A Three-Phase, Experimental and Numerical Simulation Study of the Steam Flood Process

Abstract

Abstract A numerical model of steam-drive oil recovery was developed and tested. The implicit pressure-explicit saturation (IMPES) technique pressure-explicit saturation (IMPES) technique was used to solve the three-phase fluid flow equations for compressible fluids. A method was developed and applied to determine the temperature and the rate of steam condensation implicitly from the heat-balance equation. Both techniques were used in computer simulators for linear and two-dimensional systems. A steam-injection experimental study was performed in a linear model. The results of performed in a linear model. The results of this experimental work showed good agreement with the results obtained from the linear numerical computer simulators. The results from the two-dimensional numerical computer simulator was also found to be in good agreement with published two-dimensional experimental results. published two-dimensional experimental results. The numerical simulators were also used to study the effect of some parameters on the steam-drive process. It was found that numerical model results were very sensitive to capillary pressure values. It was also found that the relative permeability data has a minor effect on the results obtained. The oil viscosity was found to affect the process to a large extent. Oil recovery from steam-drive process decreases as the oil viscosity increases process decreases as the oil viscosity increases Also, the recovery curves for low viscosity oils show earlier steam breakthrough than those with higher viscosity. Introduction The first part of the work presented here is a physical laboratory model of steam injection in a linear system. A constant pressure boundary condition was used. Two runs were performed on the same model using two different performed on the same model using two different sets of injection and production pressures. Oil recovery and temperature distribution data were obtained. Each run was repeated to check reproducibility of results. The second part of this work describes the development and application of numerical simulation techniques to solve equations describing the steam-injection process. This simulation model was the implicit pressure-explicit saturation technique to pressure-explicit saturation technique to solve difference equations describing the multiphase flow system. The solution of the heat-balance equation yields the temperature ahead of the steam front and the rate of steam condensation behind the front.