Publications
153 results found
Magee C, Stevenson C, Ebmeier S, et al., 2018, Magma plumbing systems: a geophysical perspective, Journal of Petrology, Vol: 59, Pages: 1217-1251, ISSN: 0022-3530
Over the last few decades, significant advances in using geophysical techniques to image the structure of magma plumbing systems have enabled the identification of zones of melt accumulation, crystal mush development, and magma migration. Combining advanced geophysical observations with petrological and geochemical data has arguably revolutionised our understanding of, and afforded exciting new insights into, the development of entire magma plumbing systems. However, divisions between the scales and physical settings over which these geophysical, petrological, and geochemical methods are applied still remain. To characterise some of these differences and promote the benefits of further integration between these methodologies, we provide a review of geophysical techniques and discuss how they can be utilised to provide a structural context for and place physical limits on the chemical evolution of magma plumbing systems. For example, we examine how Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR), coupled with Global Positioning System (GPS) and Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) data, and seismicity may be used to track magma migration in near real-time. We also discuss how seismic imaging, gravimetry and electromagnetic data can identify contemporary melt zones, magma reservoirs and/or crystal mushes. These techniques complement seismic reflection data and rock magnetic analyses that delimit the structure and emplacement of ancient magma plumbing systems. For each of these techniques, with the addition of full-waveform inversion (FWI), the use of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) and the integration of geophysics with numerical modelling, we discuss potential future directions. We show that approaching problems concerning magma plumbing systems from an integrated petrological, geochemical, and geophysical perspective will undoubtedly yield important scientific advances, providing exciting future opportunities for the volcanological community.
Jacquemyn C, Jackson MD, Hampson GJ, et al., 2018, Geometry, spatial arrangement, and origin of carbonate grain-dominated, scour-fill and event-bed deposits: Late Jurassic Jubaila Formation and Arab-D Member, Saudi Arabia, Sedimentology, Vol: 65, Pages: 1043-1066, ISSN: 0037-0746
Outcrop analogues of the Late Jurassic lower Arab‐D reservoir zone in Saudi Arabia expose a succession of fining‐upward cycles deposited on a distal middle‐ramp to outer‐ramp setting. These cycles are interrupted by erosional scours that incise up to 1·8 m into underlying deposits and are infilled with intraclasts up to boulder size (1 m diameter). Scours of similar size and infill are not commonly observed on low‐angle carbonate ramps. Outcrops have been used to characterize and quantify facies‐body geometries and spatial relationships. The coarse grain size of scour‐fills indicates scouring and boulder transport by debris or hyperconcentrated density flows strengthened by offshore‐directed currents. Longitudinal and lateral flow transformation is invoked to produce the ‘pit and wing’ geometry of the scours. Scour pits and wings erode up to 1·8 m and 0·7 m deep, respectively, and are on average 50 m wide between wing tips. The flat bases of the scours and their lack of consistent aspect ratio indicate that erosion depth was limited by the presence of cemented firmgrounds in underlying cycles. Scours define slightly sinuous channels that are consistently oriented north–south, sub‐parallel to the inferred regional depositional strike of the ramp, suggesting that local palaeobathymetry was more complex than commonly assumed. Weak lateral clustering of some scours indicates that they were underfilled and reoccupied by later scour incision and infill. Rudstone scour‐fills required reworking of material from inner ramp by high‐energy, offshore‐directed flows, associated with storm action and the hydraulic gradient produced by coastal storm setup, to generate erosion and sustain transport of clasts that are generally associated with steeper slopes. Quantitative analysis indicates that these coarse‐grained units have limited potential for correlation between wells as laterally continuous, highly permeable reservoir flow units, but the
Debbabi Y, Jackson M, Hampson G, et al., 2018, Impact of the buoyancy–viscous force balance on two-phase flow in layered porous media., Transport in Porous Media, Vol: 2018, ISSN: 0169-3913
Motivated by geological carbon storage and hydrocarbon recovery, the effect of buoyancy and viscous forces on the displacement of one fluid by a second immiscible fluid, along parallel and dipping layers of contrasting permeability, is characterized using five independent dimensionless numbers and a dimensionless storage or recovery efficiency. Application of simple dimensionless models shows that increased longitudinal buoyancy effects increase storage efficiency by reducing the distance between the leading edges of the injected phase in each layer and decreasing the residual displaced phase saturation behind the leading edge of the displacing phase. Increased transverse buoyancy crossflow increases storage efficiency if it competes with permeability layering effects, but reduces storage efficiency otherwise. When both longitudinal and transverse buoyancy effects are varied simultaneously, a purely geometrical dip angle group defines whether changes in storage efficiency are dominated by changes in the longitudinal or transverse buoyancy effects. In the limit of buoyancy-segregated flow, we report an equivalent, unidimensional flow model which allows rapid prediction of storage efficiency. The model presented accounts for both dip and layering, thereby generalizing earlier work which accounted for each of these but not both together. We suggest that the predicted storage efficiency can be used to compare and rank geostatistical realizations, and complements earlier heterogeneity measures which are applicable in the viscous limit.
