Fluids Properties

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III. Fluid properties

1. Basic theory background

a) Review the Gas Laws (Boyles’ Law; Charles’ law; Avogadro’
Hypothesis; Ideal Gas law “Assumptions & limitations”
b) The law of corresponding states
2. Fluid Systems –Definitions
3. Fluid properties
a) Gas
b) Oil
c) Water
4. PVT Lab Testing
5. Reservoir hydrocarbons fluid classification

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1.Basic Theory background

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 Boyles’ Law

• Boyles’ Law : For a fixed mass of Gas at constant Temperature

PV=Constant (P is proportional to 1/V)
• This law is based on observation made around 1660, that for a mixed
mass of gas at a fixed temperature, the product of pressure and
volume is a constant, i.e:
 PV = Constant

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 Charles’ Law

• Charles’ Law: For a fixed mass of Gas at constant Pressure

V/T=Constant
• Over a century later (1787) it was observed that for a fixed mass of
gas at constant pressure:
• The volume varies linearly with temperature, i.e if the gas had a
volume V0 at 0° C at a temperature T: V=V0(1+aT)
• The gradient, a, is found to have the value 1/273
• As a consequence, when T=-273°C the gas volume will become
Zero.
• By re-specifying a temperature scale T’ with the same spacing of
degrees as the centigrade scale, but starting with 0 at 273°C the
volume/ temperature relationship becomes: V=VoT’/273
• The scale is the absolute temperature scale, measured in degrees
Kelvin (K), where K=C+273
• The Fahrenfeit equivalent is the Rankine Scale, R, where R=F+460
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 Avagadro’s hypothesis

• Equal volumes of gas at the same conditions of temperature and

pressure contain the same number of molecules (2.76 1026)
• One mole of any gas at standard conditions will occupy a fixed
volume
• A gram mole weight of a substance occupies a volume of 22400 cm3
at a pressure of 760 mm hg and 0°C
• 1 pound mole weight od a substance occupies 379.484 ft3 at a
pressure of 14.7 psia and 60°F
– Therefore, 2lbs. of hydrogen, 32, lbs. of oxygen and 16 lbs. of
methane all occupy 379.484 ft3 :at the specified conditions:
assuming they behave ideally!

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 Ideal Gas law

• Combining Boyle’s and Charles’ laws Ideal Gas Law

PV=nRT

R = 10.732 [(psia)(ft3)]/[lb-mole)(°R)]
R = 0.0821 [(barsa)(m3)]/[kg-mole)(°K)]
• If 1 lb. mole is involved, at a pressure of 14.7 Psia and temperature of
60°F, the volume occupied will be:
10.732×(60:460)
=379.5 cu. ft.
14.7
If n lb. moles are involved then the relationship is simply:
PV=nRT
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 Assumptions and limitations

• Assumptions of the Ideal Gas law

• PV=nRT
– Molecules are point-like, i.e., zero volume
– No inter-molecular forces
• But
– Gases are not infinitely compressible
– No account of change of phase

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 Compressibility -Z- Factor

• PV=nRT Ideal Gas

• PV=ZnRT Real Gas, where Z= compressibility

𝑃𝑉
• Z= Deviation of gas from ideal behavior
𝑅𝑇

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 PVT of Mixtures of components

• Apparent Molecular weight of a Gas mixture

Ma= 𝑗 𝑦𝑗𝑀𝑗
• Specific Gravity of a gas
Ration of the density of the gas to the density of dry air at same
temperature and pressure
𝑔
𝑔 =
𝑎𝑖𝑟
𝑃𝑀𝑔/𝑅𝑇 𝑀𝑔 𝑀𝑔
𝑔 = = =
𝑃𝑀𝑎𝑖𝑟 /𝑅𝑇 𝑀𝑎𝑖𝑟 29

