I We mI Robert S. SchechterOil Well Stimulation ROBERT S. SCHECHTER W. A. (Monty) Monerief Centennial Endowed Chair in Petroleum Engineering Professor of Chemical Engineering Professor of Petroleum Engineering ‘The University of Texas at Austin a PRENTICE HALL, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey 07632Litrary of Congress Cataloping-in-Pubiaton Data Sebechter, Robert Samuel ‘Ot well simulation / Robert S. Schechter. Pm, Includes bibogrephical references and inde. ISBN o13-3099342 Oil fielde—Prodacton methods. 1. Tie. ‘aiTa.S37 1962 22 SAD 919068 ce ‘Acquisitions editor: Michael Hays Editoral/production supervision: Raeia Maes Manufacturing buyers: Kelly BelefSusan Brunke Cover designer: Karen Salzback Sq © 1992 by Prenticesttall fac. ZS A simon & Schuster Company Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey 07632 All rights reserved. No part ofthis book may be reproduced, in any form or by any means, ‘without permission in Writing from the publisher. Printed in the United States of America w98 765432 ISBN O-L3-949934-2 Prentice-Hall International (UK) Limited, London Prentice-Hall of Australia Pry. Limited, Sydney Prentice-Hall Canada Ine., Toronto Prentice-Hall Hispancamericana, S.A., Afexico Prentice-Hall of India Private Limited, New Delhi Prentice-Hall of Japan, nc... Tokyo ‘Simon & Schuster Asia Pe. Ltd., Singapore Editora Prentice-Hall do Brasil, Lida., Rio de Janeiro Contents Preface xiii PART 1 PROPERTIES OF FORMATION MATERIALS: AND TREATMENT FLUIDS 1 Chemical Properties of Oil-Bearing Formations and Resident Fluids 1 1.1 Rock Composition and Mineralogy, 2 Sandstones, 3 Limestones, 3 ‘Shales, 3 Composition of Sedimentary Rocks, 4 1.2 Clays, 4 Structure of Clay Minerals, 4 Occurence of Clays in Reservoirs, 91.3 Surface Charge of Clays and Other Minerals, 12 Origin of Surface Charge, 12 Electrical Double Layer, 16 Practical Importance of Surface Charge, 16 1.4 Cation or Base Exchange, 19 1.5 Chemistry of Formation Waters, 28 Cations, 28 Anions, 29 Silica, 29 Representation of Water Composition, 30 Total Atkatinity, 31 1.6 Chemical Factors in Crude Oils, 33 References, 33 Problems, 34 2 Physical Properties of Formation Materials 37 2.1 Mechanical Properties of Formation Rocks, 37 Linear Elasticity, 37 Porous Media, #1 Wave Propagation in Elastic Media, 42 Rock Embedment Strength, 43 2.2 Mechanical Properties of Fluids, 44 Isothermal Compressibility, 44 Fluid Viscosity, SU 2.3 Thermal Properties of Porous Rock, 51 Heat Capacity, 51 Thermal Conductivity, $2 2.4 Thermal Properties of Formation Waters, 53 References, 55 Probiems, 56 3) Chemical and Mechanical Properties of Injected Fluids 59 3.1 Aqueous Polymer Solutions: Chemical Aspects, 59 Natural and Synaketic Polymers, 61 Modified Polymers, 63 ‘Acid Stability, 64 Crosslinking, 65 3.2 Mechanical Properties of Polymer Solutions, 66 The Power-Law Model, 66 Drag Reduction in Turbulent Flow, 70 3.3 Surfactants, 74 Anionic Surfactants, 76 Cationic Surfactants, 80 Nonionic Surfactants, 82 Fluorocarbon Surfactants, 85 3.4 Foams, 86 Foam Stability, 86 Foam Rheology, 89 3.5 Emulsions, 94 Stability, 94 Rheological Properties of Emulsions, 100 3.6 Acids, 101 Acid Systems, 101 ‘Stoichiometry of Acid—Carbonate Reactions, 104 Equilibrium in Acid~Carbonate Reactions, 107 ‘Stoichiometry of Acid-Sandstone Reactions, 112 Equilibrium in Acid~Sandstone Reactions, 114 References, 115 Problems, 118 PART 2 FORMATION DAMAGE 121 The Origins of Formation Damage 121 4.1 Introduction, 121 4.2 Capture of Suspended Particles, 122 Long-Range Forces: Van der Waals, 125 Long-Range Forces: Double-Layer Repulsion, 129 Long-Range Structural Forces, 132 Short-Range Repulsive Forces, 132 The Derjaguin-Landau-Verwey- Overbeek (DLVO) Theory, 132 4.3 Physical Processes That Produce Formation Damage, 136 Drilling and Completion Fluids, 136 Detachment of Particles from Pore Walls, 136 Fresh Water Shock of Reservoir Cores, 143, The Eiffect af pH om Fresh Water Shock, 146 In-Sivu Emulsification, 147 4.4 Chemical Processes That Produce Formation Damage, 152 Frontal Movements in Porous Media, 152 Precipitation in the Intermediate Zone, 163 Paraffin Deposition, 167 Asphaltene Deposition, 168 Contents v4.5 Biological Properties That Produce Formation Damage, 169 References, 170 Problems, 173 5 Modeling Formation Damage 178 5.1 The Parallel-Pathway Model, 179 Fundamental Concepts, 179 ‘Some Experimental Results, 184 Modeling Fresh Water Damage, 186 5.2 Network Models, 190 Effective Medium Theory, 191 Permeability of Damaged Formations, 196 References, 199 Problems, 199 6G Pretreatment Well Tests 202 6.1 Pretreatment Pressure Drawdown Tests of Oil Wells, 203 6.2 The Significance of the Skin Factor, 207 6.3 Pressure Testing of Gas Welis, 208 References, 209 Problems, 210 PART 3 PERFORATING METHODS 212 7 Perforating 212 7.4 The Jet Gun Perforator, 213 7.2 Performance of Jet Guns, 215 Core Flow Efficiency, 217 Perforation Efficiency, 219 7.3 Factors Governing Perforating Cleanup, 226 Completion Fluids. 226 Flow of Produced Fluids, 227 Differential Pressure, 228 7.4 Perforation Design, 229 Depth of Penetration, 230 Shot Density, 230 Phasing, 231 Contents Entryhole Diameter, 231 Generalized Design Nomograph, 233 7.5 Perforating for Hydraulic Fracturing, 234 Fracture Pressures, 234 Limited Entry Perforating, 237 References, 242 Problems, 243 PART 4 HYDRAULIC FRACTURING 246 8 Dynamic Fracture Geometry 246 8.1 Fracture Orientation, 247 Fracturing Pressure, 47 Vertical or Horizontal Fractures, 249 8.2. Vertical Fractures, 253 Fracture Azimuth, 254 Fracture Height, 256 Dynamic Width, 260 Fracture Length, 263 Wellbore Pressure, 270 Effective Nor-Newtonian Viscosity, 271 8.3 Horizontal and Penny-Shaped Fractures, 273 Laminar Flow in Radial Fractures, 273 Volume Balance for Horizontal Fratures, 273 Fracture Width, 275 8.4 Fluid Loss, 277 Compression of Formation Fluids, 277 Viscous Invaded Zone, 279 Wall-Building Fracture Fluids, 280 Combining of Fluté-Loss Coefficients, 281 Average Fluid Loss for Vertical Fractures, 283 References, 285 Problems, 288 9 Fracture Fluid Temperature 292 9.1 Temperature of Fracture Fl Vertical Fractures, 293 Volume and Energy Balances, 293 Heat Conducted into Fracture, 295 Temperature Distribution, 296 Average Fluid Temperature, 300 Contents vil10 11 12 rrr rrr a 9.2 Fluid Temperature in Horizontal or Penny-Shaped Fractures, 300 9.3 Temperature Entering Perforations, 302 References, 305 Problems, 305 Final Fracture Conductivity 307 10.1 Proppant Fracturing, 308 Proppant Types, 308 Proppant Fracture Conductivity, 309 Proppant Settling Velocities, 316 Fracture Closure Time, 320 10.2 Acid Fracturing, 321 Acid Penetration Distance, 322 Ideal Fracture Width, 329 Acidized Fracture Conductivity, 333 References, 335 Problems, 336 Well Productivity of Fractured Systems 339 11.1 Flush Production, 339 11.2 Semisteady-State or Steady-State Production, 341 Stimulation Ratios for Undamaged Wells, 342 Damaged Wells, 343 Turbulent Flow (Gas Wells), 343 Stimulation Ratios for Variable Fracture Conductivities, 343 11.3 Initial Production Rates, 349 Infinite Fracture Conductivity, 349 Finite Fracture Conductivity, 353 11.4 Flush Production, 357 References, 360 Problems, 360 Design and Optimization of Fracture Processes 364 12.1 Proppant Fracturing, 364 Selection of Fracture Fluid and Additives, 364 Design of Proppant Fracturing Treatments, 370 Practical Considerations in Designing Fracture Treatment, 381 vill