Petroleum Production

Engineering
Hydrocarbon Exploration & Production
Sylvia Yusim
Friday, 15th April 2016
K.102
13.00-15.30

References
Frank

Jahn et al, Hydrocarbon Exploration and Production

(Developments in Petroleum Science), second edition, 2008

Production

Technology Course Notes, Heriot-Watt University,

2012
Reservoir

Well Test Course Notes, Heriot-Watt University,

2012
http://fac.ksu.edu.sa/sites/default/files/2-

performanceofflowingwells.pdf

Method of Deliverance and Rules

Method of Deliverance

Lecturing with open discussion and repeating process

Class Hands-on

Questions/ Sharing Experience

Rules

Keep cellphone/ laptop/ tablet off or in silent mode

Active participation is a must

Objective
Objective

of production engineering: to
maximize oil and gas production in a costeffective manner

To

achieve this objective, production

engineers need to have a thorough
understanding of petroleum production
system

Outline
Reservoir
Wellbore
Well

deliverability IPR

performance VLP

deliverability/ Nodal Analysis IPR and VLP

Timeline
Opening

(10 mins)

Introduction
Break
IPR
VLP

(30 mins)

1 (10 mins)

(45 mins)
(20 mins)

Break
Nodal

2 (15 mins)

analysis (20 mins)

Introduction of Production Engineering

OVERVIEW

INFLOW

OUTFLOW

ARTIFICIAL LIFT
7

E & P Life Cycle of Exploration, Appraisal, Development and Production

Petroleum Production System

VLP

IPR

Simplified Production System

During the hydrocarbon
fluid
flow
from
the
reservoir into the storage
tank, the pressure is
reduced
from
the
reservoir pressure to
atmosphere pressure in
a series of pressure loss
processes.

VLP

IPR

Pressure Across Production System

Pressure losses:
(1)In the reservoir and completion
(2)In the tubing
(3)At the surface

Nodal Analysis of the Production

System

Hydrocarbon Phase
Behaviour
The phase behavior of the
hydrocarbon fluid controls
the fluids gas/liquid ratio
as a function of bottom
hole pressure. This, in turn,
will effect flow rate. i.e
inflow
performance
relationship and outflow
tubing performance.

 What
IPR

is the objective of production engineering?

and VLP(OPR) stands for?

What

is nodal analysis/ well deliverability?

Draw

a simplified productions system

Pressure

drop across production system exists

from?
How

hydrocarbon phase behavior affect flow

rate?

Revie
w of
Intro
ducti
on

Reservoir Deliverability
Inflow Performance Relationship (IPR)

Reservoir Deliverability

Definition: The oil/gas production

rate achievable from reservoir at
given bottom-hole pressure

This depends on several factors in

RESERVOIR
including
the
following:

Rock Properties

Fluid properties

Reservoir pressure

Well geometry

Well flowing pressure

Pressure Distribution Around the

Wellbore

Majority of pressure drop

caused by production is
near wellbore

Straight Line IPR for Undersaturated

Oil
Derived from
Darcys Law

Slope of IPR curve is called

Productivity Index

AOF: Absolute Openhole Factor/ qmax = flowrate at zero wellbore flowing

pressure

Productivity Index
Productivity

Index (PI/J): the ability of reservoir to deliver

fluids to wellbore

Example:
a

well flows at a 1000 stbbls/d with a flowing (sandface)

pressure of 1500 psi and at an average reservoir pressure of
2000 psi, then the productivity index is:
PI = 1000 / (2000 - 1500) = 2 stbbls/d / psi

Skin Factor

Positive skin from mud and shale

plugging

A dimensionless factor calculated to

determine the production efficiency
of a well by comparing actual conditions
with theoretical or ideal conditions.

A positive skin value indicates some

damage or influences that are
impairing well productivity.

A negative skin value indicates

enhanced productivity, typically
resulting from stimulation.

Example of Skin

Example of Negative Skin

Stimulation:

improve permeability and reduce skin

Acidizing

Hydraulic
Fracturing

Construct a straight line IPR

The IPR is routinely measured using bottom hole pressure
gauges at regular intervals as a part of the field monitoring
program.
The following data are given:
Reservoir pressure 5,000 psia
Bubble point pressure 3,000 psia
Tested flowing bottom-hole pressure 4,000 psia
Tested production rate 300 stb/day
Task: Calculate Productivity Index and construct an IPR

B
P flowing bottom
P rservoir
hole
5000
5000
5000
0

C=A-B
P
drawdown
0
5000

D= C*Productivity
Index
Q (stb/day)
0
1500

Straight line IPR Construction

6000
5000
4000

IPR Points

3000Flowing
Bottom hole
Pressure, Pwf, psia

Linear (IPR Points)

2000
1000
0
0

200

400

600
800
1000
Production Rate, Q, stb/day

1200

1400

1600

Typical IPR

In single phase flow

this is a straight line
but when gas is
moving
in
the
reservoir,
at
a
pressure below the
bubble point, this in
not
a
linear
relationship.

IPR for two-phase reservoirs: Vogel &

Fetkovitch
Vogels

equation is widely used in the industry

NO NEED TO REMEMBER THIS

EQUATION

Example of IPR that showing reservoir

depletion

Composite IPR

 What

is IPR?

Transient,

Pseudo-steady state, steady state?

Productivity
Calculation

Index and Skin factor?

of IPR:

Above bubble point (1 phase exist): ?

Below bubble point (2 phase exist):?

Revie
w of
IPR

Wellbore Performance
Outflow Performance Relationship
Or commonly known as
Vertical Lift Performance (VLP)

Vertical Lift Performance

The

ability of produced fluids to flow from the bottom of well

through tubing to separator.

If

the IPR is simply linking flow-rate and pressure drop, the

flow in the tubing is more complicated.

The

relation between oil volumetric flow-rate at standard

conditions, qs, and the overall pressure difference for vertical
lift , Pwf - Pseparator, is non-linear.

Pwf - Pseparator = fVLP(qs)

Why flow in tubing

is more complicated?
There

is a phase changes to
the hydrocarbon fluids as it
travels up the tubing.

Hydrostatic

Column between
wellbore and wellhead: change
in elevation, average density of
fluid in tubing.

Friction:

Diameter & roughness

of tubing; fluids flow rate; fluids
viscous properties; length of well

Flow Correlation to define VLP

Many

flow correlations
that were developed
(field and laboratory
generated) to model
multiphase flow in the
tubing. Hence, it will
correlates the pressure
drop
through
the
tubing.

Plot of the pressure losses vs

production rate in the system

X-axis : oil flow rate (q)

Y-axis: tubing intake pressure (Pwf)

 What
Why

is VLP?

the flow in the tubing is more complicated?

Phase changes

Hydrostatic column loss

Friction loss

What

is flow correlation? What is on X-axis and

Y-axis?

Nodal Analysis/ Well

Deliverability

Petro
leum
Prod
uctio
n
Syste
m

Well Deliverability
Well

deliverability is the stable rate a well can produce at

determined from the combined plot of the wells inflow
performance (IPR) and the vertical lift performance (VLP).

(1)Flow into node = Flow out of

(2) node
Only 1 pressure can exist at the
node

Pnode

P separator

P reservoir

P reservoir - pressure loss upstream = P separator + pressure

loss downstream

Comparison of Stable Flow and

Dead Well
Stable Flow

Dead Well

Comparison of Stable Flow and

Dead Well
Flowing at 2 (critical lifting
rate)
Unstable rate

Dead Well

VLP
Curv
es
for
Artifi
cial
Lift
Syste
m

Reco
very
Meth
ods