Smart wells.

Intelligent wells

WHAT ARE SMART WELLS?

Wells equipped with permanent down
hole measurement equipment or
control valves, and especially with
both, are known as smart or
intelligent wells; see Fig.1.
The development of smart well
technology is effective when the
added functionality also adds value..

SMART WELLS.
Smart well technology involves down hole
measurement and control of well bore and
reservoir flow., and the installation of downhole inflow control valves, measurement
devices for pressure, temprature and flow
rates, & processing facilities such as hydro
cyclones in the well bore.
Smart wells allow us to go from passive
/reactive production scenario to active /
proactive production control .
Fig.

SMART WELLS.
This could be achieved through influencing the flow
behavior in the reservoir by imposing a pressure
profile along the well bore based on results of downhole measurements, and if necessary, continuously
updated dynamic reservoir models.
Full development of this potential requires a more
systematic analysis of reservoir and well bore flow in
terms of modern measurement and control theory.
Parallelly this should be combined with a revision of
computational tools whicn can rapidly design and
assess the value of smart well solutions.

Processes.
Daily production: On a scale of days to weeks, typical
input variables are well head choke settings , water
injection pressures, and oil, gas and water rates. Control
will often be driven by short time optimization objectives,
for example production targets or utilization rates.
Down hole measurement has the scope to improve
routine process control (well surveillance ) and
production measurement (flow allocation ), and down
hole control will allow for rapid reaction e.g. in case of
gas or water breakthrough.
Extensive modeling will usually not be required, although
some well bore flow and surface network simulation may
be necessary for accurate flow allocation.

Processes.

Reservoir management: On a long time scale (months to

years ) the production process consists of draining the
reservoir. In addition to the variables that control daily
production, input includes production engineering
activities such as water or gas shut off, re-completion,
stimulation or even side-tracking or in-fill drilling.
Measured out put involves production histories, well tests
and reservoir images obtained from time lapse seismic or
other sources. Control is usually focused on maximizing
the asset revenues, which often translates into maximizing
ultimate recovery and minimizing operating expenditure
(OPEX) .
It is in this feedback process that the major value part of
smart well technology can be expected, through reduced
well intervention costs, a reduced number of wells,
accelerated production and , in particular, enhanced
ultimate recovery. System modeling will often involve
extensive reservoir simulation, in addition to well bore and

Integration..
Smart well technology is seen to progress in the
development from vertical wells, to horizontal wells to multilateral wells. As with all these developments, the value of the
technology is not so much in the capability to drill and
complete the wells, impressive as these achievements may
be.
The value is in improved asset management through reduced
well intervention costs, accelerated production and, in
particular, increased ultimate recovery. Although the majority
of the value of smart wells can expected to be realized
during the production phase of the petroleum life cycle, the
decisions about the use of smart well technology have to be
made during the development stage, in particular during
field development planning(FDP)

Integration..
The key objective during FDP is maximization of
the net present value (NPV) within the constraints
of the project.. This invloves comparison of a
large number of development concepts, usually in
combination with a number of subsurface models
to reflect geological uncertainties. Early cooperation of reservoir engineers, supported by
the appropriate integrated software, is essential
to achieve the objective.
Another integration aspect concerns routing of
real-time data to modeling software. This involves
data acquisition , transmission and storage in a
data base , quality control., filtering and transfer
to modeling tools. Expertise in automated
production operations has until recently mainly

HARDWARE.
Some examples of the use of smart well
technology , it is appropriate to review the
present state of smart well hardware. The
recent rapid increase in smart well applications
to a large extent been driven by the rapid
development of down hole measurement and
control equipment.
Though costs are high, the reliability of the
equipment has improved dramatically over the
recent years, thus bringing more and more
economic applications within reach.

MEASUREMENT
Single point measurement of pressure and temperature: Also known
as permanent down hole gauges which were already in use long
before .
Recent advances include the development of electric resonating
diaphragms which have the advantage of having no electronics down
hole, and fiber grating technology which uses fibre optics for
measurement and data transmission to surface.
Distributed measurement of pressure and temperature: A recent
development is distributed temperature sensing (DTS). DTS employs
a thin glass fiber optical cable running along the entire length of the
well. It is possible to obtain a very accurate (0.1 degree) temperature
profile along the entire well.
An effective way of installation of DTS is through pumping it down
through a U-tubed inch control line that was run with the
completion. A next step in distributed sensing is likely to be
distributed pressure sensing(DPS)

MEASUREMENT
Flow rate and composition meters for down hole
use is still very much in a development stage.
Given the difficulties to obtain accurate threephase measurement at surface, the down hole
developments may take a while before they reach
the stage of routine application.
Other flow metering concepts under development
include fiber grating technology.
Compositional meters under development ,make
use of gamma ray absorption, capacitance or
conductance measurements and electromagnetic
helical resonators.

