Skin Factor and

Wellbore Storage

Characterizing Damage and

Stimulation

Characterizing Damage and Stimulation

Instructional Objectives
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

List causes of damage skin

List causes of geometric skin
Calculate skin from pressure drop
Calculate flow efficiency from skin
Calculate skin factor and wellbore
radius
6. Convert skin to fracture half-length

Damage Caused by Drilling Fluid

Mud filtrate
invasion

Damage Caused by Production

p < pb

p > pb

Damage Caused by Injection

dirty
water

incompatible
water

Reservoir Model of Skin Effect

Altered
zone

Bulk
formation

ka
h
rw
ra

Reservoir Pressure Profile

Pressure, psi

2000

1500

1000

ps

500
1

10

100

1000

Distance from center of wellbore, ft

10000

Skin and Pressure Drop

0.00708 k h
s
p s
qB

Skin and Pressure Drop

141.2qB
p s
s
kh

Skin Factor and Properties

of the Altered Zone

k
ra

s
1 ln
ka
rw

Skin Factor and Properties

of the Altered Zone

ka

k
1

ln ra rw

Effective Wellbore Radius

rwa

s ln
rw

rwa rw e

Minimum Skin Factor

smin

re
ln

rw

Minimum Skin Factor Example

smin

re
745
ln
ln
7.3
0.5
rw

Geometric Skin - Converging

Flow to Perforations

Geometric Skin - Partial

Penetration
hp
h

Partial Penetration

h1
hp

ht

ht
s
sd s p
hp

Partial Penetration
Apparent Skin Factor
h1D h1 ht

h pD h p ht
rw kv

rD
ht kh

sp

h1D

1
h pD 4

h1D

1
3h pD 4

h pD A 1
1

1 ln

ln

h pD
2rD h pD 2 h pD B 1

Geometric Skin - Deviated

Wellbore

s sd s

h sec

Deviated Wellbore
Apparent Skin Factor
w'

tan

kv
tan w

kh

w'

hD

41

2.06

w'

56

1.865

h
rw

kh
kv

hD
log

100

Geometric Skin - Well With

Hydraulic Fracture

Lf

Skin Factor and Fractured Wells

rwa

Lf

L f 2rwa

Completion Skin
rw

s s p sd sdp
rp

kdp

rdp
kR

Lp
kd
rd
After McLeod, JPT (Jan. 1983) p. 32.

sdp

h
L p n

rdp k R k R
ln

k dp k d
r
p

Gravel Pack Skin

Cement

s gp

Lg

k R hLg
2
2nk gp rp

Productivity Index

q
J
p p wf

Flow Efficiency
Jactual p p wf p s
Ef

Jideal
p p wf

Flow Efficiency and Rate

Efnew
qnew qold
Efold

Exercise 1
Damage and Stimulation
Calculations
Calculate
1. Pressure drop
2. Flow efficiency
3. Apparent wellbore radius
4. New skin factor

Wellbore Storage

Wellbore Storage
Instructional Objectives
Define wellbore unloading
Define afterflow
Calculate wellbore storage (WBS)
Coefficient for wellbore filled with A
single-phase fluid
Calculate WBS coefficient for rising
liquid level

Fluid-Filled Wellbore Unloading

Rate

Surface Rate

Bottomhole
Rate
Time

q qsf B
dpw

dt
24Vwb cwb

Rate

Fluid-Filled Wellbore - Afterflow

Surface Rate

Bottomhole
Rate

t=0

Time

q qsf B
dpw

dt
24Vwb cwb

Rising Liquid Level

Rate

Surface Rate

t=0

Bottomhole
Rate

Time

q qsf B 5.615 wb
dpw

dt
24
144
A
wb

g
c

Wellbore Storage

Fluid-filled
wellbore

q qsf B
dpw

dt
24Vwb cwb

Rising
liquid level

q qsf B 5.615 wb
dpw

144 A
dt
24
wb

General

q qsf B
dpw

dt
24C

g
c

Wellbore Storage Definition

q qsf B
C
dpw
24
dt

Fluid-filled
wellbore

Rising
liquid level

C Vwb cwb

144 Awb g c
C
5.615 wb g
Awb
25.65
wb

Exercise 2
Calculate WBS coefficient for a
wellbore filled with a single phase
liquid

Exercise 3
Calculate WBS coefficient for a rising
liquid level

Exercise 4
Calculate WBS coefficient for a
wellbore filled with a single phase gas