A preliminary investigation is presented on the use of Inflow/Injection Control Devices (ICDs) to control steam placement in the early stages of a Steam Assisted Gravity Drainage (SAGD) process. The two parts of this process that are examined are the steam circulation period and the early stages of injection/production in which the steam chamber is beginning to form. A SAGD case study has been designed that accurately models the initial circulation period in which both wells circulate steam in order to conductively and, to a lesser extent, convectively heat the region around the well pair in order to establish communication after which both wells switch to injection and production. Flow control is examined in a variety of configurations in the steam injection well, the devices being placed to control steam/water flow along the tubing, along the annulus and from the tubing to the annulus.

Keywords:
sagd process, circulation period, contour, modeling & simulation, steam conformance, reservoir, flow path, fluid dynamics, enhanced recovery, steam-assisted gravity drainage
Subjects:
Reservoir Fluid Dynamics, Improved and Enhanced Recovery, Flow in porous media, Thermal methods
Copyright 2010, Society of Petroleum Engineers
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