PRRC Biannual NewsletterVolume 26, No. 2; Summer 2011

The Petroleum Recovery Research Center is a division of the New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology

Long History of CO2 Study at PRRC

PRRC researchers have pursued enhanced oil recovery with CO2 for more than 30 years.

Early ResearchOur history goes back to the 1970s, where federal program efforts increasingly fo-cused on EOR methods to ease the national energy problem and help the oil industry recover remaining US oil. The government recognized the need for supplying useful solutions to industry through laboratory studies, pilot field testing, and commercial field demonstrations. Domestic oil produc-tion from existing reservoirs could then be improved by the application of this EOR technology. Cost-sharing projects with industry and universities were envisioned for this purpose. Thus substantial contact activity with research organizations such as the PRRC began in the mid-1970s. The PRRC was a brand-new divi-

sion of NMT at the time, established by the NM legislature to improve recovery of the state’s oil and gas resources by its indepen-dent producers. One of its requirements was to obtain funding from federal or industrial sources in order to use state matching funds. The first DOE-funded PRRC CO2 research project began in 1979. The first commercial CO2 flood in the Permian Basin had been initiated in 1972. By the early 1980s, there was much interest in this tertiary recovery method. The tech-nology of CO2 flooding was developed in the Permian Basin of TX and NM, where many CO2 floods were developed, some of which continue today. The PRRC’s involve-ment with and proximity to Permian Basin operations made our entry into CO2 EOR research a natural step. The PRRC’s first CO2 project, “Devel-opment of Mobility Control Methods to Im-prove Oil Recovery by CO2,” which began in 1979, aimed to develop ways to thicken

injected CO2 in order to forestall viscous fingering and breakthrough, that lower both the effectiveness of the CO2 and the pumping capacity of the production wells under CO2 flooding. Two methods inves-tigated were polymer dissolved in dense CO2 and combining CO2 with aqueous sur-factant in a CO2 foam. Researchers felt that CO2 foam was much closer to field use. In the 1980s, declining oil prices be-came a serious problem for NM, whose tax base and economy were heavily dependent on crude oil production. Between 1969 and 1982, oil production decreased dramati-cally. A new look at the unrecovered oil re-maining in place was in order. The IOGCC reported in 1986 that NM held great po-tential for CO2 flooding, and that there was great potential for the State to provide in-centives to stimulate incremental produc-tion from NM reservoirs.

Maturing Focus By the 1980s the PRRC was engaged in substantial research on improved flood-ing methods and methods of CO2 mobility control. Meanwhile, the federal effort to sup-port EOR research intensified as the in-creasing rate of well abandonment in the US made it clear that a program to increase the understanding of reservoir complexi-ties was urgently needed. CO2 injection matured as an EOR process, proving its economic potential. At times of lower oil prices, the rate of devel-opment for many CO2 projects slowed, but there still remained the necessity to recov-er the enormous volumes of oil remaining after the primary and secondary recovery projects were completed. At the same time, our research goals became more specific: to develop more efficient CO2 flooding means in heteroge-neous reservoirs, that would extend the life of petroleum reservoirs, thereby increasing oil recovery and supporting employment, to expand the range of reservoirs amenable

The Permian Basin of NM and TX is the site of more CO2 floods than anywhere else in the world.

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to CO2 flooding, to reduce EOR chemical costs, and to find means of delayed produc-tion and increased retention of CO2 in the reservoir. One area of great interest was in EOR methods for naturally fractured reservoirs, especially the economic feasibility of CO2 flooding them. Another was the develop-ment of suitable CO2 foam with surfac-tants, to reduce mobility and slow down the movement of the CO2 in the reservoir. The development of CO2 foams became a focus of subsequent research projects that continues to the present day.

