Diversion methods are routinely used in both matrix acidizing and fracturing stimulation treatments. In this study, we focus on one of the classical mechanical diversion methods, ball sealers. Ball sealer diversion is used in cased and perforated wells to divert stimulation fluids by temporarily blocking perforation holes in the casing with rubber-coated balls. This diversion method can be very effective, but there is no general methodology to design ball sealer diversion, or to evaluate its effectiveness from the treating rate and pressure record. Experimental data from an extensive series of full-scale flow experiments conducted by BP were analyzed. One field treatment was analyzed and compared, and a similar trend in seating efficiency was observed. Then, we developed an empirical correlation on the basis of BP experimental data. The correlation enables us to estimate how many ball sealers seat on the perforations. By incorporating this correlation into an acid placement model, we can estimate wormhole penetrations along the wellbore with time. We developed a computer program and studied one hypothetical case to show the usefulness of the ball sealer diversion model.

Carbonate reservoirs are characteristically heterogeneous in reservoir quality and performance owing to the variety of processes that influence pore formation. Additionally, porosity and permeability do not conform to depositional facies boundaries in carbonate reservoirs affected by diagenesis or fracturing; consequently, conventional methods of petrophysical characterization of flow units based on depositional facies are unreliable as predictors of reservoir behavior. We provide an integrated stratigraphic, petrographic, and petrophysical study of the San Andres reservoir at Sunflower field that identifies and quality-ranks flow units on the basis of genetic pore types. A total of 12 full-diameter cores were analyzed revealing three primary depositional facies and cyclical patterns of deposition identified as parasequences. From the cores, 73 samples were chosen for thin sections. Through petrographic analysis, pores were classified using the Ahr 2005 method and four distinct, genetic pore types were identified. Petrophysical rock types were established by identifying which genetic pore types correspond to high poroperm values, and where they occur within the stratigraphic framework of the reservoir. Sixteen coherent plugs were also subjected to mercury injection capillary pressure analysis in order to quantify pore – pore throat relationships. The data were then evaluated by facies, porosity type, and cycle position using graphical methods, such as k/phi, Winland R35, and Lorenz plots. The results of this study reveal that the most effective way of characterizing petrophysical flow units is the combination of k/phi ratio analyses and genetic pore typing.

Over the past decade the focus of our group has been production of polycarbonates through environmentally friendly routes. Continuing with this tradition, one such route is the ring opening polymerization of cyclic carbonates. The aliphatic polycarbonate derived from trimethylene carbonate, (TMC, 1, 3-dioxan-2-one), has been studied extensively for its potential use as a biodegradable polymer in biomedical and pharmaceutical systems. Its important applications include sutures, drug delivery systems and tissue engineering. To date, majority of the literature concerning catalysts for polymerization of TMC has been restricted to the use of simple Lewis acids with a marked absence of well defined and characterized catalysts. Metal salen complexes have been effective in the ring opening of cyclohexene oxide and the copolymerization of epoxide and carbon dioxide. The ability of this system as a catalyst for the polymerization of cyclic carbonates to polycarbonates is reported in this dissertation. The salen ligand is among the most versatile ligands in chemistry. Our attempts to optimize the catalytic activity by manipulating the salen structure and reaction conditions are also discussed. Our initial efforts were concentrated in understanding the efficacy of Lewis acidic metal salen complexes (Al & Sn), as catalysts for this process. This was followed by the utilization of metal salen complexes of biometals as catalysts for the synthesis of these biodegradable polymers, as well as for the copolymerization of cyclic carbonates with cyclic esters. These copolymers are presently in great demand for their applications as sutures in the medical industry. During the course of our investigations, a novel method of synthesizing polytrimethylene carbonate, by the copolymerization of CO2 and trimethylene oxide, has come to our attention. Surprisingly this reaction has received very little scientific exposure. We observed that metal salen derivatives, along with n-alkyl ammonium salts, were effective catalysts for the selective coupling of CO2 and oxetane (trimethylene oxide) to provide the corresponding polycarbonate with only trace quantities of ether linkages. A section is also dedicated to our investigations in this area of research.

Academic dissertation--Department of physical chemistry--Åbo akademi University, 2004. / Bibliogr. p. 61-64.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2001. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references. Available also from UMI/Dissertation Abstracts International.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2000. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 214-219). Available also in a digital version from Dissertation Abstracts.

Not available / text

Not available / text

The Spraberry Formation is traditionally thought of as deep-water turbidites in the central Midland Basin. At Happy Spraberry field, Garza County, Texas, however, production is from a carbonate interval about 100 feet thick that has been correlated on seismic sections with the Leonardian aged, Lower Clear Fork Formation. The "Happy field" carbonates were deposited on the Eastern Shelf of the Midland Basin and consist of oolitic skeletal grainstones and packstones, rudstones and floatstones, in situ Tubiphytes bindstones, and laminated to rippled, very-fine grained siltstones and sandstones. The highest reservoir "quality" facies are in the oolitic grainstones and packstones where grain-moldic and solution-enhanced intergranular porosity dominate. Other pore types present include incomplete grain moldic, vuggy, and solution-enhanced intramatrix. The purpose of this study was to relate pore geometry measured by digital petrographic image analysis to petrophysical characteristics, and finally, to reservoir quality. Image analysis was utilized to obtain size, shape, frequency, and total abundance of pore categories. Pore geometry and percent porosity were obtained by capturing digital images from thin sections viewed under a petrographic microscope. The images were transferred to computer storage for processing with a commercial image analysis program trademarked as Image Pro Plus (Version 4.0). A classification scheme was derived from the image processing enabling "pore facies" to be established. Pore facies were then compared to measured porosity and permeability from core analyses to determine relative "quality" of reservoir zones with different pore facies. Pore facies are defined on pore types, sizes, shapes, and abundances that occur in reproducible associations or patterns. These patterns were compared with porosity and permeability values from core analyses. Four pore facies were identified in the Happy field carbonates; they were examined for evidence of diagenetic change, depositional signatures, and fractures. Once the genetic categories were established for the four pore facies, the pore groups could be reexamined in stratigraphic context and placed in the stratigraphic section across Happy field. Finally, the combined porosity and permeability values characteristic of each pore facies were used to identify and rank good, intermediate, and poor flow units at field scale.

No description available.