Chapter 4 Properties of Reservoir Fluids [As we have seen in Chapter 2, reservoir hydrocar- ‘bon fluids are mixtures of hydrocarbons with com> positions related to source, history and present reservoir conditions. While the behaviour of single component systems hhas no quantitative relevance to oil field systems, ‘qualitative behaviour has some similarities, and terminology is the same. 4.1 VOLUMETRIC AND PHASE. BEHAVIOUR OF HYDROCARBON ‘SYSTEMS Consider the pressure-specific volume relationship for a fluid at a constant temperature below its critical 1000 seo Nc Tia ° Gas region = N, a Pressure constant a g iP fegenons, SS 3 rad esan £ sas rst gas bubble (oubble point) ‘two phase resion Dew pont fubblepenteue peer Eee eeeeeeeee 3 9 6 ‘Volume cutt/lb. mel Fig. 4.1 PVT diagram for propane (single component sysiom). temperature initially held in the liquid phase at an levated pressure. ‘his situation is ilustrated in Fig. 44.1 for propane, and generalized in Fig. 4.2. Expansion of the system will result in large decrements in pressure for relatively small incre ments in volume (specific volume). due to the small compressibility of liquid systems (¢), where __ 1p C=" lo) For most liquids over commonly encountered pressure ranges, the compressibility is independent Of the pressure, i.e, compressibility is small and constant. As expansion is continued, a pressure wil be reached at which some small infinitesimal gas phase will be found. 2 fo Onteo! 7 pam ie g }} sao g 5 cas. Trike pon Tenperaiure ——> Fig. 4.2 Phase diagram for a pure single component system,‘4 PROPERTIES OF RESERVOIR FLUIDS ‘This pressure is termed the bubble-point or saturation pressure for the temperature considered. for a pure substance, further expansion occurs at fonstant pressure ~ the vapour pressure at that Temperature ~ the relative proportions of liquid and fas changing, until only an infinitesimal quantity of figuid is present in equilibrium with the vapour. This nt on the phase envelope is termed the dew-point. ‘Expansion to lower pressures and higher specific ‘yolumes occurs ina vapour phase Ifthe substance behaves as an ideal gas, then the equation PV = nis valid, and 1p) 44 CoV |eP he” P ive. the compressibility of an ideal gas is inversely proportional to the pressure: ‘A series of isotherms then generates a locus of bubble-points, and a locus of dew-points which mect at a point ~ the critical point ~ C, at which the properties of liquid and vapour become indistin- guishable. The isotherm at the critical point exhibits point of inflexion so that El -(2), Multicomponent systems exhibit slightly different phase behaviour from that of pure materials, and even simple two or three component systems may demonstrate all the phenomena associated with very complex systems, as shown in Fig. 4.3 | Single phase (Single phase | igual oe <0 4) 3 | ne Gate) criconcerbor ‘ Sang) _greme 5 8 40, \cstcondenherm ab 40" ean Resevoir temperature = Fig. 4.3 Pressure-temperature phase diagram for ‘multicomponent hydrocarbon reservoir fluid mixture. For 'sothermal production in the reservoir: position A indicates. reservoir fluid found as an undersaturated oil; postion B indicates reservoir fluid found as a gas condensate; position C indicates reservoir fluid found asa dry gas. a Expansion in the liquid phase to the bubble-point at constant temperature is similar to a pure system. Expansion through the two-phase region does not occur at constant pressure, but is accompanied by a decrease in pressure (vapour pressure) as the com- position of liquid and vapour changes. Since at any temperature the bubble-point press- ture and dew-point pressure differ, the pressure~ temperature relationship is not now a single line, but forms 2 phase envelope. On this envelope it is possible to establish a pressure above which two phases can no longer coexist ~ the cricondenbar ~ and a temperature above which two phases cannot coexist the cricondentherm. The critical point ~ the pressure and temperature at which the properties of the two phases become identical ~ is not necessarily either one of these points, nor must it be between them. 4.2 APPLICATIONS TO FIELD SYSTEMS 4.2.1 Dry gas reservoirs In Fig. 4.4 (a), the reservoir temperature is above the cricondentherm (maximum temperature of two: phase envelope). Consequently, decline in reservo pressure will not result in the formation of any reservoir iquidpnase ‘This does not preclude the recovery of natural gas liquids from reservoir fluid as a result of change in temperature in flow lines or process facilities. There aré few natural gases yielding no gas liquids, and Fig. 4.4 (b)is therefore more realistic, (2) |) tas | coe 3 [Process line : ¢ I ea ca the Soe 1 | a i ae “process tne Pr, Terese Fig. 4.4 Phase diagrams of hydrocarbon mixtures. (a) Dry 