bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Behavior Of Gas Bubbles In Capillary Spaces
Authors: Gardescu Ionel I.
Published: June 2014

Natural gas influences the movement of oil throughreservoir rock by affecting the physical properties of the oil and the pressurewithin the reservoir. The presence of gas bubbles changes the laws of flow andthe distribution of forces.

The problem of flow of oil and gas through a porousrock is complex, and most authors, in order to analyze their problems, havefound it necessary to make or accept certain generalized assumptions. Some ofthese assumptions, particularly the ones dealing with capillary phenomena andmolecular forces, have not received sufficient attention and by lack ofunderstanding have often been misinterpreted.

Herold has called attention to the resistance offeredby gas bubbles in capillary spaces and has drawn some interesting conclusionswith regard to the action of natural gas in a reservoir rock. He has duplicatedan experiment of the French physicist Jamin, has interpreted his findings interms of molar mechanics, and, from experimental observations, has made anumber of assumptions which he later applies in discussing problems of naturalflow and recovery of oil. The Jamin action is an assumption because it lacks aphysical proof and has never been determined quantitatively.

Tickell attempts to develop a formula expressing thework performed by a distorted bubble. H. A. Wilson, in the recent publicationof the American Petroleum Institute on the function of natural gas, discussesthe phenomenon in terms of classical physics. Both contributions are incompleteand offer no experimental data.

This paper includes a study of the static condition ofequilibrium of gas and liquid bubbles confined to capillary spaces. In order toavoid any possible confusion, it is proposed to restrict the term" Jaminaction"
Drilling Mud Practice in the Ventura Avenue Field
Authors: Hertel F.W. , Edson E.W.
Published: June 2014

In some fields the problem of mud fluid is simpleand easy of solution. But in the Ventura Avenue field the acquisition anddisposal of good drilling mud is not the least of the problems that confrontthe operator. In fact, mud fluid in the Ventura Avenue field is a veryimportant factor in the drilling of the wells. It is quite probable that manyof the factors affecting mud in this field will not be found in most of thefields with which the reader is familiar. However, in the fields where the mudfluid causes no apparent problem it is probable that some of the points brought out in this paper couldbe used to economic advantage. In fields 'where caving and squeezing formationsand high gas pressures are present, as in the Ventura A venue field, it isbelieved that application of methods outlined will be of great assistance indrilling wells.

On account of the sandy nature of the formation and thelack of suitable shale bodies in the strata drilled through in the Ventura Avenue field, the wells make practically no mud during drilling. It is necessarytherefore to supply drilling mud to the wells that will carry the drill cuttings to the surface, and also will "wall up"the drill hole and prevent the sandy formations from caving.

Mixing And Handling Mud Fluid

The clay used to make the mud fluid is obtained from ashale stratum in the upper Pico (Pliocene) formation found about a mile oneither side of the field.

Since high gas pressures and caving formations werefirst encountered in the Ventura Avenue field and mud fluid was needed tocombat them, the mixing of this mud fluid has gone through a process ofevolution. First, the clay was mined and hauled to the derrick, where it wasshoveled into the well and left for the churning action of the bit to mix intoa mud in the hole. The next move was the construction of a mixer to mix theclay to a mud fluid which was pumped into the well.
Stabilizing Influences
Authors: Oliver Earl
Published: June 2014

Some two years ago the Petroleum Division of the A.I.M.E. organized aspecial study of unit operation. That method of handling oil pools had beenurged as the remedy that would save the United States petroleum industry fromthe crisis that even then loomed as more than a small cloud on the horizon.Today it is only one of several remedies vigorously advocated.

Proration, regulation of imports, unit operation, constructive marketing andinterstate compacts all have their earnest proponents, but the advocates ofeach have been disposed to look with indifference on the other respectiveproposals, with the result that none has had united support. Meanwhile theindustry has drifted rapidly toward a serious crisis, the imminence of which initself may bring the solution. The gravity of the situation tends to forcestudy of the merits of proposals that a short time previously were brushedaside as impractical; and to the surprise of most of us we now find merit wherepreviously we thought none existed.

Irrespective of what might have been the result had any single proposal beingadopted years ago, it is now apparent that under present conditions no one ofthe remedies-unit operation, proration, regulation of imports or constructivemarketing-standing alone would be of much benefit. On the other hand, it isbecoming evident that a well balanced program comprising all four of theseremedies might save the United States petroleum industry; also that some suchcomprehensive program might be necessary to save it.

