Theory and Practice in Microbial Enhanced Oil Recovery PDF
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Theory and Practice in Microbial Enhanced Oil Recovery KUN SANG LEE Professor Hanyang University South Korea TAE-HYUK KWON Associate Professor Korea Advanced Institute of Science of Technology South Korea TAEHYUNG PARK Postdoctoral Researcher Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology South Korea MOON SIK JEONG Postdoctoral Researcher Hanyang University South Korea ] GulfProfessionalPublishingisanimprintofElsevier 50HampshireStreet,5thFloor,Cambridge,MA02139,UnitedStates TheBoulevard,LangfordLane,Kidlington,Oxford,OX51GB,UnitedKingdom Copyright(cid:1)2020ElsevierInc.Allrightsreserved. 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LibraryofCongressCataloging-in-PublicationData AcatalogrecordforthisbookisavailablefromtheLibraryofCongress BritishLibraryCataloguing-in-PublicationData AcataloguerecordforthisbookisavailablefromtheBritishLibrary ISBN:978-0-12-819983-1 For informationon all Gulf Professional Publishing publications visit our websiteat https://www.elsevier.com/books-and-journals Publisher:BrianRomer AcquisitionsEditor:KatieHammon EditorialProjectManager:ChrisHockaday ProjectManager:KiruthikaGovindaraju Coverdesigner:MatthewLimbert TypesetbyTNQTechnologies Preface As oil and gas price fluctuates with global economy, practical applications related to MEOR, complemen- developmentofcost-effectivetechnologies,whichyields tary to several literature and books published in the themaximumoilrecovery,isofmaininterestintoday’s pastdecades. petroleum researches. Microbial enhanced oil recovery Chapter 1 serves as an introduction to the overall (MEOR) has a strong potential as low-cost techniques strategy of the MEOR method and the subsurface with less impact to environment, in which different environment affecting the process efficiency. It also microorganisms and their metabolic products are presents the screening criteria of the reservoir for the implementedtoincreaseproductionrateandefficiency successful applications of MEOR. Chapter 2 reviews inhydrocarbonreservoirs.Despitedrasticadvantagesof the microbial communities in deep subsurface asso- MEOR technology, the technique still remains poorly ciatedwithoilreservoirsandaddressesvariousMEOR- supported due to lack of knowledge on microbial ac- related microbial products and their characteristics. tivitiesandcomplexityoftheassociatedprocesses.Some Chapter 3 provides fundamental pore-scale mecha- oftheMEOR-relatedstrategieshavedemonstratedtheir nisms of microbial activities and their effect on oil feasibility on a mass scale through both lab and field production in porous media at a core scale. This trials; however, much workstill remains to implement chapteralsocompliesextensivelaboratoryexperiment MEORintooilindustrypractices. data that are relevant to MEOR processes. Chapter 4 The authors review and summarize engineering describes numerical simulation of MEOR processes fundamentals of MEOR with emphasis on microbial including selective plugging, microbial surfactant mechanisms and reservoir-scale modeling. This book generation,andothermechanismsofbacteria.Chapter provides comprehensive description on fundamental 5 presents considerations and practical examples on andcriticalaspectsofMEORandestablishesthecred- the field applications of MEOR in terms of lithology, itability of field applications. Newest experimental type of application, recovery mechanisms, and used measurements and observations on MEOR-related microorganisms. mechanismsaswellasrecentdevelopmentinnumer- Thisbookwouldneverhavebeenpublishedwithout icalassessmentofMEORapplicationscanbeofinterest theableassistanceofElsevierstaffsfortheirpatienceand for the main audience. The main audience would be excellenteditingjob.Weshallappreciateanycomments theenhancedoilrecovery(EOR)(R&D,reservoirand