PERFORATING GUN TRACER INJECTION FOR FLOW DIAGNOSTICS
- 1. 1 Perforating Gun Tracer Injection for Flow Diagnostics Perforating Gun Tracer Injection for Flow Diagnostics Tim LaGrange Regional Engineering Advisor Owen Oil Tools
- 2. 2 Perforating Gun Tracer Injection for Flow Diagnostics How ProTechnics Tracers Work | Surface Injection Methodology • Tracers injected into each stage at a controlled rate during hydraulic fracturing • Allows for uniform dispersion of tracers throughout the frac network (water, oil or gas tracers) • SpectraChem (water tracers) • Pumped at a set concentration (relative to fluid volumes) • From beginning of Pad until end of Sand • NOT pumped in spacers or flush • FlowProfiler (oil tracer, gas tracer) • Injected at a set mass per stage • Oil tracer - liquid infused into resin beads (engineered delivery system) • Pumped in solid form with the proppant • Oil tracer dissolves in contact with oil • Gas tracer is a liquid added to the frac fluid • Vaporizes under reservoir conditions
- 3. 3 Perforating Gun Tracer Injection for Flow Diagnostics Water, Oil and Gas Soluble Oilfield Tracers Placement of tracers injected per stage depends on which clusters take frac Over 50 unique tracers for each phase (50+ water, 50+ oil, 50+ gas soluble tracers) Produced water or hydrocarbons are analyzed for tracers using Gas Chromatograph Mass Spectrometry GC-MS to give a flowback profile Tracers monitor the water, oil and gas returns of the well over time How ProTechnics Tracers Work | Surface Injection Methodology
- 4. 4 Perforating Gun Tracer Injection for Flow Diagnostics Tracer Propellant Puck Shaped Charge Perforating Gun with Tracer – Patent Pending System • Combines CoreLab Technologies • ProTechnics Tracers • Oil & Gas Tracers • Water Tracers • Owen Perforating Guns • Disposable Pump Down Gun • Tubing Conveyed Gun • Owen Equal Entry Hole Shaped Charges • HERO PerFRAC (perforate single casing) • HERO ReFRAC (perforate liner inside casing) • Owen Energetic Well Stimulation • KODIAK Propellant – internal
- 5. 5 Perforating Gun Tracer Injection for Flow Diagnostics Owen GoGun Perforating Gun System • Wireline conveyed addressable select fire gun • Disposable Pump Down Gun (fully disposable) – optimized for wireline • Patent pending pin by box gun, high-pressure bulkhead - redundant seals (eliminate subs) • Field installed GoFire IDS (Integrated Detonator Switch) • Owen Instrumentation “Sentinel” software - safe and reliable select firing “shoot on the fly” • GoGun + KODIAK Propellant + PerFRAC/ReFRAC Charges + ProTechnics Tracer(s) = GoTrace Energetic Assisted Diagnostics
- 6. 6 Perforating Gun Tracer Injection for Flow Diagnostics Owen High Efficiency Reservoir Optimized – HERO Shaped Charges • Equal Casing Entry Hole (over range of gun to casing clearance) Equal entry hole provides equivalent pressure drop across each perforation – distribute tracer equally Minimizes effects of tortuosity, maximizes cluster efficiency, increases SRV (Stimulated Reservoir Volume) • PerFRAC charges (single casing string) • ReFRAC charges (two strings, liner cemented inside casing) Example: PFC-3121-336 PerFRAC Charge, 3.125 Gun, 5.5” 23 lb/ft casing
- 7. 7 Perforating Gun Tracer Injection for Flow Diagnostics Energetic Propellant – Perforating & Well Stimulation • Propellant has rapid burn after shaped charge detonation • Charge Detonation time – microseconds • Propellant Burn time - milliseconds • High pressure gas ejects the tracer from perforating gun • Wellbore fluid forces gas & tracer into the formation • Propellant generated gas • Breaks down perf tunnel & extends the fractures • Inject tracer into the formation • Gas flows back into wellbore & cleans perf tunnels • KODIAK Internal propellant developed for applications with high frac breakdown pressures (ex; toe of horizontal wells) Standard Gun Energetic Gun Owen KODIAK – Internal Propellant - Enhanced Perforating
- 8. 8 Perforating Gun Tracer Injection for Flow Diagnostics Owen KODIAK – Internal Propellant - Enhanced Perforating • Typical Perf Tunnel • Formation damage – crush along tunnel • Possible slug in perforation tunnel • Crush reduces permeability • K (crush) ~ 30% K (formation) • Propellant Enhanced Perf Tunnel • Fractures extended by gas pressure • Tracers injected into the formation • Gas flows back into wellbore • Tracers remain in fractures • Debris flushed out of perf tunnels • Increased permeability • Reduces required frac pressures Formation Drilling Damage Casing Cement Crush Extended Fractures Clean Perf Tunnel
