Reservoir Characterization of North Buck Draw Field Based on Tracer Response and Production/Injection Analysis

by
Belkis Teresa Refunjol, MSE

University of Texas at Austin, 1996
Supervisor: Larry W. Lake

A major goal in reservoir characterization is to develop methods to describe the spatial distribution of properties that incorporate observed heterogeneity and variability due to the geologic complexities. Among these, reservoir continuity is one of the properties that significantly affects production strategies and ultimate oil recovery. Furthermore, proper quantification of the spatial distribution of properties and associated uncertainties is important for most reservoir engineering applications. But, before applying any reservoir characterization technique, some factors have to be analyzed, including the type of problem to be tackled and the information available.

With this research project, a practical and theoretically based technique was developed to determine preferential flow trends in the reservoir by integrating tracer response, Spearman rank correlation coefficient results and reservoir geology. The basic data required are tracer response information and production and injection rates that make the technique suitable for implementation in all types of reservoirs including ones with scarce information.

The Spearman rank correlation coefficient, being a quick, simple and powerful test of the existence of association of variables regardless of the shape of the population distribution from which the samples are drawn, provides a potential tool for investigating the correlation between production and injection rates in reservoirs. It was successfully applied to the flow rates of injector/producer pairs of wells in the North Buck Draw field to establish dominant communication trends in the reservoir.

The major contribution of this work is to provide guidelines to assess information about variability of reservoir continuity in interwell regions from the widely available measurements of production and injection rates at existing wells. The information gained from the application of this technique can contribute to both the daily reservoir management, and the future design, control and interpretation of subsequent projects in the reservoir, without the need of additional data.

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