Yu.Popov
Scientific Advisor of Schlumberger,
professor
In many cases the thermal core analysis is an integral part of petrophysical measurements that gives the information on the thermal properties of reservoirs and surrounding rocks. Reliable experimental data on rock thermal conductivity, thermal diffusivity, volumetric and specific heat capacity, and thermal expansion coefficient are necessary during development of enhanced oil recovery methods, interpretation of temperature logging data, geothermal energy producing, gas-hydrate recovery and many other aspects of applied geophysics.
It will be shown in the presentation that results of reservoir simulation of heavy oil production depend often essentially on reliability of input data of reservoir thermal properties. The main reasons which do not allow to provide necessary quality of reservoir thermal property data from thermal core analysis will be described for application of traditional methods and equipment as well as for thermal property estimations from theoretical modeling effective thermal properties of heterogeneous medium. Review of the results of recent and significant evolution in experimental and theoretical thermal petrophysics will be done. New developments in thermal petrophysics during recent years allowed significant improving of the measurement quality of a whole set of the thermal properties of reservoirs and surrounding rocks on cores at bench and formation conditions accounting for rock anisotropy and heterogeneity. The presentation includes description of new theoretical models of effective thermal properties of rocks that extends possibilities for thermal property prediction and experimental data interpretation. The new experimental and theoretical base in thermal petrophysics improve analysis of inter-relations between thermal, reservoir, acoustic and other properties of rocks.
The principal tendencies in development of thermal petrophysics will be characterized in the presentation. The results of recent successful implementations of thermal core analysis in E&P industry will be demonstrated. These results provide the beginning of thermal 4D modeling of reservoir production associated with thermal methods of EOR that is based on accounting for significant spatial and temporal variations in reservoir thermal properties throughout the lifetime of the oilfield..
As a result prediction and control of the reservoir thermal regime, design and optimization of thermal methods of EOR and estimates of reservoir stability in the area surrounding a well can be significantly improved.
About presenter
Yury Popov is a scientific advisor of the Schlumberger Moscow Research Center. He is dealing with development of experimental methods in thermal petrophysics and their implementation in O&G industry. He is an author/co-author of over 200 publications and more than 40 patents. Yu.Popov has obtained his first degree in technical sciences from Russian Technological Institute (1975) and a PhD in physics and mathematics from Institute of Physics of the Earth, Russian Academy of Sciences, with a thesis on development of optical scanning technology for investigations of the thermal properties of the Earth’s interior. He is Professor in Geophysics (1987), Honoured Science Worker of Russian Federation (2007), Chairman of the International Commission on Heat Flow of IASPEI (2011). Prior to joining Schlumberger he worked with Russian State Geological Prospecting University (1976-2009, Head of Department of Technical Physics and Rock Physics and Scientific leader of Research Laboratory of Geothermic Problems). In 1983-2009 Yu. Popov has been involved in the Superdeep Scientific Drilling Program of the USSR/RF and International Continental Drilling Program where he led the thermal petrophysical and geothermic research.