Liquid Loading Experiments in a Reservoir-Tubing Model with and without Added Surfactants Available to Purchase

Liquid loading is the accumulation of liquid at the bottom of gas wells occurring at the end of field life. Surfactant injection is a common way to deliquefy these wells. In this work, a model of a sandbox, an inflow zone and a tubing is used to study deliquification. This experimental setup allows studying batch surfactant injections. For these injections a trade-off is found: at high concentrations deliquification persists longer, but the large amount of foam initially leads to lower gas production. At lower concentrations the surfactants are effective for a shorter duration, but the initial production gains are greater.