Stimulating Naturally Fractured

Carbonate Reservoirs
Khalid S. Asiri
Mohammed A. Atwi
Saudi Aramco
Udhailiyah, Saudi Arabia

Naturally fractured carbonate reservoirs can be difcult to stimulate because

Oscar Jimnez Bueno

Petrleos Mexicanos (PEMEX)
Villahermosa, Mexico

uids contact the largest possible reservoir surface area. Engineers and chemists

Bruno Lecerf
Alejandro Pea
Sugar Land, Texas, USA
Tim Lesko
Conway, Arkansas, USA

treatment uids tend to enter the fractures and avoid less permeable regions.
Effective uid diversion techniques are usually necessary to ensure that stimulation

have developed an innovative acidizing uid that employs degradable bers to

temporarily block permeable fractures and force the uid into less permeable zones.
Operators have applied the ber-laden acid to naturally fractured oil and gas reservoirs in which achieving complete zonal coverage is difcult and, as a result, have
witnessed substantial production improvements.

Fred Mueller
College Station, Texas
Alexandre Z. I. Pereira
Petrobras
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Fernanda Tellez Cisneros
Villahermosa, Mexico
Oileld Review Autumn 2013: 25, no. 3.
Copyright 2013 Schlumberger.
For help in preparation of this article, thanks to
Charles-Edouard Cohen, Rio de Janeiro;
Victor Ariel Exler, Maca, Brazil; Luis Daniel Gigena,
Mexico City; Daniel Kalinin, Al-Khobar, Saudi Arabia;
and Svetlana Pavlova, Novosibirsk, Russia.
ACTive, MaxCO3 Acid, POD, SXE and VDA are marks
of Schlumberger.
1. Crowe C, Masmonteil J, Touboul E and Thomas R:
Trends in Matrix Acidizing, Oileld Review 4, no. 4
(October 1992): 2440.
2. Robert JA and Rossen WR: Fluid Placement and
Pumping Strategy, in Economides MJ and Nolte KG
(eds): Reservoir Stimulation, 3rd ed. Chichester,
West Sussex, England: John Wiley & Sons, Ltd (2000):
19-219-3.

Oileld Review

Since the dawn of the oil and gas industry, operators have endeavored to maximize well productivity, employing a variety of techniques to do so. For
example, as early as the 19th century, engineers
began pumping acid in wells to improve production. Acidizing treatments dissolve and remove
formation damage resulting from drilling and
completion operations, create new production
pathways in producing formations or both.
Acidizing treatments fall into two categories.
Matrix acidizing consists of pumping uid into
the formation at rates and pressures that will not
fracture the reservoir. The resulting treatment
stimulates a region extending up to about 1 m
[3 ft] around the wellbore. Fracture acidizing is a
hydraulic fracturing treatment that pumps acid
during at least one uid stage. The stimulation
distance may extend one or two orders of magnitude farther into the formation than that
achieved by matrix acidizing.
The composition of acidizing uids depends
on the type of formation to be stimulated.
Carbonate formations, composed mainly of limestone (calcium carbonate [CaCO3]) or dolomite
(calcium magnesium carbonate [CaMg(CO3)2]),
are treated with hydrochloric acid [HCl], various
organic acids or combinations thereof. Sandstone
formations typically consist of quartz [SiO2] or
feldspar [KAlSi3O8NaAlSi3O8CaAl2Si2O6] particles bound together by carbonate or clay minerals. Silicate minerals do not react with HCl; they
respond instead to stimulation uids that contain
hydrouoric acid [HF] or uoboric acid [HBF4].1
Despite the uid chemistry differences, the engineering aspects of carbonate and sandstone
acidizing are largely similar. However, this article
concentrates on recent advances that are particularly relevant to carbonate acidizing.
Carbonate Acidizing Fundamentals
Limestone and dolomite rapidly dissolve in
HCl, forming water-soluble reaction products
mainly calcium and magnesium chloridesand
liberating carbon dioxide. The dissolution rate
is limited by the speed at which acid can be
delivered to the rock surface. This dissolution
process results in rapid formation of irregularly
shaped channels called wormholes (above right).
Wormholes radiate outward in a dendritic pattern from points where acid leaves the well and
enters the formation. Once formed, they become
the most permeable pathways into the formation
and carry virtually all of the uid ow during production. For efcient stimulation, the wormhole
network should penetrate deeply and uniformly
throughout the producing interval.

Autumn 2013

> Acid-induced wormholes. An intricate network of wormholes formed during

a laboratory-scale matrix acidizing treatment of a carbonate formation sample.
The length, direction and number of wormholes depend on the formation
reactivity and the rate at which acid enters the formation. Once formed, the
wormholes may carry virtually all of the uid ow during production.

Achieving stimulation uniformity can be particularly challenging when large permeability

variations exist within the treatment interval. As
acid penetrates the formation, it ows preferentially into the most-permeable pathways. Higherpermeability areas receive most of the uid and
become larger, causing the treatment uids to
bypass lower-permeability regions where stimulation is needed most. To address this problem,
engineers and chemists have developed methods

to divert acidizing uids away from high-permeability intervals and into less permeable zones.
Engineers accomplish diversion by employing
mechanical or chemical means or both.2
Mechanical diversion of treatment uids may be
achieved using drillpipe or coiled tubingconveyed tools equipped with mechanical packers
that isolate and direct uid into low-permeability
zones. Alternatively, ow can be blocked at individual perforations by dropping ball sealers into

Ball Sealers

Straddle Packers

> Mechanical diversion methods. Ball sealers (green spheres) are pumped down the well during the
stimulation treatment (left). The balls provide mechanical diversion because they preferentially block
the perforations that take the highest volume of treatment uid. Straddle packers may also be deployed
on coiled tubing to isolate the preferred treatment interval (right). In this example, engineers have
already stimulated the bottom zone and moved the packers up in preparation for stimulating the next zone.

the stimulation uid as it travels down the well.

