Abstract: 2009-127

Assessing Bitumen and Heavy

Oil Viscosity In Situ
S. LARTER, J. ADAMS, D. JIANG, L. SNOWDON, B. BENNETT, I. GATES
University of Calgary and Gushor Inc.

This abstract has been submitted for possible selection and presentation at the Petroleum Society’s
Canadian International Petroleum Conference 2009 Calgary, Alberta, 16-18 June 2009 Publication rights are
reserved.

Abstract
Petroleum flow in a reservoir is controlled by fluid potential gradients and the fluid mobility. For heavy oil and
bitumen, the mobility ratio, defined as the ratio of permeability to oil viscosity, is controlled by oil viscosity to a larger
extent than in conventional oil reservoirs as oil phase viscosity is a function of biodegradation and may approach two
orders of magnitude over as little as 50 m. Variation of viscosity approaches or exceeds variation of permeability in
many reservoirs. While thermal operations reduce viscosity gradients in heavy oil reservoirs, viscosity gradients are not
negligible at steam temperature so accurate assessment of oil viscosities and relative permeabilities at process
conditions is necessary for field development.

Here we review assessment of in situ viscosity of bitumen and heavy oils, comparing log based techniques and direct
measurement of actual fluids from conventional core using mechanical extraction. While in situ measurements are
preferable, several features of reservoirs preclude simple direct live oil viscosity measurements and log based
techniques do not yet have adequate resolution and rely on accurate model calibration, which is affected by laboratory
dead oil viscosity measurements. Further, there are substantial theoretical issues relating to “which viscosity” should be
measured. Thus bitumen viscosity is impacted by water, sediment and gas loads, emulsion formation and at native
reservoir conditions by the shear rate of the viscosity measurement. The viscosity needed for process design and
simulation is the viscosity of the fluid flowing at process conditions with its collateral water, sediment, gas loads at the
shear rate appropriate for the recovery process. We term this viscosity “process viscosity”. Measured appropriate dead
oil viscosity is combined with estimates of solution gas content using mixing rules to establish in situ live oil viscosity
estimates. Several factors affect this and we discuss procedures necessary to measure representative process viscosities
including appropriate bitumen extraction to produce representative solid and water loads, procedures for effective
correction of viscosity for core storage artifacts and impact of variable bitumen saturation pressures through oil
columns on live oil reconstruction algorithms.