The effectiveness of bentonite clay as a wellbore plugging material often depends upon its penetration into near-borehole cracks associated with the drilling process. Here we present research aimed at understanding and maximizing the ability of clay materials to plug near-borehole cracks. A device was constructed such that the borehole is represented by a cylindrical chamber, and a...
Cement failure in subterrenean wells may compromize zonal isolation, cause corrosion of steel casing and, in the worst case scenarios result in a catostrphic event of well collapse. Portland cement and its blends are used for cementing the majority of subterrenean wells. Although they proved to provide a robust solution in many cases, they are not durable in aggresive environments with high...
All wells will one day need to be permanently plugged and abandoned (P&A'ed), and this last phase of a well's life cycle does not end – but has an eternal perspective. The North Sea is a mature petroleum region, and a heavy focus on P&A activities are planned here for the next decades. Research and technology development needs to keep up with this shift in activity level, and a strong focus...
Chemical enhanced oil recovery, specially surfactant-polymer flooding, involves porous media flows of simple and complex fluids through highly heterogeneous formations. We will discuss various models based on systems of partial differential equations which pose a variety of mathematical and computational challenges. We will start a dialogue on these challenges with some possible pathways to...
We report a study of heavy oil recovery by combined water flooding and electromagnetic (EM) heating at a frequency of 2.45 GHz used in domestic microwave ovens. A mathematical model describing this process was developed. Simplified model equations are solved analytically and the solution is presented in an integral form for the one dimensional case. Complete model is solved numerically using...
