Research and application of supramolecular gel plugging agent in abnormal pressure reservoir

Abstract

The Aktobe project is the largest oil and gas producing area of PetroChina in Central Asia. However, after years of exploitation, the pressure of the reservoir has dropped, making it difficult to increase the production of a single well. Both the Kenkyak block and North Troyes block of the project have induced fractured leakage, and frequent leakage affects safe and efficient drilling and completion operations and production. Therefore, the research on leakage prevention and control technology is very necessary. This article focuses on the characteristics of the cracks in the high-pressure area of the Kenkyak block and the cracks in the low-pressure area of the North Troyes block. Aiming at the fracture characteristics of the high-pressure zone in the Kenkyak block and the low-pressure zone in North Troyes block, and taking advantage of the synergistic effect of supramolecules, a supramolecular plugging-while-drilling agent was developed based on the deformable fiber composite gel. It forms a strong adhesion plugging layer on the inner wall of the leakage channel through the strong adhesion force, and it achieves a good plugging effect. The 300-500mD sand disc bearing pressure could reach 700psi when adding 3% agent, and the bearing pressure of 3-5D permeability sand disc could reach above 450psi. A supramolecular static plugging agent was also developed based on the dilatant gel. It is rich in strong shear reversible gel with supramolecular structure, which guarantees its pumpability and plugging performance. The effective rate of one-time plugging is over 80%, and the viscosity is greatly reduced after the gel is broken for 72hr, which benefits the reservoir protection.