The ball sealers are drawn to and seat against
perforations accepting the most uid. After the
treatment, the ball sealers fall away, are mechanically dislodged or dissolve (above).
Chemical diverting agents incorporated in
stimulation uids may be divided into two categoriesparticulates and viscosiers. Particulates
include plugging agents such as benzoic acid
akes and salt grains that are sized to plug formation pores. Foaming the acid may achieve a similar plugging effect because of two-phase ow.
Viscosiers include water-soluble polymers,
crosslinked polymer gels and viscoelastic surfactants (VESs).3 A decade ago, Schlumberger scientists and engineers applied VES chemistry to acid
stimulation and introduced the VDA viscoelastic

CaCO3 + 2HCl

diverting acid system. VDA uids have been particularly successful in both matrix and fracture
acidizing applications around the world.4
The surfactant molecule in the VDA system,
derived from a long-chain fatty acid, is zwitterionica neutral molecule that carries a positive
and a negative charge at separate positions.5
While being pumped down a well, VDA uida
blend of HCl, VES and common acid-treatment
additivesmaintains a low viscosity. As the acid
is consumed in the formation, the surfactant molecules begin to aggregate into elongated
micelles.6 The micelles become entangled and
cause the uid viscosity to increase (below). The
higher-viscosity uid forms a temporary barrier
that forces fresh acid to ow elsewhere. In addition to providing diversion, the viscosity decreases

the rate at which the acid reacts with the formation, thereby allowing more time for the creation
of deeper and more intricate wormholes.
When production begins, VDA uid is exposed
to hydrocarbons, which alters the ionic environment and causes the micelles to become spherical. Entanglement ceases, the micelles roam
freely, and the uid viscosity decreases dramatically, enabling efcient poststimulation cleanup.
Unlike polymer-base uids, VESs leave virtually
no damaging residue behind that may interfere
with well productivity.
Naturally fractured reservoirs are the most
challenging environments for carbonate acidizing because they can present extreme permeability contrasts. The fractured regions may be
several orders of magnitude more permeable
than the unfractured layers. Until recently, the
industrys considerable portfolio of diversion
technologies has been inefcient in this environment. Even when using self-diverting uids such
as the VDA formulation, engineers struggled to
block the fractures and treat the rest of the formation. Consequently, operators were forced to
pump large volumes of uid to achieve stimulation, leading to higher treatment costs and less
than optimal results.
However, Schlumberger engineers and chemists discovered that signicant diversion improvements could be achieved by adding degradable
bers to VDA uid. As ber-laden diversion uid
enters a fracture, the bers congregate, entangle
and form structures that limit uid entry. The
new product, MaxCO3 Acid degradable diversion
acid system, has been used successfully and efciently to stimulate notoriously difcult carbonate reservoirs around the world.

CaCl2 + CO2 + H2O

Spent acid

Hydrocarbon

Surfactant
molecules
Elongated micelles

Spherical micelles

> Viscoelastic surfactant (VES) uid behavior during an acidizing treatment. Initially, when the surfactant is dispersed in acid, each molecule moves
independently throughout the uid (left). As the acid reacts with the carbonate minerals, the surfactant molecules assemble and create elongated micelles
(center). The micelles entangle and hinder uid ow, resulting in higher uid viscosity. When hydrocarbon production begins after the treatment, the
elongated micelles transform into spheres (right), resulting in a dramatic decrease in uid viscosity and facilitating efcient cleanup.

Oileld Review

Openhole Acidizing

Cased Hole Acidizing

Wormhole

Perforation
Wormhole

Wellbore
wall

Casing

Filtercake
Filtercake

Treatment fluid

Treatment fluid
Filtercake
Perforation
Filtercake

Well

Well
Casing

> Fiber deposition and diversion scenarios. During openhole acidizing (top and bottom left), bers form
a ltercake that covers the entire wellbore wall. During cased hole acidizing (top and bottom right),
bers form ltercakes in the perforation tunnels.

This article describes the development of the

MaxCO3 Acid system in the laboratory and its
introduction to the oil eld. Case histories from
Mexico, Saudi Arabia and Brazil demonstrate
how application of this new acid system is achieving signicant well productivity improvements.
Studying Fiber-Laden Acids in the Laboratory
For more than 20 years, chemists and engineers
have explored ways in which bers could be used
to improve well servicing operations. Working
3. For more on water-soluble polymers and VESs: Gulbis J
and Hodge RM: Fracturing Fluid Chemistry and
Proppants, in Economides MJ and Nolte KG (eds):
Reservoir Stimulation, 3rd ed. Chichester, West Sussex,
England: John Wiley & Sons, Ltd (2000): 7-17-23.
4. Al-Anzi E, Al-Mutawa M, Al-Habib N, Al-Mumen A,
Nasr-El-Din H, Alvarado O, Brady M, Davies S, Fredd C,
Fu D, Lungwitz B, Chang F, Huidobro E, Jemmali M,
Samuel M and Sandhu D: Positive Reactions in
Carbonate Reservoir Stimulation, Oileld Review 15,
no. 4 (Winter 2003/2004): 2845.
Lungwitz B, Fredd C, Brady M, Miller M, Ali S and
Hughes K: Diversion and Cleanup Studies of Viscoelastic

Autumn 2013

with both mineral- and polymer-base bers, they

discovered techniques for controlling the behavior of uids and suspended solids, both during
and after placement in a well. The research
resulted in several innovations, including methods for limiting lost circulation during drilling
and cementing, improving the exibility and
durability of well cements, aiding proppant transport during hydraulic fracturing operations and
preventing proppant owback into the well after
a fracturing treatment.
Surfactant-Based Self-Diverting Acid, SPE Production &
Operations 22, no. 1 (February 2007): 121127.
5. Sullivan P, Nelson EB, Anderson V and Hughes T: Oileld
Applications of Giant Micelles, in Zana R and Kaler EW
(eds): Giant MicellesProperties and Applications.
Boca Raton, Florida, USA: CRC Press (2007): 453472.
6. A micelle is a colloidal assembly of surfactant molecules.
In the aqueous environment of an acidizing uid, the
surfactant molecules are arranged such that the interior
of the micelle is hydrophobic and the exterior is
hydrophilic. Worm-like micelles may be microns long and
have a cross section of a few nanometers.

