is also provided by thermal methods.

I. Primary Method
Primary recovery of oil and gas is solely driven by the natural energy available to the reservoir.
Internal energy in a reservoir is concentrated due to the intense pressurization of fluids and rock.
The energy is released gradually as the reservoir is produced.

Primary drive mechanisms

In conventional oil and gas reservoirs, the natural sources of energy in oil and gas reservoirs
are many, including
- the high initial reservoir pressure,
- volatilization characteristics of petroleum fluids,
- expansion of gas, and
- the effect of an aquifer, among others.
The above sources control the primary reservoir performance to varying degrees. Multiple
sources of energy from nature can act in combination during the primary recovery.
Historical data have shown that the primary recovery can be as high as 80% or more for a gas
reservoir having good porosity and permeability, and down to 10% or less for a heavy oil
reservoir with unfavorable rock characteristics.
For most unconventional reservoirs, the forces of nature are inadequate to produce oil and gas.
Innovative techniques such as multistage hydraulic fracturing in horizontal wells (as in shale gas)
and applying thermal energy (as in oil sands) are needed to produce unconventional
accumulations of petroleum. In fact, the unconventional reservoirs acquired their name as
production of oil and gas in a conventional manner is not economically feasible.
The natural mechanisms for primary production from conventional reservoirs are discussed in
the following paragraphs. Broadly, all commercially productive petroleum reservoirs are divided
into either expansion drive, compaction drive, or water drive reservoirs. An expansion- or
compaction-drive reservoir is a predominantly sealed reservoir in which the expansion of fluids
and rock originally within the reservoir is responsible for petroleum expulsion from the
reservoir. Figure shows the producing-mechanism system of classification.

(A) Oil reservoirs

The primary drive mechanisms in oil reservoirs are as follows:
(i) Liquid and rock expansion drive
(ii) Solution gas or depletion drive
(iii) Gas cap drive
(iv) Aquifer water drive
(v) Gravity segregation drive
(vi) Compaction drive
(vii) Combinations of the above

(i) Liquid and rock expansion drive

When an oil reservoir is producing above the bubble point pressure, shown as line B-B’ or V-V’
in Figure 1, the primary mechanism for oil production is the expansion of liquid and rock. Oil is
under-saturated, and all the volatile components are dissolved in oil as long as the reservoir
operates above the bubble point pressure.
During primary production, natural gas evolves at the surface facilities due to the reduction in
pressure and temperature, resulting in low and constant gas–oil ratio. No significant water
production is anticipated during primary production except in reservoirs where water saturation
is high.
The oil recovery mechanism is dominated by the volumetric expansion of the reservoir fluids and
rock above the bubble point when no other external driving mechanism is present. Expected
recovery efficiency is relatively low, and typically varies from 1% to 5%, with an average of 3%.

(ii) Solution gas or depletion drive

When the reservoir pressure declines below the bubble point into the two-phase region (refer to
Figure 1) due to production, dissolved gas starts to come out of the solution, and a free gas phase
is formed. Below the bubble point the gas phase increases rapidly in the reservoir. The dominant
recovery mechanism is known as solution gas or depletion drive. The gas phase is significantly
more mobile than the liquid phase in the reservoir because the viscosity of the gas is much
lower than the oil.
Gas-drive reservoirs that are not gas cap reservoirs but are dominated by the expansion of
solution gas are called solution gas drive or dissolved gas drive reservoirs. Fig. 3 shows a
schematic of a solution gas drive reservoir. Gas drive reservoirs that are neither gas-cap nor
solution gas drive reservoirs are called gas-drive reservoirs. For example, dry gas reservoirs are
gas-drive reservoirs because they do not qualify as solution gas drive or as gas cap reservoirs.
The practice of reinjecting dry gas into and producing wet gas from gas/condensate reservoirs is
called gas cycling or cycling.
Reservoir pressure declines rapidly from early stages of recovery. The gas–oil ratio is initially
low, and then rises to a maximum, and finally drops as most of the liberated gas is produced.
Again, no significant water production is anticipated from the reservoir except where the water
saturation is high.
Typical oil recovery due to solution gas drive ranges between 10% and 30%, with an average of
about 20%. Once secondary recovery operation is initiated, further recovery of oil is attained
(Figure 3).

