Study of the Behavior of the Permeability Distribution Near the Wellbore in Cold Heavy-Oil Production with Sand

Abstract

The production rate of a well can be improved by application of CHOPS technology (cold heavy-oil production with sand). Rocks adjacent to a sand filter can be easily damaged by an in-situ sand arching band and migration of particles. The effectiveness of the method for improving oil well production depends on the internal blockage of the sand arch and formation of communication channels from sanding. In this study, in order to determine the size of the sanding mobile zone and the permeability distribution in the near-wellbore area, we have proposed a simulation model for macroscopic radial flows in a microporous medium. The results of this work, determining the behavior of the permeability distribution in the near-wellbore area, may be useful for devising strategy and parameter optimization when using cold heavy-oil production technology.