Macroscopic Displacement

of Fluids in a Reservoir

Group 4

Contents

Introduction
Volumetric Displacement Efficiency
and Material Balance
Definition and Discussion of Mobility
Ratio

Introduction
Oil recovery in any displacement process
depends on the volume of reservoir
contacted by the injected fluid.
A quantitative measure of this contact is the
volumetric displacement (sweep) efficiency.
Volumetric Sweep
is
a
macroscopic
efficiency defined as the fraction of the
reservoir (PV) that has been invaded
(contacted) by the injected fluid.
Factors that control how much of a reservoir
will be contacted by a displacement process
include:

Introduction
1. Properties of the injected fluids
2. Properties of the displaced fluids
3. Properties and geological characteristics of
the reservoir rock.
4. The

geometry

of

the

production well pattern.

injection

and

EV and Material Balance

Volumetric Displacement is
often used to estimate oil
recovery
by
use
of
material balance concepts.
For
a
piston
like
displacement process that
reduces oil saturation to
its residual saturation, we
have
the
volumetric
(sweep) efficiency given
as:

Volumetric Sweep Efficiency

Volumetric Efficiency is also mathematically
expressed as the product of the areal sweep
efficiency and the vertical sweep efficiency.

Ev Ea El
For real reservoir, in which porosity, thickness,
and hydrocarbon saturation vary areally, Ea is
replaced by a pattern sweep efficiency, Ep.

Ev Ep El

Mobility Ratio
Mobility ratio is the ratio of the
mobility of the displacing fluid to that
of the displaced fluid.
Mobility of a fluid (mathematically) is
defined as the relative permeability of
the fluid divided by its
viscosity.
d
M

For a favourable displacement process,

the mobility ratio should be less than
or equal to 1.

Areal (Sweep) Efficiency EA

Areal Sweep Efficiency in an idealized
or model reservoir is area swept by
the injected fluid divided by the total
reservoir area.
Parameters affecting the Areal sweep
efficiency are:
1. Injection/Production well pattern.
2. Reservoir permeability heterogeneity.
3. Mobility Ratio
4. Relative importance of viscous and
gravity forces.

EA as a function of M and PV Injected

Vertical Sweep Efficiency El

Vertical sweep efficiency is defined as the
pore space invaded by the injected fluid
divided by the pore space enclosed in
layers behind the location of the leading
edge of the front.
The vertical sweep efficiency (E l) is
controlled by four factors:
1. Gravity Segregation
2. Mobility Ratio
3. Vertical
to
horizontal
permeability
variation.
4. Capillary forces.

THE END.