Studying applications for bers in the context

of acidizing has been a more recent endeavor. In
2007, scientists at Schlumberger began exploring
the ability of bers to improve uid diversion in
both openhole and cased hole scenarios (above).
The principal difference between the two conditions is that, for openhole completions, bers
must accumulate along the entire wellbore surface to provide diversion, but in a cased hole
situation, ber deposition may be conned to
perforations.
The engineers discovered that simply adding
bers to a conventional HCl solution failed to create a stable brous suspension. Shortly after
addition, the bers congregated, formed clumps
and separated from the acid. Success was
achieved by adding bers to VDA uid. The resultant higher uid viscosity allowed the creation of
a robust suspension of discrete bers.

Openhole Simulation
Pressure

Acid and
fibers
Filtercake

Pressure cell

Core
Cased Hole Simulation

Backpressure
regulator

Pump
Filtrate

Pressure sensor

Wormhole Geometry

Balance

Orifice
Piston
1 to 2 mm

20 mm
25.75 mm

Fluid flow

142 cm

Acid
and fibers

Fissure or Fracture Geometry

Orifice
130 mm

2 to 6 mm
ID 21 mm

Filtercake

65 mm
75 mm

Orifice

> Laboratory-scale equipment for testing leakoff behavior and ltercake deposition. Engineers used a conventional ltration cell to simulate an openhole
stimulation (top). Technicians rst placed a carbonate core at the bottom of the cell and then poured in ber-laden acid. After sealing the cell, they applied
differential pressure across the core and used a balance to measure the amount of ltrate passing though the core. For the cased hole simulation (bottom),
engineers used a bridging apparatus. The apparatus consisted mainly of a 300-mL tube tted with a piston, a high-performance liquid chromatography
(HPLC) pump and an orice (left). The orice could be circular to simulate a wormhole (top right) or rectangular to mimic a fracture (bottom right).
Technicians installed a piston at the top of the tube, which contained ber-laden acid. Acid exiting the tube passed through the orice, and the technicians
assessed the diversion capability of bers by measuring the ltrate volume, the ber ltercake volume and the pumping pressure at various ow rates.

The engineers then began performing experiments with laboratory-scale equipment for
simulating uid leakoff and ber deposition
(above). The principal simulator was a bridging
apparatus that accommodated a variety of orices through which ber-laden acid could pass
at various ow rates. Circular orices, with
diameters between 1 and 2 mm [0.04 and
0.08 in.], simulated wormholes. Rectangular orices with widths between 2 and 6 mm [0.08 and
0.24 in.] were analogous to fractures. Engineers
observed ber plug formation and recorded the
corresponding system pressure as ber-laden
acid passed through an orice.

Pressure evolution in the apparatus followed

a consistent pattern (next page, top left).
Initially there was no pressure increase, but
within a few seconds, the pressure rose rapidly
as the bers formed a bridge and began to ll
the orice. These results indicated that as early
volumes of ber-laden acid reach the perforations, the acid penetrates the reservoir as if no
bers are present. Then, as the bers bridge,
they accumulate inside the perforations and
form a ltercake. Next, the bers plug the
perforation, decreasing injectivity and promoting uid diversion into other perforations.
The engineers also discovered that the ber

concentration required to achieve bridging

increased with the uid injection rate (next
page, top right).
In the laboratory, after pumping the berladen acid through the orice, engineers performed a freshwater ush. As the viscous acid
left the apparatus, the pumping pressure gradually decreased and eventually stabilized. At the
end of each test, a stable ber plug remained in
the orice. Knowing the pressure, ow rate,
uid viscosity and ber plug length, engineers
were also able to use Darcys law to calculate
the ber plug permeabilities. Depending on the
ber concentration and the uid ow rate dur-

Oileld Review

Linear fluid velocity, ft/min

2-mm
slot

150

16.4

32.8

49.2

65.6

82.0

98.4

Degradable fiber concentration, lbm/1,000 galUS

Fluid inflow

60

50

40

Pressure, psi

30

20

Bridging region

100

Nonbridging region

10

50
0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

> Pressure-versus-time plot from a slot-ow experiment. During this

experiment, the MaxCO3 Acid composition consisted of 15 wt% VDA uid and
6 kg/m3 (50 lbm/1,000 galUS) degradable bers. In Period 0, MaxCO3 Acid uid
begins owing through the slot, and the bers have not yet formed a bridge.
In Period 1, the pressure rises as the bers entangle and form a plug in the
slot. Pressure continues to climb until the volume of acid is exhausted. In
Period 2, the pressure gradually falls as freshwater enters the slot and
displaces the viscous acid. The system pressure stabilizes during Period 3.
The white ber plug remains intact and stable inside the slot (photograph).

1,000

Apparent permeability, mD

10

15

20

25

30

> Effect of degradable ber concentration on

bridging ability in a slot. During the slot-ow
experiments, engineers determined that the ber
concentration required to achieve bridging and
promote uid diversion increases with the uid
injection rate.

ing ber deposition, the measured permeabilities varied between 400 and 2,400 mD. These
data led engineers to conclude that bers would
provide the most efcient diversion in zones
with permeabilities exceeding 100 mD (left).7
The data acquired during the simulator experiments also allowed scientists to develop a mathematical model for predicting the behavior of
ber-laden acids under openhole and cased hole
conditions; the model may be used to optimize
treatment designs.8 They performed 340 ne-scale
3D simulations that evaluated typical perforation
schemes, brous ltercake permeabilities and
formation permeabilities. The resulting model
allows scientists to track the movement of the uids and bers through the wellbore and into the
reservoir and track the propagation of wormholes
generated as the acid reacts with carbonate rock.

10,000

100

10

0.1
0.1

10

100

1,000

10,000

Core permeability, mD

> Apparent permeability resulting from plugging a perforated zone with

bers. The x-axis shows the original core permeability. The y-axis shows the
apparent zone permeability after a brous ltercake with a permeability of
2 D has formed. The results show that after plugging occurs, when core
permeability exceeds about 1 mD, apparent permeability eventually levels off
at about 100 mD and becomes independent of core permeability.