Debbabi Y, Stern D, Hampson GJ, et al., 2018, Use of dimensionless scaling groups to interpret reservoir simulation results, Journal of Petroleum Science and Engineering, Vol: 163, Pages: 270-282, ISSN: 1873-4715
In conducting studies to make reservoir management decisions, it is important to efficiently interpret results of reservoir simulations. An understanding of how and why predicted reservoir performance changes with model parameters guides evaluation of production strategies as well as exploration of the impact of uncertainty in reservoir description. The aim of this work is to demonstrate the use of dimensionless scaling groups to interpret and qualitatively predict simulation results of multiphase flow in subsurface reservoirs with a large number of wells. Dimensionless scaling groups which quantify the balance between the forces causing fluid flow were computed between well pairs to rationalize simulation results. The data required to partition the model according to injector-producer pairs and estimate the scaling groups were obtained within minutes using simplified, single-phase numerical experiments. We show that scaling groups can be used to classify multiphase flow behaviours observed over the field into a small set of flow regimes characterized by the combination of their dominant forces. Changes in fluid distribution and reservoir performance with the model parameters can be analyzed in terms of changes in the force balance, and qualitatively predicted using the scaling groups. Predictions made using scaling groups may guide, and thereby reduce the use of, time-consuming multiphase flow simulations to optimize field development plans, to improve the calibration of reservoir models to production data and interpreted subsurface heterogeneity, and to assess the impact of reservoir uncertainties on production.
MacAllister DJ, Jackson MD, Butler AP, et al., 2018, Remote detection of saline intrusion in a coastal aquifer using borehole measurements of self potential, Water Resources Research, Vol: 54, Pages: 1669-1687, ISSN: 0043-1397
Two years of self‐potential (SP) measurements were made in a monitoring borehole in the coastal UK Chalk aquifer. The borehole SP data showed a persistent gradient with depth, and temporal variations with a tidal power spectrum consistent with ocean tides. No gradient with depth was observed at a second coastal monitoring borehole ca. 1 km further inland, and no gradient or tidal power spectrum were observed at an inland site ca. 80 km from the coast. Numerical modeling suggests that the SP gradient recorded in the coastal monitoring borehole is dominated by the exclusion‐diffusion potential, which arises from the concentration gradient across a saline front in close proximity to, but not intersecting, the base of the borehole. No such saline front is present at the two other monitoring sites. Modeling further suggests that the ocean tidal SP response in the borehole, measured prior to breakthrough of saline water, is dominated by the exclusion‐diffusion potential across the saline front, and that the SP fluctuations are due to the tidal movement of the remote front. The electrokinetic potential, caused by changes in hydraulic head across the tide, is one order of magnitude too small to explain the observed SP data. The results suggest that in coastal aquifers, the exclusion‐diffusion potential plays a dominant role in borehole SP when a saline front is nearby. The SP gradient with depth indicates the close proximity of the saline front to the borehole and changes in SP at the borehole reflect changes in the location of the saline front. Thus, SP monitoring can be used to facilitate more proactive management of abstraction and saline intrusion in coastal aquifers.
Zhang Z, Geiger S, Rood M, et al., 2017, A Tracing Algorithm for Flow Diagnostics on Fully Unstructured Grids With Multipoint Flux Approximation, SPE Journal, Vol: 22, Pages: 1946-1962, ISSN: 1930-0220
Flow diagnostics is a common way to rank and cluster ensembles of reservoir models depending on their approximate dynamic behavior before beginning full-physics reservoir simulation. Traditionally, they have been performed on corner-point grids inherent to geocellular models. The rapid-reservoir-modeling (RRM) concept aims at fast and intuitive prototyping of geologically realistic reservoir models. In RRM, complex reservoir heterogeneities are modeled as discrete volumes bounded by surfaces that are sketched in real time. The resulting reservoir models are discretized by use of fully unstructured tetrahedral meshes where the grid conforms to the reservoir geometry, hence preserving the original geological structures that have been modeled.This paper presents a computationally efficient work flow for flow diagnostics on fully unstructured grids. The control-volume finite-element method (CVFEM) is used to solve the elliptic pressure equation. The flux field is a multipoint flux approximation (MPFA). A new tracing algorithm is developed on a reduced monotone acyclic graph for the hyperbolic transport equations of time of flight (TOF) and tracer distributions. An optimal reordering technique is used to deal with each control volume locally such that the hyperbolic equations can be computed in an efficient node-by-node manner. This reordering algorithm scales linearly with the number of unknowns.The results of these computations allow us to estimate swept-reservoir volumes, injector/producer pairs, well-allocation factors, flow capacity, storage capacity, and dynamic Lorenz coefficients, which all help approximate the dynamic reservoir behavior. The total central-processing-unit (CPU) time, including grid generation and flow diagnostics, is typically a few seconds for meshes with O (100,000) unknowns. Such fast calculations provide, for the first time, real-time feedback in the dynamic reservoir behavior while models are prototyped.