The 1990s By 1990, two of the PRRC’s senior staff, Dr. John Heller and Dr. Joseph J. Taber (Director Emeritus) were honored as “EOR Pioneers” by the Society of Pe-troleum Engineers. Dr. Heller had joined PRRC in 1979 as a senior scientist in charge of the CO2 Mobility Control and Flow Het-erogeneities Group. Dr. Taber was the first Director of the PRRC, coming from Gulf Research and Development where he had worked on EOR methods. The second Di-rector, Dave Martin, facilitated EOR stud-ies and implemented a large DOE-funded project in the East Vacuum Grayburg San Andres Unit of New Mexico, which result-ed in a successful CO2 foam field test. In 1992, Dr. Reid Grigg joined the PRRC as a CO2 expert, with a background in phase behavior research at Conoco, Inc., to perform CO2-EOR research. After Dr. Heller retired, he assumed leadership of Heller’s Research Group, which merged with his group to become the Gas Flood-ing Processes and Flow Heterogeneities Group. In the 1990s, the NPTO’s Reservoir Class Program was initiated to extend the life of the nation’s oil reservoirs that faced abandonment because of production prob-lems. Before advanced production tech-niques could be widely and economically used by producers, their applications had to be proven through field demonstrations and advanced through active technology transfer. From the Program’s inception, the PRRC participated in several Reservoir Class Projects with industry. One of these, “Advanced Reservoir Characterization and Evaluation of CO2 Gravity Drainage in the Naturally Fractured Spraberry Trend Area,” included plans for a CO2 pilot flood field test in a Class III Reservoir in the Permian Basin. This work was carried out with industrial partner Parker and Parsley Petroleum. Another project, “Field Verifi-

cation of CO2 Foam,” carried on research into CO2 foam in the East Vacuum Gray-burg San Andres Unit (EVGSAU), near Hobbs. This work was carried out with in-dustrial partner Phillips Petroleum as well as other companies. The PRRC began to hold many fo-rums and workshops on particular aspects of CO2 floods and overviews of CO2 project performance, with an emphasis on case his-tories. Outreach efforts focused on inform-ing oil producers on the most up to date developments in CO2 flooding methods, such as reducing costs, multidisciplinary teamwork, the oil/water transition zone, reservoir characterization advances, con-formance and mobility control, unexpected low injectivity or loss of fluid, improved pattern alignment and better reservoir per-formance prediction. The rise and fall of oil prices through-out the decades made CO2 flooding projects problematic, but CO2 floods in the Permian Basin have more than tripled since 1980 (from 17 to 66). Most CO2 floods are still performed in the Permian Basin (world-wide number is 80). Although CO2 flood-ing is better favored at a time of good oil prices, it perseveres where there is an abun-dant supply of CO2. Our research mission on EOR perseveres as well, although in the past decade another concern has emerged with a focus on CO2 studies.

CO2 SequestrationAs PRRC continued its mission to improve recovery for NM’s independent producers, our studies began to develop towards the practical aspects of geologic sequestration. A natural outgrowth of CO2 studies meshed with the nation’s growing concern over increased greenhouse gas emissions. One likely scenario encouraged increased CO2 injection into geological formations, for sequestration in addition to EOR, as oil producers have been doing for decades. The development of CO2 plumes and their subsequent dissolution into formation brine were recognized as essential mecha-nisms in most sequestration scenarios, as well as being apparent causes for long-term injectivity reduction in EOR WAG (water alternating with gas injection) projects.

The Southwest PartnershipThe DOE’s National Energy Technology Laboratory initiated a Carbon Sequestra-tion Program in 2003 to support the de-velopment of this emerging sequestration technology. Seven Regional Carbon Se-questration Partnerships were funded. The PRRC, as a division of New Mexico Tech,

leads the Southwest Partnership. Teaming with producers, whose expertise with as-pects of CO2 storage and injection, is an important facet of the SWP. Research began on carbon capture and storage opportunities in each region. The Partnerships were charged with develop-ing, in the words of NETL, “a regional car-bon management plan to identify the most suitable storage strategies and technolo-gies, aid in regulatory development, and propose appropriate infrastructure for CCS commercialization within their respective regions.” Phase I, Characterization, showed that the Southwest Region offers significant storage potential. In Phase II, Validation, small CO2 storage projects were performed with extensive monitoring during and after injection, as well as a regional terrestrial pilot in the San Juan Basin. For Phase III, Development, the large-scale storage ca-pacity of several Jurassic reservoirs was determined for a commercial-volume CO2 injection test. A site has been approved, and fieldwork on Phase III is to begin shortly. The extensive monitoring, both dur-ing and after injection, planned for these projects requires expertise in CO2 science, which is provided by Dr. Reid Grigg, who is a co-PI on this Project. Other CO2 re-search in the SWP, by PRRC Research Scientist Dr. Ning Liu, involves the design, development, and field testing of an elec-trochemical sensor for CO2 monitoring in carbon sequestration.