Figure 3. Comparison between reservoir performances based on two scenarios. (a) Solution
gas drive alone and (b) solution gas drive followed by water injection (secondary recovery).
Recovery is usually higher in the latter case.

In the early years of the twentieth century, many small reservoirs were produced until
abandonment based on a primary recovery mechanism. Common approaches to boost production
during declining well performance involved the utilization of pump, gas lift, well recompletion,
and workover, among others. Many older reservoirs are still produced in the above manner.
However, as the reservoir characteristics and fluid flow behavior were better understood along
with the introduction of technological innovations, large complex reservoirs were subjected to
water-flooding and pressure maintenance (i.e., secondary recovery techniques) early on
following a relatively short period of primary recovery. The timing and strategy for improved oil
recovery (IOR) operations are based on building various scenarios of drilling additional wells
and fluid injection. The ultimate recovery of petroleum is maximized by introducing additional
energy into the reservoir, and the added assets far outweigh the costs associated with drilling and
IOR operations.

(iii) Gas cap drive

A gas cap present at the time of the discovery of the oil reservoir is known as a primary gas cap.
Certain oil reservoirs are discovered with an initial reservoir pressure below the bubble point
pressure where a primary gas cap forms long before the reservoir is discovered and produced.
In case an oil reservoir does not have a gas cap initially, but one is formed later by the
dissolution of volatile components present in the liquid phase, the gas cap is referred to as
secondary. Liberated gas forms a gas cap above the oil zone. At that point, the reservoir is
located within the two-phase region (as in points B’’ and V’’ in Figure 1). Since gas is lighter
than oil, it rises above the oil zone due to gravity segregation.
During production by gas cap drive, reservoir pressure falls slowly and continuously. The
driving energy is predominantly provided by the expansion of the gas cap as the reservoir
depletes. The gas–oil ratio rises continuously in updip wells. Water production is nonexistent or
negligible where the water saturation is irreducible. Production from the gas cap drive reservoir
is due to the driving energy imparted by both solution and free gases, resulting in higher oil
recovery than the solution gas drive alone. Oil recovery due to gas cap drive is typically
around 30% but could be as much as 40%.
Oil recovery under gas cap drive is improved by (i) completing the wells in the oil zone as deep
as possible, (ii) re-injecting the produced gas in updip wells, and (iii) shutting off the wells as
the gas–oil ratio becomes significant (Figure 4).
 Figure 4. Reservoir performance under gas cap drive.

Gas caps are also classified according to their displacement efficiency. At the most favorable
extreme, the expanding gas displaces oil in a piston-like manner. At the other limit, the
expanding gas displaces oil in a totally diffuse manner. The former are segregation drive or
gravity drainage gas caps; the latter are nonsegregation-drive gas caps. The boundary between
the gas cap zone and oil zone is the gas/oil contact (GOC). Segregation drive gas caps exhibit a
GOC that moves progressively downward during depletion. In contrast, nonsegregation drive gas
caps exhibit a GOC that appears stationary. The gas cap displacement efficiency depends on the
producing rate and vertical permeability. Segregation drive gas caps tend to have high vertical
permeability, while nonsegregation drive gas caps tend to have low vertical permeability. These
two types of gas caps represent limiting cases. In reality, there is a continuum of character
between these limits. The exact gas-cap character depends on the actual conditions.

