Measurement and Impact Factors of Polymer Rheology in Porous Media

When a polymer solution is injected into a reservoir from an injection well, the flow velocity, which is related to shear rate, will change from wellbore to in-depth of a reservoir; therefore, the polymer solution viscosity will also change from near wellbore to in-depth of a reservoir correspondingly.Polymer rheology in a porous media is also affected by polymer type, molecular weight, concentration, water salinity in the reservoir, and reservoir permeability.The flow of polymer solutions through a porous media is a complex topic, governed by polymer rheology and retention behavior, and is still not understood very well.This chapter presents the fundamental terms/concepts used to characterize polymer rheology behaviors, the mathematical models that are used to calculate shear rate, the experimental procedures to measure polymer rheology in porous media, and the factors that impact the in situ rheology of polymers.