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 The Law of Corresponding States
• It was found (by Van der Waals, 1873) that diverse real gases appear
to have much more PVT behavior in common, when their equations of
state are expressed in reduced form,
• That is that the pressures, temperatures and volumes are all
expressed as a ration of the critical properties for the gas in question,
Pc, Tc and Vc.
• This implies that the P-V slices through the phase diagrams of different
gases will all appear in the same scale using ‘reduced’ pressures,
volumes and temperature (i.e as functions of P/Pc, V/Vc and T/Tc)
• Law of corresponding states (applied to gases) means that the same
real gas compressibility factor (Z-Factor) can be applied to different
gases when they are in the reduced condition
𝑃 𝑉 𝑇
• Reduced properties Pr= , Vr= , Tr=
𝑃𝐶 𝑉𝐶 𝑇𝑐
• Systems are in corresponding states if two of their reduced variables
are equal.
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 Non- Ideal Behavior –Z- Factor

• Z Factor or compressibility factor function of temperature and

pressure can relate volume of gas at one pressure to anather
pressure:
𝑃1𝑉1 𝑃2𝑉2
=
𝑇1𝑍1 𝑇2𝑍2

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 Z- Factor- Kay Mixing Rule
• Experimental work by Kay (1936), and correlations based on his data,
proved the extension of the Law of corresponding states to the
treatment of gaseous mixtures, specifically hydrocarbon gas mixtures.
• Based on the composition of the gas mixture, A set of critical
constants can be calculated for the mixture from mole fraction
weighted constants for the individual components of the mixture.
Resulting values are called Pseudo-criticals, denoted Ppc, Tpc and Vpc, and
are used in exactly the same way as Pc and Tc in the determination of Z-
factors.
• For certain purposes, a mixture of gases can be considered as a single
gas having properties which are the sum of the mole fraction
weighted properties of the individual gas components.
• The most common application of the rule is the computation of
pseudo-reduced temperatures and pressures for a gas mixture in
order to calculate Z-factors: i.e.

Basic Reservoir Engineering Tpr= 𝑁𝑐 𝑍 𝑇 13

III-Fluid Properties 𝑖 =1 𝑖𝑇
𝑐𝑖
Standing Chart (behavior of Oil Field Hydrocarbon Systems)
• Chart of Z Factor Vs. Pseudo-reduced pressure, for a range of values
of pseudo-reduced temperature. (After M. B. standing, 1942).

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 Why Fluid Properties?

• To estimate hydrocarbons in place and reserves

• To understand reservoir processes and to predict reservoir
behavior
• To understand well flow performance and surface
processing requirements
• To identify markets and product prices

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 2. Fluid Systems -Definitions
• Phase: any homogeneous and physically distinct part of a system that
is separated from any other part of the system by definite bounding
surfaces, examples: solid, liquid, gas. Fluids will not mix readily with
the other fluid present due to interfacial tension

• Component: a pure substance. The number of components in a

thermodynamic system is the smallest of independently variable
constituents by a means of which the composition of each phase can
be expressed for a system in equilibrium.

• Bubble point: point (condition of temperature and pressure) at which

the first few molecules leave the liquid and form a small bubble of gas.

• Dewpoint: point (condition of temperature and pressure) at which

only a small drop of liquid is in the fluid system.
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 Fluid properties

• Substances of interest to the reservoir engineer are oil, gas and

water. Normally we would expect these materials to be fluid.
• In reservoir studies, we normally prefer to use data obtained
from laboratory analysis of actual fluids recovered from the
reservoir early in filed life.
• Where analyses are not available or the accuracy of the
information is in question, the reservoir engineer will need to
rely on published correlations, analyses of similar fluids from
nearby reservoirs, etc.