194s, (0) wet gas, (c) gas condensate, (d) black oi42 Fig. 4.4 (cont) © Liou § oo 1 sean sh fom 4B) é Irae Dew pit cus 7 Tepate @ | Lui | os Slorkol Temperature 4,2.2 Condensate systems ‘The critjcal temperature of the system_is such that see cat tinperature fs Between entical and cricon- Touhorm-as shown in Fig. SE fe) Under these aeaenet tee system exhibits wotermal retrograde condensation, 7 ae reraures above the cricondenbar, the system exists as an indeterminate vapour phase, Upon thermal expansion, the phase envelope is encoun- sore ahe dew-point locus, and further reduction ier Sleswure leads to increased condensation of @ Tiguid phase i Poamressure can be reduced sufficiently, the liquid phkse may re-evaporate, but sufficient 1ow Hanes Fes may ot be obtainable in practice. This Prgnomenon’— the condensation of liquid upon caer in pressure ~ is termed othermal retro- setde condensation. Another phenomenon ~ is0- ‘baric retrograde behaviour ~ can also be demons- trated, but is not of interest under the essentially othermal conditions of petroleum reservoirs. ‘The liquid phase recovered (the condensate) from a condensate system, is recovered from a phase uhh is vapour at reservoir conditions Tinie also partly true of volatile oil systems, where the wapsur phase in-cquilibrium with the eae ot liquid phase is particularly rich in liqueli- ‘able constituents (C; to Ca) and a substantial ePkpition of stock tank Liguid may derive from a reservoir vapour phase PETROLEUM ENGINEERING: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE Contrast, the black oil ~ dissolved gas systems = in which the composition of gas in equilibrium with Tiquid is comparatively lean (except at tank condi tins), the liquid recovery depends only marginally fon the separated gas phase. (Nevertheless in abso- lute terms the maximization of liquid recovery from separator gas streams can be a valuable source of income.) 4.2.3 Volatile oil systems ‘These are within the two-phase region under reser- voir conditions, the vapour phase corresponding to condensate compositions and conditions. ‘Consequently, a substantial part of the stock tank liquid is derived from a reservoir vapour phase. The concept of # system being represented by @ gas dissolved in a liquid is then invalid. 4.2.4 Black oil systems ‘As shown on Fig. 4.4 (d), the critical temperature of these systems is very much higher than the reservoir temperature encountered (i.e. greater than abou 573K). Isothermal expansion from the liquid phase jeads to the formation of gas at the bubble-point and a monotonic increase in volume of the gas phase as pressure declines further. The composition of ga Vaties only slightly when changing conditions (ex ept at tank conditions), the gas is relatively bean fnd contributes only marginally to the separato liquid phase 4.3 COMPRESSIBILITY Reservoir fluids are considered compressible and, ¢ constant reservoir temperature, we can define & fsothermal compressibility as a positive term ¢ + follows’ Hila C= — yap Je where V denotes original volume and P is pressur Gas compressibility. is significantly, greater th those of Tiguid hydrocarbons, which in turn @ {greater than those of reservoir waters. The subset ferminology for the compressibilites of gas, oll & Water iS Cy Coy Gy. Reservoir pore volume m ‘change with change in fluid pressure, resulting 39 increased fraction of overburden being taken reservoir rock grains. The pore volume comprePROPERTIES OF RESERVOIR FLUIDS 4 TABLE 4.1. Typical system compressibilities Saem ‘Symbot bar? pst eservoirsaline waters oe 4386-05 3.0E-06 Undersaturated biack ols ° 2465E-05 17.006 Gas at 100 bar (1450 ps) o 1000E-05 68SE-06 Gas at 400 bar (5800 psi) & 250E-05 1725-06 Gonsolidated sands at 400 bar ¢ S.53E-05 256-08 Unoonsolidated sands at 400 bar & 1456-05 108-06 ibility may be related to fluid pressure P rather than 1 fov' grain pressure (P,) and treated as a positive term, = —+{¥ Betis is reasonable for a constant overburden V\ir}o load. In the absence of specific information, the general order of magnitude of compressibilitcs is as shown in Table 4.1 4.4 MEASUREMENT AND PREDICTION OF RESERVOIR FLUID PROPERTIES 4.4.1 Behaviour of gases Gas is produced from gas reservoirs by expansion of the fluid from the initial reservoir pressure lower abandonment pi reservoir can be abtained1 the initial and end point of the material at the two points (and at intermed ‘The flow behaviour, i.e. the pressure gradients developed while the primary processing operations of dehydra- tion, dew-point processing and sweetening will involve other thermodynamic functions of the gas, Particularly the isobaric thermal expansion coelli- cient Both of these factors can be found by differentiat: ing an equation of state, or can be computed from