Simulations of Naturally Fractured Reservoirs

Abstract

Summary: This paper describes a three-dimensional (3D), three-phase, black-oil model being used to simulate naturally fractured reservoirs. The program is fully implicit and can perform single-porosity, dual-porosity, or dual-permeability computations. Sample simulations are presented to illustrate the differences between the three computational techniques. Single-porosity recoveries are much larger than the recoveries predicted by the dual techniques. The dual-permeability, primary-depletion recoveries are very similar to the dual-porosity, primary-depletion recoveries, while the dual-permeability waterflood recoveries are significantly larger than the dual-porosity waterflood recoveries. Pseudocapillary pressures are generated from fine-grid, single-matrix block studies. The pseudocapillary pressures are then used in the dual-porosity simulations to account for fluid distributions in the matrix and fracture systems.