Australian School of Petroleum

Production Engineering
Wellhead Separator Stock-Tank
Tank Gas (sale line)
High Pressure (Low Pressure)
removed
Gas removed
Sale line
Choke
Stock Tank

→
Tubing Head (‘Bean’) Gas
Pressure → Pressure
Gas

→
Flow line Oil
Pressure
Oil

→
Oil produced
as Single

→
Reservoir Pressure
Phase
Oil Zone Vertical Lift Performance Wellhead
Bottom Hole → Pressure System Analysis Plot
Rate, qo

Pressure, psig
Pressure Pwh

Solution Rate

Pressure, psig
Rate, stb/d
Inflow Performance relationship

Pressure, psig

Rate, stb/d Rate, qoBo

Rate, stb/d

By: Mary Gonzalez Bottomhole

Flowing Pressure, Pwf

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 Course Content & Objectives
Australian School of Petroleum

The aim of this course is to provide familiarization of the principles and applications of various theories and
techniques necessary to design, estimate and maximize production performance in a cost effective manner
within various constraints from the oil and gas well systems..
This course will address details of reservoir inflow performance, well flowing performance, design of artificial
lift systems, familiarization of petroleum production facilities, and analysis & optimization of total petroleum
production systems using conventional and nodal analysis.
Students will also be given opportunity to apply these theories and methods through numerical problem
based exercises and practical project assignments. The project assignment may require the use of a
commercial simulator.

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Australian School of Petroleum
Tentative Course Outline
Tentative topics in Sequence: Please check the course profile “handbook” for detailed description

1. Review and introduction to Petroleum Production Systems

2. Production from Undersaturated Oil Reservoir

3. Production from Two-Phase Reservoirs

4. Production from Natural Gas Reservoirs

5. Wellbore Flow Performance

6. Well Deliverability

7. Flow Through Surface Pipeline/Chokes

8. Artificial Lift Methods _ Gas Lift

9. Pump-Assisted Lift

10. Total Production System Analysis

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Australian School of Petroleum
References & Resources

Recommended references on Production Engineering

▪ Petroleum Production Systems, by Michael J. Economides et al, Prentice Hall Petroleum Engineering Series,
1994
▪ Petroleum Engineering Handbook. Volume IV Production Operations Engineering by Larry W. Lake, Society of
Petroleum Engineers, 2007
▪ Production Optimization Using Nodal Analysis, by H. Dale Beggs, - OGCI Inc., Petroskills, TULSA, USA, 2003

Plus journals from professional societies (e.g., SPE)

Teaching materials to be presented in this course will be drawn from above and other sources. As there are
separate courses on reservoir engineering, completions, well testing, simulation, etc, we will only make passing
references to such topics in this course.

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Australian School of Petroleum

Chapter 1

▪ The basics of petroleum engineering

▪ What is production engineering?
▪ Role of a production engineer
▪ Some basic production and reservoir engineering terminologies
▪ Importance of multi-disciplinary aspects
▪ An overview of reservoir types by drive mechanisms
▪ An overview to petroleum production system, surface facilities,
productivity and optimisation

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Australian School of Petroleum

Introduction to Petroleum
Production Systems

8
 Petroleum
Recovery Production $
Australian School of Petroleum
System

Sea Floor

Drilling

Cap Rock
Gas
Reservoir
Oil
Water 9
Australian School of Petroleum
The Role
Maximize the well productivity in a cost-effective manner by
• Understanding the principles...
Discovery, Appraisal, • Estimating & analysing the performance...
Development • Designing & optimizing the ...
Field & Well
Optimization

Processing and
Transfer

…Petroleum
Production System
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Australian School of Petroleum

System transports fluids from

reservoir to the surface,
processes and treats the fluids, Petroleum Production
and prepares them for storage
and transfer to a purchaser.
System

Components
– surface facilities
– wellhead assembly,
– well,
– well connection to reservoir,
– reservoir

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 Introduction to Petroleum Production System
Australian School of Petroleum

- A reservoir, a porous medium with storage and flow

characteristics.
- Downhole structures, the well, bottomhole and wellhead
assemblies.
- Surface structures, surface gathering, separation, and
storage facilities.