Future DirectionsDr. Liu, in his project, “Nanoparticle-Sta-bilized CO2 Foam for CO2 EOR Applica-tion” is developing a new CO2 foam for CO2 EOR application, using nanoparticles instead of surfactants for stabilizing CO2 foam to improve sweep efficiency and in-crease oil recovery. Nanoparticle-stabilized CO2 foam is a new kind of CO2 mobility control technolo-gy. Nanoparticles can adsorb more strongly than surfactant molecules at the CO2/brine interface and form stable CO2 foams. In ad-dition, nanoparticles are solid and have the potential to withstand high-temperature, high-salinity reservoir conditions for ex-tended periods. The PRRC’s CO2-EOR studies contin-ue, as our scientists discover yet more inno-vative ways to advance oilfield knowledge for the benefit of New Mexico's industry.

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Publications, Presentations

Dr. Robert Balch, Research Scientist and Group Leader of the Reservoir Evaluation and Advanced Computa-tional Technologies (REACT) Group at the PRRC was recently appointed by the Energy Secretary for the State of New Mexico as an Oil Conservation Commissioner.A New Mexico Tech graduate in Geophysics, Dr. Balch joined the REACT team as a Research Associate in Oct 1997. His geophysical expertise became a strong asset to the REACT Group, which he now heads. He is the Principal Investigator on several projects at the PRRC, and he is active in working with producers and government as well, including Industry-requested research leading to a widely redistributed Open File Re-port: "Oil and Gas Potential Analysis of the Secretary of the Interior’s Potash Area, Southeastern New Mexico." He is also Relief project manager for 17 RPSEA Small Producer Program Projects.He is currently working on developing the Seismic moni-

Balch, R., Cather, M, and Bammidi, V. “ Oil and Gas Potential in the Secretaries Potash Enclave,” presented at the Southwest AAPG Convention, Ruidoso, NM June 7 and at the AIC Meeting, Farmington, New Mexico, June 28, 2011.

Balch, R., and Parker, A. “A Generalized Oil and Gas Regulatory Data Mapping Portal,” presented at the Southwest Petroleum Short Course, Lubbock, Texas, April 20–21, 2011.

Bammidi, V., Balch, R., and Engler. T. “Ranking the Resource Potential of the Woodford Shale in New Mexico,” paper SPE 144576 presented at the SPE Western North American Regional Meeting, Anchorage, Alaska, 7–11 May, 2011

Bammidi, V. “Resource Potential of Woodford Shale in New Mexico,” presented at the South-west AAPG Convention, Ruidoso, NM June 7 and at the AIC Meeting, Farmington, New Mexico, June 28, 2011.

Bammidi, V., Cather, M., Engler. T. and Balch, R. “Conventional and Unconventional Resource Evaluation in the Southeast New Mexico: Old and New Plays,” presented at the Southwest Petroleum Short Course, Lubbock, Texas, April 20–21, 2011.

Bammidi, V., Balch, R., and Engler, T. “Ranking the Resource Potential of the Woodford Shale in New Mexico,” presented at the Southwest Petroleum Short Course, Lubbock, Texas, April 20–21, 2011.

Cather, M. “Developing a Reasonable Foresee-able Development (RFD) Scenario for the BLM New Mexico Pecos District, presented at the Southwest AAPG Convention, Ruidoso, New Mexico, June 7, 2011.

Chaves, G. “Simulation of CO2 Sequestration in Deep Saline Aquifers, Gordon Creek Field, Utah.” M.S. Thesis, Socorro, New Mexico, New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technol-ogy, 2011.

Harris, M. “Validation and Comparison of Car-bon Sequestration Project Cost Models with Project Cost Data Obtained from the Southwest Partnership.” Topical Report, U.S. DOE Con-tract No. DE- FC26-05NT42591, New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology, Socorro, New Mexico, 2010

Kamaraj, K., Zhang,G., Liu, Y, and Seright, R. “Effect of Residual Oil Saturation on Recovery Efficiency during Polymer Flooding of Viscous Oils,” presented at the Arctic Technology Con-ference, Houston, Texas, 7–9 February, 2011

Liu, N., Gong, M., Zhang, P., Li, L., and Lee, “Silver-embedded zeolite crystals as substrates for surface-enhanced Raman Scattering spec-troscopy”, Journal of materials science, 46 (2011) 3162-3168.

Ning Liu, Liangxiong Li, Lee, R. “Long-term performance of zeolite membrane for produced water purification” paper presented at Qingdao International Desalination Conference, Qing-dao China, June 20-23, 2011

Muraleedharan, S. “Demonstration of Produced Water Desalination at the Wellhead by a Humid-ification Dehumidification Process,” presented at the 21st Annual Produced Water Seminar of the Produced Water Society, Houston, Texas, January 18– 20, 2011.