andsuggestions. operational) community, potentially geologists and bio-/microbialgeologists,andreservoirmodelers.This KunSangLee bookalsoupdatesthecurrentprogressinresearchand Seoul,Korea v Nomenclatures A c optimum NaClconcentrationfor NaClopt A constantinEqs4.65and4.85 bacterial metabolism A initialsurfacearea c biopolymer concentration 0 poly A cross-sectional area c UAPconcentrations cs UAP A empiricalparameter inEq4.93 c concentrationoftheinsolubleproducts H s A average cross-sectional area along a ave breakthroughchannel D A cumulative wall surface area along a d plate thickness cum p breakthroughchannel D decimalreduction time A constantinEqs4.23and4.24 D initialdiameter ofporethroat j 0 Ajþ1 constantinEq4.24 D1 changeddiameter ofporethroat a activityofthe activeenzyme D diameter ofnetworkbond bond a innerradius D decimaltimeat ithpressure i i a initialradius D equatorial diameterinthedrop ini E a radius of the water-filled pore space r (reducedradius) E a pore radius with biopolymer satura- E enzyme w tionS E activationenergy BP a a poreradius withnobiopolymer E total numberofenzymes wo tot ad adsorbedmolesofbioproducts ad maximumadsorptioncapacity F max F constant inEq4.21 B F formation factorinafully 0 B constantinEqs4.16,4.65,and4.84 water-saturated rock B empiricalparameter inEq4.93 F constant inEq4.22 H 1 b endogenousdecaycoefficient F constant inEq4.22 2 b constantinEq4.31 F capillary force 1 c F electrical formation factorinEq3.25 e C F viscousforce v C constantinEq4.65 F force required to raise the ring from max C empiricalgeometrical constant theliquid’ssurface g C empiricalconstant f flow-efficiency coefficient H C volume fraction of component i in f fractionoftheactivebiomasswhichis ij d phasej biodegradable C parameter used to fit the laboratory f correction factor p c measurements CK Carman-Kozenyconstant G c constantinEq4.31 G freeenergy 1 c regressioncoefficient g geothermal gradient((cid:2)F/100ft) 2 G c regressioncoefficient g gravitational force 3 c attachedcellconcentration att c BAPconcentrations H BAP c NaClconcentration H fittingparameter NaCl c maximum NaCl concentration for H shape-dependent constant NaClmax c bacterialmetabolism h height ofraisedwater vii viii NOMENCLATURES I M I salinityinhibition constant m microemulsion phaseorcomponent S (cid:3) I constantdepending onthecultures m empirical tortuosityfactor S g m massofbacterial cell cell K K concentration giving one-half the N maximumrate N number of surviving microbes after K baselinepermeability pressuretreatment 0 K absolutepermeability N number of capillaries per unit cross- a a K half-maximum rate concentration of sectional area A thesecondsubstrate N capillary number c K half-maximumrateconcentrationsfor ðN Þ critical capillarynumber BAP c c BAP ðN Þ maximum desaturation capillary c max K Michaelis-Mentenconstant number M K half-maximumrateconcentrationsfor N initialnumberof microbes UAP o UAP N numberof capillarytubes t K substrateinhibition constant n constant in Eqs 3.34, 4.42, 4.43, and i KðS Þ permeability with biopolymer 4.85 BP saturation n Archiesaturationexponent A Kp=s saturation constant for metabolite to n' constant inEq4.47 consumptionofsubstrate S n exponent ofphasep p K relativepermeability reduction ratio r K normalizedpermeability O N k first-order rateconstant o oilphaseorcomponent k dissociationconstants forE 1 (cid:4) k dissociationconstants forE P 2 k rate constant for association P product 3 ðEþS/ESÞ P pressure(absolute) a kq rateconstantwhen ½Naþ(cid:5) ¼ 1M pH maximumpHfor microbialgrowth 3 max k rate constant for dissociation pH minimumpHfor microbialgrowth 4 min ðEþS )ESÞ p capillary pressure c kq rateconstantwhen ½Naþ(cid:5) ¼ 1M p displacement pressure 4 d k rate constant for chemistry step p pressureatithstep 5 i ðES/EPÞ Dp maximumpressuredrop max k effectivepermeability e k changedpermeability Q f k permeability multiplier factor Q