Salinas P, Pavlidis D, Xie Z, et al., 2017, A Discontinuous Control Volume Finite Element Method for Multi-Phase Flow in Heterogeneous Porous Media, Journal of Computational Physics, Vol: 352, Pages: 602-614, ISSN: 0021-9991
We present a new, high-order, control-volume-finite-element (CVFE) method for multiphase porous media flow with discontinuous 1st-order representation for pressure and discontinuous 2nd-order representation for velocity. The method has been implemented using unstructured tetrahedral meshes to discretize space. The method locally and globally conserves mass. However, unlike conventional CVFE formulations, the method presented here does not require the use of control volumes (CVs) that span the boundaries between domains with differing material properties. We demonstrate that the approach accurately preserves discontinuous saturation changes caused by permeability variations across such boundaries, allowing efficient simulation of flow in highly heterogeneous models. Moreover, accurate solutions are obtained at significantly lower computational cost than using conventional CVFE methods. We resolve a long-standing problem associated with the use of classical CVFE methods to model flow in highly heterogeneous porous media.
Debbabi Y, Jackson MD, Hampson GJ, et al., 2017, Capillary Heterogeneity Trapping and Crossflow in Layered Porous Media, Transport in Porous Media, Vol: 120, Pages: 183-206, ISSN: 0169-3913
We examine the effect of capillary and viscous forces on the displacement of one fluid by a second, immiscible fluid across and along parallel layers of contrasting porosity, and relative permeability, as well as previously explored contrasts in absolute permeability and capillary pressure. We consider displacements with wetting, intermediate-wetting and non-wetting injected phases. Flow is characterized using six independent dimensionless numbers and a dimensionless storage efficiency, which is numerically equivalent to the recovery efficiency. Results are directly applicable to geologic carbon storage and hydrocarbon production. We predict how the capillary–viscous force balance influences storage efficiency as a function of a small number of key dimensionless parameters, and provide a framework to support mechanistic interpretations of complex field or experimental data, and numerical model predictions, through the use of simple dimensionless models. When flow is directed across layers, we find that capillary heterogeneity traps the non-wetting phase, regardless of whether it is the injected or displaced phase. However, minimal trapping occurs when the injected phase is intermediate-wetting or when high-permeability layers contain a smaller moveable volume of fluid than low-permeability layers. A dimensionless capillary-to-viscous number defined using the layer thickness rather than the more commonly used system length is most relevant to predict capillary heterogeneity trapping. When flow is directed along layers, we show that, regardless of wettability, increasing capillary crossflow reduces the distance between the leading edges of the injected phase in each layer and increases storage efficiency. This may be counter-intuitive when the injected phase is non-wetting. Crossflow has a significant impact on storage efficiency only when high-permeability layers contain a smaller moveable volume of fluid than low-permeability layers. In that case, capillary he
Zhang J, Vinogradov J, Leinov E, et al., 2017, Streaming potential during drainage and imbibition, JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH-SOLID EARTH, Vol: 122, Pages: 4413-4435, ISSN: 2169-9313
Salinas P, Pavlidis D, Xie Z, et al., 2017, Improving the robustness of the control volume finite element method with application to multiphase porous media flow, International Journal for Numerical Methods in Fluids, Vol: 85, Pages: 235-246, ISSN: 1097-0363
Control volume finite element methods (CVFEMs) have been proposed to simulate flow in heterogeneous porous media because they are better able to capture complex geometries using unstructured meshes. However, producing good quality meshes in such models is nontrivial and may sometimes be impossible, especially when all or parts of the domains have very large aspect ratio. A novel CVFEM is proposed here that uses a control volume representation for pressure and yields significant improvements in the quality of the pressure matrix. The method is initially evaluated and then applied to a series of test cases using unstructured (triangular/tetrahedral) meshes, and numerical results are in good agreement with semianalytically obtained solutions. The convergence of the pressure matrix is then studied using complex, heterogeneous example problems. The results demonstrate that the new formulation yields a pressure matrix than can be solved efficiently even on highly distorted, tetrahedral meshes in models of heterogeneous porous media with large permeability contrasts. The new approach allows effective application of CVFEM in such models.
