Liquid Loading in Horizontal WellsLiquid Loading in ... Basin Gas Well Deliquification...

Appalachian Basin Gas Well Deliquification SeminarDeliquification SeminarMarietta College, Marietta, Ohio

June 7 - 8, 2010

Liquid Loading in Horizontal WellsLiquid Loading in Horizontal Wells

Cem Sarica, The University of Tulsa Rob Sutton, Marathon Oil Company, p y

Fluid Flow Fluid Flow ProjectsProjects

®

Outline

• Flow in a Horizontal Gas Well• Flow in a Horizontal Gas Well• Why Flow Matters?

Si il iti d Diff B t Pi d• Similarities and Differences Between Pipe and Horizontal Well Flows

• Review of Multiphase Pipe FlowReview of Multiphase Pipe Flow• Multiphase Flow in Horizontal Wells

June 7 – 8, 2010 2010 Appalachian Basin Gas Well Deliquification Seminar

2

Flow in a Horizontal Gas WellFlow in a Horizontal Gas Well

• Single-phase Flow– Dry Gas

• Desired but Not Always Possible

• Multiphase Flow– Gas Flow with Frac-Liquid

• Happens During Flow Back After Frac Operation in Gas Shales

– Gas Flow with the Formation Water• Some Gas Shales Produce Water• Some Gas Shales Produce Water• Fracture May Extend to Water zones• Condensed Water

– Gas Flow with Condensate Dropout

June 7 – 8, 20102010 Appalachian Basin Gas Well

Deliquification Seminar3

Fractured Horizontal Gas Well Sketch

Shale or tight sandgas

Water


Model Type Curve with Reservoir Simulator

Industry Gas Rate Type Curve100,000

Type CurveSimulator (Min FWHP = 100 psia)

10,000

e, M

CFD

1,000

Gas

Rat

e

1000 5 10 15 20 25 300 5 10 15 20 25 30

Years

Downhole Velocity Profile At Heel

Horizontal Well Gas Velocity at Heel(HPHT Shale - Minimum FWHP = 100 psia)( )

60

70

ec

1.995-in ID2.441-in ID2.992-in ID3.958-in IDT i l C i ID

40

50

ty a

t Hee

l, ft/

se 3 9584.825-in ID

Typical Casing ID

20

30

Gas

Vel

ocit

0

10

0 5 10 15 20 25 30

Years

Heel-to-Toe velocity decreases along horizontal section

Why Flow Matters? …y

• Early on Relatively High Gas Flow Rates and VelocitiesEarly on Relatively High Gas Flow Rates and Velocities• Later Gas Flow Rate and Velocities Decrease

Significantly• What Does This Mean for Water?

– Can We Produce the Water Along With Gas?– What Happens If Gas cannot Efficiently Carry Water?

• Liquid Loading• Reduction in Gas Flow Rate Due to Liquid

Buildup• Liquid Flow Back or Diffusion in to the Formation


How can We Predict Loading?g

• First Attempt– Use Techniques Developed for Vertical and Deviated

Wells Such as Turner, Coleman, Etc.

D Th W k?• Do They Work?– Physics Used in Turner, Coleman, etc. Primarily are

Based on Upward Movement of Liquid Droplets and p q pFilm

– At Low Gas Velocities and Horizontal and Near Horizontal ConfigurationsHorizontal Configurations

• Liquid Droplets and Annular Flow May not Exist

• Not Expected to WorkJune 7 – 8, 2010 82010 Appalachian Basin Gas Well

Deliquification Seminar

What Do We Do?

Fl i H i t l W ll R bl th Fl i• Flow in Horizontal Wells Resembles the Flow in Pipelines

• There is Vast Amount of Know-How AlreadyThere is Vast Amount of Know-How Already Developed and Available for Flows in Pipelines

• Opportunity to Tap into This Know-How and pp y pDevelop Suitable Loading Prediction Tools

• Need to Assess the Compatibility Between Horizontal Well and Pipeline Flows


Similarities and Differences Between Horizontal Well and Pipeline Flowsp

Si il iti• Similarities– Simultaneous Flow of Gas and Liquid

Undulating Geometry– Undulating Geometry

• Differences– Pipelines Have Single Source While Horizontal WellsPipelines Have Single Source While Horizontal Wells

Have Multiple Source (Open Hole, Perforations, Fractures)

• Varying Flow Rates Along Horizontal Well• Varying Flow Rates Along Horizontal Well– Horizontal Wells are Considerably Shorter– Flow in Horizontal Wells May not Be Fully DevelopedFlow in Horizontal Wells May not Be Fully Developed

Review of Pipeline Flowp

Sh d T ll• Show and Tell – Relatively High Flow Rates

• Low Liquid Loading Flow in a Horizontal• Low Liquid Loading Flow in a Horizontal Pipe (6 in. ID Pipe)

– Relatively Low Flow Ratesy

• Two-phase Flow at a Dip (3 in. ID Pipe) – Severe Slugging for a Pipeline-Riser System (May

Resemble Up-dip Horizontal Well Configuration)