Autumn 2013

Linear fluid velocity, m/min

Time, s

7. It may appear counterintuitive to imagine that ber plugs

with permeabilities higher than that of the formation
could provide signicant diversion. However, signicant
diversion is also provided by the ow restriction and
pressure drop as uid enters the perforations.
8. Cohen CE, Tardy PMJ, Lesko T, Lecerf B, Pavlova S,
Voropaev S and Mchaweh A: Understanding Diversion
with a Novel Fiber-Laden Acid System for Matrix
Acidizing of Carbonate Formations, paper SPE 134495,
presented at the SPE Annual Technical Conference and
Exhibition, Florence, Italy, September 1922, 2010.

Apparent reservoir permeability, mD

10,000

Fiber plug permeability

2,400 mD
1,500 mD
400 mD

1,000

Layer permeability
30 D
10 D
3D
1D

Flow rate

100

10

0.1
0.1

10

100

Reservoir permeability, mD

1,000

10,000

Time

> Diversion predictions from the MaxCO3 Acid simulator. During ber deposition experiments in the perforation simulator, the permeabilities of the resulting
ber plugs varied between about 400 and 2,400 mD (left). The simulator predicts how the ber plugs decrease the apparent permeabilities of reservoirs and
promote diversion. Lower-permeability ber plugs are more efcient diverters. Modeling studies also demonstrated that brous ltercakes provide uid
diversion by equalizing the permeabilities of layers in the treated interval. For example, if the interval contains four layers with various permeabilities, the
uid ow rate into the more permeable layers decreases and the uid ow rate into the less permeable layers increases. Eventually, the ow rates
converge to a single ow rate, and the interval behaves as if it has a single permeability (right). Flow rate convergence occurs more quickly in a cased hole
with perforations because the ltercake surface area is lower.

> MaxCO3 Acid uid batch mixing. The degradable bers (top left) are light and nely divided, presenting a mixing challenge. Traditional equipment for
batch mixing of acidizing uids was inefcient. Engineers discovered that equipment for batch mixing cement slurries (bottom left) could disperse the bers
in VDA uid. The VDA uid ows into an 8,000-L [50-bbl] paddle mixer (top right). To avoid the formation of clumps, eld personnel manually add bers to the
uid. After the bers have been added, the tank is lled with more VDA uid, and agitation continues until the mixture reaches a uniform consistency
(bottom right). During the job, engineers maintain the agitation to preserve uid uniformity.

10

Oileld Review

120

100

Fiber degradation time, h

In addition, the model predicts uid diversion

behavior (previous page, top).
After demonstrating the diversion capabilities of ber-laden VDA uids in the laboratory,
the developers considered the effects of bers on
reservoir productivity following an acidizing
treatment. If bers remained in the wormholes
indenitely, their presence would hinder the ow
of uids from the reservoir to the wellbore. For
this reason, degradable bers were viewed as an
attractive option. After a treatment, the bers
hydrolyze and degrade within a few days. The
absence of bers leaves unobstructed wormholes
and maximizes formation productivity. Furthermore, the degradable bers are composed of an
organic acid polymer whose degradation products are acidic, giving rise to further formation
stimulation (right).9
The results of the laboratory study were sufciently encouraging to allow the engineers to
advance to the next development stageyard
testing to demonstrate that the ber-laden
MaxCO3 Acid uid could be prepared and pumped
efciently and safely.

80

60

40

20

0
0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

Volume of acid spent at 100C, %

16-h
shut-in

16-h
shut-in

10

2% KCI (injection direction)

2% KCI (production direction)
Fibers injected with spent acid (pH = 6.5)

9
8

Autumn 2013

Permeability, mD

Verifying Wellsite Deliverability

Because matrix acidizing treatments typically
consume small uid volumes compared with
other stimulation techniques, engineers usually
employ batch-mixing procedures. By contrast,
fracture acidizing usually requires large uid volumes, and continuous mixing is necessary to
keep pace with the higher pump rates.
Consequently, engineers needed to develop
methods for mixing MaxCO3 Acid formulations in
both scenarios. The principal objectives were to
disperse the bers safely and efciently in the
uid and prepare a uniform suspension. Because
the degradable bers are light and nely divided,
engineers were challenged to devise ways to
immerse the bers in the VDA uid so that they
would form a homogeneous mixture.
Experimentation led to the discovery that
uniform MaxCO3 Acid mixtures can be efciently
batch mixed with existing equipment (previous
page, bottom). The equipment consists of a vessel, into which engineers pour the base VDA uid,
and an 8,000-L [50-bbl] recirculating mixing tank
equipped with rotating paddles. Field personnel
dispense the bers manually. Until the treatment
commences, continuous agitation prevents ber
and uid separation.
The POD programmable optimum density
blender is standard Schlumberger equipment for
continuously dispensing solid materials such as
proppant into fracturing uids, and it proved to

K0

K6

K1

K7

N2

K4

K2

K5

K3

3
2
1
0
0

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

55

Fluid volume, pore volumes

> Behavior of degradable bers. Engineers performed static bottle tests during which degradable
bers were immersed in partially spent HCl uids. The data show that the rate of ber dissolution
decreases as the HCl becomes neutralized. Nevertheless, complete ber dissolution occurs within a
few days (top). Core testing demonstrated that the acidic ber degradation products may further
stimulate the formation (bottom). Using a standard core testing apparatus at 115C [239F], engineers
pumped 2% KCl solution into a limestone core rst in the injection direction and then in the reverse, or
production, direction (K0 and K1). Technicians recorded the pressure across the core and, applying
Darcys law, determined that the initial core permeability was 5.1 mD. Next, they injected a partially
spent 20% HCl uid (pH = 6.5) containing degradable bers (N2). Subsequent pumping of 2% KCl in both
directions revealed that the core permeability had fallen to 3.5 mD (K2 and K3). Following a 16-h shut-in
period, the bers had begun to degrade, and the core permeability rose to about 4.8 mD (K4 and K5).
After another 16-h shut-in period, complete ber degradation had occurred, and the core permeability
rose to 5.5 mD (K6 and K7)an 8% improvement over the initial permeability of 5.1 mD.

be an efcient system for preparing MaxCO3 Acid

mixtures. However, the uid exit points must be
secure to ensure that personnel are shielded
against uid leaks and sprays. Therefore, engineers designed a special splash protection kit

9. For more on formation damage testing in the laboratory:

Hill DG, Litard OM, Piot BM and King GE: Formation
Damage: Origin, Diagnosis and Treatment Strategy, in
Economides MJ and Nolte KE (eds): Reservoir
Stimulation, 3rd ed. Chichester, West Sussex, England:
John Wiley & Sons, Ltd (2000): 14-3114-33.