Contents 13 14 12.2 Acid Fracturing, 382 ‘Selection of Fracture Fluid and Additives, 382 Design of Acid Fractures, 384 References, 393 Problems, 394 PART 5 ACID REACTION RATES AND MATRIX ACIDIZING 395 Acidizing Methods 396 13.1 Description of Acid Treatment, 396 Which Acid to Apply, 397 Well Preparation, 399 Additives, 399 13.2 Theoretical Productivity Improvement from Acidizing, 399 13.3 Maximum Injection Rate, 400 References, 401 Problems, 402 Rates of Acid Reactions with Reservoir Minerals 403 14.1 Acid Reactions with Reservoir Minerals, 403 Rates of Surface Reactions, 404 Hydrochloric Acid~Limestone Reactions, 407 Dolomite-Hydrochlorie Acid Reactions, 408 Feldspar-Hydrofluoric Acid Reactions, 408 Quartz~Hydrofuoric Acid Reactions, 409 Clay—Hydrofluoric Acid Reactions, 411 14.2 Mass Transfer in Acid Solutions, 414 Diffusion of Acid, 414 Convective Mass Transfer, 415 Parallel Plate Reactor, 418 Rotating Disk System, 420 References, 422 Problems, 423 Contents15. Sandstone Matrix Acidizing Theary 425 15.1 Acid Balance Equations, 426 Pore Structure, 426 Flow and Reaction in Porous Media, 430 Characteristics of the Slow Reaction Zone, 445 Speed of the Fast-Reacting Front, 447 15.2 Permeability of the Acidized Zone, 450 15.3. Radial Flow of Acids Through Porous Media, 452 ‘Comparison with Linear Flows, 452 Acid Concentration at the Reaction Front, 453 Movement of the Reaction Front, 455 15.4 Acidizing Through Perforations, 458 Slow Reactions in the Matrix Ground Perforations, 458 Position of the Fast-Reaction Front in a Perforation, 460 Comparison with Precise Numerical Calculations, 463 References, 463 Problems, 464 16 Design Considerations in Matrix Acidizing of Sandstones 469 16.1 Description of a Sandstone Acidizing Treatment, 469 16.2 Damage Induced by Acid, 470 Damage by Fines Migration, 471 Carbon Dioxide Damage, 472 Precipitation, 474 16.3 Core Mechanical Properties, 482 16.4 Preflush, 482 16.5 Acid Treatment, 483 Strategy, 483 Acid Composition, 485 Penetration Distance for Radial Flow, #86 Volume of Acid Treatment in Radial Flow, 487 16.6 Afterflush, 493 Additives. 494 16.7 Altemative Acid Formulations, 494 SIGMA, 494 Higher pH Acids, 495 Fluorboric Acid, 495 Sequential Hydrofluorie Acid System, 496 Contents References, 497 Problems, 498 Fundamentals and Design of Matrix Acidizing of Carbonates 501 17.1 Acid Channeling in Carbonates: Wormholing, $01 1.2 Fluid Loss from Circular Pores, 507 Fluid-Loss Lim, 509 17.3 Modeling of Matrix Acidizing Processes, 512 Model Results for a Collection of Parallel Pores, 513 17.4 Fractal Description of Wormholes, 514 Fractals, 514 Radial Flow Model, 517 17.5 Design of Matrix Acidization of Carbonates, 518 17.6 Novel Marix Acid Treatments for Carbonates, 522 In-Situ Acid Formation, 522 References, 524 Problems, 525 Acid Additives 528 18.1 Divecting Agents for Matrix Acidizing, 528 Advantages of Diverting Agents, 529 ‘Materials for Acid Diversion, 530 A Simple Theoretical Model of Fluid Diversion, 531 ‘Simultaneous Fluid Diversion and Acid Reactions, 534 Cake Compressibily, 336 Are Core Tests Misleading? 537 18.2 Corrosion Inhibitors, $37 Corrosion of Metals, $37, Suggestions for Inkibitor Selection, 542 18.3 Complexing Agents, 542 18.4 Surfactants, 543 18.5 Mutual Solvents, 544 References, 545 Problems, $46 Contents19 PART 6 SAND CONTROL METHODS: GRAVEL PACKING AND CONSOLIDATION TECHNIQUES 549 Sand Control 549 . 19.1 Problems with Producing Unconsotidated Formations, 549 19.2 Sand Influx and Well Productivity, $50 Sand Failure Mechanisms, 550 Sand Influx Prediction Techniques, 583 Control by Perforating, 554 19.3 Gravel Packing, 555 Principles, 535 Gravel Size Selection, 556 Liner or Screen Selection, 564 Quality of Gravel, 566 The Gravel Packing Process, 566 19.4 Gravel Packing Deviated Wells, 574 Low-Viscosity Fluids, 574 Hydrodynamic Considerations. 