A new model for predicting irreducible water saturation in tight gas reservoirs

Abstract

The irreducible water saturation (Swir) is a significant parameter for relative permeability prediction and initial hydrocarbon reserves estimation. However, the complex pore structures of the tight rocks and multiple factors of the formation conditions make the parameter difficult to be accurately predicted by the conventional methods in tight gas reservoirs. In this study, a new model was derived to calculate Swir based on the capillary model and the fractal theory. The model incorporated different types of immobile water and considered the stress effect. The dead or stationary water (DSW) was considered in this model, which described the phenomena of water trapped in the dead-end pores due to detour flow and complex pore structures. The water film, stress effect and formation temperature were also considered in the proposed model. The results calculated by the proposed model are in a good agreement with the experimental data. This proves that for tight sandstone gas reservoirs the Swir calculated from the new model is more accurate. The irreducible water saturation calculated from the new model reveals that Swir is controlled by the critical capillary radius, DSW coefficient, effective stress and formation temperature.