11

IRAN

IRAN
SAUDI
ARABIA

South
Pars

BAHRAIN

North
Field

Fiber feeder
SAUDI
ARABIA

QATAR
0
0

> Continuous mixing of MaxCO3 Acid uid. A POD blender is outtted with a
special ber delivery feeder (top right) that has no restrictions or bends,
thus ensuring smooth metering. Field workers place a berm (top left) under
the blender to guard against uid spills. A plastic sidewall around the mixing
tubs (bottom) further shields the mixing process.

MEXICO

Jujo-Tecominoacn
Field

50

that includes a berm below the blender and a

plastic sidewall (above left). They also developed
a special chute for metering the degradable
bers as they are dispersed into the mixing tub.
The modied chute, mounted directly above the
mixing tub, has no restrictions or bends that
might hinder smooth ber delivery.
After verifying that MaxCO3 Acid uids could
be prepared reliably with existing eld equipment, the project team traveled to Qatar for
eld testing. A principal test objective was to
evaluate the accuracy of the acid placement and
diversion simulator.
Field Testing in Qatar
The North eld in Qatar is an offshore gas producer that presents unique challenges for completion and stimulation (above right). The
reservoir is 1,000 to 1,300 ft [300 to 400 m] thick
and the wells, which may be deviated by as much
as 55, can be as long as 2,000 ft [610 m]. The reservoir comprises alternating sequences of lime-

Tabasco
State

Villahermosa

km

50
miles

50

> Jujo-Tecominoacn eld. This region is among the most prolic oil and gas producing areas in
southern Mexico. The reservoirs are naturally fractured and difcult to stimulate uniformly.

12

50
mi

> Qatar North eld. Discovered in the 1970s, this accumulation is the largest
gas eld in the world, with estimated reserves as high as 25.5 trillion m3
[900 Tcf]. The reservoir is called the South Pars eld on the Iranian side of
the maritime border (dashed black line). The producing formation is
characterized by large interzonal permeability contrastsup to a ratio of
100:1. The reservoir depth is about 3,000 m [9,800 ft] below the seabed, and
the elevated hydrostatic pressure tends to favor stimulation of bottom
zones at the expense of upper reservoir layers, further increasing the
difculty of achieving uniform stimulation in one treatment.

UNITED STATES

0
0

km

10. Bullheading is the pumping of uids into a wellbore from

the surface with no direct control over which intervals
will accept the uids.
11. Thabet S, Brady M, Parsons C, Byrne S, Voropaev S,
Lesko T, Tardy P, Cohen C and Mchaweh A: Changing
the Game in the Stimulation of Thick Carbonate Gas
Reservoirs, paper IPTC 13097, presented at the
International Petroleum Technology Conference,
Doha, Qatar, December 79, 2009.

Oileld Review

Autumn 2013

Optimizing Production in Southern Mexico

The Jujo-Tecominoacn eld, operated by
Petrleos Mexicanos (PEMEX), is located 60 km
[40 mi] from Villahermosa, Tabasco, in southern

Mexico (previous page, bottom). The eld has

48 producing wells and 19 injection wells to
maintain reservoir pressure. The average depth
of the producing intervals is 5,000 m [16,400 ft],

12,200

12,300

12,400

12,500

Measured depth, ft

12,600

12,700

12,800

12,900

13,000

13,100

13,200
0.1

10

100

1,000

Permeability, mD

> Permeability prole. The permeability varies four orders of magnitude in a

test well in the Qatar North eld.

7,500

Pump rate, bbl/min

40
35

8,000

30

BHP, psi

stone and dolomite that have a permeability

contrast ratio as high as 100:1.
The typical workow for designing and performing a MaxCO3 Acid treatment consisted of
several steps. To build a reservoir model, engineers rst acquired a thorough description of the
candidate well. The description included well
completion diagrams, petrophysical and pressure
log measurements and pretreatment well production data. The simulator produced a pumping
schedule designed to provide optimal zonal coverage and maximize posttreatment reservoir permeability. During the treatment, engineers
measured the bottomhole and wellhead pressures and compared the results with those predicted by the simulator. Posttreatment activities
included production logging to further verify the
accuracy of the simulator.
One test well had 290 ft [88 m] of perforations
along 830 ft [250 m] of measured depth
between 12,270 and 13,100 ft [3,740 and 3,990 m].
The principal obstacles to effective acid placement were the high permeability contrast and
hydrostatic pressure effects favoring preferential
stimulation of deeper high-permeability zones
(right). Prior to these eld tests, installation of
bridge plugs had been the preferred technique to
achieve uid diversion.
Schlumberger engineers performed a matrix
acidizing treatment from a stimulation vessel
using the bullheading technique.10 The treatment
consisted of alternating stages of 290 bbl [46 m3]
of 28% HCl and 320 bbl [51 m3] of MaxCO3 Acid
uid containing 75 lbm/1,000 galUS [9.0 kg/m3]
of degradable bers. To ensure uniform ber suspension, engineers set up the treatment so that
160-bbl [25-m3] spacers of VDA uid preceded
and followed the MaxCO3 Acid stages. During the
treatment, the simulated and measured bottomhole pressures were in good agreement, providing conrmation that the diversion physics of
MaxCO3 Acid behavior were well described by the
simulator (right).
After the success of the rst test well, engineers performed 10 more acidizing treatments in
the eld with similar results.11 The ber-laden
acid performed as predicted, and operational
efciencies were gained by not having to rely on
mechanical diversion. The time required to complete, perforate, stimulate and clean up the
MaxCO3 Acid wells was two to four days shorter
than that of the traditional approach, representing a savings of US$ 480,000 to US$ 960,000 per
well. Environmental benets included a 72%
reduction in the emission of greenhouse gases
because of reduced aring. Following the success
of the Qatari eld tests, the operator deployed
MaxCO3 Acid technology in other regions.

