Low Carbon Foot-Print Reservoir Stimulation Technologies for Improved Oil Recovery

Summary Global efforts have been exerted since the 1960s to explore the best technologies for effective enhanced oil recovery (EOR), including thermal, chemical, and gas flooding methods. Yet the adoption and field implementation of these conventional methods is limited. The limitation arises from the fact that those technologies are expensive and mandate substantial modifications in both injection and producing facilities. In this work, we discuss unconventional improved oil recovery (UIOR) methods that can be implemented in existing waterflooding projects. These technologies include ultrasonic treatment, reservoir electric stimulation, pressure pulse injection, seismic stimulation, and plasma pulse. The main objective is to review the proven best practices and draw examples from ongoing projects. It is also to look at the new horizon for the best feasible solution and provide the most practical option for deploying UIOR technologies in the field. The ultrasonic treatment targets mainly near-wellbore regions to increase well production rates and decrease water cut. The electric stimulation technology can cover a radius of up to 2–3 km to reduce oil viscosity and remove the clogs in the pore throats to improve oil recovery. The technology is tested in USA and Canada and showed oil recovery enhancements from sandstone reservoirs by applying electric current on pairs of largely spaced wells. The pressure pulse assisted power waves promote greater depth of penetration for the injected fluid to mobilize the stranded oil. The technology has been successfully applied in different patterns of a waterflooding project in eastern Alberta to enhance oil production. The seismic stimulation relies on harnessing low frequency elastic waves either from injection or abandoned wells for increasing oil recovery within a radius of up to 1.4 miles. It has been observed to significantly increase oil production in different formations including carbonates, sandstones, dolomite, and shales. The Plasma Pulse technology uses a high energy plasma source to reduce oil viscosity, and the associated acoustic waves also help in reducing surface tension and increasing oil mobility. This technology is tested widely in Europe and USA to show positive results. Each of the identified UIOR technologies would result in a lower greenhouse emission and almost no consumption of chemicals. These methods should be selectively screened by taking into consideration the respective technology limitations and uncertainties associated with different reservoir fluids and formation types. The synergy between such technologies could also mitigate some of the individual limitations and enlarge their applicability envelope for eco-friendly and cost-effective improved oil recovery applications.