It is even becoming evident that the despised interstate compact might be anappropriate type of machinery in which to group and coordinate all theseremedies. We have progressed beyond the belief that either the industry or thegovernment working alone can correct the situation, and have arrived at themore healthy realization that the task will require most sympatheticcooperation between government and industry, backed by an equally sympatheticpublic understanding.
Control of California Oil Curtailment
Authors: Allen Robert E.
Published: June 2014

The organized curtailment of California oil production is not yet one yearold but during its first year it has accomplished so much that it is now firmlyestablished as an agency of economic efficiency. The principle of cooperativecurtailment has been adopted by other states and it is safe to say that theprinciple will continue as long as the demand for petroleum is notably lessthan the potential production. It is interesting to note that this sameprinciple of regulating supply to meet demand is now being urged for otherindustries, such as agriculture and mining.

Since Oct. 31, 1929, when curtailment was instituted by the oil producers ofSanta Fe Springs and Long Beach in an effort to avert the disaster of ruinouslylow prices which confronted them, there has been a constant and increasingly effective curtailment program in California. Prior to that time a notableeffort toward the restriction of oil production was made under the direction ofF. C. Van Deinse during the early summer months of 1929. A considerablereduction of oil output was recorded as the result of this effort, but becauseof incomplete cooperation and the discovery of still deeper zones at Santa FeSprings the effort was abandoned; flush field production became unrestrainedand prices soon fell to low levels.

This initial curtailment movement was educational and experimental.

It showed all operators a way out of their overproduction difficulties anddeveloped the principles followed in later curtailment efforts. Thus it wasthat only a few days after their oil had been reduced to 60 c. per barrel, theoperators of Santa Fe Springs got together and agreed to restrict their currentproduction of more than 270,000 bbl. daily to not more than 150,000 bbl. daily.The operators at Long Beach followed the same course a few days later andagreed to limit their production to not more than 110,000 bbl. daily.

The Santa Fe Springs operators chose H. P. Grimm as umpire and director oftheir proration program. Neal H. Anderson was chosen umpire for Long Beach.Since that time, as the need for curtailment has increased, practically everyfield of the state has come under the curtailment of these two umpires.
Proration of Yates Pool, Pecos County, Texas
Authors: Hardison H.C.
Published: June 2014

The Yates pool, Pecos County, Texas, has greater potential capacities thanany other field in the United States. This field is notable for the largereturn it yields on capital invested, for low production costs and for theorderly and conservative manner in which it was developed and continues to beoperated.

The proven area is 20,000 acres and there are 392 producing wells, orapproximately 1 well to 50 acres. The theoretical daily potential is 5,250,000bbl. as determined by I-hr. open-flow gages. Individual well gages vary from afew barrels to 8500 bbl. per hour, and well depths range from 1000 to 1800 ft.The greater part of the production is from a very porous limestone, and byagreement no productive well has penetrated the lime more than 225 ft. Theforces driving the oil from the formation to the surface are hydrostatic head, expanding gas or a combination of the two. The degree of effectiveness ofeither depends upon the structural position of, and porosity encountered in, the individual wells. Approximately 95 per cent. of the wells in the field flownaturally. The pipe line outlet of the field at the present time is 100,000bbl. per day, which is less than 2 per cent. of the daily potential.

Difficulties And Principles Of Proration

It became evident during the first year of the development of this field thatoperators would have to devise a scheme to allocate pipe line runs equitablyamong their different properties. When the idea of proration was firstinaugurated, the matter of spacing wells was given consideration. This wasgiven up through fear of legal difficulties. Storage was also a question thatwas given considerable thought, and a plan was finally developed which wentinto effect Oct. 1, 1927. It was decided that the oil runs should be proratedaccording to the total potential capacity of all the wells which the severaloperators had in the field. The potential capacity of the wells was measured bya 1-hr. openflow gage. All runs to storage by an operator were deducted fromhis daily allowance.
Development in a Part of the Ventura Avenue Oil Field
Authors: Jensen Joseph , Hertel F.W.
Published: June 2014

Many fields have been zoned by nature with shales and intermediate watersbetween oil zones. Limitations thus imposed have been the basis on which afield was developed. In contrast thereto, in the Ventura Avenue field, natureproved more generous. Always expecting to find such similar limitations, operators drilled deeper and deeper into the oil zone without finding anydistinctive shale bodies other than the Gosnell shale and only one intermediatewater, which became the point below which the final water shut-off of each wellwas made. Thus, on top of the structure, about 3300 ft. of oil-bearing zone hasbeen penetrated below this intermediate water--a distance of 4000 ft. below theGosnell shale. At first it seemed that the greater penetration in the zone, thebetter the well. The error of this assumption became evident as time passed.Other pressing attendant problems requiring consideration also developed.

In the spring of 1929, the Associated Oil Co., still having a large undrilledarea, adopted a method for developing this land by dividing the oil formationinto zones, so as to drill two classes of wells and to prepare for others, ifconditions in the future justified or required such action. Wells now completedare considered as permanent completions in the zone or class for which they aredrilled, and are not looked on as a ready means for deepening or accepted as atemptation for deepening to get some flush production quickly. Provision hasalso been made to avoid future water problems.

