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Raising a new Generation of Leaders

Reservoir Rock Properties

PET 313
SURFACE KINECTICS
 LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Having worked through this subject, students should be able to:
• Draw a sketch demonstrating the result of interfacial tension between oil,
water and a solid, and locate the contact angle and define its values for
wetting and non-wetting phases..
• Express the capillary pressure Pc as two equations, one in terms of
interfacial tension, contact angle and pore radius, and the other in terms
of height and density of fluids
• Define the free water level.
• Draw the Pc or height vs. saturation capillary pressure curve and identify
significant features.

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SURFACE KINETICS
 Ideas discussed so far assume ONLY one fluid present in the pore spaces
 Reservoir rocks contain two or more phases and other issues need to be
considered.
 Multiple phases introduce the concept of:
– Wettability
– Capillary Pressure
– Relative Permeability

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 BRIEF DEFINITION OF TERMS
• WETTABILITY: defined as the tendency of one fluid to spread on
or adhere to a solid surface in the presence of other immiscible
fluids.
• The tendency of a liquid to spread over the surface of a solid is an
indication of the wetting characteristics of the liquid for the solid
• This spreading tendency can be expressed more conveniently by
measuring the angle of contact at the liquid-solid surface. This angle,
which is always measured through the liquid to the solid, is called
the contact angle.

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 SURFACE AND INTERFACIAL TENSION
• In dealing with multiphase systems, it is necessary to consider the
effect of the forces at the interface when two immiscible fluids are in
contact.
• When these two fluids are liquid and gas, the term surface tension is
used to describe the forces acting on the interface
• When the interface is between two liquids, the acting forces are
called interfacial tension.

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 SURFACE TENSION
• Surface free energy exists on all surfaces between states of matter and between
immiscible fluids
• Surface tension results from molecular forces that cause the surface of a liquid
to assume smallest possible size.
• The equilibrium in force between two dissimilar fluids is disrupted at the
interface

Oil-Water Boundary

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 SURFACE TENSION
• Surface or Interfacial tension deforms the outer
surface of immiscible liquids to produce
droplets.
• If the two liquids are on a surface, the IFT
deforms the liquids to produce a contact angle.

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 WETTABILITY
• A wetting phase is one which spreads over the solid and preferentially wets the
solid.
• The contact angle approaches zero and will always be less than 90o.

A non-wetting
phase has little
affinity for the
surface

The contact
angle will be
greater than
90o.
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WETTABILITY
• The composition of the surface affects the interfacial tension.

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WETTING ON RESERVOIR ROCKS
Water droplets on silica grains and clays

Non wetting
Wetting

Clays
Silica

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 Adhesion tension
• Difference between solid water and solid oil interfacial tension.
• The surface energy that
Causes molecular attraction
Between molecules of unlike
substances

At  sw  wo  wo Cos wo

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CAPILLARY RISE IN TUBE
Net force upwards  2rwo Cos
Interface is at equilibrium
Net force downwards  w gh  ogh  r 2  w  o  ghr 2

Capillary Pressure
Is the pressure difference across an
interface
2rwoCos  gh w  o  r 2

2Cos
Pc    w  o  gh
r
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 DISTRIBUTION OF CAPILLARIES
• Free water level is
the level with zero
capillary pressure
• Capillary rise is
also a function of
capillary radius
• Porous media consist of a range of
pore sizes (capillaries) which result in a
transition zone from 100% water to the
residual water saturation

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DISTRIBUTION OF CAPILLARIES

Transition zone

Irreducible water
saturation

100% saturation
above FWL
Oil water contact,OWC
Free Water level, FWL
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 CAPILLARY PRESSURE IN ROCK
• The shape of capillary pressure curve depends on nature of rock
• Rock is more than a series of different size tubes.
• It is a complex network of interconnected pores

• The height at which wetting liquid will stand above free water level is directly
proportional to capillary pressure which is related to size and size distribution
of pores.
• It is also proportional to the IFT and contact angle
• Inversely proportional to the pore radius and fluid density difference

