It is now well-documented that the resource shales consist of pores with small volumes contributing to the storage of hydrocarbon fluids. These volumes are not much larger than the fluid molecules they store. Physical chemistry of fluids under confinement in such a small space is different and could lead to various equilibrium thermodynamic states under subsurface conditions; consequently, phases could change and critical properties shift unpredictably.This presentation will discuss PVT behavior of confined hydrocarbon fluids using atomistic modeling and molecular simulations and will be compared to the classical fluid. The behavior is different mainly due to pore-wall dominated inter-molecular forces. The molecular forces also play a significant role on the fluid transport and could lead to potential non-Darcian flow effects. The molecular transport effects on flow will be introduced to the audience using meso-scale lattice Boltzmann simulation of gas dynamics in nano-capillaries and analyzing the pressure pulse decay data for the permeability of core plugs under effective stress and for the apparent permeability of crushed particles.The presentation will conclude with a demonstration on the impact of fluid behavior under confinement on shale hydrocarbon in-place calculations and, using reservoir flow simulations, on the reserves.

Multiscale discussion on fluid behavior under confinement: Can molecules in nanopores influence recovery from the resource shale?

247th National Meeting (2014)

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