• Two-phase Severe Slugging in a 3 in. ID PipePipe

High Flow Rates g

Hi h Fl R t• High Flow Rates– Horizontal and Downward Inclined

• Stratified Smooth and Wavy Flows• Stratified Smooth and Wavy Flows• Annular Flow

Upward Inclined– Upward Inclined

• Intermittent Flow in Addition to Above Flow Patterns

Stratified Smooth

Side View Axial View

Gas vSG = 16 ft/secWater v = 0 016 ft/secWater vSL = 0.016 ft/sec

Stratified Wavyy

Side View Axial View

Gas vSG = 32 ft/secWater v = 0 032 ft/secWater vSL = 0.032 ft/sec

Stratified Wavy with Entrainmenty

Side View

Gas vSG = 57.5 ft/secSGWater vSL = 0.12 ft/sec

Low Flow Rates

• Hilly-Terrain Pipe Flow (Flow in a Dip)• Hilly-Terrain Pipe Flow (Flow in a Dip)– Video Clip-1 (No Liquid Input at Inlet)

– Video Clip-2 (Liquid Input at Inlet)

Low Flow Rates …

• Toe-up Configuration (Severe Slugging Phenomenon)Phenomenon)

Slug Formation

Slug Production

Blowout Liquid Fallback

Low Flow Rates …

S Sl i Vid• Severe Slugging Video


Multiphase Flow Predictive Toolsp

All P P di ti T l N t C bl f• All Purpose Predictive Tools Not Capable of Predicting Complex Flow Behavior Accurately – TUFFP Studied Extensively Low Liquid Loading, HillyTUFFP Studied Extensively Low Liquid Loading, Hilly

Terrain Pipeline Flow, and Severe Slugging– Developed Predictive Tools

Multiphase Flow in Horizontal Wellsp

N R li bl P di ti T l• No Reliable Predictive Tools• Pipeline Flow Prediction Tools cannot Be Readily

Applied Since the Flow Rates in Horizontal WellsApplied Since the Flow Rates in Horizontal Wells are Significantly Low and Physics of the Flow is Significantly Different as Evidenced from Videos

• There is a Need to Further Studies to Develop Liquid Loading Prediction Tools for Horizontal WellsWells

Conclusions

E i ti C ti l Li id L di P di ti• Existing Conventional Liquid Loading Prediction Tools are not Applicable for Horizontal Wells

• No Available Predictive Method for LiquidNo Available Predictive Method for Liquid Loading in Horizontal Gas Wells

• Similarities and Differences Between Pipeline pand Horizontal Well Flows Are Demonstrated

• Knowhow Developed for Pipeline Flow can Be Used in the Understanding of Liquid Loading in Horizontal Gas Wells


Copyrightpy gRights to this presentation are owned by the company(ies) and/or author(s) listed on the title page. By submitting this presentation to ( ) p g y g pthe Gas Well Deliquification Workshop, they grant to the Workshop, the Artificial Lift Research and Development Council (ALRDC), and the Southwestern Petroleum Short Course (SWPSC), rights to:

– Display the presentation at the Workshop.– Place it on the www.alrdc.com web site, with access to the site to be

as directed by the Workshop Steering Committee.Pl i CD f di ib i d/ l di d b h– Place it on a CD for distribution and/or sale as directed by the Workshop Steering Committee.

Other use of this presentation is prohibited without the expressed written permission of the author(s) The owner company(ies) and/orwritten permission of the author(s). The owner company(ies) and/or author(s) may publish this material in other journals or magazines if they refer to the Gas Well Deliquification Workshop where it was first presented.


DisclaimerThe following disclaimer shall be included as the last page of a Technical Presentation or Continuing Education Course. A similar disclaimer is included on the front page of the Gas Well Deliquification Web Site.The Artificial Lift Research and Development Council and its officers and trustees, and the Gas Well Deliquification Workshop Steering Committee members, and their supporting organizations and companies (here-in-after referred to as the Sponsoring Organizations), and the author(s) of this Technical Presentation or Continuing Education Training Course and their company(ies), provide this presentation and/or training material at the Gas Well Deliquification Workshop "as is" without any warranty of any kind, express or implied, as to the accuracy of the information or the products or services referred to by any presenter (in so far as such warranties may be excluded under any relevant law) and these members and their companies will not be liable for unlawful actions and any losses or damage that may result from use of any presentation as a consequence of any inaccuracies in, or any omission from, the information which therein may be contained.The views, opinions, and conclusions expressed in these presentations and/or training materials are those of the author and not necessarily those of the Sponsoring Organizations. The author is solely responsible for the content of the materials.The Sponsoring Organizations cannot and do not warrant the accuracy of these documents beyond the source documents, although we do make every attempt to work from authoritative y g ysources. The Sponsoring Organizations provide these presentations and/or training materials as a service. The Sponsoring Organizations make no representations or warranties, express or implied, with respect to the presentations and/or training materials, or any part thereof, including any warrantees of title, non-infringement of copyright or patent rights of others, merchantability, or fitness or suitability for any purpose.


Liquid Loading in Horizontal WellsLiquid Loading in ... Basin Gas Well Deliquification...

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