The most striking demonstration resulting from such work is the fact that thetop of the structure is far from being the point at which the largest oilrecovery is made. Wells on the flank of the structure invariably produce withlower gas-oil ratios and secure much larger oil production.

Zoning Of Oil Sands

The Gosnell shale separates the upper light 50 gravity oil from the lower 30gravity oil below. As the light oil zone is of practically no importance atpresent, it is not being exploited.
Bottom-hole Pressures in Oil Wells
Authors: Millikan C.V. , Sidwell V.
Published: June 2014

There is nothing more important in petroleum engineering than a definiteknowledge of the pressure at the bottom of an oil well at any existingoperating condition, and the relation of this pressure to the pressure withinthe producing formation. A knowledge of bottom-hole pressures is fundamental indetermining the most efficient methods of recovery and the most efficientlifting procedure, yet there is less information about these pressures thanabout any other part of the general problem of producing oil.

Determination Of Bottom-Hole Pressures

Bottom-hole pressure may be calculated or determined by several methods. On aninactive well it may be calculated from the fluid head or, if the well is shutin, by adding the casinghead pressure, the static head of the gas and the fluidhead. In wells flowing naturally through tubing the pressure at the bottom ofthe tubing may be calculated by adding the pressure at the casinghead betweenthe tubing and the casing and the pressure due to the weight of the column ofgas, but there is always possibility of error caused by fluid being in theannular space above the bottom of the tubing. If a well with tubing is flowingthrough either the annular space or the tubing, sufficient gas may be injectedthrough the static space to insure that it is free of fluid but not sufficientto establish an appreciable friction loss. The pressure at the bottom of thetubing can then be calculated by adding to the pressure at the tubing head thepressure due to the weight of the column of gas. This is probably the mostaccurate method of calculating bottom-hole pressures. In wells flowing bygas-lift, the pressure at the point the gas enters the flow may be calculatedby a gas-flow formula.

Several types of pressure bombs have been used to measure the pressure at thebottom of wells. One is a piece of steel tubing with a check valve in thebottom and a connection for a pressure gage at the top.
Density of Oil-gas Columns from Well Data
Authors: Vietti William Victor
Published: June 2014

Actual field data from several wells are used to illustrate the applicationof the method of determining the average density of the fluid column in aflowing oil well in the Yates field, Pecos County, Texas.

The depths of the wells in the Yates field vary from 900 to 1700 ft., dependingon surface elevation and the location of the wells on structure. Productionrates over 8000 bbl. per hour have been determined and many wells are capableof producing 2000 bbl. hourly. Gas-oil ratios are usually below 400 cu. ft. perbarrel, but a few wells high on structure have produced over 3000 cu. ft. perbarrel. Incidentally, tubing wells has cut these high ratios to as low as 400cu. ft. 1 By common agreement of the operators all wells making ratios over 400cu. ft. will be tubed. Daily production of the field is prorated to 110,000bbl. from an open-flow potential of 5,000,000 bbl. based on hourly open-flowgages.
Microscopic Study of California Oil-field Emulsions
Authors: Abozeid Mahmood
Published: June 2014

The natural emulsion samples used in this study were shipped directly fromtwelve California oil fields, through the courtesy of the superintendents ofthe main producing companies in those fields. Representative parts of eachsample were chosen for the slides. Preparation of the slides was generally madein less than two minutes, including time of exposure; in a few cases, aboutfive minutes was required. The short time was intended to minimize the changesin conditions. Whenever comparison was of value, standard conditions wereestablished. Spreading by gravity was adopted instead of smearing. Coverglasses were not allowed to rest on the films.

General Characteristics Of Emulsions

The main purpose of the general views is to illustrate the generalcharacteristics of the dispersed droplets together with any other constituentor impurity that may be found in each emulsion. The magnification is given sothat dimensions could be measured from the plates. The slides used for theseviews had spherical recesses; they gave the best light. Where crystals wereintended to be shown in the picture a filter (green was the best) was usuallyused. Emulsions that showed a tendency to move by concentrated light werepictured without a condenser.
Stabilizing Influences for the Petroleum Industry
Authors: Oliver Earl
Published: June 2014

This paper is based on the formula that the petroleum industry is sick-findthe cause, eliminate it, and the industry will get well. There' is perhaps nodifference of opinion that the cause is overproduction, actual or potential.But that, again, is a result rather than a cause. The problem is to study theinfluences that serve to keep production and consumption out of balance.

Production control is a popular theme and a natural one at this time when thewhole world is unstable; but production control in its popular sense meanslittle more than the application of emergency measures while danger threatens. Economists differ as to the effectiveness of these, most of which are designedto alleviate and not to cure, but we assume there are none who question thewisdom of promoting conditions under which economic forces are permitted tooperate freely in bringing about stable conditions.

