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ENHANCED HEAVY OIL RECOVERY BY LOW SALINITY POLYMER FLOOD

COMBINED WITH MICROGEL TREATMENT

by

YANG ZHAO

A DISSERTATION

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Presented to the Graduate Faculty of the

MISSOURI UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

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In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree

DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY
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in

PETROLEUM ENGINEERING
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2021

Approved by:

Dr. Baojun Bai, Advisor

Dr. Mingzhen Wei, Co-advisor
Dr. Randall S. Seright
Dr. Ralph Flori
Dr. Shari Dunn-Norman
Dr. Parthasakha Neogi
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© 2021

Yang Zhao

All Rights Reserved

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PUBLICATION DISSERTATION OPTION

This dissertation consists of the following seven articles, formatted in the style used

by the Missouri University of Science and Technology:

Paper I, “Enhancing Heavy Oil Recovery Efficiency by Combining Low Salinity

Water and Polymer Flooding”, found on pages 12–55, was published in SPE Journal.

Paper II, “Experimental Study of Transport Behavior of Microgel Particles in

Superpermeable Channels for Conformance Control”, found on pages 56–97, is intended

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for submission to Journal of Petroleum Science and Engineering.

Paper III, “Selective Penetration of Microgels in Superpermeable Channels and

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Reservoir Matrices”, found on pages 98–123, is intended for submission to Journal of

Petroleum Science and Engineering.

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Paper IV, “Critical Pressure Gradients During Microgel Propagation”, found on

pages 124–152, is intended for submission to Fuel.

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Paper V, “A Comprehensive Laboratory Method to Evaluate Microgel

Conformance Control Performance Using Sandwich-like Channel Models”, found on

pages 153–185, is intended for submission to SPE Journal.

Paper VI, “Transport, Placement, Fluid Diversion and Matrix Damage Behavior of

Microgels for Conformance Control in Reservoirs Containing Superpermeable Channels”,

found on pages 186–219, is intended for submission to SPE Journal.

Paper VII, “Experimental Study of Microgel Conformance-Control Treatment for

A Polymer-Flooding Reservoir Containing Superpermeable Channels”, found on pages

220–257, has been published online by SPE Journal.

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ABSTRACT

Heavy oil resources account for a large portion of the total oil reserves around the

world. The target heavy oil reservoir is located on Alaska’s North Slope (ANS).

Advantages of low-salinity HPAM polymer (LSP) over high-salinity polymer (HSP) were

demonstrated. LSP could recover more oil with 40% less polymer consumption. No

additional oil was recovered by HSP after LSP flood. The first-ever polymer flood pilot on

ANS showed remarkable success regarding water cut reduction, oil production increase,

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delayed breakthrough, and projected oil recovery improvement. Polymer alone was

insufficient to achieve satisfactory recovery as the reservoirs were highly heterogeneous.

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Microgels could improve the effectiveness of polymer flood by reducing water cut and

increasing oil recovery. Favorable working conditions were identified. Microgel transport
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behavior was studied using superpermeable sandpacks (27-221 darcies) with multiple

pressure sensors. The particle-to-pore matching size ratio significantly impacted the
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effectiveness of the gels. A threshold differential pressure (ΔPth) and critical pressure

gradient (∇Pcr) were required to push the gels to penetrate and propagate through the

channels. The ΔPth and ∇Pcr revealed the underlying mechanisms of selective

penetration/placement behavior of microgels in heterogeneous reservoirs. Diagrams were

developed to estimate the maximum propagation distance of the gels in channels in

conceptual field applications. Sandwich-like channel models and methodologies were

developed to comprehensively evaluate the effectiveness of gel materials. Gel retention in

the channels was quantified. Results also indicated that the retained gels were dehydrated.

