Well Testing

PEG 309
Fall 2019

Dr. Reda Abdel Azim

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Pressure Buildup Test
 Pressure Buildup Test
• Pressure Buildup test is conducted by flowing
a well at constant rate for sometime until
pressure get stabilized, then well is shut in to
obtain pressure buildup.

• Pressure buildup tests involve recording

pressure data while a well is shut in after a
period of flow.
• Pressure Buildup test determines formation
characteristics such as:

1. Formation Permeability
2. Initial Pressure
3. Drainage area
4. Skin
5. Reservoir heterogeneity
6. Reservoir boundary
 Horner Analysis Method for Pressure
Buildup Test
• The pressure buildup equation, Pws, was introduced
by Horner (1951) and is commonly referred to as the
Horner equation.

where:
Pi = initial reservoir pressure,psi
Pws = sand face pressure during pressure buildup, psi
tp = flowing time before shut-in,hours
qo = stabilized well flow rate before shut-in,STB/day
t = shut-in time, hours
 Horner Analysis Method for Pressure
Buildup Test
• This implies a plot of Pws (Y-axis) versus (tp+Δt)/Δt on
x-axis (logarithmic) should be a straight line. (Horner
plot)

• Horner Time Ratio (HTR)= (tp+Δt)/Δt

• As by after plotting all points on graph we can

differentiate the curve into three regions which are
also named as ETR,MTR and LTR.

• Early Time Region (ETR)= Shows Wellbore Storage

Effect.
• Middle Time Region (MTR)= Diffusivity
equation is applicable in this region because
of transient flow regime.

• Late Time Region (LTR)= Shows boundary has

reached.
 Horner Analysis Method for Pressure
Buildup Test
• So, a plot of Pws vs. (tp + Δt)/Δt on a semi-log scale
would produce a straight-line relationship with
intercept Pi and slope m, where:

where:
m = slope of straight line,psi/cycle
k = permeability, md
 Horner Analysis Method for Pressure
Buildup Test
• The Figure 1.37, commonly referred to as the
Horner plot.
• Note that on the Horner plot, the scale of time
ratio (tp +Δt)/Δt increases from right toleft.
• Graphically this means that the initial
reservoir pressure, pi , can be obtained by
extrapolating the Horner plot straight line to
(tp + Δt)/Δt = 1.
 Horner Analysis Method for Pressure
Buildup Test
• The time corresponding to the point of shut-
in, tp can be estimated from the following
equation:

N p (STB)
t p (hours)  24
qo (STB /D)

Np = well cumulative oil produced before shut in, STB

qo = stabilized well flow rate before shut in, STB/day
tp = total production time, hours
 Skin Pressure Drop Due to Skin
• Skin Pressure drop: higher pressure drop near
the well bore due to mud filtrate, reduced K ,
improved K, change of flow streamlines, fluid
composition change,….etc.
• It is one of the most important parameter
used in production engineering.
• It leads to additional work-overoperations.
 The Skin Factor (s)
• The skin factor affect the shape of the pressure buildupdata.

• An early time deviation from the straight line can be caused

by the skin factor as well as by wellbore storage, as illustrated
in Figure 1.37.

• The deviation can be significant for the large negative skins

that occur in hydraulically fracturedwells.

• The skin factor value may be estimated from the buildup test
data plus the flowing pressure immediately before the
buildup test.
 Skin Indicators
• First Outcome:
Δpskin > 0, indicates an additional pressure drop due to
wellbore damage,
i.e., kskin < k.
• Second Outcome:
Δpskin < 0, indicates less pressure drop due to wellbore
improvement,
i.e., kskin > k.
• Third Outcome:
Δpskin = 0, indicates no changes in the wellbore condition,
i.e., kskin = k.
• So, after determining slope permeability Kcan
be measured by following formula.

• Skin can be determined by using formula

shown below.
 P1 hr, Pi, and P*
• P1hr

HTRP1hr = [(tp+1)/1]
P1 hr = Pi + [m log (tp +1)]

• Infinite reservoir or new discovery.