Debbabi Y, Jackson MD, Hampson GJ, et al., 2017, Viscous crossflow in layered porous media, Transport in Porous Media, Vol: 117, Pages: 281-309, ISSN: 1573-1634
We examine the effect of viscous forces on the displacement of one fluid by a second, immiscible fluid along parallel layers of contrasting porosity, absolute permeability and relative permeability. Flow is characterized using five dimensionless numbers and the dimensionless storage efficiency, so results are directly applicable, regardless of scale, to geologic carbon storage. The storage efficiency is numerically equivalent to the recovery efficiency, applicable to hydrocarbon production. We quantify the shock-front velocities at the leading edge of the displacing phase using asymptotic flow solutions obtained in the limits of no crossflow and equilibrium crossflow. The shock-front velocities can be used to identify a fast layer and a slow layer, although in some cases the shock-front velocities are identical even though the layers have contrasting properties. Three crossflow regimes are identified and defined with respect to the fast and slow shock-front mobility ratios, using both theoretical predictions and confirmation from numerical flow simulations. Previous studies have identified only two crossflow regimes. Contrasts in porosity and relative permeability exert a significant influence on contrasts in the shock-front velocities and on storage efficiency, in addition to previously examined contrasts in absolute permeability. Previous studies concluded that the maximum storage efficiency is obtained for unit permeability ratio; this is true only if there are no contrasts in porosity and relative permeability. The impact of crossflow on storage efficiency depends on the mobility ratio evaluated across the fast shock-front and on the time at which the efficiency is measured.
Maes J, Muggeridge AH, Jackson MD, et al., 2017, Scaling analysis of the In-Situ Upgrading of heavy oil and oil shale, FUEL, Vol: 195, Pages: 299-313, ISSN: 0016-2361
The In-Situ Upgrading (ISU) of heavy oil and oil shale is investigated. We develop a mathematical model for the process and identify the full set of dimensionless numbers describing the model. We demonstrate that for a model with nf fluid components (gas and oil), ns solid components and k chemical reactions, the model was represented by 9+k×(3+nf+ns-2)+8nf+2ns dimensionless numbers. We calculated a range of values for each dimensionless numbers from a literature study. Then, we perform a sensitivity analysis using Design of Experiments (DOE) and Response Surface Methodology (RSM) to identify the primary parameters controlling the production time and energy efficiency of the process. The Damköhler numbers, quantifying the ratio of chemical reaction rate to heat conduction rate for each reaction, are found to be the most important parameters of the study. They depend mostly on the activation energy of the reactions and of the heaters temperature. The reduced reaction enthalpies are also important parameters and should be evaluated accurately. We show that for the two test cases considered in this paper, the Damköhler numbers needed to be at least 10 for the process to be efficient. We demonstrate the existence of an optimal heater temperature for the process and obtain a correlation that can be used to estimate it using the minimum of the Damköhler numbers of all reactions.