Reservoir imaging
In addition to direct or indirect down hole measurement of
primary production variables (pressure and flow rates), there
are several developments to obtain reservoir information
from other sources during the producing life of a field.
Most notably is the use of 4-dimensional (4D) seismic, also
known as time lapse seismic, to achieve a picture of fluid
front movements in the reservoir through observation of the
differences in seismic images over time.
Other developments, although much more in their infancy,
are reservoir drainage imaging with the aid of continuous
resistivity measurements in a well bore or between well
bores, or through listening to micro-seismicity (cracking)
around the well bore with down the hole geophones.

CONTROL
Down hole flow and pressure control can be achieved through the use of
interval control valves (ICVs). Fig 2 displays the basic concept :
A well is completed with a perforated casing and equipped with a tubing
extending below the production packer (also referred to as an extended
stinger). The well is divided in intervals with the aid of packers between
the tubing and the casing, and each interval is equipped with a
remotely controllable ICV.
All the major service companies can provide this functionality, and
various levels of sophistication and costs can be achieved. At the
high end of the scale are electrically controlled continuously variable
ICVs with pressure and temperature measurements and valve position
feedback at each level.
The typical cost of such a valve is in the order of 0.5 million $.Cheaper
solution employ valves that have a limited number of discrete valve
opening settings, or can just switch between open and closed(on/off
valves). In addition to electrically powered system, hydraulic systems
are available. Fig -2:
Well with three perforated intervals completed with interval control
valves (ICVs)

CURRENT APPLICATIONS.
Water or gas shut-off.
A first example of the use of smart well technology depicted in Fig. 3. A
reservoir with water drive and strong horizontal barriers is drained with a
single well with perforated intervals in each separate reservoir layer.
Water breakthrough in the layers does not occur simultaneously because
of permeability differences. Using a completion with an on-off ICV in each
interval, well segments can be shut off when water breakthrough, thus
reducing the amount of water to be processed at surface and preventing
early lift-die out of the well.
Detection of the water could be done, in theory, by using the result from
pressure and temperature sensors at the ICVs. In practice, it will probably
be sufficient to assess the effect of closure of each ICV on the water
production of the well at surface.
A similar solution could be used to shut off early gas influx. In terms of
measurement and control, this example relates to daily production
optimization, as well as to asset management. Fig. 3. Control of water
break-through in a layer reservoir.

COMMINGLED PRODUCTION
commingled production
second example is the use of ICVs to allow commingled production
from zones with different pressures, through choking the inflow from
the highest pressured zone with a continuously variable ICV, to avoid
cross-flow to the lowered pressured zone: see fig. 4. The alternative,
conventional, scenario would be to sequentially produce the two zones,
through shifting of a sleeve on wire line or coiled tubing, or through
work over and reperforation of the well. The major value of the smart
well solution is in this case the accelerated production, or, if production
is restricted at surface at surface, the maintaining of a constant
production plateau.
Additional benefits are the absence of a work over, which is particularly
attractive for sub-sea wells, and the possibility to produce commingled
in cases were pressures are equal, but where government regulation
require accounting of production from different zones. See Fig.4.
commingled production from two stacked reservoirs.

GAS DUMP FLOODING.

Fig 5. shows an example where a smart well is used
to connect an oil reservoir with weak gas cap drive to
an underlying gas reservoir with a higher pressure.
Pressure sensors and a continuously variable ICV at
the injection interval allow control of the gas dump
flood. In this example, a second well is used to drain
the oil. Alternatively, the oil could be produced
through the same well as used for the internal gas
injection, using a concentric or parallel dual
completion solution .
See Fig. 5. Pressure maintenance in an oil reservoir
through controlled gas dump flooding.

CONCLUSION.
In smart wells, the concept of using
measurement and control to optimize oil and gas
production is the primary objective
Hardware development is progressing in
multifarious directions, and in particular optical
techniques and wireless communication are
likely to increase in down hole measuring
capabilities in future.
The capabilities to use the equipment for
creation of value is Lagging behind the hardware
developments. The major steps to take place are:
the development of improved concepts for
smart reservoir management.
The handling of large amounts of data.

