Scientists found the most accurate way to measure the volume of oil fieldsScience and technology15 November 2024 01:17

In conditions of decreasing oil production in Russia and abroad, the attention of scientists and oil industry experts is increasingly turning to the development of low-yield deposits, such as carbonate reservoirs. To extract the maximum amount of hydrocarbons from such formations, well systems are created that require accurate calculation of the extent of drainage. Scientists from Perm Polytechnic University conducted a series of studies to determine which method of calculating the drainage radius of wells gives the most accurate results.

To do this, experts used two common approaches: Kappa Workstation software (Saphir module) and the EB Chekalyuk equation. Both methods are used to estimate the drainage radius, which is usually equal to half the distance between adjacent wells. But, according to scientists, this does not always take into account all the features of the formation, which makes such calculations inaccurate. The results differed greatly when the Saphir method and the Chekalyuk equation were applied, highlighting the importance of choosing the method best suited to real-world conditions.

As a result of research conducted at Perm Polytechnic University, it was revealed that the Saphir method gives more accurate results. According to the scientists’ conclusions, this method better identifies real parameters such as reservoir and bottom hole pressure and reservoir hydraulic conductivity. “The Saphir method corresponds more accurately to the data from field studies, in contrast to EB Chekalyuk’s method, which covers only one of these variables,” said Vladimir Novikov, senior researcher of PNIPU. This discovery will help improve oilfield development design and use resources more efficiently.