Wireline Formation Tester with Active Circulation for Surface Fluid Measurement
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Solution Overview
Problem
The oil and gas industry faces challenges in efficiently testing hard-to-reach, complex hydrocarbon reservoirs due to declining production in major regions and the need for more accurate and time-efficient methods to assess reservoir permeability and productivity.
Innovation Solution
The use of a wireline formation tester (WFT) in conjunction with a multiphase flowmeter and wellbore dynamics simulation to perform deep transient testing (DTT) and estimate fluid migration velocity and mud column hydrostatic pressure behavior, optimizing the job design for DTT and measuring surface production rates.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If traditional well testing methods are used in hard-to-reach, complex hydrocarbon reservoirs, then comprehensive reservoir characterization can be achieved, but the testing time and operational complexity significantly increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines wireline formation tester (WFT) operations with drilling operations by performing formation testing while the well is still open and circulating drilling fluid. This merging of testing and drilling operations eliminates the need for separate, time-consuming well testing campaigns, thereby reducing total testing time while maintaining comprehensive reservoir characterization capabilities through pressure transient testing and fluid sampling
Solution Approach 2:
The patent performs formation testing and reservoir characterization activities during the drilling operation itself, before the well is completed and before traditional well testing would be conducted. By conducting pressure transient tests and obtaining fluid samples while drilling fluid is still circulating, the methodology captures reservoir data earlier in the well lifecycle, significantly reducing the overall time required for reservoir evaluation
2Measurement precision
If wireline formation tester is used to perform deep transient testing by pumping formation fluid through isolated annulus, then reservoir permeability and productivity can be assessed, but the complexity of isolating annulus interval and managing fluid circulation increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent utilizes the existing annulus space between the wellbore and formation as a functional flow path for formation fluid, eliminating the need for dedicated specialized flowlines or complex downhole flow control systems. The annulus serves multiple functions: it provides isolation during testing, serves as a flow path for formation fluid, and allows for surface separation and measurement, thereby reducing device complexity while maintaining testing capabilities
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs drilling mud that is already present in the wellbore during drilling operations as the circulating fluid to transport formation fluid to the surface. The drilling mud system, which is already in place for drilling purposes, serves the additional function of conveying formation fluids during testing, eliminating the need for separate fluid circulation systems and reducing overall system complexity
3Productivity
If drilling mud is circulated through the wellbore during formation testing, then formation fluid can be conveyed to surface separator, but the interaction between drilling mud and formation fluid complicates fluid separation and measurement
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses the drilling mud as an intermediary carrier fluid that transports formation fluid from the wellbore to the surface separator. The drilling mud acts as a medium that can handle both the drilling function and the fluid transport function, allowing formation fluid to be conveyed to surface without requiring direct, complex separation systems at depth. The surface separator then performs the actual separation of mixed fluids
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This approach allows for more efficient and accurate assessment of reservoir properties, enabling faster characterization of complex formations and reducing the time and cost associated with traditional well testing methods.
Implementation Method 1
a mud gas separator located at a wellsite surface from which the wellbore extends. Gas separated by the mud gas separator is used to measure a surface production rate of the formation fluid
Implementation Method 2
operating two WFT pumps of the WFT to pump fluid from the formation via the isolated interval, through the WFT, and out of the WFT to the wellbore
Implementation Method 3
operating mud pumps to pump drilling mud into the wellbore and thereby convey a mixture of the drilling mud and the pumped formation fluid through the annulus to a mud gas separator
Data Source
AI summary
Methods and systems for conveying a WFT via drill pipe within a wellbore penetrating a subterranean formation and setting two packers of the WFT on opposite sides of a zone of interest of the formation, thereby isolating an interval of an annulus between the WFT and a wall of the wellbore. DTT of the formation is then performed by operating two WFT pumps of the WFT to pump fluid from the formation via the isolated interval, through the WFT, and out of the WFT to the wellbore, while operating mud pumps to pump drilling mud into the wellbore and thereby convey a mixture of the drilling mud and the pumped formation fluid through the annulus to a mud gas separator. Gas from the mud gas separator is used to measure a surface production rate of the formation fluid.