plots or tabulations of experimental data. The possible error in these derived functions is an order of magnitude greater than the possible error in the original data (or equation of state), so that a very high degree of accuracy is necessary in equations of state (or experimental data) used for the calculation ‘of thermodynamic functions. The simplest equation of state is the ideal gas law: PV y= RT where V,, = molar volume, or PV =nRT where V = volume, n = no. of moles. The value of R, the gas constant, will depend on the system of units adopted. See Table 4.2 for examples. The inadequacy of this relation was quickly recognized, and one early modification was that of van der Waals: (r* val ~b)= Vix? where a is a factor related to, and correcting for, intermolecular forces, 6 is a factor related to, and correcting for, the finite volume and real geometry of amolecule. This isa two-constant equation of state, and more and more complex equations (e.g. Beattie- TABLE 4.2 Values of the universal gas constant Moles Pressure Volume Temperature a Pound Pounds force’sq in. Cubic ft R 10.73 Pound ‘Atmosphere Cubic ft B 0729 kilogram Newtoni® im K 8312.0PETROLEUM EN 4a Bridgemen ~ five constants; Bendict-Webb-Rubin tight constants) have been developed in attempts 10 improve the accuracy. se snidely used two-constant equation of state is that of Redlich-Kwong which ean be arranged (0 & form P+ Tar, FEIT This equation has an acceptable accuracy for hydrocarbon systems over a fairly wide range of conditions, and the constants have been modified by Soave" ‘More recently, the equation of Peng and Robinson! has received wide acceptance Pied ppeeusaneee. C2 Jenmenee (Wb) V(v+b) + (Vd) It may be noted at this time that Avogadro stated that under the same conditions of temperat pressure, equal volumes of a ses jer of molecules. It can be shown that Rime number of molecules, there are 2.73 X 10 molecules in each pound-mole Of ideal gas and that 2 volume of 379.4 cubic feet is Occupied at 60°F and 14.7 psia by one pound molecular weight of any ideal gas. At 14.7 psia and 52°F one pound mole of gas occupies 359 cubic feet Tn this context, one mole is taken as the pounds of ‘a component equal to its molecular weight. Since notes contain the same number of molecules (or toms), they are used to describe system compost, tion, AClow pressure or for ideal gases, volume and mole fractions are identical For cach ideal gas in a mixture of ideal gases, Dalton has postulated that each gas exerts a pressure equal 10 the pressure it would exert if st alone ‘occupied the total volume of the mixture - that js the Same as saying that the total pressure of the mixture fe the sum of the partial pressures of each compo- ‘nent, j, in the nm component mixture ion rey ‘The mole fraction of the jth component is symbol- ized as y, and is therefore defined as \GINEERING: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE late by Amagat states that the sum of the partial volumes of 7 ideal components in @ trixture is equal to the fotal volume under the sane conditions of temperature and pressure, ie A similar postul: wnt molecular weight of a gas mixture behaving as if it were a pure gas is defined as the sum Of the product of individual component mole frac- tions and molecular weights M, yom Since, for 2 gas, the spe ‘The appara cific gravity yy is defined as tne mato of the density of the gas to the density of thy air taken atthe same temperature and pressure then, assuming ideal behaviour volome gi) mass air ras gas go ee Volume gas _ molecular weight of ideal gas (minture) " molecular weight of air 4.4.2 Law of corresponding states Fluids are said to be in corresponding states whe ‘any two of the variable properties, pressure, tempe! ture and specific volume have the same ratio to th critical values. These ratios are termed reduce Values and subseripted R as follows Ty a Tes Peo PiPeiVan = VIVe For pure substances with simple molecules it can | shown theoretically that PIP. =f (DT WIVed f fluids are in corresponding states then & reduced property calculable fre ame for those fluids, € co ie. i dimensionless PVT data will be the s reduced densities, fugacityipressure ratios, pressibilities The applica states will depen the substance; accuracy 38 grea bility of the law of correspondi ;d on the phase and temperature est in the vapC‘4 PROPERTIES OF RESERVOIR FLUIDS ypase, and is best for temperatures above the brtical, and will also depend on the complexity and eccentricity of the molecule. However, the law of corresponding states has been widely used in smoothing and correlating experimental data on hydrocarbons, and is used for eralized liquid phase and gas phase correlations fbr hydrocarbon mixtures with a considerable degree of success. 