Al Mahrouqi D, Vinogradov J, Jackson MD, 2016, Zeta potential of artificial and natural calcite in aqueous solution, Advances in Colloid and Interface Science, Vol: 240, Pages: 60-76, ISSN: 0001-8686
Despite the broad range of interest and applications, controls on calcite surface charge in aqueous solution, especiallyat conditions relevant to natural systems, remain poorly understood. The primary data source to understandcalcite surface charge comprises measurements of zeta potential. Here we collate and review previousmeasurements of zeta potential on natural and artificial calcite and carbonate as a resource for future studies,compare and contrast the results of these studies to determine key controls on zeta potential and where uncertaintiesremain, and report new measurements of zeta potential relevant to natural subsurface systems.The results show that the potential determining ions (PDIs) for the carbonate mineral surface are the lattice ionsCa2+, Mg2+ and CO32−. The zeta potential is controlled by the concentration-dependent adsorption of these ionswithin the Stern layer, primarily at the Outer Helmholtz Plane (OHP). Given this, the Iso-Electric Point (IEP) atwhich the zeta potential is zero should be expressed as pCa (or pMg). It should not be reported as pH, similarto most metal oxides.The pH does not directly control the zeta potential. Varying the pH whilst holding pCa constant yields constantzeta potential. The pH affects the zeta potential only by moderating the equilibrium pCa for a given CO2 partialpressure (pCO2). Experimental studies that appear to yield a systematic relationship between pH and zeta potentialare most likely observing the relationship between pCa and zeta potential, with pCa responding to the changein pH. New data presented here show a consistent linear relationship between equilibrium pH and equilibriumpCa or pMg irrespective of sample used or solution ionic strength. The surface charge of calcite is weakly dependenton pH, through protonation and deprotonation reactions that occur within a hydrolysis layer immediatelyadjacent to the mineral surface. The Point of Zero Charge (PZC) at which the surface charge is zero could b
Salinas P, Pavlidis D, xie Z, et al., 2016, Improving the convergence behaviour of a fixed-point-iteration solver for multiphase flow in porous media, International Journal for Numerical Methods in Fluids, Vol: 84, Pages: 466-476, ISSN: 1097-0363
A new method to admit large Courant numbers in the numerical simulation of multiphase flow is presented.The governing equations are discretised in time using an adaptive -method. However, the use of implicitdiscretisations does not guarantee convergence of the non-linear solver for large Courant numbers. In thiswork, a double-fixed point iteration method with backtracking is presented that improves both convergenceand convergence rate. Moreover, acceleration techniques are presented to yield a more robust non-linearsolver with increased effective convergence rate. The new method reduces the computational effort bystrengthening the coupling between saturation and velocity, obtaining an efficient backtracking parameter,using a modified version of Anderson’s acceleration and adding vanishing artificial diffusion.
MacAllister DJ, Jackson MD, Butler AP, et al., 2016, Tidal influence on self-potential measurements, Journal of Geophysical Research. Solid Earth, Vol: 121, Pages: 8432-8452, ISSN: 2169-9313
Long-term surface and borehole self-potential (SP) monitoring was conducted in the UK Chalk aquifer at two sites. The coastal site is ~1.7 km from the coast, and the inland site is ~80 km from the coast. At both sites, power spectral density analysis revealed that SP data contain the main ocean tidal periodic components. However, the principal lunar component (M2), the dominant ocean tidal component, was most significant at the coastal site. The M2 signal in surface-referenced SP data at the inland site was partly due to telluric currents caused by the geomagnetic ocean dynamo. Earth and/or atmospheric tides also contributed, as the SP power spectrum was not typical of a telluric electric field. The M2 component in borehole-referenced data at the inland site was below the significance level of the analysis method and was 2 orders of magnitude smaller than the M2 signal in borehole-referenced SP data at the coastal site. The tidal response of the SP data in the coastal borehole is, therefore, primarily driven by ocean tides. These cause changes in fluid pressure and chemical concentration gradients within the coastal aquifer, leading to time varying electrokinetic and exclusion-diffusion potentials. Borehole-referenced SP measurements could be used to characterize and monitor tidal processes in coastal aquifers such as the intrusion of seawater.
Mostaghimi P, Kamali F, Jackson MD, et al., 2016, Adaptive mesh optimization for simulation of immiscible viscous fingering, SPE Journal, Vol: 21, Pages: 2250-2259, ISSN: 1086-055X
Viscous fingering can be a major concern when waterflooding heavy-oil reservoirs. Most commercial reservoir simulators use low-order finite-volume/-difference methods on structured grids to resolve this phenomenon. However, this approach suffers from a significant numerical-dispersion error because of insufficient mesh resolution, which smears out some important features of the flow. We simulate immiscible incompressible two-phase displacements and propose the use of unstructured control-volume finite-element (CVFE) methods for capturing viscous fingering in porous media. Our approach uses anisotropic mesh adaptation where the mesh resolution is optimized on the basis of the evolving features of flow. The adaptive algorithm uses a metric tensor field dependent on solution-interpolation-error estimates to locally control the size and shape of elements in the metric. The mesh optimization generates an unstructured finer mesh in areas of the domain where flow properties change more quickly and a coarser mesh in other regions where properties do not vary so rapidly. We analyze the computational cost of mesh adaptivity on unstructured mesh and compare its results with those obtained by a commercial reservoir simulator on the basis of the finite-volume methods.
