An Experimental Investigation of Fines Migration in Porous Media

Abstract

ABSTRACT Permeability decline in argillaceous sandstone formations has tendered a broad spectrum of explanations and related remedial treatments. This decline has often been attributed to the mobilization, migration, and plugging of fine particles in the formation pore spaces. While previous investigations have generally been directed toward either a chemical or a mechanical characterization of the damage mechanism, this experimental study was undertaken to comprehensively analyze both the chemical and the mechanical interactions. In linear core tests, the flow of a chemically compatible, wetting fluid resulted in severe permeability loss when the fluid velocity exceeded a critical value. The flow of a chemically incompatible, wetting fluid resulted in a total loss of permeability which exhibited no dependency on fluid velocity or volumetric throughput. Pretreatment of the core with a cationic polymer (clay stabilizer) prevented permeability damage due to chemical incompatibility. However, a cationic polymer pretreatment could not protect the core against damage caused by exceeding the critical velocity.