The petroleum industry suffers from two classes of economic ills that serve topromote overproduction; namely, those which are common to all industries andthose which are peculiar to this industry. It is of the latter I wish to speak. Strange to say, government is responsible in large part for this latter classof ills that affect the petroleum industry and we are coming to recognize thatonly through the assistance of government can they be corrected.

Instability of the petroleum industry, in so far as human agency was involved, had its inception in 1875 when a Pennsylvania jurist, called upon to make adecision for which there was no precedent and fancying he noted someresemblance between the so-called fugitive nature of oil and gas and that ofwild game, made mention of that resemblance.

Other courts being impressed by the analogy enlarged upon it, and graduallyfixed upon oil and gas a legal status in certain important respects similar tothat of wild game. Although later the courts abandoned this analogy, certainpractices that developed out of that early concept have continued to this dayand are largely responsible for the industry's present plight. Thus, instead ofownership in place that is characteristic of private property generally, thelaw of capture was applied to oil and gas.
Effects of Rate of Production and Producing Equipment upon Gas-oil Ratios
Authors: Hayward J.T.
Published: June 2014

Studies of the forces and conditions governing the recovery of petroleumfrom natural reservoirs indicate that a low gas-oil ratio increases ultimaterecovery, retards the encroachment of water and tends to reduce lifting costs. Methods for controlling and reducing gas-oil ratios in producing wellsconsequently have been given considerable attention during the past fewyears.

However, during this same period, the production from wells in nearly allfields has been fixed by proration agreements and it is the opinion of thewriter that where a well is required to produce steadily at a predeterminedrate, less than its "potential" or maximum capacity, the gas-oil ratiowill depend only upon the rate of production, and will be independent of themethod of production and of the design of equipment in the well. If no changein the rate of production is contemplated, efforts directed to improving thegas-oil ratio by altering the diameter of the flow string, changing theposition of the choke, assisting the flow with gas-lift or pump, etc., will beunsuccessful.

This viewpoint is not new. It was presented by H. N. Marsh and B. H. Robinsonin 1929, but it has not been generally accepted. Although engineers believethat the rate of withdrawal and not the equipment used governs the water-oilratio, a similar opinion regarding the gas-oil ratio is not so commonlyadmitted.

The rates of flow of oil and gas into the base of an oil well depend upon thefollowing conditions:The characteristics of the oil and gas.The characteristics of the underground reservoir.Temperature and pressure conditions in the reservoir.The back-pressure held against the face of the sand.

In operating a well, the only one of these conditions over which control may beexercised through operating procedure and the use of equipment above the sandis the back-pressure at the face of the sand.
Engineering Research in 1932
Authors: Fowler H.C.
Published: June 2014

No exact demarcation can be made between production engineering andengineering research projects which interest production engineers because theresults of today's engineering research make possible many of the appliedproduction engineering methods of tomorrow. A corollary of the development offundamental research is that so-called practical research becomesnecessary.

Assuming engineering research to include all subjects related to oil and gasproduction on which knowledge is being increased through experimentation andthrough analyses of data obtained from both the laboratory and the field, areview of the work of 1932 shows that the fundamental concepts of at leastthree major problems have become better understood-bottom-hole pressures, solubility of gas in oil, and fluid movement-and that the established data onthe relationships of oil and gas have been applied to obtain more efficient andmore economic production of both.

Engineers no longer are concerned primarily with the initial development ofdevices for obtaining the pressures at the bottom of wells. Advancement in thetechnique of obtaining reliable pressure readings in wells has been rapid. Oneof the first public suggestions regarding apparatus for obtaining preciseinformation at the bottom of oil wells was made before the Petroleum Divisionof the A.I.M.E. in 1928. Even during the early development stages in EastTexas, reservoir pressures were estimated from well-head observations. Soon, however, a number of proved devices and methods were available, and todaybottom-hole pressures in many fields are being recorded and studied as anessential part of the production programs.

The research now turns to interpretations of data, obtained with these devices, in terms of reservoir energy and to the development of methods whereby the oiland gas will be withdrawn in accordance with rational and equitable programsbased on oil-gas-energy relationships.

The term "bottom-hole pressures" should not be interpreted asindicating the full scope of all research on this problem.
Coring in the Oklahoma City Field
Authors: Brauchli R.W.
Published: June 2014

The author has made a statistical analysis of the relations between recoveryand length of cores, diameters of cores and of drill pipe, and cost of coringunder different contractual conditions. The data are presented in tabularform.

The length of the core appears to playa minor part in the percentage recovered, with a tendency to lower percentages with increased core length; approximately50 per cent of the length cored is normally recovered if the cores are morethan 2 in. in diameter.