flowratesfor influentandeffluent mul k originalpermeability bq maximum specific rate of substrate o k relativepermeability ofphase p utilization rp ke end-point relative permeability of bq maximum specific rates of BAP rp BAP phasepatitsmaximum saturation degradations bq maximumspecificratesofUAPdegra- UAP L dations L ratioofthespecificgrowthrateatthe beginning of the deceleration state to R previousexponential stage R gasconstant (cid:2) (cid:3) L lengthofactualflow R solubilization ratio cosurf a os (cid:2)csurf (cid:3) L lengthofcore c R solubilization ratio cwsurf Ls lengthofsample ws csurf r growthrate l lengthofporethroat r radiusof capillarytube l lengthofnetwork c network rrft constant forresidualresistance factor NOMENCLATURES ix r production rateofBAP U BAP r production rateofUAP u Darcyvelocityofthe displacingfluid UAP rdeg(cid:4)BAP degradationrates ofBAP 4u interstitial velocity r degradationrate ofUAP BAP r valueof r atthisphysicallimit V lim r maximum specific rate of metabolite V volumeofchemostat max production V initialvolume 0 r netgrowthrate forbacteria V volume of bulk volume of the reser- net bulk r production rate voirrock p r averageoftheinnerandouterradiiof V volumeoffluid inthe reservoirrock r fluid thering V volumeofentirepores pore r rateofsubstrate utilization V volumeofthesolid grains ut solid V volumeofbiofilm biofilm S ðV Þ fractional bulk volume occupied by S concentration of the rate-limiting b pc the displacing fluid at any capillary substrate pressure S fluid saturation ðV Þ fractional bulk volume occupied by Sf hydratesaturation b pN thedisplacingfluidatinfinitepressure hydrate S normalizedsaturation V surfactant volume in the microemul- p sm (cid:3) S critical concentration of the substrate sionphase formetabolicproduction v pore flow velocity of the displacing S' concentrationofthesecondsubstrate fluid S gassaturation g S oilsaturation W o S saturationofphasep w waterphaseorcomponent p S specificsurface areaperunit volume w widthof plate sv p S watersaturation w S irreducible or residual saturation of X pr phasep X initialbiomass 0 S residualsaturationoftheotherphase X bacterial concentrationattime t p'r A a S biopolymersaturation X concentrationof activebiomass BP a S normalizedresidual saturation X concentrationof bioproducts pr b surf surfactant X inertbiomassconcentration i X maximum possible microbial max T biomass T temperature T conceptual temperature of no meta- Y 0 bolicsignificance Y yieldcoefficient T formationtemperature((cid:2)F) f T maximum temperature for microbial Z max growth z negative reciprocal slope of the logD p T minimum temperature for microbial vs.p min growth T optimum temperature for bacterial GreekSymbols opt growth a lineargrowth rate T meansurface temperature((cid:2)F) a BAPformationcoefficient s BAP t time a UAPformation coefficient UAP t time at the transition from exponen- a destruction rateconstant a d tialtothe decelerationstage b constant of proportionality between t hydraulicdetention time thermodynamic changes and kinetic d changesdueto½Naþ(cid:5) x NOMENCLATURES d constantinEq4.84 r densityoffluid ε constantinEq4.85 r densityofair a f porosity r densityofwater w f changedporosity r biofilmdensity f biofilm f originalporosity r densityofinsoluble products o s 4o ðVwmVþomVomÞ ss imntaexrifmacuiaml tenIFsTionfrom experimental 4w ðVwmVþwmVomÞ max measurements g constantinEq4.18 s minimum IFT from experimental min gwa surfacetensionbetweenwaterandair measurements mb maximumspecificgrowth rate sðc Þ IFTatagivensurfactantconcentration surf mbp maximumspecificproduction rate s tortuosity m netspecific growthrate s Binghamyield stress B mf visocistyof fluid ss shearstress mdisplacing displacingfluid viscosity u constant inEq4.25 mdec specificgrowth rateduetodecay uv angularvelocity mopt specific growth rate at the optimum q contactangle conditions q shapefactor inEq3.23 sf m