Year 4

semester 7

Gas Reservoir
Engineering
International University Of
Chapter 5 Technology Twintech
Gas well testing
Transient Testing

Prepared by Lecturer:
Eng. Mohammed al-sanhani
Gas well testing
 Early estimates of gas well performance were conducted by opening the well to the
atmosphere and then measuring the flow rate.
 Such “open flow” practices were

A) wasteful of gas
B) dangerous to personnel and equipment,
C) possibly damaging to the reservoir
D) provided limited information to estimate productive capacity
under varying flow conditions.

 The idea, however, did leave the industry with the concept of absolute open flow (AOF).
AOF is a common indicator of well productivity and
refers to the maximum rate at which a well could flow against atmospheric
backpressure at the reservoir.

 The productivity of a gas well is determined with deliverability testing.

 Deliverability tests provide information that is used to

A) develop reservoir rate-pressure behavior for the well
B) generate an inflow performance curve (IPR) or gas-backpressure curve.
Analyzing deliverability test data
 Thereare two basic relations currently in use to analyze
deliverability test data.

A) Empirical relationship was proposed by

Rawlins and Schellhardt in 1935 and is still
frequently used today.

B)Theoretical deliverability relationship presented

By Houpeurt which derived from the generalized
radial diffusivity equation accounting for
non-Darcy flow effects.
A) Empirical relationship by Rawlins and Schellhardt
 Rawlins and Schellhardt developed the empirical backpressure method of testing
gas wells based on the analysis of tests on more than 500 wells.
 They noted that when the difference between the squares of the average reservoir
pressure(PR) & flowing bottomhole pressures(Pwf) were plotted against the
corresponding flow rates (q) on logarithmic coordinates, they obtained a straight
line.
 This led them to propose the backpressure equation:

 Where qsc in Mscfd

 n is the deliverability exponent. The deliverability exponent is the inverse of the
slope of the curve. n=1/slope
The values of n range from 0.5 to 1.0, depending on flow characteristics. Flow
characterized by Darcy’s equation will have a flow exponent of 1.0, flow by non-Darcy
flow behavior will have (n) range from 0.5 to 1.0.
Exponents of n < 0.5 may be caused by liquid accumulation in wellbore.
 C is the flow coefficient Mscfd/psia²ⁿ
B)Theoretical deliverability relationship
Houpeurt developed a theoretical deliverability relationship for stabilized
flow with a Forchheimer velocity term to account for non-Darcy flow effects
in high-velocity gas production.
 The resulting relationship can be written in terms of pressure-squared as

 In terms of pseudo pressure as

D is the Turbulence Coefficient

Deliverability test methods
Several different deliverability test methods have been developed to collect the data
for use with the basic deliverability models.

These tests can be grouped into three basic categories:

 Tests that use all stabilized data
 Tests that use a combination of stabilized and transient data
 Tests that use all transient data

The basic deliverability test method that uses all stabilized data is the flow-after-flow
test.

Deliverability test methods that use both transient and stabilized test data include the
isochronal and modified isochronal tests.

The multiple modified isochronal test consists of all transient test data and eliminates
the need for stabilized flow or pressure data.
Classifications, Limitations, and Use of Deliverability Tests
1) Flow-after-flow Test.
A flow-after-flow test starts from a shut-in condition. The well is opened on
particular choke size and is not disturbed until the flow rate and Pwf stabilize.
This may require a considerable amount of time, depending on the permeability of
the reservoir.

A well is usually considered to be stabilized if the pressure does not change over a
15-minute interval.

 Once stabilization is reached, qsc and Pwf are measured,

 The Procedure repeated for several flow rates, usually four.
 The behavior of flow rate and pressure with time is illustrated
in Figure 3-9 for qsc increasing in sequence.
 A plot of typical flow-after-flow data is shown in Figure 3-10

A major limitation of this test method is that the test require long time to obtain
stabilized data for low-permeability gas reservoirs.
:Steps of calculation
from the given data of several tests that have made on a gas well. Each test has a flow rate and
Pwf. We have to calculate of each test and start calculating using the
following steps:

1) A logarthimic plot of qg versus

2) the deliverability exponent n can be determine from inverse of the slope
3) Once a value of n has been determined from the plot,
the value of the flow coefficient (C) can be calculated by using data
from one of the tests that falls on the straight line.
4) Once the constants n & C have calculated
we can generate the deliverability equation

