bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Consolidating and Managing a Mature Portfolio
Authors: Morris R. L. , Lafitte F. 
Published: December 2007

Abstract
With a multitude of oil companies restructuring and consolidating operations and assets, the processes required to effectively manage a portfolio of mature, diverse assets also need reformulation. It is our vision that an Integrated Asset Management approach will enhance the knowledge of the life cycle of producing assets, from exploration through sale or abandonment. Identifying trends to capture value and determining optimal acquisition and divestment timing are essential ingredients in managing mature assets. Also of significant importance are the impact of operational and economic risk, the understanding of interrelationships and interdependence of groups of properties, and the enhancement of the selection process for long term projects and strategic initiatives. Computer visualization of a variety of economic and operational performance parameters, together with exploration and development plans, offers an improved methodology for proactive asset management. By embarking on construction of an Integrated Asset Management System a course is being set for the strategic value enhancement for one's portfolio.
Primary and Secondary Containment of Hazardous Substances in Cold Regions With HDPE Liner
Authors: Richards F. T. , Foster M. L. 
Published: December 2007

ABSTRACT
Manufacturers of products which compete with high density polyethylene (HDPE) liner for use in exposed primary and secondary containment of hazardous substances have criticized the use of HDPE in Arctic environments. The criticism has primarily focused on the point that HDPE should not be used in above ground, exposed installation where there are large annual temperature fluctuations. The main point of contention is that environmental stress cracking (ESC) will be produced in the HDPE liner by expansion and contraction caused by seasonal temperature changes in cold regions.
Dames & Moore has performed preliminary design and feasibility studies to select an impermeable containment media that could be installed in exposed pits and withstand environmental effects without degrading, tearing, cracking, or in any other way allowing contained media to leak. Our research showed that with proper design efforts and good quality control/quality assurance practices during manufacturing and liner installation that HDPE can provide continuous containment without degradation from environmental processes.
Conglomerate Identification and Mapping Leads to Development Success in a Mature Alaskan Field
Authors: O'Sullivan T. P. , Kiloh K. D. , Starzer M. R. , Trevena A. S. 
Published: December 2007

ABSTRACT
Lithology, porosity and water saturation were evaluated as part of a field-wide reinterpretation of log and core data for the Hemlock Reservoir, McArthur River Field, Cook Inlet, Alaska. To identify the conglomerates and sandstones which comprise this reservoir, a new method was developed for estimating the fraction of rock framework which is conglomerate. The method is based on the observation that, in this reservoir, the replacement of sand by nonporous pebbles results in poorer sorting and an overall decrease in porosity. Comparisons between core- and log-derived conglomerate estimates were used to calibrate and test the method.
The reservoir properties of conglomerates and sandstones in the Hemlock Formation differ significantly, and while depositional factors have most likely resulted in a heterogeneous distribution of conglomerates and sandstones, the core data are too sparse to resolve this distribution. A map of the log-derived conglomerate fraction is sufficiently controlled to provide detailed information on reservoir heterogeneities; trends on this map are consistent with depositional models for the Hemlock Formation. The conglomerate map was integrated into the waterflood management of the field; for wells from one platform this resulted in a greater than two fold increase in incremental oil production per dollar spent on reperforations.
Enhanced Oil Recovery of Ugnu Tar Sands of Alaska Using Electromagnetic Heating with Horizontal Wells
Authors: Islam M. R. , Wadadar S. S. , Bansal A. 
Published: December 2007

