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Secondary Water Recovery by Air Injection: 3. Evaluation of Feasibility
Author(s) -
Moridis George J.,
Reddell Donald L.
Publication year - 1991
Publication title -
water resources research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.863
H-Index - 217
eISSN - 1944-7973
pISSN - 0043-1397
DOI - 10.1029/91wr01129
Subject(s) - secondary air injection , water injection (oil production) , aquifer , petroleum engineering , environmental science , computer simulation , permeability (electromagnetism) , geotechnical engineering , soil science , geology , groundwater , mechanics , waste management , engineering , chemistry , biochemistry , physics , membrane
Numerical simulation indicated that secondary water recovery by air injection could be technically feasible in aquifers with thick unsaturated zones, confining top layers, high ratio of horizontal‐to‐vertical permeability, and low intrinsic permeability, and high irreducible air saturations, i.e., clayey textures. Injection at the top of the unsaturated zone, venting the well to the atmosphere immediately after the end of air injection, low‐to‐moderate injection rates and large volumes of injected air seemed to enhance water recovery. Simulated water recovery volumes were significantly lower than the recovery estimates based on water level elevations in observation wells during field tests. The model helped interpret some of the observations made during the field tests of secondary water recovery and helped identify areas of inadequacy in available information needed for representative numerical simulations.