OTC-25923-MS Integrated Asset Modeling Through Optimization of Multiple Reservoirs Using Next-Generation Reservoir Simulators (original) (raw)
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Objective/Scope: Integrated asset modeling (IAM) offers the oil industry several benefits. The next-generation reservoir simulators help achieve faster runtimes, insight into interaction between various components of a development, and can be used as an effective tool in detecting bottlenecks in a production system as well as a constant and more effective communication tool between various departments. IAM provides significant opportunities for optimization of very large or complex infrastructures and life-of-field analysis of production optimization scenarios.Simultaneous modeling of surface and subsurface components helps reduce time and enhances efficiency during the decision-making process which eliminates the requirement for tedious, time-consuming work and iterations between separate solutions of reservoir and surface networks. Beyond this convenience, this technology makes it possible to reach more robust results more quickly using surface-subsurface coupling. The objective of this study is to outline the advantages and the challenges in using next-generation simulators on simulation of multiple reservoirs in integrated asset management. Methods/Processes: Simultaneous simulation of multiple reservoirs adds another dimension of complexity to the process of integrated asset modeling. Several sub-reservoir models can be simulated simultaneously in large fields comprising sub-reservoirs with complex surface systems, which could otherwise become very tedious to handle. In this study, a next-generation reservoir simulator is coupled with an optimization and uncertainty tool that is used to optimize the net present value of the entire asset. Several constraints and bottlenecks in such a large system exist, all connected to one another. IAM proves useful in debottlenecking to increase efficiency of the thorough system. The strengths and difficulties associated with simultaneous simulation and optimization of multiple reservoirs are compared to the more conventional way of simulating the assets separately, thus illustrating the benefits of using next-generation reservoir simulators during optimization of multiple reservoirs. Results/Observations: The results show that simultaneous solution of the surface-subsurface coupling gives significantly faster results than that of a system that consists of separate solution of surface and subsurface. The speed difference becomes more significant when the number of reservoirs simulated is more than one. This study outlines the workflow in setting up the model, the CPU time for each component of the simulation, the explanation of each important item in this process to illustrate the
Development of a framework for optimization of reservoir simulation studies
Journal of Petroleum Science and Engineering, 2007
We have developed a framework that distributes multiple reservoir simulations on a cluster of CPUs for fast and efficient process optimization studies. This platform utilizes several commercial reservoir simulators for flow simulations, an experimental design and a Monte Carlo algorithm with a global optimization search engine to identify the optimum combination of reservoir decision factors under uncertainty.
All Days, 2013
The efficient development of Abu Dhabi's giant stacked reservoirs is challenging due to the significant number of wells needed to produce these reservoirs through common surface production facilities. Historically the development planning was carried out based on individual, single reservoir, numerical simulation models that have been managed by applying independent boundary conditions such as rate and pressure constraints. With time this solution became inefficient due to other considerations such as production facilities size and cost, surface congestion affecting the area available to drill wells and lay down transfer lines, drilling and rigless operations.Recent advances in numerical simulation, such as the simultaneous implicit solution of pressure and other properties in an asset model which includes both surface facilities and the subsurface reservoir, provide users with the ability to understand the flow of oil from the pore space of the reservoir through the surface net...
Reservoir Modeling & Simulation: Advancements, Challenges, and Future Perspectives
Journal of Chemical and Petroleum Engineering, 2023
Reservoir modeling and simulation play a pivotal role in the field of reservoir engineering, enabling efficient hydrocarbon recovery and reservoir management. This article provides an overview of the definition, significance, and evolution of reservoir modeling techniques, emphasizing the importance of accurate reservoir characterization. It explores different data acquisition methods, such as core analysis, well logging, seismic data, and production history, highlighting their integration for robust reservoir description. Mathematical modeling techniques for reservoir simulation, including single-phase and multi-phase flow models, along with numerical simulation methods such as finite difference, finite element, and finite volume, are discussed. The article also delves into uncertainty analysis, history matching, and the assimilation of field production data to improve model accuracy. Advanced techniques, emerging trends, and their applications, such as upscaling/downscaling methods, integrated reservoir modeling and optimization approaches, and the use of artificial intelligence and machine learning, are presented. The inclusion of case studies showcases the practical implementation of reservoir modeling and simulation in various areas, such as field development planning, enhanced oil recovery, and reservoir management. Finally, the challenges associated with reservoir modeling and simulation techniques and future perspectives for advancements in the field are addressed .
