Abstract
Effective diversion is critical to successful stimulation of long-interval, high-rate wells. Once near-wellbore damage has been removed in one portion of the completion interval, steps must be taken to divert stimulation fluids to intervals that remain damaged. Viscous fluid diverters, such as gels, foams, and emulsions, have all been used with success in field applications. These three diverter types were compared in the Westport Technology Center wellbore model. Foams and emulsions were found to provide more effective diversion than gel.
Based on the laboratory results, foam diversion was used during stimulation of injection wells at Shell Offshore Inc.'s Bullwinkle platform. Comparison of diverted and undiverted treatments quantifies the benefits to be gained from effective diversion and demonstrates that wellbore model studies correlate well with field results.