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 Properties of naturally occurring petroleum Deposits

• Petroleum deposits vary widely in properties as to production

horizon, geographical location, and producing depth. The bulk
of the chemical compounds present are hydrocarbons and, as
the name implies, are comprised of hydrogen and carbon.
• Since the carbon atom has the ability to combine with itself and
form long chains, the number of possible compounds is very
large.
• A typical crude oil contains hundreds of different chemical
compounds and normally is separated int crude fractions
according to the range of boiling points of the compounds
included in each fraction.
• Hydrocarbons may be gaseous, liquid, or solid at normal
temperature and pressure,
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 Properties of naturally occurring petroleum Deposits

• The simplest hydrocarbon is methane, a gas consisting of one carbon

atom and four hydrogen atoms. The methane molecule can be
represented as:

• This is the first of the so-called paraffin series of hydrocarbons having the
general formula CnH2n+2
• Crudes containing mainly paraffin-base materials give good yields of
paraffin wax and high grade lubrication oils.
• Asphatic base oils are comprised largely of naphthenic (ringed, mostly
aromatic) compounds. Asphatic crudes yields lubrication oils that are
more viscosity sensitive to temperature and require special refining
methods and additives.

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Components of Typical Natural Gases

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Hydrocarbon mixtures of …

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Pressure – Temperature Diagram

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 Single Component System
• P-T Diagram for Pure component

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Component properties

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2 Component mixture

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2 Component mixture

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Typical Hydrocarbon Mixture Compositions

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Typical Properties of Reservoir Fluid systems

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C7+ variation in Reservoir Fluid type

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3. Fluid Properties
Gas, Oil and Water

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 Key Properties
• Formation Volume Factor: reservoir volume occupied by unit
surface volume. (Bo,g,w)
• Dissolved Gas Oil Ratio: volume of surface gas dissolved in unit
surface liquid volume. (R)
• Viscosity: Resistance of fluid to shear which retards flow. (m)
• Density: mass per unit volume. Controls gravity segregation. (r)
• Compressibility: change in fluid volume per unit volume per
unit pressure change. (C)
• Bubble point pressure: saturation pressure in gas reservoir
where liquid first condenses (Pdp)

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Reservoir and Surface Volumes

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Gas Equation Of State (EOS)

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Determination of Z factor

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Tpc and Ppc for Gas mixture

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 Gas Gravity

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 Formation Volume Factor (Gas)
• ‘Bg’ is used to signify gas formation factor which is equal to the
volume of gas at reservoir temperature and pressure divided by
the volume of the same amount of gas at standard conditions of
temperature and pressure
• This factor relate gas reservoir volume to its surface volume
𝑉𝑟𝑒𝑠 𝑍𝑇𝑃𝑠𝑐
Bg= =
𝑉𝑠𝑐 𝑍𝑠𝑐𝑇𝑠𝑐 𝑃
• Normally, with field units Tsc=520°R, Psc=14.7 psia and Zsc=1

𝑍𝑇 𝑣𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑚𝑒 𝑢𝑛𝑖𝑡 𝑍𝑇 𝑏𝑎𝑟𝑟𝑒𝑙𝑠

Bg=0.0283 [ ] Bg=0.00503 [ ]
𝑃 𝑣𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑚𝑒 𝑢𝑛𝑖𝑡 𝑃 𝑆𝐶𝐹
• Gas Formation Volume factor is non linear
• In simulation, insert more points to define non linear portion of
the curve

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Formation Volume Factor (Gas)

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Isothermal Compressibility of Gases(Gas)
• In reservoir engineering, we often need to know much of a gas will
compress with an increase in pressure or how much it will expand
with a decrease in pressure
• This nees brings us to compressibility (not compressibility factor,
which is the Z-factor). The general mathematical definition for
isothermal compressibility for any material is:
1 𝜕𝑉
C=-
𝑉 𝜕𝑃 𝑇

• For gas
1 1 𝜕𝑍
Cg= − Cpr=CgPpc
𝑃 𝑍 𝜕𝑃

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Trube’s graphs for estimating compressibility of naturel gases

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 Viscosity Of Gas Mixtures
(Carr’s charts for predicting Gas viscosity)

• Gas viscosity can be measured in the laboratory, but usually is not.

Relatively good values can be developed from published correlations.

• Where a gas contains an inordinately high quantity od non-hydrocarbon

components, laboratory measurement could be justified.