specificgrowth rateforcellsynthesis syn CHAPTER 1 Introduction 1.1 MICROBIAL PROCESSESFOROIL the general case. Since the ex situ MEOR process faces RECOVERY many problems, it must overcome these hurdles to 1.1.1 StrategyOverview establish itselfasawidespread industrypractice (Patel The microbial enhanced oil recovery (MEOR) is not a etal.,2015). completely new concept. In 1926, Beckman introduced Incontrast withtheexsituprocess,theinsitupro- that microorganisms can be used to release oil from cess stimulates the indigenous microorganisms in the porous media (Lazar et al., 2007). Since then, Zobell reservoir to generate the desired metabolites. While (1947)hasutilizedsulfate-reducingbacteriainenhanced the ex situ process yields predictable results with oil recovery. Recent MEOR researches have predomi- controlledlaboratorysettings,theresultsoftheinsitu nantlyfocusedonexsituandinsitumethodstotransport process have considerable uncertainty depending on the metabolites into oil wells as well as on the funda- the field application. Indigenous bacteria of interest mental challenges of oil production, which include the arestimulatedwithinjectedsubstratestogenerateand immiscibility of oil in water, the high viscosity of the release bioproducts such as biopolymers, bio- oil,andthesizeofoilcomponents(Pateletal.,2015). surfactants, bioacids, and biosolvents (Fig. 1.1). The The ex situ method is similar to the chemical biofilm production to decrease the pore volume is enhanced oil recovery (CEOR) approach. In this also applied in MEOR process. Although both ex situ method, the desired bioproducts are produced exter- andinsitumethodsarepotentialandapplicablesimul- nally and then injected into the wellhead to improve taneously, the available literatures indicate thatinsitu oil recovery. Because the specific composition, com- methodismoreimportanttechnologyintheoilindus- pounds, and products can be selected and injected, try (Sen, 2008; Bao et al., 2009; Gudiña et al., 2012; such a method is attractive in that direct control is Youssefetal.,2013). possible by reservoir operators. The microbes used in In addition to the reservoir environments that may the ex situ MEOR processes are either grown or engi- affect bacterial growth such as pH, temperature, and neered in the laboratories to improve sweep and/or pressure,manyotherchallengesremainresearchtopics displacementefficiency.Targetbioproductssuchasbio- forMEORapplications.Forexample,auniquecharac- surfactantscanbeextractedfromthesemicroorganisms teristic of microorganisms that must be considered in and mixed with water before injection, sometimes in MEOR applications is that they can be grown in an combination with synthetic chemicals. In other ap- anaerobic environment. Most reservoir conditions are proaches, the isolated bacteria may be injected into oxygendeficient,andinjectingoxygentogrowmicrobes the well, with the hope that they will generate the can cause metal corrosion and equipment damage. desired metabolites within the reservoir (Patel et al., Injectingoxygen,asanelectronacceptor,canalsocause 2015). imbalances in the microbial environment and lead to Although the ex situ method seems to be quite target microbes being outcompeted by other indige- feasible, numerous concerns exist. First of all, the cost nous bacteria (Bryant, 1990; Lazar et al., 2007). These of producing ex situ bioproducts is significantly high. reservoirenvironmentsandbacterialgrowthcharacter- Whileusingthecrudeformsofbioproductscangreatly isticsconstitutethebasicparametersofMEORapplica- reducetheprice,thehighcostofexsituprocessstillre- tions. Employed microorganisms and bioproducts mainsalargeconcernfortheadvanceofpetroleumin- mustberesistanttothereservoirenvironmentsandbe dustry(Pornsunthorntaweeetal.,2008(b);Zhengetal., activation in those conditions. As each well has its 2012). Furthermore, microbes, modified in laboratory own unique environment, a variety of microbial con- and directly injected, are expected to outcompete the sortiums andmixed bioproducts must be usedfor the reservoir indigenous microbes already adapted to the success of MEOR application (Lal et al., 2005; Wang harsh environments. However, this expectation is not etal.,2007;Sen,2008;Darvishietal.,2011). TheoryandPracticeinMicrobialEnhancedOilRecovery.https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-819983-1.00001-6 Copyright©2020ElsevierInc.Allrightsreserved. 