Brown fields developed by water flooding have a large number of flushed zones and the injected water tends to move along more permeable layers making, thus, oil sweeping process ineffective. Considering that water flooding is the most effective and economical method of secondary production, it is critical to ensure efficient operation of the formation pressure maintenance system. Production enhancement resulting from optimization of water flooding process is only possible if there is reliable and accurate information about the existing system of flow channels in a reservoir. This information will make it possible to improve water flooding system and will allow targeted application of enhanced oil recovery techniques to solve concrete problems. Besides, monitoring of the process of permeable channels’ formation will allow making necessary corrections in the field development plan as the field ages with time. Tracer survey is a direct method to study interwell space. It is a reliable tool to obtain information about the existing system of flow channels in a reservoir, their distribution and permeability, prevailing direction of fluid flows, and their contribution to water production. This information helps operators to determine permeability variations in zones under survey and to localize by-passed zones with potential residual oil reserves, and, eventually, to maximize water flooding capabilities and to enhance production.
References
1. Zakiev B.F., Issledovanie i obosnovanie metodov regulirovaniya rezhimov raboty skvazhin na pozdney stadii razrabotki neftyanogo mestorozhdeniya (Research and justification of methods for regulating well operation modes at the late stage of oil field development): thesis of candidate of technical science, Bugul'ma, 2015.
2. Kubarev P.N., Khisametdinov M.R., Kamyshnikov A.G. et al., Tracer studies of fluid flow processes following EOR applications (In Russ.), Neftyanoe khozyaystvo = Oil Industry, 2016, no. 7, pp. 33–35.
3. Antonov O.G., Nasybullin A.V., Lifant'ev A.V., Rakhmanov A.R., Use of tracer survey data for building a permanently updated geological and reservoir model (In Russ.), Neftyanoe khozyaystvo = Oil Industry, 2013, no. 7, pp. 40–42.
4. Trofimov A.S., Berdnikov S.V., Krivova N.R. et al., Generalization of indicator (tracer) studies in the fields of Western Siberia (In Russ.), Territoriya NEFTEGAZ, 2006, no. 12, pp. 72–77.