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 Viscosity Of Gas Mixtures
(Carr’s charts for predicting Gas viscosity)

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Useful Formulae

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Useful Formulae

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 Summary on Gas properties
• Gas properties are easily correlated by using the theorem of
corresponding states.
• For Gas mixtures, which all naturally occurring hydrocarbon gases are,
the mole fraction of each component is usually determined from a
gas chromatographic analysis.
• Using the analysis along with the theorem of corresponding states,
most of the properties that would be of interest to the reservoir
engineer can be calculated

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 Summary on Gas properties
• Chemical composition
– Major components
– Trace elements
• Physical properties
– Gas gravity
– Critical pressure and temperature then knowing Tres and Pres, deduce:
calculate or correlate:
• Gas density and gradient
• Dew point pressure
• Compressibility factor
• Viscosity

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 Properties of liquid hydrocarbons

• Liquids differ from gases in that higher densities and higher viscosities
are involved. Liquids take the shape of their container but do not
entirely fill it as do gases.
• In the reservoir engineering sense, when speaking of liquid
hydrocarbons, we usually mean oil; therefore, when discussing these
properties, the subscript will usually be “o”.
• Methods to get these properties of a reservoir oil include
– From a sample
– From published correlations

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 Density

• Density relates the mass per volume of a given substance. The density
of a liquid is affected by changes in temperature and pressure, but lee
so than is a gas. However, the density of oil at reservoir conditions is
usually quite different than at the surface
• Where stock tank liquid composition is available, the stock tank
density can be calculated in the following manner.

216.8070 𝑙𝑏
Oil density= =53.68 3
4.0391 𝑓𝑡

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 Specific Gravity
• Oil specific gravity, o, (relative density) is defined as the ratio of the
density of the given liquid to the density of water, with both taken at
specified conditions of temperature and pressure

• API Gravity o

141.5
API gravity (degres)= − 131.5
o
For Example:
40° API o= 0.825

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 Specific Gravity
• API gravity is an indicator of crude oil value, but other factor may be
important
• Surface density is specific gravity times surface density times surface
density of pure water.

o,s.c = o X w,s.c

o,s.c = o X (62.4) lbs/cf

• Surface density is a simulation input.
• Relation used in simulation programs
1
 o =𝐵𝑜 (o,s.c +Rs g,s.c) Rs in ft3/ft3 or m3/ m3
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 Isothermal compressibility of liquid
hydrocarbons
• As the name “oil compressibility” indicates, this property relates how
much volume change (compared to a unit volume) occurs with a
change in pressure.

• Oil compressibility is usually defined as:

1 𝜕𝑣
• Co=-
𝑣 𝜕𝑝 𝑇

• Compressibility particularly is important when pressure greater than

bubble point
CoDBo/Bo/DP

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 Solution Gas/Oil Ratio

• The solution gas/oil ration (Rs) is defined as the volume of gas

dissolved in a unit volume of stock oil at reservoir temperature and
pressure. Common units are standard cubic feet per stock tank barrel
(SCF/STB) and standard cubic meter per stock tank cubic meter.

• It could be said that somewhere during the history of the reservoir

fluid as pressure was increasing ( with increasing overburden), the
bubble point was that pressure where the fluid system “ran out of
gas”, or all available gas into solution.

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Solution Gas/Oil Ratio

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 Formation volume Factor for oil

• The volume of liquid entering the stock tank is less than the volume
of the same liquid plus dissolved gas in the reservoir.
– The main reason for this is that the liquid in the reservoir is
swollen due to the solution gas.
– A second reason is that the reservoir fluid is in a thermally
expanded state due to the higher temperature in the reservoir
than in the stock tank.