Fluid diversion and sweep improvement after gel treatments were evaluated by tracer tests.
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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

First and foremost of all, I would give my deepest appreciation to my dear advisor,

Dr. Baojun Bai for his nice advising, outstanding guidance, constant encouragement and

generous financial support through my Ph.D. career. Thanks for bringing me to the

wonderful world of enhanced oil recovery, for giving me the chance to be part of a creative

team, and for teaching me to learn how to think critically, how to perform lab work

creatively, and how to present results logically. His instructions and inspirations certainly

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benefit not only my four-year Ph.D. life, but also my future career. My sincere gratitude

should also be given to my co-advisor Dr. Mingzhen Wei for her patient advice and help.
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I appreciate my nice committee members Dr. Randall S. Seright, Dr. Ralph Flori,

Dr. Shari Dunn-Norman, and Dr. Parthasakha Neogi. Their rich knowledge always inspires
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me to get new understanding of the topics of my research from different perspectives. Their

comments and feedbacks always help me fresh my thoughts and broaden my mind.
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The funding support (DE-FE0031606) from the Department of Energy and Hilcorp

is acknowledged. Dr. Abhijit Dandekar, Dr. Yin Zhang, Dr. Samson Ning, Dr. Dongmei

Wang and the other members of the project team greatly help me improve my research. I

thank the former and current lab members, to name a few, Jiaming Geng, Yifu Long,

Jingyang Pu, Mustafa Almahfood, Shize Yin, Ze Wang, Tao Song, Junchen Liu, Shuda

Zhao, Bowen Yu, Adriane Melnyczuk, Ali Al Brahim, Jianqiao Leng and other nice

colleagues for their help.

The work is impossible without the support of my family. Their love and support

are always there to rise me up.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page

PUBLICATION DISSERTATION OPTION ................................................................... iii

ABSTRACT....................................................................................................................... iv

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ...................................................................................................v

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS ............................................................................................ xii

LIST OF TABLES ......................................................................................................... xviii

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NOMENCLATURE ..........................................................................................................xx

SECTION
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1. INTRODUCTION ...................................................................................................... 1

1.1. BACKGROUND ................................................................................................ 1

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1.2. OBJECTIVES OF THIS WORK ........................................................................ 7

1.3. STRUCTURE OF THE DISSERTATION......................................................... 8

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I. ENHANCING HEAVY OIL RECOVERY EFFICIENCY BY COMBINING

LOW SALINITY WATER AND POLYMER FLOODING .................................... 12

ABSTRACT ................................................................................................................. 12

1. INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................... 13

2. METHODOLOGY ................................................................................................... 17

3. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION .............................................................................. 25

3.1. LSW FLOODING: TERTIARY VERSUS SECONDARY ............................. 25

3.2. HSP FLOODING AFTER WATERFLOODING ............................................ 31

3.3. SECONDARY POLYMER FLOODING ........................................................ 33

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3.4. LSP FLOODING AFTER WATERFLOODING AND HSP FLOODING ..... 35

3.5. LSP FLOODING AFTER A SECONDARY HSP FLOODING ..................... 37

3.6. LSP FLOODING DIRECTLY AFTER WATERFLOODING ........................ 38

3.7. FIELD APPLICATION EVALUATION ......................................................... 42

3.8. DISCUSSION OF INFLUENCING FACTORS ON THE

EFFECTIVENESS OF LSP FLOODING ........................................................ 44

4. CONCLUSIONS ...................................................................................................... 46

NOMENCLATURE ..................................................................................................... 47

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ............................................................................................ 48

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APPENDIX .................................................................................................................. 49

REFERENCES ............................................................................................................. 51
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II. EXPERIMENTAL STUDY OF TRANSPORT BEHAVIOR OF MICROGEL
PARTICLES IN SUPERPERMEABLE CHANNELS FOR
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CONFORMANCE CONTROL............................................................................... 56

ABSTRACT ................................................................................................................. 56

1. INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................... 57
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2. EXPERIMENTAL ................................................................................................... 63

2.1. MATERIALS.................................................................................................... 63

2.2. EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURE ................................................................... 65

3. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION .............................................................................. 68

3.1. TRANSPORT BEHAVIOR OF MICROGELS ............................................... 68

3.2. WATER BLOCKING EFFICIENCY .............................................................. 81

4. CONCLUSIONS ...................................................................................................... 89

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT............................................................................................ 90