(iv) Aquifer water drive

Certain reservoirs are in communication with an aquifer, which may provide significant natural
energy for production. Three types of water drive reservoirs are encountered:
• Peripheral water drive: The aquifer is located at the periphery
• Edgewater drive: The aquifer is located at one edge
• Bottom water drive: The aquifer is located at the bottom of the oil or gas reservoir
As an oil reservoir is produced, water encroachment into the reservoir occurs due to high aquifer
pressure. This leads to favorable oil recovery. Reservoir pressure remains high, and gas–oil ratio
remains low during production. Early water production is encountered at the downdip wells, and
water production increases with time. Aquifer volume is quite large in comparison to reservoir
volume, 10 times or larger than the reservoir.
Certain reservoirs experience bottom water drive where the aquifer is located below the
reservoir. If the aquifer is below the oil reservoir, water coning into the oil reservoir results in
lower oil recovery than what can be expected from a peripheral water drive.
Under favorable conditions, oil recovery efficiency under aquifer water drive could be as much
as 50% or more. Hence, a strong influence by aquifer may be the most potent primary drive
mechanism available in comparison to the others. Figure 5, presents the reservoir performance
under aquifer drive.
 Figure 5. Reservoir performance under aquifer water drive

(v) Gravity segregation drive

The density differences between oil and gas and water result in their natural segregation in the
reservoir. This process can be used as a drive mechanism, but is relatively weak, and in practice
is only used in combination with other drive mechanisms. Oil drainage due to gravity and
subsequent production can be found in certain steeply dipping or fractured reservoirs located at
shallow depths. The phenomenon may also occur where vertical permeability is more than
horizontal permeability. Under gravity segregation drive, reservoir pressure declines
continuously. Gas–oil ratio remains low in downdip wells, but a high value is observed in updip
wells. Water production is either not observed or negligible at the wells.
Oil recovery due to gravity segregation drive could be 50% or more. Combined with gas cap
drive, a recovery factor of 80% is achieved in certain cases. However, total recovery volume
could be low in reservoirs that produce by the mechanism of gravity drainage.
 (vi) Rock compaction drive
Certain reservoir rocks are unconsolidated and have very high compressibility much above the
normal range of 3–8 × 10−6 psi−1. No significant decline is observed as the reservoir is produced
and rock is compacted. Sizeable amounts of oil may be produced before the bubble point
pressure is reached. Such a phenomenon is referred to as compaction drive. Certain North Sea
and Gulf Coast fields are found to produce by compaction drive, although such reservoirs are not
commonplace. Overpressured reservoirs may also produce by compaction drive.
Pressure depletion causes the internal stress within the reservoir rock to increase. This change
produces changes in the grain arrangement and other phenomena that ultimately cause the pore
volume of the rock to decrease. The contraction of the reservoir pore volume aids in expelling
fluids from the reservoir. The terms "pore-volume contraction" and "rock expansion" are used
interchangeably in this chapter to describe this phenomenon, even though very little grain
expansion usually takes place. If this phenomenon is a major producing mechanism, the reservoir
is a compaction-drive reservoir. Compaction-drive reservoirs are rare because the PV
compressibility is usually less than the oil compressibility.

(B) Dry and wet gas reservoirs

The drive mechanisms in natural gas reservoirs include:
(i) Gas expansion drive
(ii) Aquifer water drive
(iii) A combination of the above
Dry and wet gas reservoirs exist in the single-phase region with the initial temperature exceeding
the cricondentherm. Dry- and wet-gas reservoirs are gas-expansion-drive reservoirs because they
do not contain any free oil at reservoir conditions. More descriptively, a gas-drive reservoir is
one in which the expansion of free gas is the predominant producing mechanism. The gas phase
undergoes isothermal depletion inside the reservoir without any condensation. When a
portion of produced gas condenses in the surface separators under reduced pressure and
temperature, the produced gas is referred to as wet gas.
Dry gas reservoirs contain mostly lighter hydrocarbons with negligible condensate volume. Gas–
condensate ratios could be 100,000 scf/STB or higher. Gas recoveries are observed to be 80% or
more at relatively low separator pressures.
Gas reservoirs with aquifer drive
When a gas reservoir is in contact with an aquifer at the periphery, or below the reservoir, gas
recovery efficiency is not as high. Due to water production in wells, recovery from aquifer-
driven gas reservoirs can be as low as 50%. This is in contrast to oil reservoirs, where the
presence of a strong aquifer usually augments oil recovery.
 SUMMARY
Table: Primary derive mechanism in oil reservoirs

Table: Primary derive mechanism in gas reservoirs