Abstract
Crude oils produced in many parts of the world contain asphaltene. Asphaltene plugging is a known cause of near-wellbore formation damage. The deposition phenomenon of asphaltene has been extensively investigated in homogenous porous media. However, we have not found any reported experimental work on asphaltene plugging in naturally or artificially fractured reservoirs. The main objective of this study is to investigate the effect of fracture characteristics on reduction of permeability by asphaltene deposition in carbonate formation. A single fracture system is made with different fractures characteristics such as porosity, permeability, and fracture angel using saw-cut limestone core samples with metallic plate. The fracture aperture was kept constant for most of the studied systems. The effect of flow rate, fracture angel, matrix to fracture permeability, asphaltene concentration and the state of stress on the retained permeability is presented. Different fracture angle orientations of 45°, 90°, and 180° relevant to the axis of the flow were investigated. A non-invasive imaging technique-Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) was employed to visualize changes on the surface of the fracture as a result of aspheltenic crude oil flow through the system.
Original language | English |
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Pages | 583-597 |
Number of pages | 15 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 2003 |
Event | SPE Asia Pacific Oil and Gas Conference and Exhibition - Jakarta, Indonesia Duration: Apr 15 2003 → Apr 17 2003 |
Other
Other | SPE Asia Pacific Oil and Gas Conference and Exhibition |
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Country/Territory | Indonesia |
City | Jakarta |
Period | 4/15/03 → 4/17/03 |
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Fuel Technology
- Energy Engineering and Power Technology