The diameter of the core has a more pronounced influence on the recovery; 13/8-in. cores average 29.1 per cent, 2 1/8-in. core 53.4 per cent and 3 1/8-in.cores with 6 5/8-in. drill pipe 68.5 per cent. Where 37S-in. cores were takenwith smaller diameter drill pipe, i.e., 4Y2-in. drill pipe in 8 1/4-in. hole, the recovery dropped to 49.8 per cent, indicating that the more rigid drillpipe favors good core recovery, a conclusion also borne out by the resultsobtained in using large drill pipe for smaller diameter cores.

Surprisingly good recoveries were obtained from both the Johnson and Simpsonsands; shale, limestone and dolomite each gave less than averagerecoveries.

No serious fishing jobs resulted from coring operations. Attention is called tothe need of a core drill which will make it possible to drill 3 full-sized holewhile coring, and thus reduce the cost of cores.

Data pertaining to core drilling should be consistently recorded, such as, diameter of drill pipe and collar, diameter of core, recovery, size of cutterheads, type of core-barrel, coring time, speeds of rotation and of pumps, weight on core-barrel, etc.
Properties of Hydrocarbon Mixtures as Related to Production Problems
Authors: Lewis W.K.
Published: June 2014

During the last decade the petroleum refinery engineer has made greatprogress in achieving a better understanding of the physical behavior ofhydrocarbon mixtures, with particular reference to theirpressure-temperature-volume relationships, the mechanism of the evaporation ofliquids, the condensation of vapors, including the changes in composition, andthe heat effects accompanying them. With the new insight into the mechanism ofmovement of oil and gas through the formations in which they occur, achieved bythe production engineer, it is clear that the latter will need to utilize inthe solution of his own problems much of the information outlined above. It isthe purpose of this paper to outline the portions of that information that seemmost certain to prove of importance in production work.

Properties of pure hydrocarbons

While it is true that petroleum always consists of highly complex mixtures of hydrocarbons, none the less understanding of the behavior of the mixture mustbe based upon a knowledge of the properties of the pure components. However, inview of the tremendous number of hydrocarbons existing in petroleum, thedetermination and formulation of the properties of all of them would seem adiscouraging task. The difficulty of the situation is increased by theundoubted facts that the overwhelming majority of chemical individuals inpetroleum have never been isolated as pure compounds, none of their physicalproperties have been determined and even their chemical constitution isunknown. The situation would be hopeless were it not for the fact that certainextraordinary correlations of important properties of various hydrocarbons havebeen discovered which make it possible to predict those properties for a givenchemical individual on the basis of a very limited characterization of it.
Recent Changes in Reservoir Pressure Conditions in the East Texas Field
Authors: Nye G.L. , Reistle C.E.
Published: June 2014

The East Texas field is in" Smith, Rusk, Gregg, Upshur and Cherokeecounties, Texas. The discovery well was completed Sept. 8, 1930, near theeastern limit of the field. Within less than one year the new field became thedominant factor in the world production of crude oil. On Aug. 16, 1931, elevenmonths after completion of the discovery well, there were 1644 wells in thefield, and the average daily production was 584,475 bbl. Since that time thenumber of wells has increased to 8195 on Oct. 1, 1933, and the field hasproduced 385,979,691 bbl. of oil.

The geology of the East Texas field has been discussed by Lahee, Levorsen, Minor and Hanna and others, and it will not be discussed in detail here. Thefield is a structure of the monocline type on the westward dipping homo clinebetween the Sabine uplift and the East Texas geosyncline. Production isobtained from the Woodbine group, which has been truncated and then sealed bythe Austin chalk, which rests unconformably upon it. The oil-saturated part ofthe sand lies between a sub-sea depth of 3050 ft. on the east side of thefield, where the W oodbine sand stops and the Austin chalk rests directly uponolder formations, and a sub-sea depth of 3320 ft., which was the average depthof the water table in the sand at the time the field was discovered.

The field is about 40 miles long and has an.average width of approximately 47~miles. The area within the proven limits of the field is close to 116,580 acresand the normal Woodbine water underlies nearly 62,000 acres on the western sideof the field at the present time.

The field is unusual in several respects:the tremendous size of thereservoir system and the quantity of oil in place;the large area of theoil and water contact, which makes water movement possible into the oil-bearingpart of the structure;the absence of free gas within the main producingsand of the field.
Electrical Coring; a Method of Determining Bottom-hole Data by Electrical Measurements
Authors: Schlumberger C. , Schlumberger M. , Leonardon E.G.
Published: June 2014

Since the beginning of the year 1928 the senior authors and their associates have applied a series of procedures which makes possible the detailed study in situ of the formations traversed by a drill hole before the casing has been landed. They have given the name "electrical coring" to the ensemble of these processes, which now replace in a large measure the mechanical coring performed by the drillers, and permit the gathering of bottom-hole data hitherto unobtainable.