Pi – Extrapolating the straight line to an HTRof 1 gives

the initial pressurePi.

• Finite reservoir
If the reservoir is not infinite acting, the extrapolated
straight line at an HTRof 1 called the false pressureP*.
 Pressure Drop
• With an additional pressure drop acrossthe
altered zone of:

Δpskin = 0. 87 | m | s

where:
s = skin factor
| m | = absolute value of the slope in the Horner plot,
psi/cycle
 Example
Table 1.5 shows the pressure buildup data from an oil
well with an estimated drainage radius of 2640 ft. Before
shut-in, the well had produced at a stabilized rate of 4900
STB/day for 310 hours.
Known reservoir data is:
depth = 10 476 ft, rw = 0. 354 ft, ct = 22.6 × 10−6 psi−1
qo = 4900 STB/D, h = 482 ft, pwf (t = 0) = 2761psig
μo = 0. 20 cp, Bo = 1. 55 bbl/STB, φ = 0. 09
tp = 310 hours, re = 2640 ft

Calculate:
● the average permeability k;
● the skin factor;
● the additional pressure drop due toskin.
 Solution
• Step 1. Plot pws vs. (tp+t)/t on a semi-log
scale asshown in Figure 1.38).
• Step 2. Identify the correct straight-line
portion of the curve and determine the slope
m: m = 40 psi/cycle
• Step 3. Calculate the average permeability.
• Step 4. Determine pwf after 1 hour from thestraight-
line portion of the curve:
P1 hr = 3266psi
HTRP1hr = [(tp+1)/1] = (310+1)/1= 311 hr
P1hr = 3266 psi
• Step 5. Calculate the skin factor
• Step 6. Calculate the additional pressure drop
by using:
 Late – Time Region .
• The radius of investigation eventually will
reach the drainage boundaries of awell.

• In this late- time region pressure behavior is

influenced by boundary configuration,
interference from near by wells, significant
reservoir heterogeneities, and fluid / fluid
contacts.
Fig (1.3). Down trending Horner plots. (3)
Fig (1.4). Up trending Horner curves. (3)
 Horner Analysis Method for Pressure
Buildup Test
• In 1951, Horner reported an approximation that can be used in
many cases to avoid the use of superposition in modeling the
production history of a variable-rate well.
• With this approximation, we can replace the sequence of Ei
functions, reflecting rate changes, with a single Ei function that
contains a single producing time and a single producing rate.
• The single rate is the most recent nonzero rate at which the well
was produced; we call this rate qlast for now.
• This single producing time is found by dividing cumulative
production from the well by the most recent rate; we call this
producing time tp, or pseudoproducing time

cumulative producing from well, N p (STB)

t p (hours)  24
most recent rate, qlast (STB /D)
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Then, to model pressure behavior at any point in a reservoir, we can
use the simple equation

Two questions arise logically at this point:

(1) What is the basis for this approximation ?
(2) Under what conditions is it applicable ?

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(1) The basis for the approximation is not rigorous, but intuitive,
and is founded on two criteria:

(a)Use the most recent rate, such a rate, maintained for any
significant period

(b) Choose an effective production time such that the

product of the rate and the production time results in the
correct cumulative production. In this way, material
balance will be maintained accurately.

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• (2) If the most recent rate is maintained sufficiently
long for the radius of investigation achieved at this rate
to reach the drainage radius of the tested well, then
Horner’s approximation is always sufficiently accurate.

• We find that, for a new well that undergoes a series of

rather rapid rate changes, it is usually sufficient to
establish the last constant rate for at least twice as long
as the previous rate.

• When there is any doubt about whether these guidelines

are satisfied, the safe approach is to use superposition
to model the production history of the well.

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 Example 1.6 – Application of Horner’s Approximation

• Given: the Production history was as follows:

Find : (1) t p  ?
(2) Is Horner' s approximation adequate for this case? If
not, how should the production history for this well
be simulated?