ABSTRACT
A non conventional enhanced oil recovery technique is proposed for recovering oil from an Alaskan tar sand reservoir. This technique involves the use of electromagnetic heating with horizontal wells along with water injection, gas injection or primary depletion. This technique eliminates one of the bigger technical problems with conventional steam injection in the North Slope area. The existence of a large permafrost region in North Slope reduces the effective heat that can be transmitted to a reservoir, even with insulated tubing. Applying the heat with a downhole device, such as electromagnetic heating is a much more efficient process than conventional thermal recovery techniques. The presence of horizontal well allows one to eliminate the problem of small heating radius and large area may be conducted even when the heating radius is small. Also, a horizontal well, particularly one located at the bottom of a thick sand with vertical permeability, allows gravity drainage of a much larger reservoir volume. This paper presents numerical simulation results of such a process for Alaskan tar sand reservoirs using a horizontal well simulator. Various options, such as gas injection, waterflooding, etc. are investigated along with electromagnetic heating. Numerical simulation results show oil recovery as high as 60% of the oil in place for tar sands. The recovery is even higher for heavy oil of moderate viscosity. Finally, a numerical run using steam-assisted gravity drainage is conducted for comparison. The new scheme presented in this paper showed much higher efficiency than the steam-assisted gravity drainage process.
The Use of Computers in the Undergraduate Petroleum Engineering Curriculum
Authors: Koederitz W. L. , Macon B. , Whitehead W. R. 
Published: December 2007

Abstract
Within less than a generation, dramatic changes in the computing needs of petroleum engineering graduates have occurred. Slide rule techniques gave way to hand calculators, which, in turn, has given way to solving problems using personal computers. The rapid change in technology has caught the academic community off guard, with some asking if the petroleum engineering curriculum prepares students for the advanced computing technology that is In use today. This paper addresses the problem and proposes an approach to computer use in undergraduate petroleum engineering curricula.
Differential Sticking Laboratory Tests Can Improve Mud Design
Authors: Bushnell-Watson Y. M. , Panesar S. S. 
Published: December 2007

ABSTRACT
A laboratory method of freeing differentially stuck pipe with shear has been used to rank different mud types. This highlights the effect of minor changes in mud chemistry and enables speciality additives such as lubricants to be assessed. The influence of mud type, mud circulating conditions and time of filtration on sticking tendency is also discussed.
Tests reported here were carried out at a pressure of 100 psi and ambient temperature. A new apparatus which more accurately simulates downhole conditions has now been constructed.
An Assessment of the Performance of Liner Hanger Bearings
Authors: Archer G. L. , Jacobs M. , Rabia H. 
Published: December 2007

ABSTRACT
Liner movement results in substantial improvements in cementing performance, principally by assisting mud displacement efficiencies. Rotation is more effective and safer than reciprocation. A number of plain (Astro) and taper roller bearings from different manufacturers were tested in a laboratory program. None of the bearings tested satisfied the original performance target of 24 hours life at a bearing load of 112,000 lbs and speed of rotation of 25 RPM. Taper roller bearings were found to give better performance than Astro bearings. One design of taper roller bearing performed sufficiently well to satisfy most cementing jobs and would be selected for future use. It was thought, however, that all the bearings tested could be improved by better sealing and structural design. Documented field applications of liner rotation are discussed and found to be consistent with the test results in general.
Drilling Fluid Formulation for Shallow Offshore Horizontal Well Applications
Authors: Polnaszek S. C. , Fraser L. J. 
Published: December 2007

ABSTRACT
The paper discusses the laboratory evaluation and field application of an unconventional drilling fluid system for drilling horizontally in an unconsolidated shallow gas sand. Laboratory work has suggested a mechanistic model which is consistent with field observations. Detailed formulation work addressed anticipated concerns identified for the project. Two case histories are described. Fluid formulations and operational performance are described in detail.
The Effect of Capillary Forces in Heterogeneous "Flow-Units": A Streamline Approach
Authors: Van Batenburg D. W. , Bruining J. , Bakken H. , Palmgren C. T. S. 
Published: December 2007

