The Use of Huff and Puff Method in a Single Horizontal Well in Gas Production from Marine Gas Hydrate Deposits in the Shenhu Area of the South China Sea

Abstract

The Use of Huff and Puff Method in a Single Horizontal Well in Gas Production from Marine Gas Hydrate Deposits in the Shenhu Area of the South China Sea Gang Li; Gang Li Key Laboratory of Renewable Energy and Gas Hydrate, Guangzhou Institute of Energy Conversion, CAS; Guangzhou Center for Gas Hydrate Research, CAS; Search for other works by this author on: This Site Google Scholar George J. Moridis; George J. Moridis Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory Search for other works by this author on: This Site Google Scholar Keni Zhang; Keni Zhang Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory Search for other works by this author on: This Site Google Scholar Xiao-sen Li Xiao-sen Li Key Laboratory of Renewable Energy and Gas Hydrate, Guangzhou Institute of Energy Conversion, CAS; Guangzhou Center for Gas Hydrate Research, CAS; Search for other works by this author on: This Site Google Scholar Paper presented at the International Oil and Gas Conference and Exhibition in China, Beijing, China, June 2010. Paper Number: SPE-131160-MS https://doi.org/10.2118/131160-MS Published: June 08 2010 Cite View This Citation Add to Citation Manager Share Icon Share Twitter LinkedIn Get Permissions Search Site Citation Li, Gang , Moridis, George J., Zhang, Keni , and Xiao-sen Li. "The Use of Huff and Puff Method in a Single Horizontal Well in Gas Production from Marine Gas Hydrate Deposits in the Shenhu Area of the South China Sea." Paper presented at the International Oil and Gas Conference and Exhibition in China, Beijing, China, June 2010. doi: https://doi.org/10.2118/131160-MS Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Reference Manager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentAll ProceedingsSociety of Petroleum Engineers (SPE)SPE International Oil and Gas Conference and Exhibition in China Search Advanced Search Abstract Shenhu Area is located in the Pearl River Mouth Basin, the northern continental slope of the South China Sea. It is expected that Shenhu Area will become a strategic area of gas hydrate exploitation in China. Based on currently available data from site measurements, including water depth, thickness of the Hydrate-Bearing Layer (HBL), sediment porosity, salinity and pressures and temperatures at key locations, it is possible to develop preliminarily estimates of the gas production potential by numerical modeling.We used measurements of ambient temperature in the sediments to determine the local geothermal gradient. Estimates of the hydrate saturation and the intrinsic permeabilities of the system formations were obtained from direct measurements. The hydrate accumulations in Shenhu Area are similar to Class 3 deposits (involving only a HBL), and the overburden and underburden layers are assumed to be permeable. These unconfined deposits may represent a large challenge for gas production.In this modeling study, we estimated gas production from hydrates at the SH7 drilling site of the Shenhu Area by means of the stream huff and puff method using a single horizontal well in the middle of the HBL. The simulation results indicate that the hydrate dissociated zone expands around the well, and the hydrate formation occurs during the injection stage of the huff and puff process. The higher temperature of the injected brine appears to have a limited effect on gas production using the huff and puff method. Reasonable injection and production rates should be adopted to avoid the over pressurization and depressurization during each huff and puff cycle. Production is invariably lower than that attainable in a confined system, and thermal stimulation is shown to have an effect over a limited range around the well. The sensitivity analysis demonstrates the dependence of gas production on the level of the increment of the injection and production rates of huff and puff process, the temperature of the injected brine and the existence of brine injection during the injection stage. Keywords: huff, production rate, evolution, methane hydrate deposit, production stage, spatial distribution, steam-assisted gravity drainage, reference case, brine injection, depressurization Subjects: Flow Assurance, Improved and Enhanced Recovery, Hydrates, Thermal methods Copyright 2010, Society of Petroleum Engineers You can access this article if you purchase or spend a download.