REFERENCES ............................................................................................................. 91
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III. SELECTIVE PENETRATION OF MICROGELS IN SUPERPERMEABLE

CHANNELS AND RESERVOIR MATRICES ..................................................... 98

ABSTRACT ................................................................................................................. 98

1. INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................... 99

2. EXPERIMENTAL AND METHODOLOGY........................................................ 104

3. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION ............................................................................ 108

3.1. THE THRESHOLD PENETRATION PRESSURES .................................... 108

3.2. IMPACT OF PARTICLE/PORE MATCHING SIZE RATIO (MSR) .......... 116

4. CONCLUSIONS .................................................................................................... 119

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ....................................................................................... 120

REFERENCES ........................................................................................................... 121

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IV. CRITICAL PRESSURE GRADIENTS DURING MICROGEL
PROPAGATION ................................................................................................. 124
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ABSTRACT ............................................................................................................... 124

1. INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................. 125

2. EXPERIMENTAL AND METHODOLOGY........................................................ 127

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3. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION ............................................................................ 130

3.1. PRESSURE GRADIENTS DURING GEL INJECTION .............................. 130

3.2. IMPACT OF MSR ON THE CRITICAL PRESSURE GRADIENT............. 141

3.3. IMPLICATIONS TO GEL TREATMENT FIELD APPLICATIONS .......... 142

4. CONCLUSIONS .................................................................................................... 147

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ....................................................................................... 148

REFERENCES ........................................................................................................... 149

V. A COMPREHENSIVE LABORATORY METHOD TO EVALUATE

MICROGEL CONFORMANCE CONTROL PERFORMANCE USING
SANDWICH-LIKE CHANNEL MODELS .......................................................... 153
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ABSTRACT ............................................................................................................... 153

1. INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................. 154

2. FABRICATION OF THE SANDWICH-LIKE CHANNEL MODELS ................ 158

3. EVALUATION OF PENETRATION/PLACEMENT AND SWEEP

IMPROVEMENT................................................................................................... 164

3.1. SELECTIVE PENETRATION/PLACEMENT OF THE GEL

PARTICLES ................................................................................................... 164

3.2. EVALUATION OF SWEEP IMPROVEMENT ............................................ 167

4. EVALUATION OF WATER-BLOCKING EFFICIENCY................................... 170

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5. EVALUATION OF DAMAGE TO MATRICES (INJECTIVITY LOSS) ........... 173

6. EVALUATION OF OIL RECOVERY IMPROVEMENT ................................... 175

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7. CONCLUSIONS .................................................................................................... 179

NOMENCLATURE ................................................................................................... 180

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ....................................................................................... 181

REFERENCES ........................................................................................................... 182

VI. TRANSPORT, PLACEMENT, FLUID DIVERSION AND MATRIX

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DAMAGE BEHAVIOR OF MICROGELS FOR CONFORMANCE

CONTROL IN RESERVOIRS CONTAINING SUPERPERMEABLE
CHANNELS ........................................................................................................ 186

ABSTRACT ............................................................................................................... 186

1. INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................. 187

2. METHODOLOGY ................................................................................................. 191

3. TRANSPORT AND PLACEMENT BEHAVIOR ................................................ 193

4. SWEEP IMPROVEMENT AFTER GEL TREATMENTS ................................... 203

5. EVALUATION OF MATRIX DAMAGE............................................................. 207

6. CONCLUSIONS .................................................................................................... 210

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NOMENCLATURE ................................................................................................... 211

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ....................................................................................... 212

APPENDIX ................................................................................................................ 213

REFERENCES ........................................................................................................... 215

VII. EXPERIMENTAL STUDY OF MICROGEL CONFORMANCE-

CONTROL TREATMENT FOR A POLYMER-FLOODING RESERVOIR
CONTAINING SUPERPERMEABLE CHANNELS ........................................ 220

ABSTRACT ............................................................................................................... 220

1. INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................. 221

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2. EXPERIMENTAL ................................................................................................. 226