Which can be used to:

A) Calculate absolute open flow (AOF) at Pwf=zero
B) Calculate the gas flow rate at any particular Pwf
C) Draw Inflow Performance Relationship (IPR) Curve (q vs. Pwf) which done by
calculating the gas flow rate at various assumed Pwf values as shown in the following
fig.
Example
A flow-after-flow test was performed on a well located In a low
pressure reservoir In which the permeability
was high. Using the following test data, determine:
1. The values of n and C for the deliverability equation.
2. The AOF.
3. The flow rate for Pwf = 160 psia,
:Solution
Start to calculate ∆p²=

A plot of vs. is shown in Figure 4-13

From the plot it is apparent that tests 1 and 4 lie on the straight line
and can thus be used to determine the exponent n.
Slope=
So n=
Where the n =1/Slope
.Isochronal Test
The isochronal, or equal time, test is based on the theory
that at equal flow times, the same volume of reservoir
is affected regardless of flow rate.

 The isochronal testing method, as introduced by Cullender' in

1955, has been modified to require even shorter testing times.
The modified isochronal test is described in the next section.

 The isochronal test was proposed as a means of determining

deliverability in tight wells that require a long period of time to
reach stabilization.

At least one stabilized point is still required to evaluate the

coefficient C.
The Procedure for conducting an isochronal test is:
1. Starting at a shut-in condition, open the well on a particular choke size for a
period of time. Measure Qsc and Pwf at specific time periods for this choke size.
__
2. Shut in the well until the pressure returns to PR.

3. Open the well on a larger choke size and measure Qsc and Pwf at the same
flowing time intervals as in Step 1.
__
4. Shut in the well until the pressure returns to PR

5. Repeat for several choke sizes, usually four.

6. On the last choke size, allow the well to flow until a stabilized condition is
reached. This may require several hours or even days, but only one rate has to be
flowed for the long period as compared to all the rates for flow-after-flow testing

 The behavior of the flow rate and pressure with time is illustrated in Figure
3-12 for increasing flow rates.
 The test is analyzed by plotting PR² - Pwf² versus qsc
on log-log paper for each flow time at which the data were measured.
This will produce one straight line for each flow time,

 the slopes of which will be equal. The slope allows determination of the
exponent n,

 while the flow coefficient C can be determined using the stabilized or

extended flow rate.

A plot of typical isochronal flow data is shown in Figure 3-13.

Example
An isochronal test was conducted on a well located in a reservoir that had an average
pressure of 1952 psia. The well was flowed on four choke sizes, and the flow rate
and flowing bottom-hole pressure were measured at 3 hr and 6 hr for each choke size.
An extended test was conducted for a period of 72 hr at a rate of 6000 mscfd, at
which time pwf was measured at 1151 psia. Using the data in Table 4-4, find the
followings: (1) Stabilized deliverability equation; (2) AOF
(3) an inflow performance curve.
:Solution
1. The slopes of both the 3-hr and 6-hr lines are apparently equal
(see Figure 3-14). Use the test 1 and 4 on the 6-hr test to calculate n
3. In order to generate an inflow performance curve,
pick several values of Pwf and calculate the corresponding (qsc)

__
PR =1952 psia

The inflow performance curve is plotted in Figure 3-15.

 The modified
Modified
 Isochronal isochronal
Testing testing procedure was introduced
so that even less flowing time is required for the well test.

The procedure is very similar to the isochronal test, except that

 the shut-in period between each flow rate is not long enough to allow the
well to return to the initial average reservoir pressure(average PR).

In the modified method, the well is shut-in for the same length of time that it
was allowed to flow for each choke size.
During this time, the static well pressure (Pws) will rebuild to some value,
which will be lower after each flow period which mean
Pws4<Pws3<Pws2<Pws1.

The flow rate-pressure behavior with time is shown in Figure 3-16.

An extended flow period is still required to evaluate the flow coefficient, C.

The analysis in modified isochronal test is the same as the
regular isochronal test, except that

is plotted versus qsc to obtain a value for n.

