LECTURE 7:

RESERVOIR ROCK PROPERTIES

INTERFECIAL TENTION, WETABILITY AND

CAPILLARY PRESURE

By: Dr. Mohammad Ebrahim Shafiee

Winter 2012
 Contact Angle and Displacement
The examples of the dynamic behaviour of contact
angles.
angles
Consider a capillary tube containing two immiscible
fluids
where fluid B is the non-wetting phase and fluid A is
the wetting phase:
2 cos R
(P )c dr =
r
2 cos
Pc PB PA = AB
r
Pc = Pnw Pw
 Contact Angle and Displacement
Advancing Contact Angle, A describes the contact angle
in a situation where the interface is forced, by human action
or otherwise
otherwise, to move in the direction of the wetting phase,
phase
thus displacing the non-wetting phase. In this case the
contact angle is usually measured through the wetting phase
and solid surface.

g R describes the contact angle

Recedingg Contact Angle, g when
the wetting phase is displaced by the non-wetting phase.

Angle E describes the

Intrinsic or Equilibrium Contact Angle,
contact angle when system under examination attained
equilibrium over time.
 Contact Angle and Displacement

Displacement by imbibitions

B A

A = advancing
d i contact anglel (i.e.
(i Wetting
i phase
h i advancing)
is d i )
occurs when fluid B (non-wetting phase) is displaced by fluid A
(the wetting phase)
can be caused by a decrease Pnw
2 cos A
In general it can be stated that: (P )
c imb =
r
A E R
therefore,
A R
and,
(Pc)drainage (Pc)imbibition
 Displacement/Mobilization of an Oil Blob
Capillary tube of constant diameter
For the oil droplet to be displaced there must be a pressure drop,
P, to overcome the capillary forces, where the magnitude of the
pressure drop from capillary pressure across the interfaces is,

P Pc dr Pc imb
2 (cos R cos A )
P
r

Consider a capillary tube of decreasing size (Mobilization):

2 cos R 2 cos A
Pmobilization
r1 r2
 Capillary Pressure

Laplaces equation of capillarity is defined as:

Where, 1 1
Pc =
r1 r2
Pc = the capillary pressure
= the surface tension or the interfacial tension
r1, r2 = the principle radii of curvature
Any curved surface is characterized by two principle radii of
curvature
t r11 andd r2.
2
The radii of curvature at a point, P, on the surface lie on two
planes that are perpendicular to each other and are intersecting
at this point P
 Capillary Pressure Contd
Consider
C id a capillary
ill with
i h a circular
i l cross-section:
i
1 1
Pc =
r = radius perpendicular to tube wall r1 r2
R = radius perpendicular to the meniscus
If the capillary
p y is small,, it can be assumed that:
the meniscus is spherical, then r1 = r2 = r, and
geometrical
considerations give that . Thus, the capillary pressure
in a tube is defined as:
R

2 cos or 2 cos

P = h= r

r rg
 Drainage Displacement Mechanisms
as Illustrated in a Pore Doublet Model
Imbibition Mechanisms as Illustrated in a Pore Doublet Model
 Water-wet system:

krw = kro at Sw > 0.5,
krw at S*or
S* iis lless than
h 0.3
0 3 (S*or
(S* isi the
h waterflood
fl d residual
id l
oil saturation),
The amount of connate water saturation,
saturation Swc, is usually
greater than 20% (Swc 20 to 25% PV) and has an effect on
relative permeability behaviour,
(kro)primary drainage > (kro)imbibition for the same Sw,
The krw curve exhibits no hysteresis (e.g., (krw)
pd = (krw)imb),
As ppermeabilityy increases, (k
( rw/kro) becomes higher
g for a
given saturation.
 Oil-wet system:

krw = kro at Sw < 0.5,

krw (S*or) > 0.5,
Swc has no effect on relative permeability
behaviour, if Swc < 20%,
krw(Sw)|primary
)|primar drainage > krw(Sw)|imbibition,
)|imbibition
kro curve exhibits no hysteresis,
As permeability decreases, (krw/kro) becomes
higher for a given water saturation
Ternary Wettability Diagram
Amott T e rnary We ttabillity D iagram
0 1

NEUT RAL W ET
Wate r We tting Inde x N e utrality

W EAKL Y W EAKL Y
W AT ER W ET O IL W ET

M IX ED W ET
1 W AT ER W ET
O IL W ET
0

0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1

O il We tting Inde x
Pore Space Compressibility and Water Sensitivity
The pore volume compressibility
compressibility, Cf, is defined as the change
in pore volume per unit and pore volume per unit change in
pressure.
1 VP
C =

P
f
VP

The values of pore volume compressibility are typically in the

range
g of
1* 10-6 to 1 * 10-5 psi-1.

Water Sensitivity
Refers to stability of clays and other minerals against exposure
to fresh water
Clay
Cl swelling
lli
Fines migration
 Fluid Saturation
Average saturation
Point value of saturation
Saturation constraint

S w + S o + Sg = 1

Connate Water Saturation

Irreducible Water Saturation
Residual Oil Saturation
Displaceable Oil Saturation
 Flow of Gases
gas flow through a sample
volume flow and the filter velocity vary with:
compressibility of gases pressure
invalidate Darcys Law
gas flow at:
constant temperature
Steady state conditions,
P1V1 = P2V2 = Constant

kdP
V =
Where,
x
dx
= density of gas and for steady state flow
Vx = mass of gas = constant
 Flow of Gases Contd
Darcys Law for gases
k ( P22 P12 ) k ( Pm P )
V2 = ( ) = ( )
2 P2 L P2 L
Where,
(P1+P2)/2 is the algebraic mean
P1 (upstream pressure)
P2 ((downstream ppressure))
V2 = velocity of gas

Applying this equation to air

air, the permeability can be
calculated as follows:
2 0 0 0 Pa Q a L
k a ir =
( Pi 2 P o 2 ) A
 Flow of Gases Contd
Cont d
Where,
kair = air permeability [md]
Qa = flow rate at atmospheric
p pressure
p [cm3/s]
[ ]
= air viscosity [cp]
L= sample length [cm]
A= cross-sectional area [cm2]
Pi = upstream pressure [atm]
Po = outlet pressure [atm]
Pa = atmospheric pressure [atm]
 Flow of Gases Contd
Cont d
Where,,
kair = air permeability [md]
Qa =
Q flow rate at atmospheric
p pressure
p [cm3/s]
[ ]
= air viscosity [cp]
L= sample length [cm]
A= cross-sectional area [cm2]
Pi = upstream pressure [atm]
Po = outlet pressure [atm]
Pa = atmospheric pressure [atm]
 Flow of Gases Contd
Cont d
Klinkenberg Effect or Gas Slippage
Gas permeabilities sometimes vary with the
pressure of gas.
This effect is due to the slip effect or
Klinkenberg effect.
Equation for the effect of slip was proposed
by Klinkenberg (1941)
Where the corrected permeabilities are
reported as equivalent liquid permeabilities,
 Flow of Gases Contd
Klinkenberg Effect or Gas Slippage

V 2 P2 L b
k = = k (1 + )
P Pm Pm
Where,
Where
b = Klinkenberg constant, characteristic
off the
h gas andd the
h porous medium,
di
k = absolute of Klinkenberg effect
corrected permeability,
k = measured p permeability
y using
g the
Darcy equation for gas flow,