Well Stimulation Techniques & Their Benefits

If you are planning to work in the oil and gas industry, knowledge of well stimulation will be beneficial for you. Those who are already in the industry should also keep themselves updated with the latest development in the oil and gas permeability. Well stimulation is nothing but a well intervention to increase the production by making improvement in the flow of hydrocarbons from the reservoir into the wellbore.  There are different types of well stimulation techniques considering the requirements of the wellbore.

Cleaning the Debris

 In this process, drilling fluid is pumped down the wellbore when the completion process causes damages and blocking to the pipe. The blocked pipe reduces the permeability near the well bore area. It is a simple and safe process to dissolve the offending material in the well bore. The diluted acid mixtures restore the flow of the reservoir fluid in the well bore. Once the initial process of cleaning is done, minimal amounts of formic acid are used to wash mud and skin damages. The  process is named as “well stimulation.”  It is also known as acidization where acids is applied in the high pressure.

But in some serious cases, pumping fluid from surface is not effective because it doesn’t target any particular location and reduces the effect of chemicals. Therefore, coil tubing is the best way to target the blocked area through which fluid is jetted directly onto the damaged area.

Extending the Perforation Tunnel & Fractures

In the perforation process, a hole is created through the steel casing so that reservoir can produce. The hole is formed by shaped explosives to perforate the casing and create fractures in the rock. These are small short distance fractures. Sometimes, perforation guns are also used to make the hole bigger. There is one of the best methods used for stimulation is a hydraulic fracture. It is performed by injecting fluid in high pressure into the wellbore which causes the rock to fracture.

Lifting the Well

Gas lift is the process where well stimulation is done at the initial  time and once the flow of the gas or oil stimulated, it is shut off. It is all about lifting heavy liquids accumulated at the bottom with the help of water or chemical injections like scale inhibitors. 

Well Stimulation Vessels

With the advancement of technology, drilling ships have been launched. They are capable of doing multiple tasks and replacing the conventional methods of well stimulation.