CONCLUSION.
Increased integration between
disciplines.
Further Research must focus on
concepts, and not on hardware.
Instead of focusing on what is
possible with smart well technology
today, to focus on what will be
possible as and when the hardware
becomes available.

NODAL ANALYSIS

Nodal Analysis
Systems analysis to analyze the performance of
systems composed of multiple interacting
components.
This approach introduced to oil and gas wells &
the concept, is referred to as Nodal Analysis
within the oil and gas industry.
The objective of systems analysis is to combine
the various components of the production
system for an individual well to estimate
production rates and optimize the components
of the production system.

Nodal Analysis
Necessity of examining flow through system
The flow of reservoir fluids from the subsurface reservoir
to the stock tank requires an understanding of the
principles of fluid flow through porous media and well
tubular.
As the fluid moves through the production system, there
will be pressure drop in the fluid flow. This pressure drop
will be the sum of the pressure drops through the various
components in the production system.
Because of the compressible / incompressible nature of
the fluids produced in oil and gas operations, the pressure
drop is dependent on the interaction between the various
components in the system.
This occurs because the pressure drop in a particular
component is not only dependent on the flow rate through
the component, but also on the average pressure that
exists in the component.

Nodal Analysis
As a result, the final design of a production system
requires an integrated approach, since the system
cannot be separated into a reservoir component or
a piping component and handled independently.
The amount of oil and gas produced from the
reservoir to the surface depends on the total
pressure drop in the production system, and the
pressure drop in the system depends on the
amount of fluid flowing through the system.
Consequently, the entire production system must
be analyzed as a unit or system.

Nodal Analysis
Depending on the terminal end of the
production system, there is a total
pressure drop from the reservoir pressure
to the surface, as depicted in Fig. 1.
If the separator represents the end of the
production system, the total pressure
drop in the system is the difference
between the average reservoir pressure
and the separator pressure:

Fig. 1Production System and associated pressure losses.

[2]

Nodal Analysis

..1)
This total pressure drop is then composed of individual pressure drops as the
reservoir fluid flows to the surface. These pressure drops occur as the fluid
flows through the reservoir and well completion, up the tubing, through the
wellhead equipment and choke, and through the surface flowlines to the
separator. Thus, the total pressure drop ofEq. 1can be represented byEq. 2.
.

(2)
These individual pressure drops can be divided into yet additional pressure
drops to account for restrictions, subsurface safety valves, tubing accessories,
etc.
Systems analysis is based on the concept of continuity. At any given point in
the production system, there is a particular pressure and production rate
associated with that point for a set of conditions. If there is any change in the
system, then there will be an associated change in pressure and/or production
rate at that same point.
This concept allows the production system to be divided at a point of interest
for evaluation of the two portions of the system. This evaluation determines
the conditions of continuity of pressure and production rate at the division
point, which is the estimated producing condition for the system being
evaluated.

Nodal Analysis
These individual pressure drops can be divided into yet additional
pressure drops to account for restrictions, subsurface safety valves,
tubing accessories, etc.
Systems analysis is based on the concept of continuity. At any given point
in the production system, there is a particular pressure and production
rate associated with that point for a set of conditions. If there is any
change in the system, then there will be an associated change in
pressure and/or production rate at that same point. This concept allows
the production system to be divided at a point of interest for evaluation
of the two portions of the system. This evaluation determines the
conditions of continuity of pressure and production rate at the division
point, which is the estimated producing condition for the system being
evaluated.
The approach provides the flexibility to divide the production system at
any point of interest within the system to evaluate a particular
component of the system. The most common division points are at the
wellhead or at the perforations, either at the reservoir sand face or inside
the wellbore. The terminal ends of the system will be the reservoir on the
upstream end of the system and the separator at the downstream end of
the system or the wellhead if a wellhead choke controls the well.

Nodal Analysis
The components upstream of the division point or node comprise
the inflow section of the system, while the components
downstream of the node represent the outflow section.
Once the system is divided into inflow and outflow sections,
relationships are written to describe the rate-pressure
relationship within each section. The flow rate through the system
is determined once the conditions of continuity are satisfied:
Flow into the division point equals flow out of the division point.
The pressure at the division point is the same in both inflow
and outflow sections of the system.
After the division point is selected, pressure relationships are
developed for the inflow and outflow sections of the system to
estimate the node pressure. The pressure in the inflow section of
the system is determined fromEq. 3, while the outflow section
pressure drop is determined fromEq. 4.