Abstract
Up to now much of the work on permeability heterogeneity has focussed on viscous flow ignoring the effect on capillary pressure. Small scale permeability variations, however, may lead to capillary trapping of a considerable amount of oil within for instance the crossbeds of channel sands.
Fractional Brownian motion (fractal) permeability fields have been generated to obtain heterogeneous permeability fields with a varying degree of smoothness. It appears that these are ideal fields to investigate the relation between capillary trapping and local variability. The fractal fields have been used as input in a probabilistic simulator in which capillary forces have been implemented.
From the simulations presented it has been concluded that effect of the capillary and viscous forces on the saturation distribution is related to the Hurst coefficient.
Capillary Imbibition and Gravity Segregation in Low IFT Systems
Authors: Schechter D. S. , Zhou Denqen , Orr F. M. 
Published: December 2007

ABSTRACT
The effect of reduced interfacial tension (IFT) on oil recovery by spontaneous imbibition and gravity segregation is investigated experimentally for a wide range of IFT’s in cores oriented vertically. The experimental results presented indicate that a crossover from capillary to gravity driven imbibition occurs. For cores with low permeability and high IFT between the wetting and nonwetting phases, capillarity initiates coun-tercurrent imbibition and oil is produced from all faces. For moderately low IFT’s and permeabilities above about 100 md, gravity segregation is the controlling mechanism. In this case, the rate of oil recovery may actually be greater for low IFT’s. Gravity induced imbibition is cocurrent (oil produced from the top face only), which helps prevent snap-off and entrapment and allows high total recoveries. In addition, data are presented that indicate that surface tension gradients arising from composition gradients can substantially increase or decrease the rate of imbibition depending on the direction of the surface tension gradient.
Three-Phase Relative Permeability of Intermediate-Wet Berea Sandstone
Authors: Oak M. J. 
Published: December 2007

AbstractThree-phase relative permeability data are required in reservoir studies of CO2 floods, steam floods or other enhanced gas drives in which three-phase flow occurs. This paper presents a laboratory method developed for direct measurement of three-phase relative permeabilities, which requires only a few extra tests in addition to the two-phase tests commonly performed. It also presents a new set of three-phase relative permeability data for an intermediate-wet Berea sandstone core. In the intermediate-wet rock studied, injection of gas did not reduce oil saturation below the residual oil saturation after waterflooding. This is in contrast with the results previously reported for strongly water-wet cases. The experimental three-phase relative permeabilities are compared with the values calculated from Stone’s correlation methods. The calculated values show significant differences from the experimental ones. It is suggested that three-phase relative permeabilities be verified by laboratory testing.
Making Change Work For Us
Authors: Wycoff Robert E. 
Published: December 2007

Society of Petroleum Engineers Annual Technical Conference, Convention Center, Dallas, Texas
Thank you. I'm very happy to join SPE's Technical Conference this afternoon to give my view of your meeting theme which is, of course, "Winds of Change — Impact on Energy."
It's well that we have four speakers here this afternoon because there's certainly no lack of keynoter material in that topic. Just follow your nose these days and you'll run into more change than you bargained for.
Joint Venture Opportunities in the USSR and Eastern Europe
Authors: Matzke Richard H. 
Published: December 2007

Abstract
While attempting to relate the theme of this year’s conference to my presentation - it occurred to me that the metaphor "Winds of Change" unfortunately didn’t come dose to describing the magnitude of the events that have taken place in Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union.
Perhaps use of greater natural phenomena might be more appropriate in this case -- say -- "Hurricanes of Change" or possibly "Earthquakes of Change".
Or -- how about the ultimate? -- the "Mother of All Changes!"
The Emerging Services Directive and Procurement in the Hydrocarbon Sector
Authors: Wells R. E. 
Published: December 2007