4.4.3 Pseudo-critical temperatures and pressures ‘The reference state for the law of corresponding states is the critical state, For most pure substances, the values of the independent variables, pressure and temperature at the critical point, have been measured and are known. For mixtures, the critical values will depend on composition, but there will not normally be a simple procedure for calculating the true critical values from composition and the values of the pure components. It has been found that the use of the true critical values of mixtures in corresponding states correlations gives less accurate results than the use of so-called pseudo-critical constants calculated as the mol-average values for the mixture (Kay's rule). i. be Fils Ten Sta where y, = mol fraction of component j, P,, critical pressure of component j, T,, =" critical temperature of component j For complex hydrocarbon mixtures (e.g. the Cy, constituent of a system), pseudo-critical constants ean be determined from specitic gravity, molecular weight and boiling point of the mixture without determining the composition (see Figs 4.5 and 4.6) More complex rules for calculating critical constants have been formed, which are more accurate than Kay's rule given above, but this is generally adequ- 45 { § r209 S izodl 33 s109} 2 009 Ie ae a fe fee ae 4 Ea 30% 200) oes 070 O75 080 08s Specific growty of undersalurcted reservar liquid at 80°F ond reservor pressure Fig. 4.5 Trube diagram for specific gravity as a function of pseuco-crtical constants for undersaturated reservoir liquids (atter oy e 199 080 080 050 100 Peeudo-reduced compress, Cy 3 t o Pseudo-redueed pressure, By, Fig. 4.6 Trube diagram for pseudo-reduced sgrprssbity of understated resewo tus aftr TABLE 4.3 Gas properties Density Density Ib”? at 60°F Mojecular _Gillicalproperties_ Gas (relate to air) and 1 atmosphere weight Pelpsia) TAA) Ar 10 0.0763 28.96 547 238 Nitrogen 0.9672 0.0738 28.01 493 227 Oxygen 1.1047 0.0843 32.0 737 278 Co, 115194 0.1159 944.01 1071 548 Hes 1.1764 0.0887 34.08 1308 673 He 010896 0.0053 2018 188 60 Ho. = = 18.016 8208 1165) cose eiieu 0) 21128 Aygssexduco dns pue sowodoxdeoqHo-opnesa Ly Bld (2942) ‘masaid peonpes opnasd4. PROPERTIES OF RESERVOIR FLUIDS a7 TABLE 4.4 Hydrocarbon properties Molecular Gross calorific value Giilcal Properties aes Hydrocarbon Formula weight Buwit*ats.c. —_ Palpsiay TAA) Ve(f76) Methane CHe 16088 1010 668 343 0.0988 thane Cots 3006 1789 708 550 0.0787 Propane Hs 44.09 2517 616 666 0.0730 -Butane 3262 551 765 0.0704 /-Butane Cate oa.ie) 3253 529 735 0.0725 n-Pentene 4010 480 845, 0.0880 i-Pentane Gitte ane 4000 489 829 0.0685 -Hexane Cote 86.17 4758, 437 813 0.0685 eHeptane CHve 100.2 5503, 397 972 0.0682 n-Oclano Cote 1142 6250 361 1024 0.0880 n-Nonane: CsHae 128.2 6997 332 1070 0.0673 -Decane Croton 1423 7742 304 412 0.0871 Benzene CoHe 78.1 742 710 1013 0.0540 Toluene CHe 92.13 4475 596 1068 0.0570 ate for engineering accuracy with hydrocarbon systems. Critical constants for some commonly encountered components are reproduced in Tables 43 and 4.4, and for natural gases and condensate well fluids in Fig. 4.7. 4.4.4 Gas deviation factorZ ‘The ideal gas equation would predict the equality PY = t RT For real gases at pressures of more than a very few atmospheres this is not true. The behaviour of real gases can be expressed by the equation PV y= 2RT or PV =n2RT where 2 = f(P,7) and z is termed a deviation factor (or super-compressibility factor) expressing the degree of deviation from ideality Because the law_of corresponding states applies with satisfactory accuracy to mixtures of light hydro. carbon_gases, it_has been possible to correlate reasibiity Tactors with reduced values Of press re and temperature, and these generalized correla tions (the Standing-Katz correlations''as shown in Fig. 4.7) are widely used in approximate calculations of gas reservoir behaviour. For more accurate work, the extension and smoothing of accurate laboratory Measurements by an equation of state, or direct calculation through an equation of state using the detailed composition of the gas to generate the Aecessary constants, will be satisfactory methods. Hall and Yarborough" have used the Starling, Camahan equation of state to calculate z, using first 4 Newton-Raphson iterative technique to calculate y, the reduced density from 1, the reciprocal of the pseudo-reduced temperature using (90.71—242.2P + 42.47) y@ 162929 (14.760=9.7677+4.58° )y? + [(y +y2 = 0.06125ppyte ~ 1201-0" yy Then 2¥ = 0.06125p,e4—120-1 The iterative procedure has been deseribed by Dake"! Gas density, defined as mass/unit volume thus becomes at reservoir conditions MP —— =o, 2RT 4.4.5 Gas viscosities The reservoir engineer is concerned aot only with the expansion behaviour of reservoir fluids, but also by flow rates and