7,000

25
20

6,500

15

6,000

10
5,500
5,000
80

5
0
100

Fluid at perforations
MaxCO3 Acid fluid
Gas
Water
HCI
VDA acid

120

140

160

Time, min
Measured BHP
Simulated BHP
Pump rate

> Simulated and measured pressures from a eld test in the Qatar North eld. Engineers pumped four
stages of 28% HCl and MaxCO3 Acid uid. A VDA uid spacer preceded and followed each MaxCO3
Acid stage to preserve ber suspension uniformity. The excellent agreement between the measured
(blue curve) and simulated (black) bottomhole pressures (BHP) helped conrm the validity of the
MaxCO3 Acid placement model.

13

Fluid Name

Stage Fluid
Volume, m3

Preflush

Aromatic solvent

10

Acid

HCIformic acid blend

20

Diverter

MaxCO3 Acid fluid

Spacer

3% NH4Cl brine

Preflush

Aromatic solvent

10

Acid

HCIformic acid blend

20

Diverter

MaxCO3 Acid fluid

Spacer

3% NH4Cl brine

Preflush

Aromatic solvent

10

Acid

HCIformic acid blend

20

Flush

Nitrogen

Stage Name

Nitrogen Pump
Rate, m3/min

80
80
150

> Pumping schedule for a matrix acidizing treatment in the JujoTecominoacn eld. During the 11-stage treatment, engineers pumped an
aromatic solvent to clean up perforations, an HClformic acid blend,
MaxCO3 Acid uid and an ammonium chloride brine spacer. The nal stage
contained nitrogen [N2] to enhance well cleanup.

and the reservoir temperature varies between

120C and 160C [250F and 320F]. Wells in this
eld typically produce from multiple perforated
intervals with a highly variable natural fracture
density. This scenario creates a large permeability contrast between intervals that can reach
1,000:1. Consequently, achieving uniform zonal

coverage during stimulation treatment presents

a major challenge.
One typical well that was drilled in 2005 has
two producing intervals: from 5,274 to 5,294 m
[17,303 to 17,369 ft] and from 5,308 to 5,340 m
[17,415 to 17,520 ft]. The reservoir temperature
and pressure are 137C [279F] and 22.8 MPa

3,500

Oil production rate, bbl/d

3,000

Oil production

2,500
2,000
1,500

Begin MaxCO3 Acid treatment

1,000
500
0
Jan 2009

Apr 2009

July 2009

Oct 2009

Jan 2010

Apr 2010

Date

[3,300 psi]. Porosity varies between 5% and 8%.

The permeabilities of the upper and lower intervals are 1,000 mD and 3 mD; therefore, the permeability contrast is 333:1.
The initial oil production rate was 1,278 bbl/d
[203 m3/d]. Between 2006 and 2009, PEMEX performed several stimulation treatments using conventional acids and diversion techniques. The
production rate increased immediately after
each treatment but failed to stabilize and continued to decline. In 2009, PEMEX engineers
decided to evaluate the MaxCO3 Acid technology
in the hope of achieving uniform and long-lasting
stimulation of the two intervals.12
Schlumberger engineers performed a matrix
acidizing treatment consisting of bullheading
30 m3 [7,800 galUS] of aromatic solvent preush to
clean the perforations, 60 m3 [15,600 galUS] of
HClformic acid blend, 10 m3 [2,600 galUS] of
MaxCO3 Acid uid containing 90 lbm/1,000 galUS
[11 kg/m3] bers and 2 m3 [520 galUS] of ammonium chloride brine spacer (above left). Pump
rates varied between 8.2 and 15 bbl/min [1.3 and
2.4 m3/min]. The last treatment stage contained
nitrogen to energize the uid and accelerate well
cleanup, and hydrocarbon production commenced
within three days. The initial oil production rate,
3,000 bbl/d [480 m3/d], exceeded PEMEXs forecast. After three months, the average oil production rate had stabilized at 1,600 bbl/d [250 m3/d]
(below left). Following the success of this treatment,
PEMEX has continued to apply MaxCO3 Acid technology in this eld with favorable results.
12. Martin F, Quevedo M, Tellez F, Garcia A, Resendiz T,
Jimenez Bueno O and Ramirez G: Fiber-Assisted
Self-Diverting Acid Brings a New Perspective to Hot,
Deep Carbonate Reservoir Stimulation in Mexico,
paper SPE 138910, presented at the SPE Latin American
and Caribbean Petroleum Engineering Conference,
Lima, Peru, December 13, 2010.
13. Rahim Z, Al-Anazi HA, Al-Kanaan AA and Aziz AAA:
Successful Exploitation of the Khuff-B Low Permeability
Gas Condensate Reservoir Through Optimized
Development Strategy, Saudi Aramco Journal of
Technology (Winter 2010): 2633.
14. Aviles I, Baihly J and Liu GH: Multistage Stimulation
in Liquid-Rich Unconventional Formations,
Oileld Review 25, no. 2 (Summer 2013): 2633.
15. Jauregui JL, Malik AR, Solares JR, Nunez Garcia W,
Bukovac T, Sinosic B and Grmen MN: Successful
Application of Novel Fiber Laden Self-Diverting Acid
System During Fracturing Operations of Naturally
Fractured Carbonates in Saudi Arabia, paper
SPE 142512, presented at the SPE Middle East Oil and
Gas Show and Conference, Manama, Bahrain,
September 2528, 2011.