𝑣𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑚𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑜𝑖𝑙 𝑝𝑙𝑢𝑠 𝑠𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑔𝑎𝑠 𝑎𝑡 𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑒𝑟𝑣𝑜𝑖𝑟 𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠𝑢𝑟𝑒 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑡𝑒𝑚𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑢𝑟𝑒

Bo =
𝑣𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑚𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑡𝑕𝑒 𝑜𝑖𝑙 𝑎𝑡 𝑠𝑡𝑜𝑐𝑘 𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑘 𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠𝑢𝑟𝑒 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑡𝑒𝑚𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑢𝑟𝑒

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Formation volume Factor for oil

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 Oil viscosity
• Viscosity is the property of resistance ta shear stress. Alternatively,
viscosity may be viewed as a fluid’s internal resistance to flow. A thick,
usually heavy liquid (e.g. tar) has a higher viscosity than a thin one that
flows easily.
• Reservoir oil viscosity, mo, is directly related to tank-oil gravity, gas
gravity, gas in solution in the oil, pressure, and temperature. With the
wide variety of compositions of crude oil, we should expect to find a
large variation in oil viscosities even with oils of similar gravity, solution
gas/oil ratio, and reservoir temperature.
• Of the more important oil physical properties that needed in reservoir
engineering, crude oil viscosity has the poorest correlation.

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Oil viscosity

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 Oil PVT Properties

Determining oil volume Factor, Dissolved

Gas Oil Ratio and Viscosity

• Correlations (Regression Fit of Data)

• Sampling and Lab analysis

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 Why Correlations ?

• PVT Analysis may not be avaible

• Check reasonableness of PVT analysis
• Discriminate correct PVT analysis among differing tests
• Extend PVT properties to account for reservoir variations in
fluids where no PVT analysis exists
• Incorporate variations in fluid properties due to temperature
variations (e.g. flow up tubing)
• Require:
 API oil Gravity
 Initial Solution Gas-Oil Ratio
 Reservoir Temperature
 Separator Gas Gravity, Temperature and pressure

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 Oil Correlations
• Procedure: (Vasquez, Beggs Correlations)
– Correct Gas Gravity to 100 Psi Separator Equivalent conditions, (gp,
API, T & Psep)
– Calculate Bubble point Pressure (gp, API, T & Rs)
– Define below Pbp (gp, API, P & Tsep)
– Define Bo at Pbp (gp, API, Tres & Rs)
– Define Co (gp, API, Pres ,Tres & Rs)
• Bo=Bobp e-co(p-pb)
– Calculate the saturated Oil viscosity below Pbp (API, Tres & Rs)
– Calculate the under saturated Oil viscosity above Pbp (Pres / Pbp)

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 Water PVT Properties
• Important
– Water density affects gravity segregation
– water compressibility influences aquifer support
– Water viscosity is part of mobility ratio in waterfloods
– Water composition for water compatibility (scaling) and tracking
• Less important
– Water formation volume factor (approximately 1.0)
– Dissolved gas-water ratio
• Pure water composition
– At standard conditions, specific gravity (gw, pure) is 1.0 gm/cc
– At standard conditions, density is 62.4 lb/cf

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 Water PVT Properties
• Oil field water
– Contains dissolved solids
– Common cations: Na+, Ca++, Mg++, K+, Ba++, Li+, Fe++, Sr++
– Common anions: Cl-, SO4, HCO3-, CO3, NO3, Br-, I-, NO3,S
– Water chemistry useful in identifying source of water and water
compatibility of injected and formation water.
• Concentration of solids
– “ppm” is grams solid per million grams of brine
– “Wt % solids” is ppm/10,000
– “Wt %solids” is ppm X brine density (gm/cc) at standard conditions
• Water compressibility
– Rule of thumb: Cw=0.000003 vol/vol/psi
– More precise approch requires knowledge of gas dissolved in water.
Correlations based on hydrocarbon gas. Significantly different for CO2
• Formation volume factor
– Rule of thumb: Bw=1.03 RB/STB
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4. PVT Lab Testing