Jackson MD, Al-Mahrouqi D, Vinogradov J, 2016, Zeta potential in oil-water-carbonate systems and its impact on oil recovery during controlled salinity water-flooding, Scientific Reports, Vol: 6, ISSN: 2045-2322
Laboratory experiments and field trials have shown that oil recovery from carbonate reservoirs can be increased by modifying the brine composition injected during recovery in a process termed controlled salinity water-flooding (CSW). However, CSW remains poorly understood and there is no method to predict the optimum CSW composition. This work demonstrates for the first time that improved oil recovery (IOR) during CSW is strongly correlated to changes in zeta potential at both the mineral-water and oil-water interfaces. We report experiments in which IOR during CSW occurs only when the change in brine composition induces a repulsive electrostatic force between the oil-brine and mineral-brine interfaces. The polarity of the zeta potential at both interfaces must be determined when designing the optimum CSW composition. A new experimental method is presented that allows this. Results also show for the first time that the zeta potential at the oil-water interface may be positive at conditions relevant to carbonate reservoirs. A key challenge for any model of CSW is to explain why IOR is not always observed. Here we suggest that failures using the conventional (dilution) approach to CSW may have been caused by a positively charged oil-water interface that had not been identified.
Al-Mahrouqi, Vinogradov J, Jackson MD, 2016, Temperature-dependence of the zeta potential in intact natural carbonates, Geophysical Research Letters, Vol: 43, Pages: 11578-11587, ISSN: 1944-8007
The zeta potential is a measure of the electrical charge on mineral surfaces and is an important control on subsurface geophysical monitoring, adsorption of polar species in aquifers, and rock wettability. We report the first measurements of zeta potential in intact, water-saturated, natural carbonate samples at temperatures up to 120°C. The zeta potential is negative and decreases in magnitude with increasing temperature at low ionic strength (0.01 M NaCl, comparable to potable water) but is independent of temperature at high ionic strength (0.5 M NaCl, comparable to seawater). The equilibrium calcium concentration resulting from carbonate dissolution also increases with increasing temperature at low ionic strength but is independent of temperature at high ionic strength. The temperature dependence of the zeta potential is correlated with the temperature dependence of the equilibrium calcium concentration and shows a Nernstian linear relationship. Our findings are applicable to many subsurface carbonate rocks at elevated temperature.
Al Mahrouqi D, Vinogradov J, Jackson MD, 2016, Temperature dependence of the zeta potential in intact natural carbonates, GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH LETTERS, Vol: 43, Pages: 11578-11587, ISSN: 0094-8276
Jackson MD, Vinogradov J, Hamon G, et al., 2016, Evidence, mechanisms and improved understanding of controlled salinity waterflooding part 1: Sandstones, FUEL, Vol: 185, Pages: 772-793, ISSN: 0016-2361
Gomes JLMA, Pavlidis D, Salinas P, et al., 2016, A force-balanced control volume finite element method for multi-phase porous media flow modelling, International Journal for Numerical Methods in Fluids, Vol: 83, Pages: 431-445, ISSN: 1097-0363
A novel method for simulating multi-phase flow in porous media is presented. The approach is based on acontrol volume finite element mixed formulation and new force-balanced finite element pairs. The novelty ofthe method lies in: (a) permitting both continuous and discontinuous description of pressure and saturationbetween elements; (b) the use of arbitrarily high-order polynomial representation for pressure and velocityand (c) the use of high-order flux-limited methods in space and to time avoid introducing non-physicaloscillations while achieving high-order accuracy where and when possible. The model is initially validatedfor two-phase flow. Results are in good agreement with analytically obtained solutions and experimentalresults. The potential of this method is demonstrated by simulating flow in a realistic geometry composed ofhighly permeable meandering channels.
Adam A, Pavlidis D, Percival J, et al., 2016, Higher-order conservative interpolation between control-volume meshes: Application to advection and multiphase flow problems with dynamic mesh adaptivity, Journal of Computational Physics, Vol: 321, Pages: 512-531, ISSN: 1090-2716
A general, higher-order, conservative and bounded interpolation for the dynamic and adaptive meshing of control-volume fields dual to continuous and discontinuous finite element representations is presented. Existing techniques such as node-wise interpolation are not conservative and do not readily generalise to discontinuous fields, whilst conservative methods such as Grandy interpolation are often too diffusive. The new method uses control-volume Galerkin projection to interpolate between control-volume fields. Bounded solutions are ensured by using a post-interpolation diffusive correction. Example applications of the method to interface capturing during advection and also to the modelling of multiphase porous media flow are presented to demonstrate the generality and robustness of the approach.