The value of the flow coefficient C is calculated using the

initial static Pwsi or average reservoir pressure
& the extended test values for Pwf and qsc,

Figure 3-17 illustrates a plot of typical modified isochronal test

data.
Transient Testing
Transient Testing Methods have been presented for determining the
stabilized deliverability or inflow performance of a gas well for use in
planning equipment purchases and other field
development procedures.

Information that can be obtained from transient tests includes:

permeability k, skin factor S, turbulence coefficient D, and average
reservoir pressure PR.

If a test is continued into the pseudo-steady-state flow regime, an estimate

of reservoir size can be made. This is usually
called a reservoir limit test.

The most common transient tests are drawdown & buildup tests.
Essentially the same information can be obtained from each.
The choice of which type of test to run depends on well and field conditions.
Pressure Drawdown Testing
drawdown testing can utilize information obtained in both transient &
pseudo-steady-state flow regimes.

If the flow extends to pseudo-steady-state, the test is referred to as a

Reservoir Limit Test and can be used to estimate the
reservoir pore volume.

Some of the reservoir parameters obtained from drawdown test

flow capacity kh, Permeability K
skin factor S, and turbulence coefficient D.

The test procedure. begins from a shut-in condition & a constant flow rate
is maintained while pressure is measured constantly.
Then flowing a well at that constant rate and measuring the
decreasing flowing wellbore pressure Pwf as a function of time.
The early time pressure data will be affected by wellbore storage and is usually used
only to determine the beginning of the transient flow period.
This can be identified as the beginning of the straight line segment of the plot of (∆p2)
versus time.
The equation for transient flow, may be written including
formation damage and turbulence effects as

Where:
S' = apparent skin factor which = S + (D*qsc)
S = actual well damage or improvement, such as clay swelling, or fractures, and
may be positive or negative,
D = turbulence coefficient, which will always be positive.

In terms of real variables & logs, The equation for transient flow becomes
From The equation for transient flow, it can be seen that
a plot of (∆p²) vs. log (t) will give a straight line of slope m,(psia²/cycle)

The slope may be obtained by taking the change in

∆p² over log cycle(ex; log100-log10).

The flow capacity kh (md.ft) and permeability k (md) can be obtained by:

To obtain the apparent skin factor S', let t = I hr (log I = 0), then

where (P1hr) is obtained from an extrapolation of the linear segment of the plot
:Example 3-8
The following data apply to a well on which a drawdown
test was conducted. Use the data to calculate k and S'.
Solution:

a plot of (∆p²) vs. log (t) is shown in figure (3-21)

Pressure Buildup Testing
A pressure buildup test is the simplest test that can be Run on a gas well.

If the effects of wellbore storage can be determined, much useful

information can be obtained. This information includes permeability,
k, apparent skin factor, S‘ and average reservoir pressure PR,

The test procedure consists of flowing the well at a constant rate

qsc for a period of time t,
Then shutting the well in (∆t = 0), and measuring
increasing of wellbore static pressure Pws with time ∆t.
The theory behind the buildup test comes from superposition in time

From this expression it can be seen that a plot of Pws²

versus log «t + ∆t)/∆ t) .
will result in a straight line of slope m, (psia²/cycle)

The slope may be obtained by taking the change in

Pws² over log cycles(ex; log100-log1).
The permeability k is calculated by the following equation:

Extrapolation of the line to an infinite shut in time ∆t,

Or (t + ∆ t)/∆t = 1 results in a value for ( Pi²) for an infinite reservoir

The apparent skin factor (S’ ) can be determined by assuming that

(t + ∆ t)/∆t = 1 at ∆t = I hr and using the following equation:

where :
P1hr is read from the extrapolated straight line at ∆t = I hr, and
Pwf is the flowing wellbore pressure at shut-in (∆t = 0).
The permeability k is in millidarcys in this equation.
Example 3-9:
The well described in Example 3-8 was flowed at a rate of 5.65 MMscfd for a period
of 120.5 hours and then shut-in for a buildup test.
The flowing pressure at shut in was 3295 psia.
Calculate k, S’ if the well is producing from the center of a square drainage area
containing 22 MMft². The pressure versus time data are tabulated below.
Solution:

a plot of Pws² versus log (( t + ∆t )/∆ t ) is shown in figure (3-23)

 psia²

The values obtained for k and S' agree with those obtained from the drawdown test,
Example 3-8.