Production technology and its application:

Formation evaluation, Drilling engineering, and Reservoir
engineering

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 Petroleum Production System
Australian School of Petroleum

Choke

▪ Reservoir
▪ Well
▪ Wellhead
▪ Surface Facilities
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 Reservoir Drive Mechanisms
Australian School of Petroleum

▪ Water-drive reservoir
▪ Dissolved-gas drive reservoir
▪ Gas-cap drive reservoir
▪ Combination Drive

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 Water-drive reservoir
Australian School of Petroleum

Cross Section Well Producing

@ High Oil Rates

Pb Pi

Oil Zone
Pi
Aquifer Aquifer
Water Invaded Zones
Original Oil-Water Contact

Solution Gas Drive/Gravity

Segregation also Effective
Areal View
Water
Well Invaded
Oil Reservoir
Zone
Ref: after Clark, SPE/AIME,
H L Doherty Series, 1969
Aquifer
(Large Extent) 15
 Water Drive (Development)
Australian School of Petroleum

High Dip

Reservoir Limit

Completion Crestal
Small Gas Cap

GOR

Oil Zone
Oil Zone
OWC
Aquifer
Irregular Well Pattern
(Crestal Wells) ‘Edge’ (or ‘Flank’) Water Drive

Ref: after Clark, SPE/AIME,

H L Doherty Series, 1969

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 Water Drive Producing Characteristics
Australian School of Petroleum
Production / Reservoir Pressure

PRESSURE

W.C.2

OIL RATE

GOR1

Water Drive Time

- Slow/Very slow decline in pressure U.R.3
- Total fluid rate remains high but oil rate
declines with increased water production
1. GOR - gas-oil ratio
- Water production can build-up to
2. W.C. - water cut
significant volumes
3. U.R. - ultimate recovery
- GOR remains low
- Typical recovery factor: 35 - 60%
extreme →75%
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 Under-saturated (Solution-Gas Drive)
Australian School of Petroleum

Cross-Section
Initial Production
Well initially @
high oil rate

Pi

Bottom water
(limited extent) Oil

Ref: after Clark, SPE/AIME,

H L Doherty Series, 1969

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 Solution-Gas Drive (Cross-Section)
Australian School of Petroleum Primary Abandonment

Low Oil
Rates

Secondary Gas-Cap
Pa

‘Dead’ Oil

?
Ref: after Clark, SPE/AIME,
H L Doherty Series, 1969
Oil at sufficiently low pressure that it contains no dissolved gas or a relatively thick oil or residue that has lost
its volatile components.
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 Solution Gas Drive
Australian School of Petroleum Producing Characteristics
Production / Reservoir Pressure

GOR1

Solution Gas Drive

- Rapid & continuous decline in pressure
- Rapid decline in oil rate
- GOR initially low, rising rapidly later
- Typical recovery factor: 5 - 30%

OIL RATE
W.C.2 PRESSURE

U.R.3 Time 1. GOR - gas-oil ratio

RANGE 2. W.C. - water cut
3. U.R. - ultimate recovery

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 Gas-Cap Drive
Australian School of Petroleum

Cross Section Wells Initially

@ High Oil
Rate

What type Gas Cap

Original Gas-Oil Contact
of
Reservoir Pb
Oil Zone
is this?
Gas Invaded Zones
Solution Gas Drive/Gravity
Segregation also Effective
Areal View

Gas-Cap
Ref: after Clark, SPE/AIME,
OGOC H L Doherty Series, 1969

Limited
Aquifer 21
Australian School of Petroleum
Gas-Cap Drive Development
High Relief

Reservoir Limit

Wells Wells
Gas-Cap
GOC
GOC Oil zone of
varying
thickness OWC

Irregular Well
Pattern
(Flank) Completions-Low and to the Flank
Ref: after Clark, SPE/AIME,
H L Doherty Series, 1969

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 Gas Cap Drive Producing
Australian School of Petroleum
Production / Reservoir Pressure
Characteristics
GOR

OIL RATE
PRESSURE
W.C.
Time U.R.
Gas Cap Drive
- Slow decline in pressure
- Rates do not decline rapidly unless 1. GOR - gas-oil ratio
excessive gas production 2. W.C. - water cut
- GOR rises continuously in updip wells 3. U.R. - ultimate recovery
- Typical recovery factor: 20 - 40%

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 Petroleum Production System
Australian School of Petroleum

Choke

▪ Reservoir
▪ Well
▪ Wellhead
▪ Surface Facilities
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 Zone near the well, the sandface and the well
Australian School of Petroleum
completion

• Drilling, cementing and

completion activities alter
the condition of near
wellbore region.
• Matrix stimulation does
recover/improve the
permeability, and
sometime does damage.