.(3)

.(4)

Nodal Analysis
The pressure drop in any component, and thus in either the inflow or
outflow section of the system, varies as a function of flow rate. As a
result, a series of flow rates is used to calculate node pressures for each
section of the system. Then, plots of node pressure vs. production rate
for the inflow section and the outflow section are made. The curve
representing the inflow section is called the inflow curve, while the
curve representing the outflow section is the outflow curve. The
intersection of the two curves provides the point of continuity required
by the systems analysis approach and indicates the anticipated
production rate and pressure for the system being analyzed.
Fig. 2depicts a systems graph for a sensitivity study of three different
combinations for outflow components labeled A, B, and C. For outflow
curve A, there is no intersection with the inflow performance curve.
Because there is no intersection, there is no continuity in the system
and the well will not be expected to flow with System A. The inflow and
outflow performance curves do intersect for System B. Thus this system
satisfies continuity, and the well will be expected to produce at a rate
and pressure indicated by the intersection of the inflow and outflow
curves. System C also has an intersection and would be expected to
produce at a higher rate and lower pressure than System B, as
indicated by the graph.

Nodal Analysis

Fig. 2Inflow and outflow

performance curves for systems
analysis

Nodal Analysis
The outflow curve for System C has a rapidly decreasing pressure at low flow
rates, reaches a minimum, and then begins to slowly increase with increasing
rate. This is typical for many outflow curves, which, in some cases, will yield
two intersection points with the inflow curve; however, the intersection at the
lower rate is not a stable solution and is meaningless. The proper intersection
of the inflow and outflow curves should be the intersection to the right of and
several pressure units higher than the minimum pressure on the outflow
curve.
The effect of changing any component of the system can be evaluated by
recalculating the node pressure for the new characteristics of the system. If a
change is made in an upstream component of the system, then the inflow
curve will change and the outflow curve will remain unchanged. On the other
hand, if a change in a downstream component is made, then the inflow curve
will remain the same and the outflow curve will change. Both the inflow and
outflow curves will be shifted if either of the fixed pressures in the system is
changed, which can occur when evaluating the effects of reservoir depletion
or considering different separator conditions or wellhead pressures.

Nodal Analysis
Systems analysis may be used for many purposes in analyzing and
designing producing oil and gas wells. The approach is suited for
evaluating both flowing wells and artificial lift applications. The
technique provides powerful insight in the design of an initial
completion. Even with limited data, various completion scenarios
can be evaluated to yield a qualitative estimate of expected well
behavior. This process is very useful in analyzing current producing
wells by identifying flow restrictions or opportunities to enhance
performance.
Typical applications include:
Estimation of flow rates
Selection of tubing size
Selection of flow line size
Selection of wellhead pressures and surface choke sizing
Estimation of the effects of reservoir pressure depletion

Nodal Analysis

Identification of flow restrictions

Other typical applications are:
Sizing subsurface safety valves
Evaluating perforation density
Gravel pack design
Artificial lift design
Optimizing injection gas-liquid ratio for gas lift
Evaluating the effects of lower wellhead pressures or installation
of compression
Evaluating well stimulation treatments
In addition, systems analysis can be used to evaluate multiwell
producing systems. Systems analysis is a very robust and flexible
method that can be used to design a well completion or improve
the performance of a producing well.

Nodal Analysis Examples

Systems analysis examples
Examples 1and2demonstrate the systems analysis approach.Example
1considers the effects of tubing size on gas well performance.Example
2demonstrates the effects of reservoir depletion on the performance of an oil
well.

Example 1
Analyze a gas well to select an appropriate tubing size. The gas well under
consideration is at 9,000 ft with a reservoir pressure of 4,000 psia.
SolutionThe first step in applying systems analysis is to select a node to
divide the system. Initially, the node is selected to be at the perforations to
isolate the inflow performance (reservoir behavior) from the flow behavior in the
tubing. For this particular case, the well is flowing at critical flow conditions, and,
consequently, the wellhead choke serves as a discontinuity in the system, which
allows the use of the wellhead pressure as the terminal point for the outflow
curve. Once the node point is selected, the pressure relations for the inflow and
outflow sections of the system are determined. For this example,Eqs.
5and6represent the inflow and outflow pressure relationships, respectively.