> Production history in a PEMEX well in the Jujo-Tecominoacn eld. Initial oil production was
1,278 bbl/d [203 m3/d]. Subsequent matrix acidizing treatments employing conventional techniques
failed to achieve sustained production improvements. After a MaxCO3 Acid treatment in December
2009, oil production increased to 3,000 bbl/d and stabilized at 1,600 bbl/d, exceeding the original
production rate.

14

Oileld Review

Improving Gas Production in Saudi Arabia

The vast carbonate reservoirs of Saudi Arabia are
prime locations for stimulation treatments using
acidic uid systems. From simple acid washes to
major acid fracturing operations, every carbonate stimulation technology has found an application in this region.
Most gas production in Saudi Arabia comes
from the Khuff Formation, located in the eastern
part of the country (right). The Khuff Formation
is highly heterogeneous, exhibiting wide variations in formation permeability (0.5 mD to
10 mD) and porosity (5% to 15%). It is composed
mainly of calcite and dolomite interbedded with
streaks of anhydrite. The average temperature
and pressure are 280F [138C] and 7,500 psi
[52 MPa].13
Saudi Aramco engineers applied MaxCO3 Acid
technology during several matrix acidizing
treatments, all of which yielded excellent
results. Following this success, Saudi Aramco
engineers decided to perform 25 acid fracturing
treatments employing the MaxCO3 Acid formulation. Eight acid fracturing stages were performed in three wells equipped with openhole
multistage fracturing completions that enabled
continuous treatments.14 The remainder of the
jobs, single-stage treatments in vertical or deviated wells, were completed with cemented and
perforated liners.15
Engineers performed one treatment in a
cemented and perforated well that had a 65
deviation. Three pay zones existed along a 240-ft
[73-m] interval in the central sector of the eld.
From reservoir parameters obtained from openhole logs, engineers concluded that, to meet
Saudi Aramcos production expectations, it would
be necessary to pump a treatment that stimulated all three perforated zones simultaneously.
Engineers developed a fracturing treatment
that consisted of 19 uid stages that alternated
portions of a 35-lbm/1,000 galUS [4.2-kg/m3]
borate crosslinked guar fracturing uid, 28% SXE
superX emulsied acid to retard the rate of acid
consumption, 28% HCl and 15% MaxCO3 Acid formulation with degradable ber concentrations
between 75 and 175 lbm/1,000 galUS [9 and
21 kg/m3] (right). During the treatment, after the
rst MaxCO3 Acid stage contacted the formation,
engineers recorded a 4,500-psi [31-MPa] bottomhole pressure risethe rst time such a large
increase had been recorded in this carbonate
reservoirindicating that excellent uid leakoff

Autumn 2013

IRAN
IRAN
EGYPT

SAUDI
ARABIA

BAHRAIN
South Ghawar
Field
QATAR

UNITED ARAB
EMIRATES

0
0

Oil

km

SAUDI ARABIA

100
mi

100

Gas

> South Ghawar eld in eastern Saudi Arabia. The producing reservoirs, in the Khuff Formation, are
composed of heterogeneous carbonates. The permeability and porosity vary widely within 100 to 200 ft
[30 to 60 m] of formation thickness, presenting difcult uid diversion challenges.

Treatment Schedule
Stage Name

Pump Rate,
bbl/min [m3/min]

Fluid Name

Stage Fluid
Volume, galUS [m3]

Acid
Concentration, %

Pad

20 [3.2]

Crosslinked 35-lbm gel

9,000 [34]

Acid 1

20 [3.2]

SXE emulsified acid

9,000 [34]

28

Pad

30 [4.8]

Crosslinked 35-lbm gel

3,000 [11]

Diverter 1

30 [4.8]

MaxCO3 Acid fluid

3,000 [11]

15

Pad

30 [4.8]

Crosslinked 35-lbm gel

9,000 [34]

Acid 2

30 [4.8]

SXE emulsified acid

9,000 [34]

28

Pad

35 [5.6]

Crosslinked 35-lbm gel

3,000 [11]

Diverter 2

35 [5.6]

MaxCO3 Acid fluid

3,000 [11]

15

Pad

40 [6.4]

Crosslinked 35-lbm gel

9,000 [34]

Acid 3

40 [6.4]

SXE emulsified acid

9,000 [34]

28

Pad

40 [6.4]

Crosslinked 35-lbm gel

3,000 [11]

Diverter 3

40 [6.4]

MaxCO3 Acid fluid

3,000 [11]

15

Pad

40 [6.4]

Crosslinked 35-lbm gel

10,000 [38]

Acid 3

40 [6.4]

SXE emulsified acid

9,000 [34]

28

Overflush 1

40 [6.4]

Overflush

7,000 [26]

Diverter 4

10 [1.6]

MaxCO3 Acid fluid

3,000 [11]

15

Acid 4

10 [1.6]

28% HCl

7,000 [26]

28

Overflush 2

10 [1.6]

Overflush

5,000 [19]

Flush

10 [1.6]

Water

11,200 [42]

> Pumping schedule for an acid fracturing treatment in Saudi Arabia. The total uid volume was
124,200 galUS [2,960 bbl, 470 m3], allowing simultaneous stimulation of three zones without the need for
mechanical diversion techniques. Such treatment simplicity saved several days of rig time, resulting in
signicant operational cost savings.

15

15,000
13,600
12,200

10
100

10,800

85

9,400

Fracturing pressure

70

8,000
55
6,600

Rate, bbl/min

Pressure, psi

1115

Bottomhole treating pressure

Pump rate

40

5,200

25

3,800
2,400

10

1,000
10

30

50

70

90

110

130

150

170

Treatment time, min

> Pressure and temperature data. During a Saudi Aramco acid fracturing treatment, the pumping rate
(blue line) varied from 10 to 40 bbl/min [1.6 to 6.4 m3/min], and the bottomhole treating pressure (red
line) exceeded the formation fracturing pressure (dashed black line) throughout most of the treatment.
The vertical blue bars denote periods during which MaxCO3 Acid uid entered the perforations.

control and diversion had been achieved (left).

