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US 5,097,903 AGranted
Method for recovering intractable petroleum from subterranean formations
AssigneeJack C. Sloan
InventorJoseph Wilensky
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Many petroleum discoveries which have heretofore been regarded as intractable owing to the immobility of the petroleum can be economically recovered by a process involving local visbreaking of the intractable petroleum in order to produce a medium/heavy cracked gas oil which is injected into a subterranean formation of the intractable petroleum in order to recover the petroleum.
Claims36
A method for producing petroleum from a subterranean formation of intractable petroleum, said method comprising:
- (1) constructing and operating a local visbreaking unit above the subterranean formation;
- (2) starting production of intractable petroleum from the subterranean formation by:
- (a) injecting a start-up injection fluid obtained from a source other than intractable petroleum production from the local visbreaking unit, (b) obtaining an initial portion of intractable petroleum from, the subterranean formation and (c) introducing the initial portion of the intractable petroleum from the subterranean formation into the local visbreaking unit;
- (3) visbreaking the initial portion of petroleum recovered from the subterranean formation in order to obtain a first portion of a medium/heavy cracked gas oil fractionated by the visbreaking unit in a temperature range of from about 400.degree. F. to about 1000.degree. F. and having a UOP K Factor between about 10.0 and about 10.8;
- (4) injecting, in the form of a hot liquid having a temperature from about 400.degree. F. to about 1000.degree. F. and by means of an injection well penetrating said subterranean formation, at least a part of the first portion of medium/heavy cracked gas oil having a UOP K Factor between about 10.0 and about 10.8 in order to impinge upon and melt a subsequent portion of the intractable petroleum and thereby forming a resulting hot, mobile, mixture of medium/heavy cracked gas oil and melted petroleum;
- (5) recovering the resulting hot, mobile, mixture of medium/heavy cracked gas oil and melted petroleum from the subterranean formation;
- (6) introducing the resulting hot, mobile, mixture of medium/heavy cracked gas oil and melted petroleum into the visbreaking unit in order to obtain a second portion of medium/heavy cracked distillate gas oil having a temperature between about 400.degree. F. and about 1000.degree. F. and a UOP K Factor between about 10.0 and about 10.8;
- and
- (7) injecting at least a part of the second portion of medium/heavy cracked gas oil into the subterranean formation in order to melt and recover subsequent portions of the intractable petroleum.
6 more elements
A method for starting production of petroleum from a subterranean formation of intractable petroleum, said method comprising:
- (1) constructing and operating a local visbreaking unit above the subterranean formation;
- (2) drilling and completing an injection well to the subterranean formation of intractable petroleum;
- (3) introducing a smaller concentric pipe into the injection well to define an annular space between the outside of the smaller concentric pipe and the inside of the well through which fluids can rise in the well;
- (4) preheating the well by flooding the annular space with a hot, mobile, injection fluid and starting production of petroleum from the subterranean formation by:
- (a) injecting a start-up hot, mobile, injection fluid into the smaller concentric pipe in order to impinge said fluid upon an exposed surface of the intractable petroleum and thereby forming a resulting hot, mobile, mixture of injection fluid and melted petroleum;
- (b) recovering the resulting hot, mobile, mixture of injection fluid and melted petroleum from the subterranean formation by continuous injection of the injection fluid into the smaller concentric pipe and continuous recovery of the resulting hot, mobile, mixture of starter fluid and melted petroleum through the annular space;
- (c) progressively lowering the smaller concentric pipe in the well in order to attack progressively more distant regions of the intractable petroleum and hence progressively increasing volumes of the subterranean formation which are exposed to the resulting hot, mobile, mixture of injection fluid and melted petroleum;
- and
- (d) introducing the resulting hot, mobile, mixture of injection fluid and melted petroleum recovered through the annular space of the injection well to the visbreaking unit;
- (5) visbreaking the resulting hot, mobile, mixture of injection fluid and melted petroleum in order to produce a medium/heavy cracked gas oil fractionated by the visbreaking unit in a temperature range of from about 400.degree. F. to about 1000.degree. F. and having a UOP K Factor between about 10.0 and about 10.8;
- and
- (6) injecting at least a portion of the medium/heavy cracked gas oil having a temperature range of from about 400.degree. F. to about 1,000.degree. F. and having a UOP K Factor between about 10.0 and about 10.8 into the smaller concentric pipe in order to melt and recover subsequent portions of the intractable petroleum.
9 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.