Three years have elapsed since the technique and interpretation of these measurements emerged from the experimental stage and entered the field of industrial application on a large scale. The total length of drill holes so far surveyed by the authors and their associates, all over the world, amounts to several millions of feet. Practical and strongly built equipment has been evolved, which permits the examination in a short time of an open hole several thousand feet long.

No comprehensive paper has yet been published discussing the essential principles of the processes applied and bringing into evidence their economic interest. This is the object of the present paper.' Numerous examples of field work performed under varied geological conditions are given, constituting a concrete illustration of the services rendered by the new methods.

The study in situ of the formations penetrated by a drill hole is based on the measurement of a given physical factor or parameter associated with these formations. Generally the measurements are made systematically along the whole length of the open hole. The physical factors or parameters which are now utilized by us to this end are:the resistivities of the rocks;their porosity;their electrical anisotropy;their temperature;the resistivity of the muds.
Some Factors Affecting the Viscosity of Rotary Muds
Authors: Burke W.H.
Published: June 2014

Deeper drilling, resulting in greater circulating distance and pressure, hasdirected attention to the advantages of the study of properties and control ofrotary muds, which until recently have not had much consideration. Onefundamental property of muds is viscosity, and viscosity is influenced by thequantity and character of colloidal material and can be controlled by chemicaltreatment.

Colloidal Matter of Rotary Muds

Two types of colloids are found in muds; thehydrophobic and the hydrophilic. Hydrophobic colloids do not associateintimately with water and are sensitive to small quantities of electrolytes.Hydrophilic colloids associate intimately with water, but are not so sensitiveto electrolytes. The colloidal particles of rotary muds are derived from clay.In clay the particles may range in size from submicroscopic to macroscopic; a substance is a clay if the greater proportionof the particles are within the size limits prescribed for clay. The largerparticles are inert and have no effect on the viscosity of normal hydrophobiccolloidal muds.

There are two theories accounting for the colloidalproperties of claywater suspensions:the physical theory, that clay inwater is a coarse colloidal suspension, andAshley's theory, that clay is agranular material with a colloidal gel surrounding the crystalline grains.

Themost important colloidal substances known to exist in clays besides the clayparticles are:colloidal silica,colloidal alumina,colloidal ferric hydroxide,colloidalsilicates, andcolloidal organic matter.

Plasticity, a peculiar property of clay-watersuspensions, is due to the colloidal particles. It is commonly (although notwith strict accuracy) measured in terms of viscosity, and depends upon theamount and the state of flocculation of the colloidal matter present in thesuspension.
Fundamentals of Casing-joint Design and Field Application
Authors: Graham James B. , Smith Earle E.
Published: June 2014

The value of all minerals produced in the United States for the years 1930 to 1932 averaged $3,460,000,000 annually, according to Bureau of Mines reports.Of this amount, approximately $1,280,000,000 represents nonmetallic substances, such as petroleum, gas, sulfur and salt produced as fluids. Thus, about 37 per cent ofthe country's mineral wealth is procured through wells drilled in the earth, which require casing to keep them open throughout their life.

Deep well drilling has increased greatly in the last few years. Several stringsof casing have been set deeper than 9000 ft.-one, a string of 7 5/8. O.D.casing, 10,301 ft. long, run in a well drilled by the Gulf Production Co. inWest Texas, holds the record up to this time. These are longer strings thanwere contemplated when the American Petroleum Institute Specifications wereadopted 10 years ago, therefore it is necessary to consider whether the presentjoint standards are adequate for such strings, or for even longer strings thatmay be called for in the future. Petroleum engineers are asking: Is there apossibility that stronger joints can be designed without going to stronger andmore costly steels than offered in present specifications? Without sacrificingtoo greatly the tensile properties of the joint, can its design be changed toallow more clearance in the open hole below the next larger string of casing, and thus avoid costly underreaming? What can manufacturersoffer for drilling through heaving shale?

Fundamentals of the Problem

During the last few years considerable study has been given to casing jointsand their limitations, and since attention must be given to this subject bythose who will be required to drill deeper holes, it is timely to review thefundamentals of the problem.
Determination of Surface Tension and Specific Gravity of Crude Oil under Reservoir Conditions
Authors: Jones D.T.
Published: June 2014

In view of the importance of the application of scientific principles to theproduction of oil from the reservoir, the Production Staff of the Anglo IranianOil Co. (late Anglo-Persian Oil Co.) has been engaged for some years on anintensive program of research on the physical properties of crude oil. Problemsinvolving the retention of crude oil in capillaries and fine fissures demandedfor their solution a knowledge of the surface tension and specific gravity ofthe crude under reservoir conditions, and it is the purpose of this paper todescribe briefly the methods adopted for the determination of these properties, and to present the more important results. A detailed article was published involume 1 of the World Congress Proceedings (1933).

