摘要
The main objective of this paper is to establish a consistent geometrical frame focusing on the coupling between hydro-mechanical aspects of the sanding process and formation deformation/collapse. A sand erosion model is postulated after the onset of sand production, which is determined based on the degree of plastic deformation inside the reservoir formation calculated by the coupled reservoir-geomechanics model. The effects of enlarged sanding radius and sand production on heavy oil recovery are analyzed.Field data for sand production and enhanced oil production from Shengli heavy oilfield are used to validate the model for the sand rate and sand production. Our studies indicate that the enhanced oil production can be contributed by either (1) a higher fluid velocity due to the movement of the sand particles according to the modified Darcy's flow, or by (2) a negative skin or enlarged well radius increase development due to sand erosion and formation collapse near the well. Examples to be presented in this paper indicate that a small amount of sand production may permit an easier path for oil to flow into the well due to an enhanced permeability.Sand predication results show that sanding trends are different under different reservoir conditions, and so a reasonable critical draw-down can be determined. In addition, a continual sand production burst often occurs in poorly unconsolidated sandstone reservoirs and then it is difficult to establish a steady sand arch.