2.1. MATERIALS.................................................................................................. 226

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2.2. EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURE ................................................................. 231

3. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION ............................................................................ 233

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3.1. OIL RECOVERY PERFORMANCE ............................................................. 233

3.1.1. Before Gel Treatment. .......................................................................... 233

3.1.2. After Gel Treatment. ............................................................................ 238

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3.2. MICROGEL TRANSPORT BEHAVIOR ..................................................... 240

3.2.1. Selective Penetration. ........................................................................... 241

3.2.2. Pressure Fluctuation and Transport/Retention Patterns. ...................... 244

3.2.3. Evaluation of Plugging Efficiency to the Super-k Channels. ............... 245

3.3. DISCUSSION OF APPLICABLE CONDITIONS ........................................ 247

4. CONCLUSIONS .................................................................................................... 250

NOMENCLATURE ................................................................................................... 251

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT.......................................................................................... 252

REFERENCES ........................................................................................................... 253

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SECTION

2. CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS ................................................. 258

2.1. MAJOR CONTRIBUTIONS AND CONCLUSIONS ................................... 258

2.2. SPECIFIC CONCLUSIONS .......................................................................... 260

2.3. RECOMMENDATIONS ................................................................................ 267

BIBLIOGRAPHY ............................................................................................................269

VITA ................................................................................................................................274

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LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

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Figure 1.1. Location of the target reservoir. ....................................................................... 2

Figure 1.2. Well logging information of the Schrader Bluff formation at Milne
Point.................................................................................................................. 4

Figure 1.3. Injector-producer well patterns of the polymer flood pilot. ............................. 5

PAPER I

Figure 1. Formation sand. ................................................................................................. 20

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Figure 2. Polymer viscosity. ............................................................................................. 21

Figure 3. Coreflooding experiment setup. ........................................................................ 23

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Figure 4. Tertiary LSW flooding (Exp-1). ........................................................................ 26

Figure 5. Injection pressure in Exp-1. ............................................................................... 26

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Figure 6. Secondary LSW flooding (Exp-2). .................................................................... 29

Figure 7. Residual oil mobilization induced by low salinity effect and development
of preferential water channels............................................................................ 31
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Figure 8. HSP flooding after waterflooding (Exp-3). ....................................................... 33

Figure 9. Secondary polymer flooding (Exp-4). ............................................................... 34

Figure 10. LSP flooding after waterflooding and HSP flooding (Exp-5). ........................ 37

Figure 11. The relative viscosity of the effluent of HSP and LSP (Exp-5). ..................... 37

Figure 12. LSP flooding after a secondary HSP flood (Exp-6). ....................................... 39

Figure 13. LSP flooding directly after waterflooding (Exp-7). ........................................ 39

Figure 14. Rheology test results of the LSP. .................................................................... 41

Figure 15. Rheology test results of the HSP. .................................................................... 41

Figure 16. J-27 production performance. .......................................................................... 43

Figure 17. J-28 production performance. .......................................................................... 43

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Figure 18. Coreflooding results using heavy mineral oil. ................................................. 45

PAPER II

Figure 1. Open fracture type channels and porous-medium type channels in a

reservoir. ............................................................................................................ 59

Figure 2. Experiment setup for microgel transport tests. .................................................. 67

Figure 3. The typical experiment procedure. .................................................................... 67

Figure 4. Result of brine tracer test (Exp #1, before gel injection). ................................. 68

Figure 5. Pressures at different locations during gel injection (Exp #1). ......................... 70

Figure 6. Pressure gradient at different sections during gel injection (Exp #1). .............. 71

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Figure 7. Resistance factor distribution (Exp #1). ............................................................ 71

Figure 8. The stable resistance factor distribution (Exp #1). ............................................ 72

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Figure 9. Injection pressure at different locations during gel injection (Exp #2). ............ 73

Figure 10. Pressure gradient at different sections during gel injection (Exp #2). ............ 74
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Figure 11. Resistance factor distribution (Exp #2). .......................................................... 74

