Applied Novel Quality Check Method for PVT Data with High Impurities Using Various Samples from Malaysian Fields
Authors: Hendraningrat Luky , Salleh Intan Khalida 
Published: December 2021

PVT analysis of reservoir fluid samples provides essential information for determining hydrocarbon in place, depletion strategy, and hydrocarbon flowability. Hence, quality checking (QC) is necessary to ensure the best representative sample for further analysis. Recently, a novel tool based on Equation of State (EOS) was introduced to tackle the limitation of the Hoffmann method for surface samples with high impurities and heavier components. This paper presents comprehensively evaluating a novel EOS-based method using various PVT data from Malaysian fields.

Numerous PVT separator samples from 30 fields with various reservoir fluids (Black Oil, Volatile, and Gas Condensate) were carried out and evaluated. The impurities contain a wide range of up to 60%. The 2-phase P-T (pressure and temperature) diagram of each oil and gas phase before recombination was calculated using PVT software based on Equation of State (EOS). The 2-phase P-T diagram was created and observed the intersection point as calculated equilibrium at separator conditions. Once it is observed and compared with written separator condition in the laboratory report and observed its deviation. Eventually, the result will be compared with the Hoffmann method.

The Hoffmann method is well-known as a traditional QC method that was initially developed using gas condensate PVT data to identify possible errors in measured separator samples. If the sample has high impurities and/or heavier components, the Hoffmann method will only show a straight line to the lighter components and those impurities and heavier components will be an outlier that engineers will misinterpret that it has errors and cannot be used for further analysis such PVT characterization. The QC using EOS-based were conducted using actual fields data. It shows potential as novel QC tools but observed only less than 10% of data with complete information that can meet intersection points located precisely similar with reported in the laboratory. There is some investigation and evaluation of the EOS-based QC method. First, most of the molecular weight of the heavier fluid composition of gas and oil phase was not reported or used assumptions especially when its mole fraction is not zero. Second, properties of heavier components of the oil phase (molecular weight and specific gravity) were not measured and assumed similar as wellstream. Third, pressure and temperature data are inconsistent between the oil and gas phase at the separator condition.

This study can provide improvement in laboratory measurement quality and help engineers to have a better understanding of PVT Report, essential data requirements, and assumptions used in the laboratory. Nevertheless, the Hoffmann method can be used as an inexpensive QC tool because it can be generated in a spreadsheet without a PVT software license. Both combination techniques can provide a comprehensive evaluation for separator samples with high impurities before identifying representative fluid for further analysis.