potential variations. The magni- tude of flow rates and potential drops will depend digectly’on fTuid viscosities, and in the case Of gases these will depend on pressure and temperature. Again, if ditect measurements oF viscosity are not available, use_is_made_of correlations _based~oa corresponding states. The viscosities of nydrocarBab gases _at_atmospheric pressure are_established_as fuggtions of molecular weight and temperature. The ratio of viscosity at @ reduced pressure Pr and reduced temperature Ty, to the viscosity at atmos phetic pressure and real temperatures T are then correlated with reduced pressure and temperature ‘Through these two correlations the viscosity at any given reservoir conditions can be estimated. ThePETROLEUM ENGINEERING: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE Gas granty | av*1.000} ore, 98 faeces z0 35 oors i oor ee ooise ue i B sont z 001g = 0009 E isal v8 Z cool? ooo i 5 oor} £ ocon 2 0.006} 5} Z e 00s} oe Tr ; hi peer : peta . e088 20 30) 40 30 60) 70 80 30 TOO otcucr Sea Fig. 4.8 Viscosity (ji) at one atmosphere for natural gases. . correlations, after Carr et ai.""'are shown in Figs 48 7 a and 4.9, Go Nae cons ; wae aunts 28, i 4.4.6 Gas compressibilities ea For a perfect gas: sq py = ak RT yet : P = av = mR é oor Bs Boo aa ae > Vv dP * ad eo} sg wo 200 Fig. 4.9 (lett) Viscosity ratio for natural gases. Tron oan? 238 Peeudoresueed passe, P, Note: obtain yi; trom Fig. 4.8.4. PROPERTIES OF RESERVOIR FLUIDS For areal gas: = n2RT and z Vent so that for any ideal gas, or for real gases when the rate of change of 2 with p is small, compressibility can be represented by reciprocal pressure For real gases the gradient dz/dP is obtained by drawing a tangent to the z against pseudo reduced pressure curve at the reservoir pseudo reduced conditions. In this case the transformation Pa Pe Pp is used as follows: dz _dPy de dP dy and Pg A dP Poe then & a sothat ¢ au (i, Pre 2P pc (dP, 4.5 FORMATION VOLUME FACTORS B For volume _faciors_have been given the general standard designation af and are used to define the ratio between a volume of fluid at reservoir conditions of temperature and pressure and its volume at a standard condition. The factors are therefore dit less_but_are_commonly quoted in teams of teservolr volume Per sana volume per standats volume. Subscripts o,g,1 are used to define the fluid phase, and i and b are often added to define initial ‘and bubble-point conditions. Thus By, is an initial reservoir condition gas formation volume factor and B,, isan oil formation volume factor at bubble-point conditions In general we can write 49 (Formation volume factor) gus = By {f(composition, pressure, temperature) (Formation volume factor) = By = flcomposition, pressure, temperature) (Formation volume factor) water = Bie {ficomposition, pressure, temperature) Defining a simple ratio does not, of course, simplify the problem of calculating the factor. In the case of gases, this can be done through aa. equation of state, and tbisis also-possible fora liquid above the saturation pressure. With liquids below the salu ation peESUeS Tne evolution of gas with decreases in pressure, and the possible dependence ‘on composition and volume changes with pressure, the definition of simple equations of state is compli- cated. 4.5.1 Gas formation volume factor B, Fora gas volume at operating conditions Volume at standard conditions Po? votumesivolume Be For example, for reservoir conditions, 2000 psia, 585°R, Z = 0.85, and for reference conditions, 14.7 psia, 520°R, z= 1 Bg = 7.028 x 10-? volume/volume It is frequently convenient to work in reservoir units of barrels, and gas volumes are frequently expressed in MSCF so that 1g 2a MO eerie SCF and for the above example B, = 1.2516 reservoir barrelsMSCF (In these particular units, gas formation volume factors have the same general numerical range as oil formation volume factors.) Regrettably, some writers also use B, to represent the reciprocal of the formation volume factor, i. ‘Volume at reference conditions ‘Volume at operating conditions (Bey but this convention will not be adopted bere, and this expression will be given an alternative definition of the gas expansion factor, ie50 1 Gas expansion factor = E = Pi By ‘Volume at reference conditions ‘Volume at operating conditions Note that for small changes in 2 TzP,, 1000 1 Bem “7, S615 P and l Bes const: (the equation of a hyperbola) and = constant P 3 ‘As shown in Fig. 4.10, a plot of E against P is approximately linear over small pressure ranges, and this can be convenient for data smoothing and interpolating. Ba (ROM/SCM Eisew nem Frese Fig. 4.10 Gas formation volume factor. 