588 Overall Batance Equations, 579 Equilibrium Dune Height, 582 19.5 Sand Consolidation, 585 Resin Requirements, 586 Consolidating Process, 586 Phase Separation Processes, 587 Overflush Processes, 587 Activators, 587 Resin Placement, 587 Consolidated Packs, 588 References, 588 Problems, 590 Appendix: Units and Conversions 593 Index 595 xii Contents Preface This book is intended as a text for both undergraduate and graduate courses in petrolcum engineering, with particular emphasis on the subject of well stimulation, ‘There are ample materials and sufficient end-of-chapter homework problems of varying difficulty to satisfy the needs of both courses. Parts of the book have also served as a basis for industrial short courses, and it is hoped that some of the ‘material presented will also be of value to researchers engaged in developing new stimulation processes or products. However, the primary audience is thought to be university students interested in petroleum engineering. There is no other com- prehensive book currently available for this purpose. There are monographs con- taining the subject matter covered, but these generally do not attempt to delve into the more fundamental aspects of the problem nor are the processes quantified. ‘The presentation is most often qualitative and offered without examples. These books are only intended for use in industrial short courses, and apparently the authors are hesitant to model stimulation processes because they recognize their enormous complexity and fear that the degree of samplification needed to reduce them so that they are amenable to simple models will lead to useless, or at best misleading, results. On the other hand, when a process is necessarily described by a number of interacting variables, some dependent on both time and position, it is not easy for students to grasp the importance of these variables when the discussion is qualitative nor can they sense the relative importance of the relevant 2thvariables. Thus, the viewpoint adopted in writing this book is that models are essential. For pedagogical purposes, it seems better to oversimplify certain as- pects of a process, hopefully unimportant ones, in order to obtain a mathematical representation. This representation is the main feature of this book atd the one which sharply distinguishes it from any other currently zvailable text. The models developed can all be evaluated using simple hand calculators, and yet they retain the essential features of the process. When possible, predictions using these re- lativelty simple models have been compared to experimental results or to results obtained by sophisticated numerical techniques to deronstrate their limitations and to emphasize the real complexity of the processes. Since the approach taken here is in many cases new and different, it is to be expected that new concepts will emerge. This is true. It is hopes that these ‘new concepts will lead the way to new directions for research and that ultimately new processes or new products will emerge. If such results do occur, then this will be an added feature not anticipated at the onset. The book is complete with examples and end-of- chapter homework problems that have been assigned a degree of difficulty. Level cne problems, designated by a single asterisk (*) are intended to reinforce concepts presented in a chapter and they are often similar to examples that are developed within the text. Level two problems, designated by two asterisks (**), are more comprehensive and may require the unification of several concepts, numerical evaluation, or even the derivation