Surface-tension observations on crude oil regassed at high pressures withnatural gases have been made in the past by Beecher and Parkhurst and Swartz, but up to the time of the investigations in Iran no one seems to have carriedout experiments with gas-saturated crude direct from the reservoir and kept atits original pressure. Results obtained in this manner are obviously of greaterpractical value for solving problems connected with the reservoir.

Method of Measurement

No apparatus for the measurements, under the pressure conditions involved, wasavailable, and a suitable instrument had to be designed and constructed in theFields workshops. Careful consideration of the matter led to the adoption of amethod for measuring the surface tension which did not involve a knowledge ofthe specific gravity of the oils under the working conditions: the main reasonfor this being that up to that time no accurate determination of the specificgravity had been made under these conditions.
Investigations on the Recovery of Oil from Sandstones by Gas Drive
Authors: Hassler Gerald L. , Rice Raymond R. , Leeman Erwin H.
Published: June 2014

In the past few years a great deal of precise information has been obtainedabout the relation of natural gas to oil production. The improvement of ourunderstanding has been of great value, both in prolonging the life of wells andin providing a much needed technical background for the legal problem ofproration. But there are two principal aspects of the problem of production. Itis necessary to consider not only the energy available, in the form ofcompressed and dissolved gas and in the pressure of driving water, but also thetenacity with which the sandstone holds the oil. The amount of oil that eachsand condition will produce under given conditions of gas content should bedetermined. Hitherto the effect of the sand have been judged by a study of theflow of each well coupled with a procedure for extrapolating the productioncurve; but, as is well known to evaluation engineers, such production curvesare subject to changes that are not well understood, and often are affected byoutside disturbances.

On the whole, the concept of "potential production" is vagueprincipally because the influence of the sand in production is not known beyondthe simple ideas of porosity and permeability. The permeability is a quantitythat has only inference value where mixtures of gas and oil or of gas, oil andwater are present.

Excellent studies of the production of oil from reservoir packed withunconsolidated sand are available, but there studies treat largely ofsmall-scale analogies to a producing field, and the conclusions to he derivedfrom them are necessarily of a qualitative character because it is not known inwhat way these miniature oil fields resemble large ones.
Water-flooding in the Mid-Continent
Authors: Fancher George H. , Barnes Kenneth B.
Published: June 2014

With the advent of water-flooding into active commercial usage in half adozen areas in the Mid-Continent, the process passes the experimental stage andjoins other methods and processes now in use which have been found suitable inone oil field or another in securing a more profitable production than hasexisted heretofore. The use of the air-gas lift, acidization, pressuremaintenance and repressuring have presented their problems in economics andengineering during their introduction and extended application. When a newfield is discovered or attention is turned to an old producing area in whichthese methods have not been considered, it is to be expected that theseproblems again arise. While some information i; available as to the resultsobtained by water-flooding in a few localities in the Mid-Continent, theextrapolation of the sand data on which the results are based, for evengeneralized use in other areas and fields in the region, is hazardous. It isprecarious to assume that the same physical condition will obtain in a sandover more than small, special areas.

This paper is concerned with a brief presentation of such data as are availableto the authors on existing operations, a survey of the region and extent towhich application of the method seems most likely to be made, an estimation ofthe crude reserve existing for such operations, suggestions as to theimportance of core analysis in guarding against uncontrolled floods. and itsusefulness in predicting ultimate recoveries, and comment on some of theeconomic phases involved. These subjects, as concerned with water-flooding inthe East (notably Bradford, Pennsylvania), have been discussed in detail in theliterature and are generally well known. Especially is this true of discussionsof the mechanical equipment and various lease layouts and development patternsfor water-flooding.
Chemical Methods for Shutting Off Water in Oil and Gas Wells
Authors: Kennedy H.T.
Published: June 2014

The fact that intrusion of water into oil wells can be prevented by treatingthe sand adjacent to the well seems to have been only recently recognized. Swan1 mentions the process of solidifying naphthalene in strata. R. Van A. Millsrecommends the use of materials such as sodium silicate and sodium carbonate, which react with oil-field water to form solid plugging agents.

When a well is drilled in a new field the oil sands are found essentiallydevoid of water (Fig. 1). Unless a completely impermeable break exists over wide areas in the field, no water is found above the lower limit of theoil zone and no oil is found below the upper limit of the water zone. Afterconsiderable oil has been taken from the well, however, it is almost universalexperience that water intrusion occurs. This intrusion may be of two kinds. Thewater may follow a path parallel to the bedding planes of the producingformation through loose streaks in the pay sand, as shown in Fig. 2, or thewater level of the field may rise and enter the well by coning (Fig. 3). Waterentering from the side is called "edge water," and that coming in fromthe bottom is called "bottom water."
Experiments on Flow of Fluids through Sands
Authors: Plummer F.B. , Woodward J.S.
Published: June 2014

The measurement of the rate of flow of liquids through sands dates back to1856, when H. d' Arcy, a French physicist, carried out his classic experimentson the flow of water through sand layers. The earliest recorded data onrelationships of pressure to flow of fluids through porous rocks in thiscountry are those of Newell in 1885. The first comprehensive studies of flowwere made in 1898 by King, who measured the rate of flow of water and airthrough consolidated and unconsolidated sands and published the results. From1900 to 1920 there appears to have been little interest in permeability.