4.5.2 Water formation volume factor By, For water, gases and dissolved salts can affect the compressibility and so the formation volume factor, but ‘this effect is often ignored. When pressure changes and water volumes are small, By” is generally taken to be unity, and when pressure Ehanges are large and/or water volumes are large, Solume changes are calculated through compressitil- ity, rather than formation volume factor. These data fare shown in Figs 4.11 and 4.12. “The isothermal reservoir volume relationship for water containing some dissolved gas and initially Cxisting above its bubble-point condition is shown in Fig. 413, It can be seen that loss in liquid volume due to evolution of gas as the pressure reduces only partially compensates for water expansion. PETROLEUM ENGINEERIN « e 36 $° 32 oe 2a ie a TF Fig. 4.11 Brine compressibility at diferent pressures and temperatures. 250F 200F 150F wor 2000-4000 Pressure Upper line ~ gos saturated — Lower line ~ pure water ——==~ Fig. 4.12 Effect of tamparature, pressure and gas ‘aluration on water formation volume factor. M — ze of ae | Temperature ale | etfect seohherre Hz v4 , eonditions 25 SSEISSEEEDEEpasoSoNOn DuoIe=s ° Pp Pressure —> Fig, 4.13 Volume factor for water. In general, By may be expressed in terms of th volume change AV,,, during pressure reduction ant ‘AV, during temperature reduction By = (1+ Muy) 1+ 9 Vu) ‘The values of AV terms are shown in Figs 4 4.5 14am|g PROPERTIES OF RESERVOIR FLUIDS 51 boee itis the total system — gil plus associated gas - that 3 must be considered, an eek liquid phase. The eflact of pressure on the hydrocar- bon liquid a 7 To indus vos of gasin the li ium condition is atiainad. A unit volume of stock tank oi brought to equilibrium with its associated gas at reservoir 004 pressure and temperature will almost invariably 5 occupy a volume greater than unity (the only = exception would be an oll wih Tile dissolved gas at ale very high pressure). ‘The voluye change js then ¢ function of the partia-molar volume of the gas in solution, the thermal expansion sfem_ with tempe 02} change, and the compression of the Tiquid phase, No simpl if jones through which these volume changes can be calculated and 001 EEE 14 oundtion volun factors generated The necessary. 190150200250 300 liquid properties are either directly measured or are Reservor temperature °F) ddiermined from generalized correlations which can rete an aCCoptahTSaceuraoy- Tor THEgencral Fig. 4.14 Corectontrm Sy homolagous funy of compenenis-of rode od systems. The oil formation volume factor will be discussed 000200050 in connection with the_behaviour of dissolv Siem The shops cb Be 8. Oe Ore 41) FATECR oil compussibility- while all_gas Stays in e solution at pressures above bubble-point, and indi- C080 oa cates liquid: shrinkage when gas comes out of solution below bubble-point -0008|- Bosh : 2 [oe 2 0, ce a g -0008- 2 $0 a -0.010 Cetin 10 o Pe P Prossure —> Z : 0012 5 be ss — aig sho Fig, 4.16 Oil formation volume factor. Reservoir temperature (°F) Fig. 4.18 Correction term AV a 4.6 GAS-OIL RATIO’ 45.3 tion volume factorB, The dissolved or solution gas-oil ratio, Ry is @ stant above bubble-poi as shown in Black oil, or dissolved gas systems, may convenicnt- Fig. 4.17, and displays similar behaviour to B, below ly ba regarded as solutions of gas mixture in aliquid, bubble point pressure. The symbol R is generally the compositional changes in the gas with changing used for gas-oil ratios and has the units of standard pressure and temperatures being ignored. In con- sidering vi pvecn_ rele - tigns and reservoir (or other operating) conditions. volumes of gas dissolved in a standard volume of liquid. When used alone, resents an instan- taneous total producing gas-oil ratio (free gas plus82 Rs Re(sem/scm) Lo °% Fr Pressure ——> Fig, 4.17 Solution gas- constant composition (flash) separation, and a step- PETROLEUM ENGINEERIN' wise vi For operational convenience re se rbined Gn rather arbitrary fashion) to seth. experimental Tayout usually a calculation Saiffar to that indicated in Fig. 4.18 ii ple compositi ‘both these separations d out, 4 ts of th Gos somoles ‘ond ovis eveeiie | tren ta Mercury ume ou SSile Semple Fig. 4.18 Schematic PVT analysis. In the case of black oil (dissolved gas) system os this. % relatively unimportant, and th ives generated are system properties valid with) The usualsange of dae uncertainty TTT Waite -oil_and condensate systems, standa wthods are inadequate, and process simulation t [nboratory experiment is necessary to validate the modynamic relationships. 