Massart BYG, Jackson MD, Hampson GJ, et al., 2016, Effective flow properties of heterolithic, cross-bedded tidal sandstones: Part 1. Surface-based modeling, AAPG Bulletin, Vol: 100, Pages: 697-721, ISSN: 0149-1423
Tidal heterolithic sandstones are commonly characterized by millimeter- to centimeter-scale intercalations of mudstone and sandstone. Consequently, their effective flow properties are poorly predicted by (1) data that do not sample a representative volume or (2) models that fail to capture the complex three-dimensional architecture of sandstone and mudstone layers. We present a modeling approach in which surfaces are used to represent all geologic heterogeneities that control the spatial distribution of reservoir rock properties (surface-based modeling). The workflow uses template surfaces to represent heterogeneities classified by geometry instead of length scale. The topology of the template surfaces is described mathematically by a small number of geometric input parameters, and models are constructed stochastically. The methodology has been applied to generate generic, three-dimensional minimodels (9 m3 volume) of cross-bedded heterolithic sandstones representing trough and tabular cross-bedding with differing proportions of sandstone and mudstone, using conditioning data from two outcrop analogs from a tide-dominated deltaic deposit. The minimodels capture the cross-stratified architectures observed in outcrop and are suitable for flow simulation, allowing computation of effective permeability values for use in larger-scale models. We show that mudstone drapes in cross-bedded heterolithic sandstones significantly reduce effective permeability and also impart permeability anisotropy in the horizontal as well as vertical flow directions. The workflow can be used with subsurface data, supplemented by outcrop analog observations, to generate effective permeability values to be derived for use in larger-scale reservoir models. The methodology could be applied to the characterization and modeling of heterogeneities in other types of sandstone reservoirs.
Alroudhan A, Vinogradov J, Jackson MD, 2016, Zeta potential of intact natural limestone: Impact of potential-determining ions Ca, Mg and SO4, Colloids and Surfaces A - Physicochemical and Engineering Aspects, Vol: 493, Pages: 83-98, ISSN: 0927-7757
We report measurements of the zeta potential on intact limestone samples obtained using the streaming potential method (SPM), supplemented by the more ubiquitous electrophoretic mobility method (EPM). The effect of the potential-determining ions (PDI) Ca, Mg and SO4, and the total ionic strength controlled by NaCl concentration, is investigated over the range typical of natural brines. We find that the zeta potential varies identically and linearly with calcium and magnesium concentration expressed as pCa or pMg. The zeta potential also varies linearly with pSO4. The sensitivity of the zeta potential to PDI concentration, and the IEP expressed as pCa or pMg, both decrease with increasing NaCl concentration. We report considerably lower values of IEP than most previous studies, and the first observed IEP expressed as pMg. The sensitivity of the zeta potential to PDI concentration is lower when measured using the SPM compared to the EPM, owing to the differing location of the shear plane at which the zeta potential is defined. SPM measurements are more appropriate in natural porous samples because they reflect the mineral surfaces that predominantly interact with the adjacent fluids. We demonstrate that special cleaning procedures are required to return samples to a pristine zeta potential after exposure to PDIs. We apply our results to an engineering process: the use of modified injection brine composition to increase oil recovery from carbonate reservoirs. We find a correlation between an increasingly negative zeta potential and increased oil recovery.
Massart BYG, Jackson MD, Hampson GJ, et al., 2016, Effective flow properties of heterolithic, cross-bedded tidal sandstones: Part 2. Flow simulation, AAPG Bulletin, Vol: 100, Pages: 723-742, ISSN: 0149-1423
Tidal heterolithic sandstone reservoirs are heterogeneous at the sub-meter scale, due to the ubiquitous presence of intercalated sandstone and mudstone laminae. Core-plug permeability measurements fail to sample a representative volume of this heterogeneity. Here we investigate the impact of mudstone drape distribution on the effective permeability of heterolithic, cross-bedded tidal sandstones using three-dimensional (3D) surface-based “mini-models” that capture the geometry of cross-beds at an appropriate scale. The impact of seven geometric parameters has been determined: (1) mudstone fraction, (2) sandstone laminae thickness, (3) mudstone drape continuity, (4) toeset dip, (5) climb angle of foreset-toeset surfaces, (6) proportion of foresets to toesets, and (7) trough or tabular geometry of the cross-beds.We begin by identifying a representative elementary volume (REV) of 1 m3, confirming that the model volume of 9 m3 yields representative permeability values. Effective permeability decreases as the mudstone fraction increases, and is highly anisotropic: vertical permeability falls to c. 0.5% of the sandstone permeability at a mudstone fraction of 25%, while the horizontal permeability falls to c. 5% and c. 50% of the sandstone value in the dip (across mudstone drapes) and strike (parallel to mudstone drapes) directions, respectively. There is considerable spread around these values, because each parameter investigated can significantly impact effective permeability, with the impact depending upon the flow direction and mudstone fraction. The results yield improved estimates of effective permeability in heterolithic, cross-bedded sandstones, which can be used to populate reservoir-scale model grid blocks using estimates of mudstone fraction and geometrical parameters obtained from core and outcrop-analog data.