1 2 TheoryandPracticeinMicrobialEnhancedOilRecovery FIG.1.1 InsituMEORprocesses:(A)theinjectedwaterbreakthroughinthiefzones,(B)injectionofnutrients tostimulateindigenousbacteriaforproducingbioproducts.MEOR,microbialenhancedoilrecovery.(Credit: fromSen,R.,2008.Biotechnologyinpetroleumrecovery:themicrobialEOR.ProgressinEnergyand CombustionScience34(6),714e724.) Theprimarychallengesassociatedwithtertiaryoilre- toenhancedoilrecoverycanbeclassifiedintosevenma- covery are related to interrelationships between oil and jorgroupsasbiomass,biopolymers,biosurfactants,bio- reservoircircumstances.Forexample,therelativelyhighly gases,bioacids,biosolvents,andemulsifiers(Pateletal., permeableregionscanmakethethiefzonesthatreduce 2015; Safdel et al., 2017). Biomass can significantly thesweepefficiency.Theymakeitimpossibletorecover improveoilrecoverybybypassingtheinjectedwaterto theoilthathasnotbeenincontactwiththeinjectedwater residualoilasaresultofselectivelypluggingtheporous via traditional waterflooding (Sen, 2008; Ohms et al., media. Biopolymers can increase the oil recovery by 2010; Okeke and Lane, 2012). Water and oil have decreasing reservoir permeability and increasing water different viscosities and also have surface tension due viscosity, which improve the mobility ratio. Bio- to the immiscibility.The combination of them compli- surfactants have a significant effect on wettability alter- catestheproductionmechanismofwaterflooding.Most ation by lowering surface and interfacial tensions. oil reservoirs around the world have very complex bio- Biogasesare producedbycertainmicrobial speciesand logicalsystems,makinglaboratoryexperimentsofmicro- contributetotherepressurizationofthereservoirtoin- bial activity difficult. The microbes injected into the oil creaseoilrecovery.Bioacidsandsolventsdissolvesome reservoirmustcompetewiththeindigenousmicroorgan- parts of the reservoir rock, increasing porosity and isms(Sen,2008).Analyzingthedatacollectedfromthe permeability and consequently reducing entrapped oil. 322projects thatperformedthesameMEORprocesses, Oil emulsification can be achieved under conditions Portwood(1995)providesusefulinformationtoanalyze where emulsifiers produced by a variety of microbes thetechnicalandeconomiceffectivenessoftheprocesses form a stable emulsion with hydrocarbon (commonly andtopredictthetreatmentresponsesinthegivenreser- oil-in-water)(Pateletal.,2015).Fig.1.2showsthestate voirs.TheseMEORapplicationsresultedinasubstantial oftheoildropletsinaporousrockbeforeandafterthe andsustainedincreaseinoilproductioncomparedwith emulsificationprocess(Sen,2008).Table1.1showsthe otheroperatingresultsinthesamereservoir. listofmicrobialmetabolitesandmicroorganismsalong In the MEOR processes, microorganisms produce a with the production problems, major effects, and best varietyofmetabolitesthatcontributetoincreasingoilre- reservoircandidatesfortheMEORprocess. covery(Sen,2008).Thesemetabolitesaffectnotonlythe 1.1.2 SelectivePlugging petrophysical properties including porosity, perme- ability, and wettability but also chemical properties Oneofthemajorfactorsinreducingoilrecoveryisthe such as viscosity, interfacial tension (IFT), and so on high permeability zones of the reservoirs. These zones (Guo et al., 2015). In general, the metabolites related makeitdifficulttoextracttheoilremaininginrelatively
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