ABSTRACT
This paper describes the formulation of the European Community, how it works and the inpact on Procurement and Services in the Hydrocarbon Sector.
Procurenent activities and Contracting in the Upstrean business of companies involved in the exploitation and extraction of Hydrocarbons in the European Arena will be impacted by the introduction of regulatory controls inposed by three Directives entitled the "Utilities": –Supplies and Works.Planning for Projects, Purchasing Policies, Qualification of Bidders, issue of notices and statistics. Increase in Manpower and associated costs.–ServicesIntra Group Services, Partnering Agreements, Standards, Qualification, Central Product Classification, Buying from Third Countries.–RemediesSetting Aside, Dissuasive Payments, Suspension, Conciliation, Attestation.
All the above will determine changes to policies and procedures for evaluating and budgeting for Projects and Operational activities.
Miscible Displacements in a Heterogeneous Rock: Detailed Measurements and Accurate Predictive Simulation
Authors: Davies G. W. , Muggeridge A. H. , Jones A. D. W. 
Published: December 2007

Abstract
This paper describes comparisons between the prediction of high resolution simulation and the results of detailed laboratory measurements of miscible flow in a heterogeneous rock slab. The permeability distribution was characterised using minipermeametry and an X-ray radiography technique was developed to obtain quantitative concentration maps. Displacement experiments were conducted at four mobility ratios. Both stable and unstable flows were investigated, enabling the effects of physical dispersion and viscous fingering to be quantified. Excellent agreement was obtained between simulation and experiment without the use of history matching. The simulations predicted the development of individual viscous fingers as well as the correct effluent and recovery profiles. This work has validated characterization techniques and demonstrated our ability to simulate single phase flow in a heterogeneous rock. The experimental results also provide a set of data for use in bench-marking other simulation packages.
Impact of Recent Federal Tax and R&D Initiatives on Enhanced Oil Recovery
Authors: Brashear J. P. , Biglarbigi K. , Ray M. R. 
Published: December 2007

Abstract
The National Energy Strategy contains two major elements designed to increase oil production from known reservoirs in the contiguous United States: 1) a tax credit for specific investment and injectant costs for qualified enhanced oil recovery (EOR) projects; and 2) a highly focused, public-private cooperative R&D program. Both are currently being implemented by the Department of the Treasury and the Department of Energy, respectively. The present study estimates the potential reserve additions and impacts on public treasuries at oil prices between $22 and $34/Bbl. The new Federal tax credit, alone, could double current proved EOR reserves at oil prices in the $22/Bbl range and increase them by about one-third at prices in the $30/Bbl range. The effect of technology advances alone could also about double EOR reserves at these prices. The combination of technology advances and the tax incentive synergistically amplifies the effects on potential EOR reserves. The benefits of the tax credit come at some cost to the Federal treasury, but increase state revenues. Increased EOR activities due to the tax credit and technology advances could also increase economic activity and gross domestic product (GDP) and contribute to reductions in oil imports and the U.S. trade deficit.
Conditions for Generating Foam in Porous Media
Authors: Chou S. I. 
Published: December 2007

Abstract
The generation of foam in porous media remains a controversial issue. It has been reported that foam is formed only above a minimum flow rate (or capillary number), above a minimum pressure gradient, or below a critical capillary pressure. In this paper we investigated experimentally how these and other parameters affect the formation of N2 and CO2 foams in Berea sandstones.
We found that foam was readily formed by co-injecting gas and surfactant solution whenever the core was presaturated with surfactant, regardless of flow rate or pressure gradient In general, foam generation can be initiated by first creating regions of high surfactant saturation in situ and then draining those regions; the onset of foam generation coincided with the onset of drainage. Somewhat surprisingly, it was easier to generate a stronger foam than a weaker foam, and fewer pore volumes of injection were needed to form foam in a longer core than in a shorter core.
A consistent mechanism that emerges from these observations is that foam is formed by raising capillary pressure in a surfactant-saturated region. As gas enters such regions, individual lamellae are formed by snap-off in certain pores. These lamellae must be sufficiently stable to allow the local capillary pressure to increase in time, forcing gas to enter increasingly smaller pores and generate more lamellae. Presaturating the porous medium with surfactant ensures that stable lamellae are formed whenever snap-off occurs. In contrast, if continuous gas channels exist over sample-spanning distances, the injected gas preferentially flows through such channels, capillary pressure cannot rise significantly, and foam generation is delayed. Practical implications of these findings on applications of foam are discussed.
Numerical Simulation of Peace River Recovery Processes
Authors: Glandt C. A. , Malcolm J. D. 
Published: December 2007

