Optimization of vapex over consumption in one of the heavy oil cleft store

Abstract

The process of solvent vapor extraction is a recycling method for the heavy oil application that the light hydrocarbon vapor is used as a solvent to reduce the heavy oil viscosity. The primary low recycling and the lower production flow compared with the thermal methods have faced the field applications with limitation due to the slow identity of the solvent penetration procedure in the heavy oil,. So in order to optimize and increase the production in this process, a simulation study was performed on one of the heavy oil cleft store of Iran and the solutions were presented to increase the oil recycling in this process. At first after construction of a cleft two dimensional store with multiple blocks that show the solvent vapor flowing in the cleft net, the optimization process was analyzed around two axes. First the optimization strategies presented to optimize the constructed solvent system injection in the process. Then the formation and distance between producing wells and injection on the process performance and the best condition were evaluated and developed. The results showed that the solvent composition injection method  through the producing well in addition to produce the injecting well in first ten days of process with more pressure and the well formation model with subsidiary distance and the vertical determined distance, the most optimized producing performance was presented compared to other plans, this results increase the security about the field application in the VAPEX process at cleft stores

Key terms: optimization, solvent vapor extraction, heavy oil, cleft stores, wells  formation