Pore Pressure Diffusion Waves Transmission in Oil Reservoir

Abstract

Recent studies on seismic wave excitation have revealed that mesoscopic wave-induced fluid flow (WIFF) is a process that attenuates the compressional (P) waves in reservoir rocks at seismic frequency bands. Fluid flow and Biot's slow diffusion (pressure) waves are produced when the P-waves create fluid-pressure gradients at mesoscopic-scale heterogeneities. Pore pressure continuity can be sustained by converting seismic energy into diffusion waves that diffuse away from the interfaces or boundaries. Biot’s diffusion waves fail to comply with a square-law approach because of their slow propagation velocity and higher attenuation. It is currently uncertain how to characterize reservoir fluids in mature oil reservoirs during seismic wave-based enhanced oil recovery (EOR). A simplified 1D two-layer reservoir model was investigated in this study. The findings demonstrate that diffusion wave propagation in oil reservoirs is frequency-dependent and affected by rock permeability and fluid viscosity. At a formation layer interface, it was discovered that diffusion waves obeyed the accumulation-depletion relationship rather than the reflection-refraction approach. Therefore, pore pressure diffusion waves can characterize reservoir fluid during seismic EOR and monitor the CO₂ front in depleted reservoirs during storage for CCUS projects. It can also detect shale gas transport in low permeability layers and identify the propagation of fractures during gas/oil recovery.