Research and Application of Waterflooding Mechanism at the Bottom of Ultra-Low Permeability Shallow Reservoir with Horizontal Fractures

Abstract

The Yanchang Eastern Oilfield of Ordos Basin is a typical ultra-low permeability shallow reservoir. Because of the relatively low vertical pressure, horizontal artificial fractures are prone to take place in the case of oil well fracturing. Given the bigger contact surface between the horizontal fracture and the waterflood front of the water injection well, the oil well may be flooded fast in a short time, leading to a low mobilization degree of the reservoir. According to the characteristics of waterflooding of horizontal fractures, the development mode of waterflooding at the bottom of oil reservoirs was proposed. Through core sample displacement experiments and nuclear magnetic resonance online tests, combined with numerical simulation of reservoirs, field tracer test, and other comprehensive methods, the heterogeneity of reservoirs and the limit of waterflooding parameters were optimized. The research results show that the waterflooding effect is the best when the variation coefficient of permeability is less than 0.5, the permeability rush coefficient is less than 1.5, the permeability contrast is less than 5, the waterflooding rate is 0.06 mL/min, and the waterflooding pressure is 7 MPa. Through field practice, the daily oil production of a single well in the test well group increased from 0.054 t/d before the test to 0.179 t/d, the water cut decreased from 15% before the test to 10%, the formation pressure increased by 0.18 MPa, and it is predicted that the final recovery would increase by 2%. This study provides an experimental and theoretical basis for water injection development of ultra-low permeability shallow reservoirs with horizontal fracture, and also plays a good demonstration role for high-efficiency water injection development of shallow reservoirs.