Abushaikha AS, Blunt MJ, Gosselin OR, et al., 2015, Interface control volume finite element method for modelling multi-phase fluid flow in highly heterogeneous and fractured reservoirs, JOURNAL OF COMPUTATIONAL PHYSICS, Vol: 298, Pages: 41-61, ISSN: 0021-9991
- Author Web Link
- Open Access Link
- Cite
- Citations: 32
Vinogradov J, Jackson MD, 2015, Zeta potential in intact natural sandstones at elevated temperatures, Geophysical Research Letters, Vol: 42, Pages: 6287-6294, ISSN: 1944-8007
We report measurements of the zeta potential of natural sandstones saturated with NaCl electrolytes of varying ionic strengths at temperatures up to 150°C. The zeta potential is always negative but decreases in magnitude with increasing temperature at low ionic strength (0.01 M) and is independent of temperature at high ionic strength (0.5 M). The pH also decreases with increasing temperature at low ionic strength but remains constant at high ionic strength. The temperature dependence of the zeta potential can be explained by the temperature dependence of the pH. Our findings are consistent with published models of the zeta potential, so long as the temperature dependence of the pH at low ionic strength is accounted for and can explain the hitherto contradictory results reported in previous studies.
Vinogradov J, Jackson MD, 2015, Zeta potential in intact natural sandstones at elevated temperatures, Geophysical Research Letters, ISSN: 1944-8007
Jackson MD, Hampson GJ, Road D, et al., 2015, Rapid reservoir modeling: Prototyping with an intuitive, Sketch-Based Interface, JPT, Journal of Petroleum Technology, Vol: 67, ISSN: 0149-2136
Constructing and refining complex reservoir models are challenging and time-consuming tasks that entail a high degree of uncertainty. Conventional modeling work flows have remained essentially unchanged for the past decade. Such work flows are poorly suited to rapid prototyping of a range of reservoir-model concepts, well trajectories, and development options and to testing of how these might affect reservoir behavior. A new reservoir-modeling and - simulation approach, termed rapid reservoir modeling (RRM), allows such prototyping and complements existing work flows.
Graham GH, Jackson MD, Hampson GJ, 2015, Three-dimensional modeling of clinoforms in shallow-marine reservoirs: Part 2. Impact on fluid flow and hydrocarbon recovery in fluvial-dominated deltaic reservoirs, AAPG Bulletin, Vol: 99, Pages: 1049-1080, ISSN: 0149-1423
Permeability contrasts associated with clinoforms have been identified as an important control on fluid flow and hydrocarbon recovery in fluvial-dominated deltaic parasequences. However, they are typically neglected in subsurface reservoir models or considered in isolation in reservoir simulation experiments because clinoforms are difficult to capture using current modeling tools. A suite of three-dimensional reservoir models constructed with a novel, stochastic, surface-based clinoform-modeling algorithm and outcrop analog data (Upper Cretaceous Ferron Sandstone Member, Utah) have been used here to quantify the impact of clinoforms on fluid flow in the context of (1) uncertainties in reservoir characterization, such as the presence of channelized fluvial sandbodies and the impact of bed-scale heterogeneity on vertical permeability, and (2) reservoir engineering decisions, including oil production rate.The proportion and distribution of barriers to flow along clinoforms exert the greatest influence on hydrocarbon recovery; equivalent models that neglect these barriers overpredict recovery by up to 35%. Continuity of channelized sandbodies that cut across clinoform tops and vertical permeability within distal delta-front facies influence sweep within clinothems bounded by barriers. Sweep efficiency is reduced when producing at higher rates over shorter periods, because oil is bypassed at the toe of each clinothem. Clinoforms are difficult to detect using production data, but our results indicate that they significantly influence hydrocarbon recovery and their impact is typically larger than that of other geologic heterogeneities regardless of reservoir engineering decisions. Clinoforms should therefore be included in models of fluvial-dominated deltaic reservoirs to accurately predict hydrocarbon recovery and drainage patterns.
This data is extracted from the Web of Science and reproduced under a licence from Thomson Reuters. You may not copy or re-distribute this data in whole or in part without the written consent of the Science business of Thomson Reuters.