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 Well Sampling
• Types of Samples
– Bottomhole, primarily for oil samples
– Surface separator, for gas condensate and volatile oil samples
(recombination samples)
– MDT (Downhole wireline sampling tool)
• Collection
– Clean sample containers
– Record time when separator temperature approximately constant
– Record separator P and T, production rates, reservoir pressure and
temperature
– Use stainless steel if H2S present
– Take multiple samples for consistency check
• Quality Control checks
– Opening pressures Vs. separator pressure at separator T
– Presence of air or heavies in gas sample
– Presence of water in oil sample
– Consistency of results
– Comparison Pbp or Pdp to sampling FBHP
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 Flash Separation Tests
• Used to model separation conditions
• Sample of bubble point oil “flashed” through one or more stages of
separation. Remaining oil volume and produced gas measured.
• Pick optimum separator conditiond to maximize oil volume
• Measures Bobp and Rsi

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 Flash Vaporization Tests
• Normalized with bubble point volume to yield relative volume
• Defines Bo above Bubble point
– Bo=Bobp X relative volume

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 Differential Vaporization Test
• GOR and relative volume normalized on basis of residual volume. Gas deviation factor
measured.
• Defines how gas evolves out of the oil below the bubble point (Rs) and how the oil
volume changes as a function of pressure below the bubble point (Bo)
• Both need to be adjusted to separator flash volumes

Fluid allowed to expand. Gas displaced from system. Volume of gas and remaining oil
volume measured.

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Combining the flash and depletion tests

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Flash and Differential Vaporization in the Field

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 Differential Vs. Flash liberation
• In an oil reservoir, or in a laboratory cell, gas will break out of solution from
the oil as pressure is reduced. The quantity of gas liberated, as well as its
composition, is somewhat dependent on the manner in which the pressure is
reduced.
• Differential liberation is that process where as free gas is liberated, it is
removed from the proximity of the oil. It is also known as a Constant Volume,
Variable composition process.
• Now, if the gas were not removed at each pressure decrement, but allowed
to remain in intimate contact with the liquid, then we would have a flash or
equilibrium liberation. This is also called a Constant Composition, variable
volume process.
• With a normal low shrinkage (black) oil, flash conditions will cause more gas
to be liberated (with resultant greater shrinkage of the liquid) down to a
given pressure that will the differential process. This is caused by the
attraction of the heavy liquid molecules to the light gas molecules in the flash
process.

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 Differential Vs. Flash liberation
• With a high shrinkage (volatile) oil, this is usually reversed: the
differential process liberates more gas.
• The trip that the oil makes from the formation through the wellbore
and flow line to the separator is not an isothermal process. This is
usually regarded as a flash process, but the temperature is
decreasing. Et lower temperature, gas solubility is generally
increased. Therefore, the quantity of gas coming out of solution with
pressure reduction is much reduced over the constant temperature
case. It is common with either volatile or black oil, for this type of
flash process to liberate less gas than either of the constant
(reservoir) temperature processes.
• Both high and low shrinkage oils will shrink to the stock tank if they
are first passed to a high pressure separator where the gas is
removed from the proximity of the oil

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5. Reservoir hydrocarbons fluid classification
The Five Reservoir Fluids

Black Volatile Retrograde Wet Dry

Oil Oil Gas Gas Gas

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 Phase Diagram of a Typical Black Oil

Pressure path
in reservoir
Critical
Point Dewpoint line
Pressure, psia

Black Oil

% Liquid

Separator

Temperature, °F
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 Phase Diagram of a Typical Volatile Oil

Pressure path Critical

1 point
in reservoir

2
Volatile oil
Pressure

% Liquid

Separator

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 Phase Diagram of a Typical Retrograde Gas

Pressure path
in reservoir
1
Retrograde gas
2
Pressure

Critical point

% Liquid

Separator

Basic Reservoir Engineering 76

III-Fluid Properties Temperature
Phase Diagram of Typical Wet Gas

Pressure path
in reservoir
1
Pressure

Wet gas

Critical % Liquid
point
2

Separator

Temperature
Basic Reservoir Engineering 77
III-Fluid Properties
Phase Diagram of Typical Dry Gas
Pressure path
in reservoir
1
Pressure

