Overview of Methods for Enhanced Oil Recovery from Conventional and Unconventional Reservoirs

Abstract

In world practice, the role of reproduction of raw material base of oil production by implementing modern methods of oil recovery enhancement (thermal, gas, chemical, microbiological) on the basis of innovative techniques and technologies is rapidly growing and is becoming more important. It is concluded that at present, the priority of increasing oil reserves in world oil production is the development and industrial introduction of modern integrated methods of enhanced oil recovery, which can provide a synergistic effect in the development of new and developed oil fields. This article presents a review and comparative analysis of theoretical and practical methods of improving oil recovery of conventional and unconventional reservoirs. The paper examines in detail methods of improving oil recovery, taking into account the factors of enhanced oil recovery of oil reservoirs. Considered the main methods and technologies currently used to develop oil fields and recommendations for their effective use, taking into account the variety of external factors of oil production: the geological structure of the reservoir, its volume, and properties of oils. It is shown that there is no universal method of oil reservoir development, and it must be chosen after a thorough feasibility study among several proposed models. When describing the methods of enhanced oil recovery, special attention is also paid to the physical processes that occur as a result of applying the technology. In conclusion, the positive and negative characteristics of the presented methods included in EOR are presented, and recommendations that may influence the choice of practical solutions for engineers and oil producers are given. Conclusions are made that development systems, placement and choice of operating mode of wells essentially depend on the geological structure of the reservoir, its volume and properties of oils. An important role in this is the construction of a geological model of the production facility. The used hydrodynamic models of development are based on physical laws, about which oil producers sometimes don’t even suspect, and the authors of the models are not always able to convey it to the real producers. The authors consider it reasonable to make a logical generalizing conclusion that understanding processes occurring in the reservoir and taking appropriate measures for optimization and intensification of oil production will allow making oil production as effective as possible.