Carbon Dioxide Flooding
Authors: Martin David F. , Taber J.J. 
Published: December 2007

Technology Today Series articles provide useful summary information on both classic and emerging concepts in petroleum engineering. Purpose: To provide the general reader with a basic understanding of a significant concept, technique, or development within a specific area of technology.

Introduction

Gas injection is one of the oldest methods used by engineers to improve oil recovery, and its use has increased recently. Much of the new expansion(especially in the U.S.) is coming from the non hydrocarbon gases, nitrogen andCO2. The full impact of CO2 flooding will he felt during the' next several years since construction of CO2 pipelines into the west Texas area was completed in the 1980's and the larger floods are continuing to respond with good increases in tertiary oil production.

Mechanisms

CO2 flooding processes can he classified as immiscible or miscible, even though CO2 and crude oils are not actually miscible upon first contact in the reservoir. Recovery mechanisms in immiscible processes involve reduction in oil viscosity, oil swelling, and dissolved-gas drive. While some of the early interest in the 1950's and 1960's involved immiscible processes, recent work has emphasized miscible processes that recover more reservoir oil. In miscible processes, CO2 is effective in recovering oil for a number of reasons. In general, CO2 is very soluble in crude oils at reservoir pressures; therefore, it swells the net oil volume and reduces oil viscosity long before miscibility is achieved by a vaporizing-gas-drive mechanism. As CO2 phase (which now contains many of the intermediate hydrocarbon components) can flow together because of the low interfacial tension and the relative increase in the total volumes of the combined CO2 and oil phases compared with the water phase. phases compared with the water phase. Because of these mechanisms, good oil recovery may occur at pressures below those required for the generation of miscibility. However, the generation of miscibility hetween the oil and CO2 is still considered to he the most important mechanism, and this will occur in most CO2/crude-Oil systems when the pressure is high enough. In general, the high pressures are required to compress the CO2 to a density at which it becomes a good solvent for the lighter hydrocarbons in the crude oil. This so-called "minimum miscibility pressure" (MMP) has been the target of laboratory investigations in which the pressure required for maximum oil recovery by CO2 is determined in a small-diameter tube (slim tube)packed with sand or glass beads. Correlations have been developed for MMP vs. API gravity and the molecular weight of the C5+ fraction.2–4 Reservoir temperature also plays a role in MMP.5 Fig. 1 shows the variation of MMP (and the corresponding CO2 density) with temperature and oil composition.6–8 Because of the minimum pressure requirement, depth is an important screening criterion, and CO2 floods are normally carried out in reservoirs that are more than 2,500ft deep.9 Oil composition is also important; a high percentages of intermediate hydrocarbons (especially C5 through C12) is heneficial,8 and surveys show that the gravity exceeds 30 degrees API for most active CO2 floods.10 Although the mechanism for CO2 flooding appears to he the same as that for hydrocarbon miscible floods, CO2 floods may give better recoveries even if both systems are above their required miscibility pressures, especially in tertiary floods. pressures, especially in tertiary floods. CO2 has a much higher solubility in water than hydrocarbons and has been observed in laboratory experiments to diffuse through the water phase to swell bypassed oil until the oil is mobile. Thus, not only are screening criteria for depth and oil viscosity easier to meet in CO2 flooding, but the ultimate recovery may he better than with hydrocarbons when above the MMP at similar displacement conditions. This conjecture has yet to he proved by comparable experiments or field data, but oil recoveries for some CO2 field projects are exceeding the simulator predictions, whereas miscible hydrocarbon projects normally do not.

Oil Recovery

Potential U.S. Reserve Additions. Potential U.S. Reserve Additions. Ultimate incremental oil recovery from CO2 floods in the U.S. is estimated to be 8 to 15billion bbl,11 but may vary from 5 to 30 billion bbl,6,12 depending on future oil prices and economic incentives. prices and economic incentives. JPT

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