Innovative techniques for the description of reservoir heterogeneity using tracers. Final report, October 1992--December 1993

This is the final report of a three year research project on the use of tracers for reservoir characterization. The objective of this research was to develop advanced, innovative techniques for the description of reservoir characteristics using both single-well backflow and interwell tracer tests. (1) The authors implemented and validated tracer modeling features in a compositional simulator (UTCOMP). (2) They developed and applied a new single well tracer test for estimating reservoir heterogeneity. (3) They developed and applied a new single well tracer test for estimating reservoir wettability in-situ. (4) They developed a new, simple and efficient method to analyze two well tracer tests based upon type curve matching and illustrated its use with actual field tracer data. (5) They developed a new method for deriving an integrated reservoir description based upon combinatorial optimization schemes. (6) They developed a new, interwell tracer test for reservoir heterogeneity called vertical tracer profiling (VTP) and demonstrated its advantages over conventional interwell tracer testing. (7) They developed a simple and easy analytical method to estimate swept pore volume from interwell tracer data and showed both the theoretical basis for this method and its practical utility. (8) They made numerous enhancements to our compositional reservoir simulator such as including the full permeability tensor, adding faster solvers, improving its speed and robustness and making it easier to use (better I/0) for tracer simulation problems. (9) They applied the enhanced version of UTCOMP to the analysis of interwell tracer data using perfluorocarbons at Elks Hill Naval Petroleum Reserve. All of these accomplishments taken together have significantly improved the state of reservoir tracer technology and have demonstrated that it is a far more powerful and useful tool for quantitative reservoir characterization than previously realized or practiced by the industry.