Wellbore modeling for hybrid steam-solvent processes

Abstract

The addition of hydrocarbon solvents to the cyclic steam stimulation (CSS) or steam assisted gravity drainage (SAGD) processes has recently gained significant interest from the petroleum industry. In these processes, a proper selection of solvent is critical: injected solvent must be in the vapor phase at the injection point in order to propagate inside the steam chamber and condense at the steam/oil interface to effectively reduce oil viscosity. Therefore, the wellbore have to deliver vaporized solvent near its dew point at perforation intervals.This work provides a detailed numerical formulationto predict steam and solvent qualities, temperature, and pressure profiles along the wellbore. Four phases were considered: hydrocarbon liquid and vapor phases, and aqueous liquid and vapor phases. The mass, energy and momentum balance equations are integrated with drift-flux model and discretized over the wellbore domain.Unknowns and governing equations are divided into the sets of primary and secondary equation and unknowns are solved sequentially. The model was compared against previously published models and field data. The data from two steam injection wells and two gas condensate production wells were used for validation. Also, case studies are presented to investigate the temperature and condensation behavior of the solvent-steam mixture.The use of this model will assist the industry in proper wellbore design and the engineering of injection constraints in hybrid steam/solvent injection processes.