Choosing the Best Integrated Model for Reservoir Simulation

Stolz, Anne-Kristine¹, Ramona M. Graves² (1) SINTEF Petroleum Research, Trondheim, Norway (2) Colorado School of Mines, Golden, CO

Integrating the work of geologists and petroleum engineers is essential for reservoir modeling. As shown in this research, geologists need to consider flow behavior when describing a reservoir, and petroleum engineers need to match geological characterization for flow performance simulation.

This study presents a comparison among seven different flow unit models obtained by varying the amount of information, the interpretation tool and the time used on each method. Some models were simple, like the homogeneous (same properties over the whole reservoir) and the GR, where only a gamma ray log was used for interpretation. Others were more complex including the Flow Zone Indicator (FZI), Winland’s r35, neural network approach, and the Stratigraphic Modified Lorenz Plot (SMLP.) The flow unit interpretations were also compared to real core available. A simple model in Eclipse 100, Black Oil, was used for comparing the results of the flow performance to a known answer. The data set used includes conventional and specialized well log information, and petrophysical core measurements that correspond to the research well CSM Strat Test #61 of the Lewis Shale. The results indicate that the prediction of flow performance varies depending on the flow model used.

Numerical simulation needs to be done to confirm the flow unit assignment, in addition to using petrophysical properties, logs and stratigraphy for interpreting flow units. The use of wrong models leads to inaccurate predictions of flow performance in the reservoir.