In 1920 the increase in demand for oil led the U. S. Bureau of Mines to begin aseries of experiments to determine subsurface relationships of oil and waterand the characteristics of their flow. Mills studied the relationship of flowof liquids to texture and structure of the sands, and Melcher in 1925 made aquantitative study of effect of changes in pressure on rate of flow of crudeoil through Oklahoma oil sands. Since 1930 the importance of flow measurementsto production of oil and gas has been emphasized by a large number of excellentinvestigations. Among these the works of Fettke, Barb, Cloud., Nutting, Botset, Nevin, Tickell, Fancher, Lewis and Barnes, Moore, Schilthuis and Hurst, andWyckoff, Botset and Muskat have contributed much to our knowledge of thetechnique of permeability measurements and to the laws of liquid and gas flowthrough porous sands. The application of their work has led to theestablishment of laboratories for measuring the permeability and porosity ofoil sands by most of the large companies. All the investigations, except thoseof Wyckoff, Botset and Muskat, and Moore, Schilthuis and Hurst deal with linearflow; that is, flow in a more or less straight line through a givencrosssectional area of sand.
An Equilibrium Theory of Proration
Authors: Pogue Joseph E.
Published: June 2014

Any mechanism, either natural or artificial, for regulating the functioningof a given unit in the general economy must operate toward the maintenance ofequilibrium if it is to survive. The petroleum industry, concerned as it iswith the production of a natural resource of specialized character, issurrounded not only by the economic factors common to other industries but byan extra set of unique elements centering about the fugitive character of crudepetroleum under conditions of competitive development. The term equilibrium, therefore, so far as the oil business is concerned, involves a combination ofeconomic and physical factors: the first set having to do with supply, demand, costs, profit margins, purchasing power, and the like; and the second, withunderground pressures in oil pools, efficient rates of extraction, and allother aspects of engineering that may be summarized by the familiar term"conservation." The two categories, in fact, are not as clearly dividedas the foregoing statement would imply, for in practice it will be found thatthe economic and physical aspects have a pervasive interaction andinterrelationship.

If the development of the petroleum industry in the United States isexamined from its inception in 1859 down to the present, it will be found that, beginning about 11 years ago, a new mechanism for regulating the production ofcrude petroleum made its appearance. Prior to this recent period, theproduction of this raw material was determined by competitive forces operatingwithout outside restraints. At present the output of crude oil is subjected tosupervision by regulatory bodies in most of the oil-producing states, whichimpose upon the operators certain conditions having to do with the manner andrates of production. Thus, in the space of a decade, the mechanism forproducing crude oil has changed from an automatic to a designed procedurecalled proration. And in its short history this method has been marked by arapid evolution in its nature and incidence, with progressive changes stillunder way.

T.P. 904
The Wilmington Oil Field
Authors: Bartosh E.J.
Published: June 2014

In the brief period from November 1936 to September 1937, the Wilmington oilfield developed far beyond all expectations. Decline in some wells appears veryrapid, but it is too early to draw definite conclusions, as the majority ofwells are maintaining very large and steady output. Heavy curtailment in thecentral area, which has developed the largest wells, makes it impossible toarrive at a satisfactory estimate of decline.

The field is producing oil from the Repetto (lower Pliocene) and Puente (upperMiocene) formations, which are of the same age as formations producing atTorrance, EI Segundo, del Rey or the marginal fields of the Los Angeles Basin.All of these fields are underlain by schist. The Long Beach field, northeast of Wilmington, is productive throughout 3000 ft. of Repetto-Pliocene series andalso approximately 3000 ft. of Miocene formations, whereas at Wilmington only 700 to 800 ft. of Repetto and 2500 ft. of Miocene formations contain oil andgas.

This paper gives a brief summary of the history and development of the field toSept. 15, 1937, showing the subsurface conditions as they exist with the fieldonly partly developed.

History of Development

The Wilmington oil field, 20 miles due south of Los Angeles, adjacent to LosAngeles harbor and about midway between the cities of San Pedro and Long Beach(Fig. 7), was producing oil as early as 1932 and only came into prominence as amajor oil field of Southern California in the fall of 1936, when the GeneralPetroleum Corporation of California completed Terminal well No.1 from the upperMiocene, at a depth of 3625 ft., for a daily production of 1500 bbl., 20?gravity A.P.L, thereby establishing discovery of the Terminal zone.