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Optimization of a Scale Treatment in the Uinta Basin - A Case History Leonardo Maschio; Leonardo Maschio Schlumberger Well Services Search for other works by this author on: This Site Google Scholar Bilu Verghis Cherian; Bilu Verghis Cherian Schlumberger Search for other works by this author on: This Site Google Scholar Bernhard R. Lungwitz; Bernhard R. Lungwitz Schlumberger Search for other works by this author on: This Site Google Scholar Michael Tyndall; Michael Tyndall Schlumberger Well Services Search for other works by this author on: This Site Google Scholar Marieliz Garcia; Marieliz Garcia Search for other works by this author on: This Site Google Scholar John Dorney Longwell John Dorney Longwell Search for other works by this author on: This Site Google Scholar Paper presented at the Rocky Mountain Oil & Gas Technology Symposium, Denver, Colorado, U.S.A., April 2007. Paper Number: SPE-107993-MS https://doi.org/10.2118/107993-MS Published: April 16 2007 Cite View This Citation Add to Citation Manager Share Icon Share Twitter LinkedIn Get Permissions Search Site Citation Maschio, Leonardo, Cherian, Bilu Verghis, Lungwitz, Bernhard R., Tyndall, Michael, Garcia, Marieliz, and John Dorney Longwell. "Optimization of a Scale Treatment in the Uinta Basin - A Case History." Paper presented at the Rocky Mountain Oil & Gas Technology Symposium, Denver, Colorado, U.S.A., April 2007. doi: https://doi.org/10.2118/107993-MS Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Reference Manager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentAll ProceedingsSociety of Petroleum Engineers (SPE)SPE Rocky Mountain Petroleum Technology Conference / Low Permeability Reservoirs Symposium Search Advanced Search AbstractThe precipitation and accumulation of scale deposits is a major concern for production companies in the Uinta Basin. Since 2003, conventional hydraulic fracturing treatments with scale inhibitor pumped simultaneously as an additive have been offered to this region. This service proved to be very effective in the Permian Basin using borate crosslinked fracturing treatments (with scale inhibitor concentrations as low as 5 gal/mgal). However, these design criteria and formulation of the scale treatments had to be changed significantly to be effective in the typical Uinta Basin gas well environment: low permeability (<0.1 md), multi-layered, commingled gas reservoirs. Typically, a well completed and placed on production without any scale inhibitor in the Uinta Basin may show signs of scale buildup in as little as 30 days. The effects of the scale accumulation can be seen everywhere from an exaggerated production decline to scale deposition on production equipment. This paper outlines the learning procedure and present designs, testing and monitoring results from scale treatments together with a case study from the Uinta Basin.IntroductionThe purpose of a scale inhibition treatment is to prevent the formation of inorganic scale deposits such as sulphate and carbonate scales throughout the production system. Typically, if formation water enters the production system, scaling can be initiated by the pressure/temperature drop or mixing of incompatible water fractions. This scale deposition yields to a variety of problems ranging from plugging the formation pores/proppant pack and perforations to the reduction of pipe diameters. Typical scale deposits found in the Uinta basin are shown in the Figs. 1 and 2. Scaling in the upper production system (tubing, surface facilities) can be easily controlled by the continuous injection of scale inhibitors. However, the prevention of scale at the reservoir level (such as reservoir matrix, fracture surface and proppant filled fracture) is more challenging due to the lack of accessibility. To overcome this problem, a scale inhibitor squeeze treatment was developed to effectively place a scale inhibitor in the near wellbore region 1.A variety of squeeze techniques for applying scale inhibitors during the stimulation process have been described in prior studies 2. It has been shown that most of the scale inhibitors studied were not compatible with the crosslinked fracturing fluid and this resulted in low gel strength even at inhibitor concentrations of 5 ppm or less. Therefore, the scale inhibitors in this study were introduced into the pre-pad of a fracturing job.In a properly executed treatment the scale inhibitor should:cover the entire length of the propped fracture (as opposed to a squeeze treatment, which only penetrates into the critical matrix);have thermal stability at formation temperature and;have long lasting retention characteristics to ensure sufficient protection time.The efficiency of a scale treatment can be estimated by the scale inhibitor return profile. When the inhibitor concentration is less than a certain threshold, the Minimum Inhibitor Concentration (MIC), the scale protection becomes ineffective and a retreatment is necessary. However, the task of predicting the treatment-life of an inhibitor squeeze is difficult in a multi-layered commingled system due to commingling of different water types and the challenges involved in the predictability of water production.This paper presents the applications of a phosphino-polyacrylate scale inhibitor (PPASI) in the stimulation of multi zone gas wells. Specifically described is the monitoring of scale inhibitor return and the design optimization.GeologyThe major section of the Uinta Basin is located in northeastern Utah, with a small portion in northwest Colorado. This basin is a major depositional basin that subsided during late Cretaceous through Tertiary time, when the North Horn through Duchesne River Formations was deposited. The basin is bounded on the north by the Laramide east-trending Uinta uplift and the Uinta Basin boundary fault, on the east by the north-trending Douglas Creek arch, on the west by the Sevier north-trending Charleston-Nebo thrust (that extends into the basin) and on the south by the Laramide north-trending San Rafael and northwest-trending Uncompahgre uplifts. The basin is an asymmetrical syncline with the deepest end in the north central (Fig. 3).3 Keywords: water management, scale remediation, Production Chemistry, scale inhibition, oilfield chemistry, asphaltene remediation, wax remediation, wax inhibition, hydraulic fracturing, asphaltene inhibition Subjects: Hydraulic Fracturing, Production Chemistry, Metallurgy and Biology, Inhibition and remediation of hydrates, scale, paraffin / wax and asphaltene This content is only available via PDF. 2007. Society of Petroleum Engineers You can access this article if you purchase or spend a download.
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