Particulate straining in carbonate proxy


Publications

  1. Particulate straining in carbonate proxy>
    . The effect of vuggy porosity on straining in porous media (SPE-194201-PA). SPE Journal. .
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    Abstract — A formation damage experimental study is conducted on synthetic homogeneous and vuggy core. Glass beads of 1.0 mm are sintered to form a uniform core with a porosity of 42% and finer sized glass beads (25 and 100 microns) are used as the infiltrate. Glass beads are used as the matrix and infiltrate to reduce surface forces and the flow is gravity dominated. Dissolvable inclusions are added during the sintering process to create vugs in the core. Pore size to vug size ratio is 1/100. The injected particle sizes are chosen such that straining is the dominant trapping mechanism during the flow experiment. Infiltrate particles are injected at different flow configurations and the resultant porosity, permeability, and effluent volume are measured. The results can be summarized as: vugs get up to 32% smaller due to flow for infiltrate while the maximum change in porosity is observed at the bottom end of the core, vug shape changes to a more smooth and rounded surface, and particles go deeper (8 mm more) into the formation when vugs are present causing damage deeper inside the formation.

  2. Particulate straining in carbonate proxy>
    . Replicating carbonaceous vug in synthetic porous media. MethodX. .
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    Abstract — This paper presents an alternative method of creating vuggy glass-bead core proxies, which can be used to investigate the effects of pore-scale features on carbonate petrophysical properties. Carbonates are complex rocks having a widespread variation in pore type, size, distribution, and porosity. With this method we can control vug shape, size, and position. Homogeneous glass bead core proxies are sintered using 1.0 mm diameter glass beads in a muffle furnace. Vugs are 3D–printed in plastic and used to make a mold in Play-Doh®; which is cast in gypsum cement and used as a placeholder during the sintering process. The gypsum vug dissolves during acid flood, leaving an empty space inside the glass matrix. Computed tomography (CT) scans are made of the acid washed vug space and compared to the 3D model.