Abstract
This paper reports on a new model which upgrades earlier history matches of Shell’s Peace River in-situ bitumen sands recovery process. The new model uses a four component oil phase description which includes high and low molecular weight components, carbon dioxide and methane. A mild thermal cracking reaction based on laboratory tests reduces bitumen viscosity to match produced fluid viscosity. A water-rock reaction which generates carbon dioxide is also used in the model.
Two Cartesian and one radial simulation prototypes of the reservoir are described. A 1/12th element of symmetry model of inner and outer wells of seven 7-spot patterns uses 59 ft [18 m] grid blocks and is adequate for modeling the steam drive. Another 1/6th element of symmetry model of a single 7-spot pattern using 29 ft [8.8 m] grid blocks is adequate for modeling soak processes. Both models require connection to a pseudo-aquifer beyond the patterns to represent historical performance. Details of the models and history match results are presented.
A radial model history matched to the extensive field data gathered from a high rate injectivity/productivity single well test and subsequent multiple soak cycles formed the initial basis for all models. Subsequent matching of average performance of seven 7-spot patterns (PRISP) with the 1/12th element of symmetry model indicated that reduced bitumen mobility was required. By adjusting Kv/Kh and the activation energy of the mild thermal cracking a good match with PRISP field data was obtained, while yielding and overall reasonable but a poor oil production match to the single well test.
History matching of the early production response of the Peace River Expansion Project (PREP) on a cluster by cluster basis has resulted in an improved understanding of significant process mechanisms at work during the soak cycles and subsequent pressure cycle steam drive. The numerical model was used to evaluate current operations at PREP. This evaluation showed that a low pressure continuous steamdrive was a viable alternative to the pressure cycling process. As a consequence of this work and additional operational benefits recognized, the project was converted to a continuous steam drive in October, 1990 after the completion of the first pressure cycle.
Performance Prediction for Finite-Conductivity Vertical Fractures
Authors: Azari M. , Soliman M. Y. , Wooden W. O. , Hunt J. L. 
Published: December 2007

Abstract
An analytic solution for finite-conductivity, vertically fractured wells is developed for both the constant-pressure and the constant-rate cases1,2. This solution includes linear skin on the fracture, wellbore and fracture storages, wellbore phase redistribution, and fracture-to-formation height ratio. The Laplace-space solution is direct, and no convolution is performed to include the skin, storage, and phase segregation effects.
This paper presents type curves and corresponding analysis techniques for constant-pressure declining rate cases. A unique asymptotic approach to pseudoradial flow is used to produce the solutions for the unbounded reservoirs. The type curves provide all possible flow regimes encountered in pressure transient testing of finite-conductivity, vertically fractured wells. Tabulated comparison between this analytic solution and the ones obtained with finite-difference simulator for both bounded and unbounded formations are also provided.
A Practical Approach for Analysis of a Pressure Transient Test from a Horizontal Well in a Gas Storage Reservoir
Authors: Zuber M. D. , Holditch S. A. , Deters J. C. , Lee W. J. 
Published: December 2007

ABSTRACT
A pressure transient test (injection/falloff test) was conducted on a horizontal well in a gas storage reservoir to obtain a reservoir description for injection and production analysis. In our analysis of the test data, we used currently available analytical solutions for a horizontal well in a closed, rectangular reservoir. We found that it was difficult to reach a high level of confidence in the reservoir description obtained from analysis of the test data using only analytical solutions because of uncertainties associated with identification of the various flow regimes. Therefore, we used a reservoir simulator to validate and improve the accuracy of the reservoir description derived from the analytical solutions. The improved reservoir description led to an accurate forecast of the horizontal well’s injectivity and productivity, further verifying the utility of this approach to test analysis and of the inherent value of the idealized analytical solutions.