Basic knowledge of

Simulation
Kuala Lumpur, Nov 5, 2015
@28th floor, Tower-1
Pekanbaru, Mar 13, 2017
@D308, UIR
RESERVOIR

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Reservoir Management

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Reservoir Modeling

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Reservoir Simulation

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Uses of Reservoir Simulator

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Reservoir Simulation User

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MODELING CONCEPT
A well-stirred tank analog of a simulator
grid system

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 Simulating flow

flow from one grid block to the next

flow a grid block to the well completion
flow within the wells ( and surface
network)

FLOW = TRANSMISSIBILITY * MOBILITY * POTENTIAL DIFFERENCE

Geometry & Fluid Well

Properties Properties Production

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grid model in simulation

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 Types grid model

DX COORD
DY ZCORN
DZ
TOPS

DR
D
DZ

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 Types grid model
DX
DY
DZ COORD
TOPS ZCORN

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 Types grid model

COORD
DX ZCORN
DY
DZ
TOPS

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Comparison grid model

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Cartesian grid model

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Structured grid model

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Cell properties

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 Discretization effect

1. No well representation in grid block

2. Mobility weighting
3. Numerical dispersion
4. Grid orientation

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 1. Representation of wells

Grid block saturation and pressure will not be

representative of saturations and pressures at the
sand face of the flowing well, data from an external
source are necessary (well data)

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2. Mobility Weighting methodology

Upstream weighting
Downstream weighting
Mixed weighting
Extrapolation or interpolation method

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 3. Numerical Dispersion
An artifact of current numerical analysis
techniques that can cause severe distortions in
simulations of processes in which relatively rapid
saturation changes occur
100
100
SW (%PV)

SW (%PV)
75 75

50 50

25 25

0 0
0 1 2 3 4 0 1 2 3 4

Time Timestep

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4. Grid Orientation Effect

1
2 3 4 5
A P
8
6 7

4 5
1
2 3
B

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 Calculation Procedure

Explicit : use values of saturation known at the

beginning of a timestep. These saturation are
known from previous timestep calculation
Implicit : use mobility and capillary pressure
calculated as functions of saturation at the end
of the timestep
Semi-implicit : use estimates of mobility and
capillary pressure developed by assuming that
the functions will be straight-line functions of
saturation during a timestep
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 Explicit and Implicit functions

Actual Sw compare to calculated Sw build up

over time in region of hypothetical reservoir

100 100

Water Saturation (%PV)

Water Saturation (%PV)

75 75

50 50

25 25

0 0
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 0 1 2 3 4 5 6
TIME TIMESTEP

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 Treatment of vertical Saturation
and Pressure distribution
Water Saturation (%PV) Water Saturation (%PV)

Depth
Depth

Single value of water

saturation equal to
volumetric average

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 Treatment of vertical Saturation
and Pressure distribution
The zone should be modeled accurately with 3D
model having enough thin gridblocks to define
the vertical saturation distribution.
Many reservoir models define the thick block
behave as if it were constructed by many thin
layers by using a revised set of saturation
functions (relative permeability and capillary
pressure)

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 Pseudofunctions

The set of values of repeating calculation for the

full range of saturation distribution expected in a
specific part of reservoir.
Two set of conditions to consider
1. General case, conditions are dynamic, viscous,
gravity, and capillary forces all influence the vertical
saturation distribution
2. Satisfactory pseudo functions can be developed by
assuming equilibrium conditions, in which gravity
and capillarity control the vertical saturation
distribution.
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 Pseudofunctions

If the reservoir behaves as though capillary and

gravity forces are in equilibrium, then vertical
equilibrium pseudofunctions can be calculated
analytically by vertical integration of the relative
permeability and capillary pressure curves for
different positions of the transition zone as it
moves through the gridblock

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 Well functions
To solve the lack of vertical definition within a single
gridblock makes it impossible to simulate directly the
performance of a well in a 2D areal model in which the
well is represented by one gridblock
Well functions relate fluid mobilities near the wellbore to
gridblock saturations
Completion interval, near-wellbore reservoir properties,
an the mechanics of multiphase flow into the well,
wether by cusping, coning, or stratified flow

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 Gas Re-solution

The solution GOR is normally expressed as a

function of pressure
On a reservoir time scale the establishment of
an equilibrium saturation distribution during gas
evolution is effectively instantaneous

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 History matching

The validity of the reservoir description data

used in a model can be evaluated by comparing
calculated versus actual performances
Data matched :
Pressure
WOR, GOR. Gas/water ratio
Fluid contact movement
Water and gas arrival times
Fluid saturation measured in cores

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 Well management

A well-management routine assigns specified

rates and pressure to individual producing and
injection blocks in the simulator at specified
times.

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 Solution method

Direct: normally use to solve small sets of

simultaneous equations. Fit for small to
intermediate model. Answer accurate and no
user intervention is required
Iterative: development of an approximate
solution to the system of equations. The
approximation is replaced systematically until
the answers converge to within a specified
tolerance of the correct answer

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