Figure 12. The stable resistance factor distribution (Exp #2). .......................................... 75

Figure 13. Resistance factor distribution at different MSRs............................................. 75

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Figure 14. Transport delay (Exp #1). ................................................................................ 76

Figure 15. Pressure gradient at different flow rates. ......................................................... 78

Figure 16. Pressure gradient as a function of superficial velocity. ................................... 80

Figure 17. Microscopy examination of effluent gel samples. ........................................... 80

Figure 18. Pressure gradient during the first chase water flood (LSW) (Exp #1). ........... 82

Figure 19. Distribution of residual resistance factor (Exp #1).......................................... 82

Figure 20. Summary of residual resistance factor distribution after gel treatment. .......... 83

Figure 21. Results of brine tracer test after gel injection (Exp #1). .................................. 85

Figure 22. Pressure gradients during post water floods using brines with different
salinities (Exp #1). ........................................................................................... 87
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Figure 23. Salinity-responsive behavior of residual resistance factor to water after

gel injection (Exp #1). ..................................................................................... 87

Figure 24. The disproportionate permeability reduction (DPR) effect of the

microgels. ........................................................................................................ 88

PAPER III

Figure 1. Gel treatment to reduce the unwanted water production and improve the
effective sweep volume. .................................................................................. 100

Figure 2. Dry and swollen microgels in the SFB. ........................................................... 106

Figure 3. Experiment setup for microgel transport tests. ................................................ 106

Figure 4. Pressure responses at different locations (Exp #4). ......................................... 108

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Figure 5. Threshold penetration pressures at different locations indicated by the
onset of pressure fluctuation (Exp #4). ............................................................ 110
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Figure 6. Threshold penetration pressures at different transport distance (Exp #4). ...... 111

Figure 7. The threshold penetration pressures at different MSRs. ................................. 113

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Figure 8. Summary of threshold pressures in different experiments. ............................. 114

Figure 9. Gel cake formed at the inlet surface of an intact core (Exp #11, 693 md,
MSR=20.46). ................................................................................................... 115
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Figure 10. Gel cake formed at the inlet surface of a channel model (Exp #19, 139
darcies, MSR=1.27, matrices 167 md). ......................................................... 115

Figure 11. Relationship between the threshold penetration pressure and the MSR. ...... 116

PAPER IV

Figure 1. Experiment setup. ............................................................................................ 128

Figure 2. Pressure gradients during gel injection at constant flow rate (RE2). .............. 130

Figure 3. Pressure gradients at different superficial velocities (RE2). ........................... 131

Figure 4. Resistance factor as a function of superficial velocity (RE2). ........................ 132

Figure 5. Pressure gradients at different MSRs and superficial velocities. .................... 133

Figure 6. Resistance factors at different MSRs and superficial velocities. .................... 133
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Figure 7. The responses during gel injection process (CP1). ......................................... 135

Figure 8. The responses in the early stage (CP1)............................................................ 136

Figure 9. The responses at increased injection pressure gradients (CP1). ...................... 136

Figure 10. The responses in the early stage (CP2).......................................................... 138

Figure 11. The responses at increased injection pressure gradients (CP2). .................... 139

Figure 12. The responses in the early stage (CP3).......................................................... 140

Figure 13. The responses at increased injection pressure gradients (CP3). .................... 140

Figure 14. Correlating the critical pressure gradient with the MSR. .............................. 141

Figure 15. Schematic diagram of the horizontal pair and super-k channel. ................... 144

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Figure 16. Diagram of the maximum transport distances in superpermeable channels
(base case). .................................................................................................... 145
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Figure 17. Diagram of the maximum transport distances in superpermeable channels
at different allowable differential driving pressures. ..................................... 145
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PAPER V

Figure 1. Fabrication of the sandwich-like channel model. ............................................ 158

Figure 2. Experiment setup. ............................................................................................ 158

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Figure 3. Injection pressure during gel injection. ........................................................... 164

Figure 4. Breakthrough of the carrying fluid and the gel particles. ................................ 165