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 FLUID DISTRIBUTION IN RESERVOIR ROCKS
• Water is retained by capillary forces as hydrocarbons accumulate in
productive reservoirs.
• The water is referred to as connate or interstitial water and in water
wet rocks it coats the rock surfaces and occupies the smallest pores,
whereas hydrocarbon occupy the centre of the larger pores
• The magnitude of the water saturation retained is proportional to the
capillary pressure which is controlled by the rock fluid system

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FLUID DISTRIBUTION IN RESERVOIR ROCKS
Rock fluid property Wettability
Rock/Fluid property

2Cos
Sw Pc 
r

Rock property
Permeability
Porosity

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 FLUID DISTRIBUTION IN RESERVOIR ROCKS
• Water wet, coarse grained sand and oolitic and vuggy
carbonates with large pores have low capillary pressure..
• Silty, fine grained sands have high capillary pressure and
water saturation.
• Water saturation reduces with increased height above the
hydrocarbon water contact.
• The base of the 100% water sat’n limit is termed the water
table.
• The non identifiable level, the free water level is the level of
zero capillary pressure.

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Fluid Distribution in Reservoir Rocks

Transition zone

Irreducible water
saturation
100% saturation
above FWL

Oil water contact,OWC

Free Water level, FWL

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 PARAMETERS AFFECTING CAPILLARY PRESSURE

• Rock wettability affects Pc.

• Oil wet rocks have reduced
transition zones
• Lower IFT reduces transition
zone
• High IFT extends transition zone

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 SATURATION HISTORY
• Drainage saturation
 Drainage of the wetting phase
 Represents saturation before fluid production
 Level of saturation dictated by capillary pressure.
• Imbibition saturation
 Results from increase in wetting phase and expulsion of
hydrocarbons
 The situation resulting from natural or forced water drive
 The rising water table

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 SATURATION HISTORY
• Drainage effect
Small pore holding up
water above larger
pore

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SATURATION HISTORY
• Imbibition effect
Larger pore limiting
entry to water by
cap.pressure

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 DENSITY DIFFERENCE
• Large density (water-gas) difference
supresses transition zone.
• Small density differences (water-oil )
increases transition zone.

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 RELATIVE PERMEABILITY
• Relative permeability provides an extension of Darcy’s Law to the
presence of more than a single fluid within the pore space.
A DP qo
Oil mo
qw
Water
L
mw
kk ro A dP kk rw A dP
qo  qw 
mo dl m w dl
kro,krw - relative permeability k - absolute permeability
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RELATIVE PERMEABILITY
• Permeability to a particular phase is reduced when a second or third phase is
present
Relative Permeability =
phase permeability when more than one phase is present
permeability to that phase alone
• Relative permeability is normally reported as a fraction or percentage.
• It equals 1.0 or 100% when the phase is present on its own

ke
k e  k.k r kr 
k
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RELATIVE PERMEABILITY WATER -OIL SYSTEM
Residual oil saturation

Irreducibl water saturatione

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RELATIVE PERMEABILITY GAS -OIL SYSTEM

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Relative Permeability Curves for Water-wet and Oil -
wet systems
Shape of rel perm
curves characteristic of
wetting qualities.

Shape of rel. perm

curves different for
water wet and oil wet
phases.

Drainage curves
and imbibition curves
Relative Permeability Curves for Water-wet and Oil -
wet systems
kro’ -end point relative
permeability to oil
Relative perm. to oil in
presence of irreducible water

krw’ -end point relative

permeability to water
Relative perm. to water in
presence of irreducible oil
 RELATIVE PERMEABILITY
• Imbibition relative permeability
 Is displacement where the wetting phase saturation is
increasing.
 For example in a water flood of a water wet rock.
• Drainage relative permeability.
Is where the non wetting phase saturation is increasing
For example gas expulsion during primary depletion.
The condition existing in the transition zone at
discovery.

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