4.7.1 Flash liberation at reservoir temperature ‘The fluid sample is raised 10 0 high pressu (qubstantially_above_bubble-poin temperature, and expanded 1m _stages_ai_conste composition, to give the Total Vorume at a series presses SSefal of the volumes and pressures will iden the tapble-pont pressure, and data is customat replotted in terms of relative volume Vx, as show Fig. 4.19. Volume at any arbitrary pressure ‘Volume at Bubble-point pressure Ve+ ERTIES OF RESERVOIR FLUIDS ce * Constant tenperature Relative Voume Vp (2¥i/Vi Pressure —> Fig. 4.19 Relative volume data by the flash process ‘The initial conditions Va. From the plot, the compressibility above bub! point of the liquid at reservoir temperature can b determined Va oF Vg AP 4.7.2 Differential liberation at ‘reservoir temperature ‘Again starting above or at the bubble-point, the system is expanded in stages. In this ease, the free gas phase_at-each Stage is_removed at _constan pressuce—and_thei_messured by expanding to Htandard conditions Consequently the expansion is tot at copstait composition, and the results are valid only focdissoived gas systems ‘This exps fe olution gas-< : a funcdnn of pressure, gas expansion factors a3 a peessure, The iid _remainit Tal voit temperature is termed residual oil (and i volun the sidual al volume), and eooting this to ). GOFF willgencrate a stod will diff the cumulative gas released in the ‘The relative volume ratio (V,)4/V» is generally differential tae because of the different ther plotted as a function Uneven Fig, WRRRIEDAT MOET Hr cooling residual off to 53 factos. For many systems, this fficiently accurate (given the une: jinties in sampling) to_be_used in this way. The volumes of stack ta z avo 7 reservoir oil is in fact de; he thermodyna- mic path followed between i states @) ere sessbsises uo seabensser es Pe Pr oF Pressure —> a “8 Ba ae aa 3 Py bs { 3 Fig. 4.20 Relative volume (a) and gas liberation (b) data by the differential process. 4.7.3 Flash separation tests, It is customary to carry out a separator test, flashing the bubble-point_liquid_to Se through a seties of intermediate stages correspopd- 1447s ing to possi arator cf Theta 7 jIue taken Ry This gas.evolved in this flash operation is the val as the total or initial solution gas-oil ratio 41.20 (a) The liberated gas ratio R, is also plotted against pressuse.as shown in Fig. 4.20 (b) PVT reports eequently tabulate the ratio (Vola liquid volume Jor Vsr residual liquid volume Jar stan-tard conditions. "When this Is done, the difference between residual oil ( id stock tank oil obtained through speci mn_process can be 601 althé wowgh. the basic inconsistency remalns, We define: (Vo)a = Volume of oil obtained by 2 differential separation at any and reservoir temperature,= Volume at bubble-pointand- | - Saseeaeaie Woe Vo ie Vane se q sind by ‘flashing a volume Vi oftubble-point ol [A difficulty also arises with the definition of gas-oil ‘atig. If the incremental gas volumes accumnal a differenti Summed, the results will be total for ‘originally 1. in. This faottnily refered to-25 inal solution GOR per iL (60°F) Tne will not be the same as the total gas i = ‘oi|_through u | This volu obt: . vsined_by flashing bubblespoiat_al es ¢ separa ess to stoc tion: specifi Ghee the produced GOR used in material balance | aisSiations is the separator GOR, it is customary to cethe flash separator GOR as the value for R, in wetrial balance calculations, the differential Teparation values being used for the solution ges-oil fatio, Again an inconsistency remains 4.7.4 Summary of tests “The laboratory tests can be summarized as in Table 4.5, together with the zsaied. “Yue bubble-point oil formation volume factor Buy from flash separator tests is used in the calculation of oil compressibility, Equittrum vaporization tests PETROLEUM ENGINEERING: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE n_volume factor B, is 1 . calculated in consistent units {rom vs B, Vo _g,+B, {Ran Ri) hy (Vale “The solution gas-ol ratio is thus B,- By 48 RALIZED_CORRI NS. FOI EMS: 4.8.1 Bubble-point pressure ‘rhe bubble-point pressure or saturation isa ‘The tle pont erat ene TEaderable TmTerest To engineers, and a Yelue will nearly always be measuted experiment Ixy In fields with multiple reservoirs (or where (he Het of separation of horizons is not established carly bn), samples may not be taken forall reservoirs, ang sndirect approaches may be necessary. Conelavons ace-available for the estimation of bubble paint pressure from other system properties P, = f (composition, temperature) If detailed composition is known, and equilibrium i dete compo comp a fe for the components a the Temperature required, ie Bubble point can be Celeulated, But_in general the composition foe # TABLE 4.5 Laboratory test summary | Fash separator test Conducted al reservoir temperature [Conducted trom reservoir temperature to surtace conditions Felaies oll properties ai T,P to saturated ol properties at Relates oll properties at PyandT, reservoir conditions t0 oil at stock tank conditions: Flash vaporizalion test Differential liberation test Measures: Gasnot removed Gas removed asitis released Re | Composition constant Composition of remaining system varies Werle | Vo Measures: Measures: | VVe Vo" © A oe‘4 PROPERTIES OF RESERVOIR FLUIDS dasoned gas item is represented by the solution gav-oil rao, and the oil density, so that Pe=S (Rss Pe» Po» T) ‘An empirical correlation using a large amount of data, and developed by Standings O88 49 O«unIT Pp=18)(Re [a Ye ag where T = °F, Ye = gas gravity and Py is in Psi. The yelationship is shown in Fig. 4.21 Figure 422 shows ‘a nomogram_for_an_alten ‘ sf Lasater! Beets *0p0l 8 83838 é ea et a eo Fig 421 fue point co ‘Standing’s data (aftec'"). FA i Pea r 22 Bubble-point pressure using the Lasater ‘cortelation (after! 