Petrobras Tech Assets in Advanced Oil Recovery

New Wave Media

PRAVAP (Advanced Oil Recovery Program) began in 1993, when there was a need to create technological projects for the company to increase the recovery factor of its fields, prolonging its production on an economic and environmentally correct basis.

PRAVAP main objectives are to provide and advance technological solutions that increase the recovery factor of oil fields, for optimum economy and permit exploration of fields considered under-commercial due to restrictions in existing technology. PRAVAP is organized in systemic projects, which are groups of research projects with a common objective.
Wells - Its focus is on various technologies applicable in the well-formation interface, and in the construction of wells, in order to produce low-cost petroleum in mature or middle-aged fields, on or offshore. It comprises the following lines of action: Hydraulic fracturing in horizontal wells; Assessment of mechanical damage of the hydrocarbon-bearing formations; Remote treatment of satellite wells in offshore fields; Alternative sand production control  techniques; Optimization of well-shooting.

Optimization of Raw Water Injection and Re-injection
Oil production requires handling of water volumes equivalent to the volume of oil produced, and which tend to increase as the field approaches its mature stage. This project looks to supply plant and software and develop procedures for the proper management of injection, treatment, reinjection and disposal of water produced, activities which affect the costs in the recovery factor and control of environmental pollution. Its lines of research include the following:

Application of a closed cycle in water management, with total reinjeciton of the water produced; Modeling of loss of injectivity in reservoirs; Injection modeling above fracture pressure; Optimization of raw water injection projects; Application of new raw water injection technologies.

Seismics Applied to Reservoirs
Its prime purposes are first to provide seismic technologies to characterize thin and heterogeneous reservoirs, with less than 15 meter thickness, carrying a considerable portion of the oil reserves in Brazil. It also looks to monitor the routes followed by the injected water in reservoirs undergoing secondary recovery using 4D seismics. This last strategy permits the search for remaining oil in the reservoir using infill drilling. The research lines are:

4-D seismics; Modeling of thin and heterogeneous reservoirs; Advanced reservoir-attribute extraction; Seismic imaging of thin and heterogeneous reservoirs; Seismic acquisition for reservoirs; Monitoring and viewing applied to reservoir characterization.