Dry gas

% Liquid
2

Separator

Basic Reservoir Engineering

Temperature 78
III-Fluid Properties
 Black Oil Volatile Oil

The Five
Pressure path Critical
in reservoir 1 point

Pressure path 2
in reservoir
Critical Dewpoint line Volatile oil

Reservoir
point
Pressure, psia

Pressure
Black Oil
% Liquid

% Liquid

33
Fluids
Separator Separator

Temperature, °F Temperature

Pressure path
in reservoir Pressure path
Pressure path
in reservoir in reservoir
1
Retrograde gas 1 1
2
Pressure
Pressure

Wet gas

Pressure
Dry gas
Critical
point
% Liquid
Critical % Liquid
% Liquid
point
3 2
2

Separator Separator
Separator

Temperature Temperature Temperature

Retrograde Gas Wet Gas

Basic Reservoir Engineering Dry Gas 79
III-Fluid Properties
Relative Positions of Phase Envelopes

Basic Reservoir Engineering 80

III-Fluid Properties
Three Gases - What Are the Differences?

• Dry gas - gas at surface is same as gas in reservoir

• Wet gas - recombined surface gas and
condensate represents gas in reservoir
• Retrograde gas - recombined surface gas and
condensate represents the gas in the reservoir
but not the total reservoir fluid (retrograde
condensate stays in reservoir)

Basic Reservoir Engineering 81

III-Fluid Properties
 Field Identification

Black Volatile Retrograde Wet Dry

Oil Oil Gas Gas Gas
Initial Producing <1750 1750 to > 3200 > 15,000* 100,000*
Gas/Liquid Ratio, 3200
scf/STB
Initial Stock-Tank < 45 > 40 > 40 Up to 70 No Liquid
Liquid Gravity,
API
Color of Stock- Dark Colored Lightly Water No Liquid
Tank Liquid Colored White

*For Engineering Purposes

Basic Reservoir Engineering 82

III-Fluid Properties
 Field Identification

bitumen Tar or Heavy oil Low – High-shrinkage Condensate Wet Gas

shrinkage oils crude oil Gas
4<°API<10 10<°API<20 20<°API<30 30<°API<50 50<°API<70 API>60

Rs initial=Rsi Neglogible <Rsi< 50<Rsi< 500 50<Rsi< 500 2 000 to 6 15000<Ri<

~neglogible 50 Scf/STBO Scf/STBO Scf/STBO 000<Ri< 15 000 100 000
Scf/STBO Scf/STBO
Bo .0 1.0<Bo <. 1.1<Bo <.5 1.5<Bo <2.5 to 3.5

1.000.000>mo>5. 5.000>mo>00 cp 00>mo>2 up 3 2 to 3 >mo>0.25cp mo~0.25cp mo~0.25cp

000 cp cp
C7+>20% C7+:12.5%~20% C7+<21.5% C7+: 0.8% to
4%

Basic Reservoir Engineering 83

III-Fluid Properties
 Primary Production Trends

Black Volatile Retrograde Wet Dry

Oil Oil Gas Gas Gas
GOR

GOR

GOR

GOR

GOR
No
liquid

Time Time Time Time Time

 API

 API

 API

 API

 API
No
liquid

Time Time Time Time Time

Basic Reservoir Engineering 84
III-Fluid Properties
 Pressure-Dependent PVT Properties

1.0 3.2

0.9 2.8

Gas Solubility (Mscf/STB)

pi
Shrinkage Factor (STB/RB)

0.8 2.4
pi
Undersaturated
0.7 Curve 2.0

0.6 1.6
p
0.5
b
0.8
Saturated
Curve
0.4 0.4
pb

0.3 0.0
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Pressure (thousands psia) Pressure (thousands psia)

0.50 1.0

0.48 0.9

0.46 0.8
Phase Density (psi/ft)

Undersaturated
0.44 pi Viscosity (cp) 0.7 Curve p
Undersaturated Curve i
0.42 0.6

0.40 0.5
Saturated Curve Saturated
0.38 0.4 p
pb Curve b
0.36 0.3
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Pressure (thousands psia) Pressure (thousands psia)
Basic Reservoir Engineering 85
III-Fluid Properties