4.8.2 Formation volume factor Formation volume factor for a saturated liquid can be estimated!" from the empirical equation B= 0.972 + 0.000147 "75 ee afeef ei Evaluation of B, over a range of pressures, when the value of solution GOR is known at one pressure, will then involve determining R, at a series of pressures within the range by the inverse of proce- dure for bubble-point pressure, and the use of this value in the formation volume factor correlation Above the_bubble-point, the formation volu factor will be given by thee uation — By = By {1 + c(Py—P)} By (I= c(P~ P,)} and the oil compressibility within the range P > P, will be needed for this. Depending upon the data available, estimation for the compressibility can involve a number of cross- correlations, the final correlation being of pseudo- reduced compressibility with pseudo-reduced temperature and pseudo-reduced pressure, several previous correlations being necessary for the liquid phase, The oil density at reservoir conditions can be estimated in appropriate units from the oil and gas densities at standard conditions and from the values at B, and R, at reservoir conditions, as follows: Po Bo = (Padsc + Re (O8)se. 4.8.3 Two-phase volume factor The t -phase) fo volume opie a sere oni Reo is associated with a_unit volume of ail, The parameters designated B, and Se by B,=B, + Be(Ry~ Ry) ‘This can be evaluated from the separate oil and gas formation volume factors at any pressure, and the solution gas-oil ratio. aS ‘equations using formation volume factors involve differences in these factors, it is frequently desirable to smooth experimental or correlation derived data to improve accuracy ‘Two-phase formation volume factors ate most readily smoothed by the relation (Pa-P)_ (Pa~P)56 and the Y function is a linear function of pressure (Gee Fig. 4,23). This can be a valuable relationship for smoothing, correlating and extending data, especially near the bubble-point. P Fig. 4.23 Y-function smoothing, 4.8.4 Oil viscosity ‘The viscosity of a reservoir oil can be considered to be the viscosity of a dead oil at some reference pressure condition (e.g, tank oil), corrected for temperature and the elfects of dissolved gas. It is preferable for the viscosity at the reference state to be measured, although correlations are available for this purpose. Figure 4.24 shows the essential correlations! ‘The viscosity of dead oil at reservoir temperature and atmospheric pressure is the required start point, and 2 measured value at this temperature, or a measured value corrected to this temperature, is Gesirable. The viscosity of saturated oil is directly obtained. If the system is undersaturated, 2 correc tion for. the excess pressure is needed. If no measured viscosity is available, an estimate must be made through the oil gravity. Temperature reservoir eg F [Absolute viscosity of gas-free crude ol ° 1 12030 a8 Cceude atl gravity (API), 60°F, 147 pio @ Fig. 4.24 Beal correlations for crude oil viscosity." PETROLEUM ENGINEERING: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE 100 38 Bs 53 ue 3 a8 a5 oN ost Vacoaty of decd ol .cp acento et ct end 4790 Fig. 4.24 (b} 4.8.5 Water viscosity Water viscosity is dependent on salinity. The viseo ity of various salinity brines at I atmosphe pressure (jt is given in Fig. 4.25 (a) as a functic ef reservoir temperature! At elevated pressure the relationship Berets. fer is used where fpr is obtained from the fr.r against chart (Fig, 4.25 (b)) at pressures between 2000 a1 10000 psi 4.8.6 Recent North Sea oil correlations Using the correlation methods proposed by Star ing, a number of North Sea oils have been recor lated by Glas". The units used are oil field ur with Py the bubble-point pressure in psia; Rt producing gas-oil ratio in SCF/STB; 7 the aver Specific gravity of the total surface gases; T 1 reservoir temperature in °F API is the degree Stock tank oil gravity and y, is the specific gravity the stock oil. The reservoir pressure in psia is P. For saturation pressure the relationship is Jog Pp = 1.7669 + 1.7447 (log P*s) ~ 0.30218 (log P'n)? cae