Moreover, the bottomhole pressure exceeded the
fracturing pressure throughout most of the treatment, which had not been possible to achieve
during previous attempts using conventional
diversion techniques.
After the treatment, the well cleaned up in
less than three days; previously, four to ve days
had been necessary. Prior to the treatment, the
gas production rate had been 8 MMcf/d
[230,000 m3/d] with a wellhead pressure of
2,060 psi [14.2 MPa]. The posttreatment production rate was 23 MMcf/d [650,000 m3/d]a
nearly threefold increasewith a wellhead pressure of 2,230 psi [15.4 MPa]. The excellent poststimulation performance of this well has been
observed in the majority of other wells in this
region treated with the ber-laden acid.
Elimination of mechanical diversion techniques reduced the well completion and stimulation time up to six days, resulting in a savings of
US$ 480,000 to US$ 600,000. As a result, the
MaxCO3 Acid system is now a prominent element
of Saudi Aramcos stimulation strategy.

SOUTH
AMERICA
0

1,000

2,000
Overburden formations

BRAZIL

Espirito Santo
Basin

Depth, m

3,000

4,000
Salt
5,000

Rio de Janeiro
So Paulo

Campos Basin
6,000

Curitiba

Presalt
oil

7,000

Santos Basin

8,000
0
0

km

500
mi

500

9,000

> The presalt reservoirs of Brazil. The main producing elds are located primarily offshore (left). The reservoirs are in carbonate formations that lie
underneath a thick layer of evaporite minerals (right). The reservoir depth is between 4,500 and 6,500 m [14,800 and 21,300 ft].

16

Oileld Review

8,000

HCl plus mutual solvent

15% HCl
VDA fluid
MaxCO3 Acid fluid

40

8,000

36

7,000

7,500

32
6,000

7,000

4,000

3,000

6,500

24

20

6,000

16

5,500

Bottomhole pressure, psi

Rig pressure, psi

5,000

Pump rate, bbl/min

28

12
2,000

5,000
8

1,000

4,500

4
0
0

1,000

2,000

3,000

4,000

5,000

6,000

7,000

8,000

9,000

4,000
10,000

Time, s

> Matrix acidizing treatment. In a presalt well offshore Brazil, engineers pumped 13 uid stages
consisting of alternating portions of 15% HCl, VDA diverter and MaxCO3 Acid uid at various pump rates
(blue curve). A mixture of 15% HCl and a mutual solvent preceded and followed the treatment. As the
treatment progressed, the rig pressure (red curve) and bottomhole pressure (green curve) rose,
indicating that the bers were effectively diverting treatment uid to zones with lower permeability.

Stimulating Oil Production in Offshore Brazil

In South America, the presalt region comprises
a group of oil-bearing carbonate formations
located in an offshore region along the coast of
Brazil (previous page, bottom).16 The producing formations occur at depths between about
4,500 and 6,500 m [14,800 and 21,300 ft] and
lie directly underneath a 2,000-m [6,500-ft]
layer of evaporite minerals. The reservoir temperatures vary between about 60C and 133C
[140F and 272F].
The producing carbonate reservoir is a result
of the deposition of mollusks followed by diagenesis. Such reservoirs, called coquinas, feature
large variations in reservoir properties. Porosity
varies from 5% to 18%, and permeability varies
from less than 0.001 mD to tens of mDs. Such heterogeneity presents an especially difcult diversion challenge during stimulation treatments.
16. Beasley CJ, Fiduk JC, Bize E, Boyd A, Frydman M,
Zerilli A, Dribus JR, Moreira JLP and Pinto ACC:
Brazils Presalt Play, Oileld Review 22, no. 3
(Autumn 2010): 2837.
17. Mutual solvents are chemicals in which both aqueous
and nonaqueous compounds are miscible. These
solvents may be used to prevent emulsions, reduce
surface tension and leave formation surfaces
water-wet.

Autumn 2013

Engineers at Petrobras decided to evaluate

the MaxCO3 Acid ber-assisted diversion technology in a new well in the Pirambu eld. Using
the acid placement and diversion simulator,
Schlumberger engineers designed a matrix
acidizing treatment for an interval between
4,500 m and 4,570 m [14,800 and 15,000 ft]. The
simulator called for a 790-bbl [12.6-m3],
13-stage bullheaded treatment consisting of
alternating volumes of 15% HCl, VDA uid and
MaxCO3 Acid uid with a ber concentration
between 100 and 120 lbm/1,000 galUS [12 and
14 kg/m3]. The treatment was preceded by a
brine and HCl mixture containing a monobutyl
ether mutual solvent.17 After the treatment,
engineers pumped another volume of HCl with
mutual solvent followed by diesel to accelerate
well cleanup. The pump rate varied from 5 bbl/min
[0.8 m3/min] during the MaxCO3 Acid uid
stages to 10 bbl/min [1.6 m3/min] during the
injection of HCl and to 20 bbl/min [3.2 m3/min]
during the VDA diverter stages (above).
After well cleanup, engineers at Petrobras
evaluated the results by performing production
logging. The logs showed that the well was producing from all of the treated zones as predicted by the simulator. Since this treatment,

Petrobras has continued to specify the use of

MaxCO3 Acid fluid.
Rening MaxCO3 Acid Technology
As of this writing, more than 300 MaxCO3 Acid
stimulation treatments have been performed
around the world. In addition to the examples
featured in this article, treatments have been
performed in Kazakhstan, Angola, Canada, the
US, Kuwait and the Caspian Sea.
As the number of treatments has increased,
the larger treatment database has allowed continuous renement of the simulator and improvement of stimulation results in naturally fractured
carbonate reservoirs. The technique has also
allowed operators to reduce or eliminate the use
of ball sealers or packers, thereby reducing costs
and operational risks.
At present, work is underway to combine
MaxCO3 Acid technology with the ACTive family of
live downhole coiled tubing services. This arrangement employs distributed temperature sensors
that will allow engineers to monitor uid placement in real time and change treatment designs
during a job. Such exibility will further enhance
the effectiveness of acidizing treatments employing ber-based uid diversion.
EBN

17