Figure 5. Photo of the surface gel cake. .......................................................................... 166

Figure 6. Gel placement in the channel. ......................................................................... 167

Figure 7. Standard absorbance-concentration curve. ...................................................... 168

Figure 8. Fluid diversion and sweep efficiency improvement after gel treatment. ........ 168

Figure 9. The procedure to evaluate water-blocking efficiency of the gel in the

channel. ............................................................................................................ 171

Figure 10. The inlet and outlet faces were sealed with epoxy. ....................................... 171

Figure 11. Possible crossflow into the matrix and back to the channel. ......................... 172
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Figure 12. The channel is totally shut off with epoxy and a rubber gasket. ................... 174

Figure 13. Gel placement in the channel (sand size=10/20 mesh). ................................ 177

Figure 14. Water cut and oil recovery responses before and after the gel treatment. ..... 177

PAPER VI

Figure 1. Experiment setup. ............................................................................................ 192

Figure 2. The injection pressure, pressure gradient and resistance factor during gel
injection (Exp S4). ........................................................................................... 194

Figure 3. Summary of the injection pressures in different experiments. ........................ 195

Figure 4. Summary of the injection pressure gradients during gel injection. ................. 195

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Figure 5. Summary of the resistance factors. .................................................................. 196

Figure 6. The injection pressure, pressure gradient, and resistance factor as a

function of MSRc.............................................................................................. 196
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Figure 7. Impact of different factors on the breakthrough time of the gel particles
through the channel. ........................................................................................ 198
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Figure 8. Surface cake at the inlet face. .......................................................................... 198

Figure 9. Placement of gels in the superpermeable channel. .......................................... 199

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Figure 10. Gel retention in the channel (Exp S4). .......................................................... 199

Figure 11. Dehydration degree of the gel retained in the channel (Exp S4). .................. 200

Figure 12. The outlet inlet faces matrix are sealed off with epoxy................................. 203

Figure 13. Sweep improvement demonstrated by tracer tests after gel treatments. ....... 204

Figure 14. Sweep efficiency improvement after gel treatment. ...................................... 205

Figure 15. The effect of different parameters on the sweep improvement after gel
treatment. ....................................................................................................... 207

Figure 16. Evaluation of matrix damage after gel treatment. ......................................... 209

Figure 17. Impact of MSRm on matrix damage. .............................................................. 209

PAPER VII

Figure 1. Impact of super-k channels in a reservoir........................................................ 224

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Figure 2. Dry and swollen microgels. ............................................................................. 228

Figure 3. Construction of the sandwich-like channel model. ......................................... 230

Figure 4. Experiment setup. ............................................................................................ 232

Figure 5. The typical experiment procedure. .................................................................. 233

Figure 6. Comparison of oil recovery performance in channel model and

homogeneous model. ....................................................................................... 235

Figure 7. Water cut reduction and oil recovery performance after gel treatment. .......... 237

Figure 8. Sweep efficiency improvement after gel treatment. ........................................ 240

Figure 9. Injection pressure and schematic diagram of gel transport behavior. ............. 241

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Figure 10. Filter cake at inlet surface and gel placement in the super-k channel (Exp
#4). ................................................................................................................. 242

Figure 11. Residual resistance factor distribution after the gel injection. ...................... 247
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Figure 12. The relationship between critical pressure and channel permeability (Kc). .. 248
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LIST OF TABLES

SECTION Page

Table 1.1. Reservoir information. ....................................................................................... 3

PAPER I

Table 1. Compositions of formation brine and injection brine. ........................................ 18

Table 2. Basic information of core flooding experiments. ............................................... 24

PAPER II

Table 1. Basic formation brine and injection brine........................................................... 64

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Table 2. Summary of basic information of the experiments. ............................................ 66

Table 3. Responses during gel transport in high-permeability porous media (Exp #1,
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MSR=2.35). ........................................................................................................ 70

Table 4. Responses during gel transport in high-permeability porous media (Exp #2,
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MSR=3.29). ........................................................................................................ 73

