Data-Driven Approach Develops Proactive Chemical Treatment Strategies
Authors: Carpenter Chris 
Published: October 2022

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This article, written by JPT Technology Editor Chris Carpenter, contains highlights of paper URTeC 3723425, “Delaware Basin Formational Solid Deposit Trends: A Data-Driven Look at Developing Proactive Chemical Treatment Strategies,” by Rachel W. Hudson, SPE, and Kevin J. Spicka, SPE, ChampionX, and Ryan W. Pagel, SPE, Cooper Gray Consulting, et al. The paper has not been peer reviewed.

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This paper highlights a chemical-treatment strategy developed specifically for solids mitigation for a Delaware Basin operator. More than 200 Delaware Basin solid samples from the New Mexico/Texas state line were collected over a 2-year period, spanning seven distinct producing intervals. A statistical approach was taken to determine which formations had the greatest potential for paraffin, carbonate, acid-soluble iron compounds, and sulfate scales. A similar macroscopic approach in other basins may be applied to identify what proactive treatment strategies could be developed based upon the specific challenges of those regions and may similarly improve field performance.

Introduction

A need exists for optimized cost-effective solids-mitigation and treatment strategies for oil and gas operators across multiple basins. The key is knowing what type of solids have the greatest potential to form before they precipitate and cause issues within a given system. There is a long-standing history of successful chemical and mechanical treatment strategies for solids in the Midland Basin, but less is known about recent unconventional developments in the Delaware Basin, particularly in the Wolfcamp and Bone Springs formations.

The Delaware Basin, located within the Permian, is a series of stacked plays. The Avalon sits above the First, Second, and Third Bone Springs, all of which are Leonard-age strata. These formations sit stratigraphically above the Wolfcamp formations. Each producing interval has similar characteristics that directly affect the risk of solid precipitation. During the last decade, the most-common unconventional targets in the Delaware Basin have been the Avalon, Bone Springs, and Wolfcamp formations, which are the focus of the complete paper.

Designing cost-effective proactive chemical or mechanical treatment strategies and optimizing those efforts is a challenging dynamic process. Historically, operators take one of two approaches: treat everything while changing chemical type on an as-needed basis or only treating locations where a problem has occurred in the past.

Theory and Methods

From experiences recorded across the Delaware Basin, it is clear that some formations have more scale or paraffin issues, but this has all been based on individual field experience in localized areas. For example, it is not uncommon to hear that the Second Bone Springs tends to have paraffin issues. If this is true on a larger scale, then widespread untreated solids-deposit data should be able to indicate which solids are the most probable from each formation. If a pattern can be found in the data, then a proactive risk-mitigation and treatment strategy potentially could be defined by formation. If such a data trend exists, it could provide great value and simplify upfront treatment methodology.