Productivity Index and

problems
Sohail Nawab
Lecturer
Institute of Petroleum and Natural Gas Engineering
Mehran UET, Jamshoro
sohail.nawab@faculty.muet.edu.pk
Productivity Index

 The productivity index is a measure of the ability of the well to produce.

OR
 It is a measure of the well potential and is a commonly measured well
property.

Mathematically defined as OR
 The productivity index is the ratio of the total liquid flow rate to the pressure
drawdown.
OR
 A mathematical means of expressing the ability of a reservoir to deliver
fluids to the wellbore. The PI is usually stated as the volume delivered per psi
of drawdown at the sandface

 ASLO KNOWN AS GILBERT IPR

  For single phase fluids and water wells.
 OR, For a water-free oil production, the productivity index is given by:

𝑄𝑜 𝑄𝑜
Uncontrolled variables ? J= =
PR − Pwf ∆𝑃
Controlled variables ?
 where 𝑄𝑜 = oil flow rate, STB/day And how, why they are
controlled?
 J = productivity index, STB/day/psi
 𝑃𝑅 = volumetric average drainage area pressure (static pressure)
Relationship between Pwf and Q

 Inversely proportional ,
 Explain ?

 Different choke sizes (Q in control)

 64/64 : 100% choke is open
 48/64
 32/64 : 50% Choke is open
 16/64
 0/64
 Example oil inflow performance.
PR
At this point
Q is zero

At this point
Pwf is zero
 The PI is a function of:
 the fluids, ???
 the rock ???
 and the geometry of the reservoir and well.

 It can be measured by a multi-rate well test – assuming that each rate step
achieves near pseudo steady state.

 Defined by the symbol J or PI.

 Oilfield units are bpd/psi or bbl/D/psi
 For a gas well, there is no straight line and therefore no PI.

 In fact, the oil inflow relationship is only valid above the bubble point
 Assumes
 constant viscosity and
 formation volume factor with pressure.
Example gas inflow performance.
Determine PR , Pwf ,and P𝑑
Procedure

 The productivity index is generally measured during a production test on

the well.
 The well is shut-in until the static reservoir pressure is reached.
 The well is then allowed to produce at a constant flow rate of Q and a
stabilized bottom-hole flow pressure of 𝑃𝑤𝑓
 Since a stabilized pressure at surface does not necessarily indicate a
stabilized 𝑃𝑤𝑓 ,the bottom- hole flowing pressure should be recorded
continuously from the time the well is to flow.
 The productivity index is then calculated from Equation.
PI during flow regimes

 It is important to note that the productivity index is a valid measure of the

well productivity potential only if the well is flowing at pseudosteadystate
conditions.
 Therefore, in order to accurately measure the productivity index of a well, it
is essential that the well is allowed to flow at a constant flow rate for a
sufficient amount of time to reach the pseudosteady-state.

 The figure indicates that during the transient flow period, the calculated
values of the productivity index will vary depending upon the time at which
the measurements of 𝑃𝑤𝑓 are made.
PI during flow regimes (Cont.:)
 The productivity index can be numerically calculated by recognizing that
J must be defined in terms of semisteady-state flow conditions.

0.00708kh(PR − Pwf )
QO =
𝑟
μo Bo [ln 𝑒 − 0.75 + s]
𝑟𝑤
 The above equation is combined with :

𝑄𝑜
J= General PI
PR − Pwf Or
 We get Pseudosteady
0.00708kh
J= 𝑟
μo Bo [ln 𝑟 𝑒 −0.75+s]
𝑤
where
 J = productivity index, STB/day/psi
 K o = effective permeability of the oil, md
 s = skin factor
 h = thickness, ft
specific productivity index (JS )

 A comparison of productivity indices of different wells in the same reservoir

should also indicate some of the wells might have experienced unusual
difficulties or damage during completion.
 Since the productivity indices may vary from well to well because of the
variation in thickness of the reservoir, it is helpful to normalize the indices by
dividing each by the thickness of the well. This is defined as the specific
productivity index Js,

𝑄𝑜 𝑄𝑜
JS = =
h(PR − Pwf ) ℎ∆𝑃
Problem1:
 A productivity test was conducted on a well. The test results indicate that
the well is capable of producing at a stabilized flow rate of 110 STB/day
and a bottom-hole flowing pressure of 900 psi. After shutting the well for 24
hours, the bottom-hole pressure reached a static value of 1,300 psi.
 Calculate:
 Productivity index
 AOF
 Specific Productivity Index where h is 25ft
Why, we use J
 Oil flow rate at a bottom-hole flowing pressure of 600 psi which is
 Wellbore flowing pressure required to produce 250 STB/day calculated while
testing ?
 Establish the IPR for this well.
Problem 2:

 Calculate Productivity index of a Well-1, if following reservoir and rock

parameters are given:
 K =0.12mD
 h =70ft
 μo =2.5
 Bo = 1.25
 re =2 ft
 rw =0.25ft
 S = -2