Nsiah, A. “Application of Reservoir Simulation to Determine EOR Potential of Residual Oil

Zones in the Permian Basin of Southeastern New Mexico,” presented at the Southwest AAPG Convention, Ruidoso, NM June 7.

Sedillo, C. (2011) “Applied Reservoir Simula-tion of Horse Canyon Field: Paradox Basin, Utah.” M.S. Thesis, Socorro, New Mexico, New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology.

Seright, R.S., Fan, T., Wavrik, K., and Balaban, R.C. “New Insights into Polymer Rheology in Porous Media,” SPE Journal , March 2011, 35–42.

R.S. Seright, Tianguang Fan, Kathryn Wavrik, Hao Wan, Nicolas Gaillard and Cédrick Favéro. 2011. Rheology of a New Sulfonic Associative Polymer in Porous Media. Paper SPE 141355 presented at the SPE International Symposium on Oilfield Chemistry, The Woodlands, Texas, USA, 11-13 April 2011. Randy Seright and Sinisha Jikich. 2011. Poly-mer Floods Move into Viscous Oil. American Oil and Gas Reporter (February 2011) 115-123.

Willhite,G.P. and Seright, R.S. eds., 2011: Poly-mer Flooding, Society of Petroleum Engineers, Richardson, TX.

Xiao, C., ed. (2011) SACROC North Platform in the Permian Basin, West Texas. Topical Report, U.S. DOE Contract No. DE- FC26-05NT42591, New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology, Socorro, New Mexico.

Xiao, C., Chaves, G., Balch, R., Grigg, R. (2011) A Case Study of CO2 Sequestration in Aqui-fers in Gordon Creek Field, Utah. Presented at the Tenth Annual Conference on Carbon Capture & Sequestration, May 3, Pittsburgh,

toring program for the Southwest Partnership's Phase III Gordon Creek test injection site as well as the 3D seismic, 2D seismic and wellbore seismic monitoring programs for the project, and will oversee these portions of the program during the project. Other PRRC members who have served on the Oil Conservation Commissioners are Dr. Robert Lee, Direc-tor of the PRRC, and Bill Weiss, PRRC Field Engineer and head of the REACT Group from 1985 to 2002. Mr. Weiss now has his own company, Correlations, which focuses on Artificial Intelligence applications to field problems in oil and gas recovery.The PRRC’s Director Emeritus, Dave Martin, (Director of the PRRC from 1987 to 1996) was recently appointed by Governor Martinez as the Secretary of the NM Envi-ronmental Department. As Director, his research spe-cialty was enhanced oil recovery. He is also responsible for launching PRRC’s GO-TECH website,

PRRC Scientist Appointed to NM OCC

New Mexico Institute of Mining and TechnologyDaniel H. López, President

Board of RegentsEx Officio

Susana Martinez, Governor of New MexicoHanna Skandera, Secretary of Higher Education

AppointedRichard N. Carpenter, Santa Fe, President, Santa Fe

Jerry A. Armijo, SocorroDeborah Peacock, Corrales

Abe Silver, Santa FeOmar Soliman, Student Regent, Socorro

Petroleum Recovery Research CenterRobert Lee, Director

Senior StaffRobert Balch, Research ScientistJill S. Buckley, Senior Scientist

Martha Cather, Industrial Technology CoordinatorReid B. Grigg, Senior EngineerLiangxiong Li, Senior Scientist

Ning Liu, Research ScientistRandall S. Seright, Senior Engineer

PRRC Publications OfficeLiz Bustamante, Editor

This newsletter is produced by the PRRC Publications Office. Views expressed are those of the PRRC staff. Submissions and letters to the editor are welcome. Reprints from the PRRC Review are permitted, provided that credit is given to the New Mexico PRRC. Please send two copies of the publication containing the reprint to Liz Bustamante, PRRC, New Mexico Tech, 801 Leroy Place, Socor ro, NM 87801. PHONE: (575) 835-5406. FAX (575) 835-6031. EMAIL: lizb@prrc.nmt.edu. WEBSITE: http://baervan.nmt.edu

Petroleum Recovery Research CenterA Division of New Mexico Tech

The PRRC is a state-supported center that conducts research on improving methods of recovering crude oil and natural gas and that transfers petroleum tech-nology to domestic oil producers. Funding for the PRRC comes from three sources: the State of New Mexico, the federal government (Department of Energy), and private industry.

Petroleum Recovery Research Center A Division ofNew Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology801 Leroy PlaceSocorro, NM 87801

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Oil price data from PRRC's OCTANE website. Prices are NYMEX. Prices through June 30, 2011

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