Failure of a Multilateral Well
An increasingly common technique to maximize oil production from deep wellbores is to emplace "open" multilateral wells, with multiple legs that branch off of a single conduit. The down side of leaving the well open is a high risk of mechanical failure both during installation and after pumping begins.This model analyzes 3D compaction of an oil reservoir brought about by pumping. The model reported here couples fluid flow with Darcy’s law to displacements from Stress-Strain application modes.
The model is inspired by: Suarez-Rivera, R., Begnaud, B.J., and Martin, W.J. 2004. Numerical analysis of open-hole multilateral completions minimizes the risk of costly junction failures. Rio Oil & Gas Expo and Conference 2004 Proceedings. Instituto Brasileiro de Petróleo e Gás, IBP096_04.
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View of the COMSOL Multiphysics results for pressure contours (isosurfaces under the top surface), pressure gradient (streamtubes), total displacement (boundary plot on top surface), and directional displacements (deformed shape). The results depict impacts from pumping near a branch in a multilateral well. |
Engineering Fields
- Multiphysics
- Subsurface Flow & Deformation
Application Areas
- Hydrology, Subsurface Flow
- Geophysics