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 Well and Well-head
Australian School of Petroleum

A wellhead is a general term used to

describe the component at the surface of
an oil or gas well that provides the
structural and pressure-containing
interface for the drilling and production
equipment.

The primary purpose of a wellhead is to

provide the suspension point and
pressure seals for the casing strings that
run from the bottom of the hole sections
to the surface pressure control
equipment
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 Tubing and Casing Head
Australian School of Petroleum

casing head.
tubing head.
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Australian School of Petroleum
Christmas tree
The right hand valve is often called the flow wing
valve or the production wing valve, because it is in
▪ The equipment at
the flowpath the hydrocarbons take to production
facilities (or the path water or gas will take from
the top of the
production to the well in the case of injection
wells).

producing
The left hand valve is oftenwellhead
called the kill wing
valve. It is primarily used for injection of fluids
such to control
as corrosion inhibitorsthe flowto
or methanol
prevent hydrate formation. In the North Sea, it is
Installed
▪typically above the
called the non-active side arm (NASA). It is
manually operated.
tubing
The valve head
at the top is called the swab valve and
lies in the path used for well interventions like
wireline and coiled tubing. For such operations, a
lubricator is rigged up onto the top of the tree and
the wire or coil is lowered through the lubricator,
past the swab valve and into the well. This valve is
typically manually operated.

The master valve is a means of well control

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 Petroleum Production System
Australian School of Petroleum

Choke

▪ Reservoir
▪ Well
▪ Wellhead
▪ Surface Facilities
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Australian School of Petroleum
General Surface Processing Schematic
Gas Disposal
Flare
Gas Export & Sales
Gas Processing
Gas Lift
Module
Gas Re-injection
Gas

Well Oil Crude Oil Field Oil Export

Head Separation Treatment Storage & Sales

Well Water

Produced Water Water Disposal

Treatment or Re-injection
Reservoir
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Australian School of Petroleum
Typical Petroleum Production Facility
Wellhead Separator Stock-Tank
Tank Gas (sale line)
High Pressure (Low Pressure)
removed
Gas removed
Sale line
Choke
Tubing Head (‘Bean’) Stock Tank
Gas Pressure
Pressure Gas

Flow line Oil

Pressure
Oil

Oil produced
as Single Reservoir Pressure
Phase
Oil Zone
Bottom Hole
Pressure

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 Typical layout of an onshore fields
Australian School of Petroleum

Source: Satter, A., Satter associates inc.

Increasing sweep efficiency, additional recovery, and EOR processes videos

32
Australian School of Petroleum
Production facility functions
▪ Separate stream into oil, gas and water
▪ Process/dispose
– stabilize and deemulsify oil,
– dehydrate and compress gas,
– possibly control H2S and CO2 level
▪ Example:
– Vertical 3-phase separator, horizontal 2-phase separator,
vertical heater-treater, stock tank
▪ On-shore, off-shore
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 Basic Separator Functions
Australian School of Petroleum

▪ Dissipate high momentum at inlet

▪ Make the primary phase separation of liquid from gas
▪ Refine by removing entrained mist from gas
▪ Refine by removing entrained gas bubbles from liquid
(so only equilibrium dissolved gas remains)
▪ Complications
– 3 phase, solids, turbulence, foam and re-entrainment, surge
tolerance

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Australian School of Petroleum
Types of Separator

2 Phase (oil and Gas), and 3 phase

(separators)
▪ Horizontal Separators
▪ Vertical Separators
▪ Spherical Separators

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 Stage Separation
Australian School of Petroleum
H.P. Gas L.P. Gas
Tank
Vapours
High Low
Pressure Pressure
Separator Separator

Tank

Well
Fluid
Stock Tank Oil
Water
& Oil
Sand

First Stage Second Stage Third Stage

Separators video
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Australian School of Petroleum

Petroleum Production Process

Production Rate

is an
Irreversible
Process
Time
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Australian School of Petroleum
Ideal Petroleum Life Cycle

Supplemental Recovery
Appraisal
Production Plateau Repairs
Development Decline
Abandonment

Time
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 Role model: Production Optimization
Australian School of Petroleum

Exploration Typical petroleum life-cycle model

Key basis
This life-cycle model involves:
Appraisal Reservoir Engineering • Development and Production
phases with sub-activities:
• Field development
Formation Evaluation,
Development planning
Log interpretations
• Detailed design of wells
Well Testing and and facilities
Production Pressure transient
analysis

Drilling Engineering and

Abandonment well completions

39
Australian School of Petroleum

Why optimization ????