of new but related equations. Level two problems are intended for use primarily in graduate classes, but undergraduates may want to attempt some of thera. Early in the writing, the author decided to discard the use of field units and to adhere strictly to Si units. Occasionally, variables are expressed in field units together with their corresponding SI values to help the reader more familiar with field units to visualize the magnitudes of the terms. Because field units are aot used, the equations presented here are not cluttered with the distracting constants often found in the petroleum engineering literature but are in fact valid in any consistent set of units. All examples are developed in SI units. It is hoped that the American petroleum industry will make the transition to SI units in the near future. This industry is. after all, truly international and the use of SI units is actually commonplace throughout most of the world. In solving problems, the recommended procedure is to take all of the data given in field units and convert them to SI units. A table of conversion factors is presented for this purpose in the Appendix at the end of the text. There are topics considered in this book which some practitioners will char- acterize as being outside the scope of well stimulation; however, these, in par- ticular Perforating Methods (Part 3. Chapter 7) and Sand Control (Part 6, Chapter 19) are very much related to maintaining good well performance and cannot really be completely divorced from concepts fundamental to the subject. Properties of Formation Materials and Treatment Fluids (Part 1, Chapters 1, 2, and 3) is a study of the chemical, thermal, and mechanical properties of reservoir materials as well as stimulation fluids. These properties are pertinent when evaluating any of the xiv Preface stimulation processes, so that considerable economy is gained by developing an understanding of them at the beginning of one's studies. Formation damage is often the origin of the need for well stimulation. The particular well treatment recommended and its ultimate success will critically depend on correctly recognizing and understanding the mechanisms giving rise to the damage to be removed. Any book that deals with the subject matter pre- sented here but omits consideration of formation damage is seriously flawed. Thus, in recognition of its importance, the coverage on Formation Damage (Part 2, Chapters 4, 5, and 6) is extensive. Many aspects of formation damage not found in any other monograph are included. ‘The primary methods for well stimulation are Hydraulic Fracturing (Part 4, Chapters 8, 9, 10, 11, and 12) and Matrix Acidizing (Part 5, Chapters 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, and 18). The coverage of these two subjects ranges from fundamental principles to design techniques and new concepts, especially in acid fracturing and matrix acidizing. These topics will hopefully interest even experienced prac- titioners. These two parts are also suitable and have been used for industrial short courses. The examples worked out in the text are relevant to industrial practice as well as for promoting a fundamental understanding of well stimulation. Thave greatly benefitted from the critical comments provided by Professor A. D. Hill (The University of Texas at Austin) and his students. I also wish to acknowledge the contributions of Ms. Joye Johnson who has helped edit and has typed parts of the book. Most thanks, however, are duc my wife, Mary Ethel ‘Schechter, who has typed, retyped, and re-retyped this manuscript. This laborious procedure might have seriously strained any marriage save for the modern miracle of word processors. R. S. Schechter acacia aaa