PAPER III

Table 1. Brine composition. ............................................................................................ 105

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Table 2. Summary of basic information of the experiments. .......................................... 107

PAPER IV

Table 1. Summary of basic parameters of the experiments. ........................................... 129

Table 2. Summary of transport response in CP1 (221 darcies, MSR=0.69). .................. 134

Table 3. Summary of transport response in CP2 (62.0 darcies, MSR=1.11). ................. 138

Table 4. Summary of transport response in CP3 (62.4 darcies, MSR=1.28). ................. 139

Table 5. Basic parameters of the horizontal well pair. ................................................... 144

PAPER V

Table 1. Key parameters of a single-phase channel model. ............................................ 159

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PAPER VI

Table 1. Summary of experiments performed with channel models. ............................. 193

PAPER VII

Table 1. Basic formation brine and injection brine......................................................... 227

Table 2. Key parameters of a typical channel model. ..................................................... 231

Table 3. Summary of the experiment results. ................................................................. 234

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NOMENCLATURE

Symbol Description

Ac Cross-sectional area of channel, cm2

Am Cross-sectional area of matrices, cm2

ANS Alaska's North Slope

d Average diameter of the pores, μm

Ebw Water blocking efficiency

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EOR Enhanced oil recovery

fCK Carman-Kozeny factor

Frr
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Residual resistance factor

fw Water cut, fw=qw/(qw+qo)

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FW Formation water

HSP High-salinity polymer, salinity=FW

HSW High-salinity water, salinity=FW

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Ib, Ia Injectivity before and after the gel treatment

IFT Interfacial tension

Kc Initial permeability of channel, md

Kcw Permeability of the channel to water after the gel treatment, md

Kcwi Permeability of the channel to water before the gel treatment, md

Km Initial (absolute) permeability of matrices, md

Kt Overall permeability of the channel model

LSE Low salinity effect

LSP Low salinity polymer, prepared with injection source brine in Milne Point
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LSW Low-salinity water, injection source brine in the Milne Point field

MSR Particle-to-pore matching size ratio

Nca Capillary number

OOIP Oil originally in place

Pcr Critical pressure, psi

PPG Preformed Particle Gel

ppm Parts per million

PV Pore volume

qm Flow rate in the matrices, ml/min

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Sor Residual oil saturation, fraction

Swi
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Initial water saturation, fraction

Φ Porosity, fraction
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η Oil recovery factor

𝜏 Tortuosity, dimensionless
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 SECTION

1. INTRODUCTION

1.1. BACKGROUND

Heavy oil resources are abundant and account for a large portion of the total oil

reserves around the world. Thermal methods, like steam flooding, are effective techniques

to develop the heavy oil resources. However, in some areas the thermal methods are not

feasible. For example, the Milne Point heavy oil reservoir on Alaska’s North Slope (ANS)

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is covered with a thick permafrost layer. Heat loss and environmental concerns make
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thermal recovery methods unacceptable. Waterflooding can maintain the production at the

early stage, but it shows quick breakthrough and fast rise of water cut. Polymer flood was
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proposed to unlock the heavy oil resources in this area (Dandekar et al. 2019, 2020, 2021;

Ning et al. 2019, 2020). Successful field applications of polymer flood in heavy oil

reservoirs have been reported around the world, like in Canada (e.g., Pelican Lake, Seal,
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and Cactus Lake), China (e.g., Bohai Bay), Middle East (e.g., South Oman), Suriname (e.g.

Tambaredjo), and Trinidad and Tobago (Delamaide et al. 2014, 2018; Saboorian-Jooybari

et al. 2016; Saleh et al. 2017; Zhang et al. 2016).

The first-ever polymer-flood pilot test on the ANS has been implemented since

August 2018. Detailed background information about the geology, stratigraphy,

minerology, reservoir, well configurations, fluids, and production history are available in

the literature (Dandekar et al. 2019, 2020, 2021; Ning et al. 2019, 2020; Paskvan et al.

2016; Attanasi & Freeman 2014). The key information is summarized in Table 1.1. The

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