Pressure transient analysis of a horizontal well subject to four vertical well injectors

Reservoir characterization is essential for effective reservoir and wellbore management. But when a horizontal well is subject to constant-pressure external boundaries, the extent of reservoir characterization that is possible depends on the flow regimes that are encountered in a given flow time. In this paper dimensionless pressure distribution of a horizontal well oil producer, subject to four vertical well fluid injectors, is utilized to identify the possible flow regimes in the horizontal well. The study shows that the number of flow regimes identifiable depends on the permeability distribution and geometry of the reservoir. In particular, for a square shaped reservoir with central horizontal well location, only two major flow regimes are identifiable. More flow regimes may occur if the reservoir length is at least one log cycle greater than the breadth, and the horizontal permeability is substantially high. Journal of the Nigerian Association of Mathematical Physics Vol. 8 2004: pp. 75-8