40
 Typical Production System
Australian School of Petroleum

PTH = 1000 psi

Pressures drops
dP = 700 psi
every stage in its
GAS
flow path during the
production of
PSEP =
300 psi
reservoir fluids
. OIL
d P = 3000 psi
CHOKE
P CHOKE = 300 psi

WATER
Large proportion of
dP = 2000 psi
pressure drops
inside the
PRES = 6000 psi
completion tubulars
and surface facilities
PWF = 4000 psi
Typical reservoir pressure profile
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Australian School of Petroleum
Effect of pressure variation
Pwf
3000

Saturated (Bubble Point)

LIQUID Critical
Point

Pressure, psia
1500

90

80

70

100
60
20 0
40 VAPOUR
Separator Vol % Liq.
0
100 200
Temperature, oC

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Australian School of Petroleum
Fluid flow characteristics

43
Australian School of Petroleum

Possible pressure losses in a complete systems

44
Australian School of Petroleum

Production engineer has three major tools to

evaluate well performance
• Measurement of rate versus pressure drop relationships for the
flow paths from the reservoir to the separator

• Well testing, which evaluates the reservoir flow potential and

also provides information about flow restrictions in near
wellbore zone

• Production logging, which describes the distribution of flow into

the wellbore and diagnoses other completion-related problems.

45
Australian School of Petroleum
Productivity Index
▪ Productivity Index (PI) is defined as the ratio of production
rate (q) to pressure drawdown (pe – pwf).

▪ In field units, it is expressed as: STB/day/psi and the radial

flow equation can be written as such:
q 7.08 10 −3 k h
PI = =
pe − pwf  re
Bo  ln + S )
 rw
Impact of re/rw and Bo
re/rw appears as logarithmic term, and hence, its influence will change very little
even if we increase the well radius
Minimizing Bo helps PI and it can be achieved by better design of separators at the
surface or well flow conditions.
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Australian School of Petroleum
Productivity Index

▪ Stimulation/hydraulic fracturing makes –ve skin.

▪ The –ve skin improves productivity index.
▪ In reservoirs with pressure drawdown-related problems, fines
production, water/gas conning,
▪ Lower drawdown with economic production rates will
increase/sustain the productivity reasonably
▪ At normal reservoir condition, productivity will be increased
by increasing drawdown (lowering pwf, q increases).
▪ While J remains constant, increase of drawdown will increase
q accordingly.
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Australian School of Petroleum
Inflow Performance Factors

Oil Permeability Reservoir Thickness

Wellbore
ko h Radius
PI =
é1 æ 4A ö 3 ù
141.2 Bo mo ê lnçç ÷ - + sú
2 ÷
ë 2 è gC A rw ø 4 û
Oil Formation Near Well Formation Damage
Volume Factor Drainage Geometry (skin)
Oil Viscosity

48
Australian School of Petroleum
Factor Affecting PI
(Generalized semi steady PI for oil reservoir (vertical well)
pr
kh k ro
J=
(
141.2 p r - p wf ) ò
[ln(0.472re / rw + s )] pwf m o Bo
dp

]
▪ Phase behavior in the Reservoir
▪ Relative Permeability Behavior
▪ Oil viscosity
PVT properties
▪ Oil formation volume factor
▪ Drive Mechanism
▪ Formation Damage

49
Australian School of Petroleum
Damage Characterization
▪ In a radial drainage system, pressure and distance relationship
p is logarithmic, which indicates
– near the wellbore region is critical (higher resistance)
– Flow is restricted by some different reasons (eg. during
drilling, completion hardware, perforations, permeability
alteration etc)
▪ Van Everdingen and Hurst (1949) introduced a term skin
effects to characterize near wellbore region with a steady state
pressure difference Dps
▪ Skin effect is a composite variables and used to includes any
phenomenon that causes a restriction to flow (+ve skin) or
undisturbed reservoir flow mechanisms (-ve skin)
r ▪ Skin is a mathematically derived factors and does not have any
physical dimensions
2pkrh dP qm r
q= P - Pwf = ln
m dr 2pkh rw
50
 Formation damage skin factor (Hawkin’s)
Australian School of Petroleum

rs
Formation Damage: Zone of reduced permeability
around the wellbore
h rw
Hawkin introduces damage skin to integrate the effects
of wellbore damage and define as:

æk ö rs
sm = çç - 1÷÷ ln
re

è ks ø rw
region I : k
k = permeability of reservoir
ks = permeability of damage zone
ks
rs
rs = radius or penetration of damage zone
rw
re
rw = well radius
sm = penetration or mechanical skin
sm = sdrilling + scompletion + s perforation
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 Damage

Australian School of Petroleum

Components of skin
s = sdamage + scompletion + s perforatio n + s phase + srate
total skin phase change
pr partial completion
Near-wellbore and slant
mechanical rate effect (i.e.,
damage, (drilling) partial perforation non-darcy effect)

s<0

• s is (+) ve for damage referring

s=0
productivity impairment
s>0 • s is (-)ve for improvement referring
productivity enhancement
• s is zero for ideal case

lnrw lnr Ln(.472) re

52
 Damage

Australian School of Petroleum

Sources of Damage
▪ Damage during drilling which includes (near wellbore):
– Invasion of solids from drilling mud
• eg. Clays, cuttings, weighting materials, loss circulation materials, fluid additives
– Invasion of fluids from drilling mud
• eg. water, brine, surfactants, oil, emulsions, any other additives
• all these fluid can causes:
– Clay swelling, clay mobilization
– Water blocking
– Create emulsion
– Precipitation of scales
• Results significant reduction of original permeability

53
 Sources of Damage

Australian School of Petroleum

Damage during completion
▪ Similar to drilling, completion fluid
can causes similar damage near
the wellbore undamaged
compacted, pulverized zone
▪ Damage can be caused during zone
charge and core
cementing such as cement filtrate debris

(high concentration of calcium ion

Open
Openperforation
perforation
precipitation)
▪ Perforation results crushing of
formation in the immediate vicinity grain fracturing, low
of perforation reduced perm perm
undamaged
zone
▪ Sand Control Hardware

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Australian School of Petroleum
Partial Completion and Perforation
▪ Partial Completion:
- Well deviation: If well penetrates the producing formation
perpendicularly or if instead, there is an angle between the plane normal
to the formation and the well axis.
- Partial penetration: If the height that is open to the formation is
smaller than the reservoir height
▪ Partial Perforation: Small fraction of perforations flowing efficiently.

55
 Sources of Damage

Australian School of Petroleum

Phase change and Rate effect
▪ Skin factor is affected by the phase change near the wellbore, because
of significant change in pressure (and also temperature).
▪ Rate-dependent effect occurs in many high-rate producing wells
(especially gas wells) in conjunction with the turbulence in high rate gas
producers.
▪ This rate dependent skin is = Dq, where D is non-Darcy coefficient (
“Non-Darcy effect”), referred as skin due turbulent
D = F(rw, g, ks,h, hperforation, )

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 Sources of Damage

Australian School of Petroleum

Rate Effect
▪ Damage caused by fines migration or precipitation
– High velocity near the well causes to move fine particles that plug
the pore throats and damage the original permeability of reservoir

Flow Direction

57
 Petroleum Production System
Australian School of Petroleum

Choke

▪ Reservoir
▪ Well
▪ Wellhead
▪ Surface Facilities
58
 Systems Analysis Concepts
Australian School of Petroleum

Vertical Lift Performance Wellhead

Pressure System Analysis Plot
Pwh Rate, qo

Solution Rate

Rate, stb/d
Inflow Performance Relationship

Rate, stb/d Rate, stb/d

Rate, qoBo

Bottomhole
Flowing Pressure
Pwf

59
 What is Production Engineering?
Australian School of Petroleum

Production engineering is one of the great core areas of Petroleum

Engineering which attempts to maximise production in a cost effective
manner.

Production Engineering study the fundamental principles of production

performance; analysis of reservoir inflow performance relationships, well
flowing performance, total system analysis using the principle of nodal
analysis; the fundamental principles of artificial lift design and optimisation.

60
Australian School of Petroleum

The purpose of this introductory section was to give a general

overview of the role and importance of production engineering in the
upstream and downstream petroleum sector.

In subsequent lectures, we will delve into the subject in more detail …

Acknowledgment: Part of the presented material was developed by Dr. Mofazzal. Hossain and
adapted by the lecturer.

61