Nodal Analysis Examples

..(5)

.(6)
With these basic relationships, the flowing bottomhole pressure is
calculated for different production rates for both the inflow and
outflow sections.Table 1presents the inflow performance data
whileTable 2presents the calculated pressures for three different
tubing sizes using a constant wellhead pressure of 1,000 psia.
These data are used to construct the inflow and outflow curves
inFig. 3to estimate the production rates and pressures for each
tubing size.
The intersection of the outflow curves with the inflow curve
dictates the estimated point of continuity and the anticipated
producing conditions for the analyzed system. For this example,
the production rate increases with increasing tubing size, yielding
4,400 Mscf/D for 1.90-in. tubing, 4,850 Mscf/D for 2 3/8-in. tubing,
and 5,000 Mscf/D for 2 7/8-in. tubing.

Nodal Analysis Examples

Nodal Analysis Examples

1.

Nodal Analysis Examples

Fig. 3Systems analysis graph with a

bottomhole pressure node for Example

Nodal Analysis Examples

The same well could be analyzed with the wellhead as the system node. This allows the
effect of changes in wellhead pressure on well performance to be determined. The new
inflow and outflow pressure relationships are
.
.(7)
for the inflow curve, and
.
.(8)
for the outflow curve.Table 2shows the pressure-rate relationship for both the inflow
and outflow curves. Because the wellhead is the node in this analysis, the outflow curve
will be constant and equal to the anticipated flowing wellhead pressure.
The data are plotted inFig. 4and yield the same producing rates and flowing
bottomhole pressures that were determined when the flowing bottomhole pressure was
used as the node. This is as expected because the choice of a division point or node does
not affect the results for a given system. If the wellhead pressure is decreased to 250
psia, the producing rate will change also. This effect is readily determined by
constructing a constant wellhead pressure line of 250 psia on the graph and selecting the
points of intersection for each tubing size. As observed from the graph, the anticipated
production rates increase to 4,950 Mscf/D, 5,200 Mscf/D, and 5,300 Mscf/D for the three
tubing sizes by lowering the wellhead pressure.

1.

Nodal Analysis Examples

Fig. 4Systems analysis graph with a

wellhead pressure node for Example

Nodal Analysis Examples

Example 2
Investigate the effects of reservoir depletion of an oil well to estimate producing conditions and
consider the need for artificial lift. The well under consideration is producing with a constant
wellhead pressure of 250 psia and is controlled by the choke.
SolutionIsolate the reservoir performance to visualize the effect of changing reservoir pressure.
The flowing bottomhole pressure at mid-perforations is selected as the node and, as the well is
producing under critical flow conditions, the wellhead will serve as the terminal end of the system.
The inflow and outflow rate-pressure data is generated withEqs. 5and6.Table 3provides the
inflow performance data for average reservoir pressures of 2,500 psia and 2,000 psia.Table
4shows the tubing-intake data or outflow performance data for a flowing wellhead pressure of 250
psia with 2 7/8-in. tubing.Fig. 5plots this information, which is used to determine the producing
conditions at the two reservoir pressures. At an average reservoir pressure of 2,500 psia, the
curves intersect at an oil production rate of 380 STB/D and a flowing bottomhole pressure of 1,650
psia.
However, there is no intersection or point of continuity between the inflow and outflow
performance curves when the reservoir pressure declines to 2,000 psia. This indicates that the well
will not flow under these reservoir conditions. On the basis of this analysis, the effects of lowering
the wellhead pressure, reducing the tubing size, or installing artificial lift early in the life of the well
to enhance its deliverability should be investigated.

Nodal Analysis Examples

Nodal Analysis Examples

Nodal Analysis Examples

Fig. 5Systems analysis graph

with a bottomhole pressure node
for Example 2

Nomenclature
== Average reservoir pressure, psia
Ps= Separator pressure, psia
Pwf=bottom hole pressure, psia
Pwh=wellhead pressure, psia
p1=pressure loss in reservoir, psia
p2=pressure loss across completion,
psia
p3=Pressure loss in tubing, psia

Nomenclature
p4 =pressure loss in flow line , psia
pd =change in downstream pressure,
psia
pp =difference in pseudo pressures,
psia2/cp
pT = total pressure loss, psia
pu =change in upstream pressure, psia
p2 = difference in pressures squared,
psia2