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Solutions :
68 (STB) 24 (hrs)
(1) q last   22.7 STB
72 (hrs) 1 (Day) D

t p  24
Np
 24 
52  0  46  68  24  166  175.5 hrs
q last 22.7 22.7

t last 72 (hrs)
(2)   2.76 2
tnexttolast 26 (hrs)
Thus, Horner' s approximation is probably adequate for the case.

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P* Method to calculate average
pressure in drainage area

Please go back to delivered note

inside class
 Example 1

Buildup test of a well located in a drainage area

of a constant pressure boundary.

The following data is available based on a 72-hr buildup

test of a vertical well (Table 5-3).3l Production records
indicate that the well produced at a rate of 250 stb/d
for 13,630 hrs prior to shut-in. Stabilized bottomhole
flowing pressure prior to the shut-in was recorded as
3,534 psia. Other data includes the following:
• Formation thickness, ft, = 69.
• Porosity, %, = 3.9.
• Total compressibility, psi-1, = 17 x l0-1.
• Oil formation volume factor, rb/stb, = 1.136.
• Oil viscosity, cp, = 0.8.
• Well radius, ft, = 0.198.

The producer is located at the center of a square-shaped

drainage region in a developed reservoir, where multiple
producers are drilled in a predetermined pattern. The
reservoir area from which the well produces oil is
estimated to be 160 acres.

• Analyze the test by making all necessary assumptions.

 Solution
Horner Plot
Horner Plot 4600

P1hr = 4300 psi

4500
m = 70 psi/cycle
Pi = 4560 psi
4400

4300

4200

Pwf, psi
4100

4000

3900

3800

3700

3600
100000.00 10000.00 1000.00 100.00 10.00 1.00
HTR
 Solution
• Find Permeability:

K = (162.6* 250* 1.136* 0.8)/(70* 69) = 7.6 md

• Determine the skin:

• S = 1.151*[(4300-3534)/70)-
(Log(7.6/(0.039*0.8*17*10E-6*0.198²))+3.23]
= 6.46
• Δpskin = 0. 87 |m| s
Δpskin = 0. 87* 70 * 6.46 = 393 psi

• Due to a positive value of skin factor, as observed

above, the well productivity is adversely affected,
and the effective radius of the wellbore is less
than the actual radius.
• The effective radius is computed by the following
Equation:

• rwa = 0.189 e-s

= 0.189*e-6.46 = 0.000295 ft
• To estimate the flow efficiency and average reservoir
pressure in the well drainage area, the value of p* is
calculated by extrapolating the semilog straight line on
a Horner plot to (tP + Δt)/Δt = 1.

• The computation of flow efficiency:

In a bounded reservoir, the flow efficiency of a well is
defined as the actual productivity index over the ideal
productivity
•FE = J/J ideal = (Pav – Pwf - ΔPs)/ (Pav – Pwf)
where
pav = average reservoir pressure, psia, and
Aps = pressure drop at the well due to skin, psia.
• FE = J/J ideal = (Pav – Pwf - ΔPs)/ (Pav – Pwf)
= (4560 – 3534 – 393)/(4560 – 3534)
=0.62 = 62%
 Radius of investigation
• In any well test, it is vital to know the distance into the
reservoir that is investigated.

• The horizontal portion on the diagnostic plot.

• The radius of investigation is defined as the distance from

the well where a pressure transient response has a
significant effect?

• It is possible to estimate the radius of investigation for a

well flowing in a circular drainage area as follows:

kt
rinv 
948c t
• rinv 
kt
948c t

• rinv. =(( 7.6 * 50)/(948*0.038*0.8*17*10E-6))^0.5

= 880 ft
 Reference Books
• (A) Lee, J.W., Well Testing, Society of petroleum Engineers of AIME, Dallas, Texas,, 1982.

• (B) Tarek Ahmed and D. Nathan Meehan., Advanced Reservoir Management and Engineering,
Elsiver, MA, USA2012, Gulf Professional, SecondEdition.

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