Proxy models are derived mathematical functions developed as substitutes for reservoir flow simulators. Several types of proxy models are reported in the literature, for instance, response surface models, surrogate models, or metamodels. These models are fast methods, recommended for their efficient response time to approximate model responses and, therefore, useful in the decision-making process related to reservoir management. These studies focus on modelling a limited set of factors, applications, and case studies of any technique. A systematic literature review (SLR) is performed to gather the aspects prompting the modelling of proxy models in the literature and state-of-the-art. For this, a set of search keywords with appropriate string were utilised to extract the most important studies that satisfied all the criteria defined and classified under journal and conference paper categories. The papers were condensed after removing redundancy, repetition and similarity through a sequential and iterative process. From the analysis carried out, several gaps were identified, especially during the proxy model construction. Proxy models have already been discussed in petroleum engineering as a representation of the real system of reservoir flow simulator software. However, the proxy model response is faster but has yet to establish the issues of uncertainty in the outputs. There is a need for the integration of fast methods and reservoir simulators which can improve and accelerate results within acceptance criteria and accuracy in decision-making processes related to reservoir management.
A Generalized Wellbore and Surface Facility Model, Fully Coupled to a Reservoir Simulator
SPE Reservoir Evaluation & Engineering, 2004
Summary The formulation of a black-oil or compositional fully coupled surface and subsurface simulator is described. It is based on replacing the well model in a conventional reservoir simulator with a generalized network model of the wells and facilities. This allows for representation of complex wellbore geometry and downhole equipment. The method avoids the inefficiencies and/or inaccuracies of other coupled models, in which wells and facilities are treated as separate domains or in which the global system is not solved simultaneously. Example cases demonstrate the performance of the model for cases with simple and segmented wellbores (with and without facilities).
Numerical tuning in reservoir simulation: it is worth the effort in practical petroleum applications
Journal of the Brazilian Society of Mechanical Sciences and Engineering, 2019
Giant carbonate oil fields in Brazilian pre-salt area present a high level of heterogeneity. Despite the fact that geoscientists aim at modelling these complex models in a high-block cell resolution, it is important to reduce the computational effort and speed up some processes such as forecasting the production during a risk analysis in a probabilistic approach. This practice must be evaluated to keep numerical and geological consistency of reservoir models. As a result, creating a procedure to assist petroleum scientists and engineers so as to reduce computational time, without losing accuracy, is the main goal of this proposed work. A methodology based on numerical parameter evaluation, tuning technique, diagnosis and application is defined to provide a robust and effective starting point of the numerical control settings during reservoir simulation model runs. All of the analyses are based on a good understanding of the reservoir heterogeneities (geologists) and characteristics (reservoir engineering) that may result in reduced central processing unit time, number of time-step cuts, solver failures and material balance compared to the default approach considered for these problems. In addition, to check the consistency of the proposed procedure, one building risk curve application for two case studies was selected, assuming that we are executing the tuning and the application in sequence of a common reservoir application. The results of the two case applications under our proposed assumptions showed that it is possible to (1) speed the simulation runs up to three times in comparison with the base case which uses the default numerical parameters of a commercial simulator, (2) reduce the number of cuts and failures and (3) control the material balance equation error within a previously defined tolerance. Despite decreasing the simulation run time in practical reservoir study applications, we are also avoiding bad combination of numerical inputs which can result in unfeasible reservoir numerical models. To conclude, depending on the amount of applications, number of runs and complexity of reservoir numerical model, the results showed that we can save time in the reservoir engineer's routine activities while maintaining the consistency of reservoir models by dedicating an initial time to better understand and optimise the numerical parameters. Even though the vast majority of reservoir numerical models are created in highresolution grid cells to maintain the level of heterogeneity and, consequently, increase the computational effort, more suitable numerical model quantifications should be conducted in order to reduce the running time. Nonetheless, a consistency in the reservoir model must be maintained during the entire procedure. Thus, the most important step before starting any reservoir simulation workflow is to set the numerical parameters to avoid convergence problems, to keep the consistency of the numerical simulation results (approaching the solution of nonlinear equations to the true solution) and to assist geoengineering in starting the reservoir numerical parameters consciously. In addition, we can make sure that appropriate controls of the numerical model are then being used efficiently as a practice in reservoir simulation studies, mainly before starting to run a large amount of simulations.