Steam Metering Evaluation and Improvement in Steam Flood Operation

Abstract Accurate monitoring of steam distribution to individual injectors is essential for effective steam flood management and for maximizing oil production in thermal enhanced oil recovery projects. Portable steam Separator measurements performed upstream of the wellhead chokes provide the most reliable steam rate and quality information. However, it is often neither practical nor cost-effective to make these measurements at every injector at the desired frequency. Instead, numerous devices and methods have been developed to measure steam rate before the injector wellhead including but not limited to tapered bean choke, orifice choke and v cone meter, and Vortex meter. This study addresses the critical need to improve the accuracy of these metering devices compared to separator-based measurements. Field tests involving portable steam separators were conducted in Mukhaizna field on selected injectors to measure actual steam rate and quality. Mukhaizna is a heavy oil field located in the south-central of Sultanate of Oman. The results were compared with readings from v cone, orifice, and tapered bore choke meters, adjusted for measured steam quality. Our findings reveal some divergences between metered and separator-derived rates, thus impacting steam allocation and injector compliance. An adjustment methodology was developed to adjust meter reading to align with the separator measurement. After implementation, an apparent improvement in metered rates and steam allocation factor was noticed. This novel approach enhances steam flood management in Mukhaizna and can be adapted to similar projects, supporting more precise resource allocation and value generation.