- 10. 10 Perforating Gun Tracer Injection for Flow Diagnostics • Monitor flow produced from each cluster • Each cluster in stage can be traced - each gun can use different tracer(s) • Water & Oil & Gas tracers may be run simultaneously (same perf gun) • Gun system assessed; charge type, density, phasing, shots, guns per stage, etc. • Energetic propellant assisted perforating • High pressure gas extends fractures in perf tunnels to stimulate reservoir • Injects tracer into the formation • Gas flowing back into wellbore cleans perf tunnels • Perforating gun tracer injection is ideal for wells: • Perforated but not hydraulically fractured • Require bullhead refracturing of long intervals with open perforations • Not sufficiently isolated between stages from poor cementing or leaking plugs Advantages - Injecting Tracers with Perforating Gun
- 11. 11 Perforating Gun Tracer Injection for Flow Diagnostics Field Testing Results: • All perf clusters in the stage traced with the same water tracer • Each stage traced with different tracer • During the frac, surface injected water tracers used for control • Surface injected tracers show very similar flow diagnostics to PGT • Confirmed perforating gun tracing monitor returns from each stage Tracer in Gun - Development & Field Testing
- 12. 12 Perforating Gun Tracer Injection for Flow Diagnostics Flow Assurance Details: Marcellus Shale Case Study 1 • Two long Marcellus laterals (~ 2 miles / 3.2 km long) • Operator wanted flow assurance from toe of each well - from initial flowback & through fracturing adjacent well • Two stages in each toe traced with PGT • Multiple guns per stage, each stage unique tracer • Monitoring confirmed flow from toe of each well • From flowback & through fracturing adjacent well • Disc colour - tracer, disc size - tracer returns • Monitoring showed communication well-to-well • Arrow size & colour - tracer flow between wells 1H 2H
- 13. 13 Perforating Gun Tracer Injection for Flow Diagnostics Fracture Driven Interaction Details: (Marcellus Shale) Case Study 1 • Offset well was hydraulically fractured after 1H and 2H flowback • Fracture Driven Interactions (FDI) from offset pad temporarily diluted returns • Well 1H showed greater tracer dilution – tracer concentration not detectable • After offset well stimulation 1H and 2H continued to provide flow assurance • PGT provided flow assurance during fracturing offset well 1H 2H
- 14. 14 Perforating Gun Tracer Injection for Flow Diagnostics Horizontal ReFrac: Barnett Shale Case Study 2 • Operator wanted to determine distribution of fluids and proppant in refractured well • Cement squeeze original perforations • New clusters perforated • Different tracer in each gun • Proppant tracers (radioactive) injected during hydraulic fracturing • Logging confirmed proppant only near heel • Perf gun tracing confirmed • Flow contribution from each cluster • Lower stages were open to flow but received no proppant Disc size & colour represent PGT monitoring No Proppant Spikes - Proppant tracers confirmed by Tracer Log
- 15. 15 Perforating Gun Tracer Injection for Flow Diagnostics Vertical ReFrac 1V: Oklahoma Case Study 3 • Operator wanted; flow diagnostics of water & oil, placement of proppant • Two intervals traced (oil & water tracers) • Proppant tracers (radioactive) injected during hydraulic fracturing • Tracer log shows intervals successfully propped • PGT confirmed oil and water returns from each interval • Shallow interval produced most water • Temperature survey post-frac • Cooling effect – confirm hydraulic isolation Water Oil
- 16. 16 Perforating Gun Tracer Injection for Flow Diagnostics Acid Stimulation after Perforating: Permian Basin Case Study 4 • Operator wanted flow diagnostics from 3 intervals to determine highest oil & water returns • All intervals perforated with PGT • water & oil tracers in each gun • All intervals open to same acid treatment • Monitoring returns showed • Shallow interval produced most oil & water • Mid & deepest intervals least oil production • Tracers in acid would not identify oil & water from each interval • Perf gun tracing provided the flow diagnostics the operator had requested
- 17. 17 Perforating Gun Tracer Injection for Flow Diagnostics • Flowback profiles of each perforated cluster - high resolution • Perforated cluster performance correlates to gun configuration • Industry proven ProTechnics tracers for flow diagnostics • Shelf-stable water, oil & gas tracers • Propellant provides near-wellbore stimulation • Injects tracer, cleans perf tunnel, can reduce frac pressure Summary - Perforating Gun Tracing Advantages
- 18. 18 Perforating Gun Tracer Injection for Flow Diagnostics • Perforating gun tracer injection is ideal for wells: • Require bullhead refracturing (long intervals open perfs) • Poor isolation between stages (poor cement / leaking plugs) • Perforated unstimulated natural producers • Acid treated wells • Wells requiring high resolution flow diagnostics • Assess perforating, hydraulic fracturing, etc Summary - Perforating Gun Tracing Applications
- 19. 19 Perforating Gun Tracer Injection for Flow Diagnostics Questions? Energetic Assisted Diagnostics