Feedback control of polymer flooding process considering geologic uncertainty

Cesar A. Mantilla, Sanjay Srinivasan

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingConference contribution

11 Scopus citations

Abstract

Polymer flooding is economically successful in reservoirs where the water flood mobility ratio is high, and/or the reservoir heterogeneity is adverse, because of the improved sweep resulting from mobility-controlled oil displacement. The performance of a polymer flood can be further improved if the process is dynamically controlled using updated reservoir models and by implementing a closed-loop production optimization scheme. However, the formulation of an optimal production strategy should be based on uncertain production forecasts resulting from uncertainty in for example spatial representation of reservoir heterogeneity, geologic scenarios, inaccurate modeling, scaling, and other factors. Assessing the uncertainty in reservoir modeling and transferring it to uncertainty in production forecasts is crucial for efficiently controlling the process. This paper presents a feedback control framework that (1) assesses uncertainty in reservoir modeling and production forecasts, (2) updates the prior uncertainty in reservoir models by integrating continuously monitored production data, and (3) formulates optimal injection/production rates for the updated reservoir models. This approach focuses on assessing uncertainty in reservoir modeling and production forecasts originated mainly by uncertain geologic scenarios and heterogeneity. This uncertainty is mapped in a metric space created by comparing multiple reservoir models and measuring differences in effective heterogeneity related to well connectivity and well responses characteristic of polymer flooding. Continuously monitored production data are used to refine the prior uncertainty scores using a Bayesian inversion algorithm. In contrast to classical approach of history matching by model perturbation, a model selection problem is implemented where highly probable reservoir models are selected to represent the posterior uncertainty in production forecasts. The model selection procedure yields the posterior uncertainty associated with the reservoir model. The production optimization problem is solved using the posterior models and using a proxy model of polymer flooding to rapidly evaluate the objective function and response surfaces to represent the relationship between well controls and an economic objective function. The value of the feedback control framework is demonstrated with a synthetic example of polymer flooding where the economic performance was maximized.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Title of host publicationSociety of Petroleum Engineers - SPE Reservoir Simulation Symposium 2011
PublisherSociety of Petroleum Engineers
Pages1152-1169
Number of pages18
ISBN (Print)9781617823862
DOIs
StatePublished - 2011

Publication series

NameSociety of Petroleum Engineers - SPE Reservoir Simulation Symposium 2011
Volume2

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • Modeling and Simulation
  • Geochemistry and Petrology
  • Energy Engineering and Power Technology
  • Geotechnical Engineering and Engineering Geology

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