Oil, gas and water well tracers with tunable release profile

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12442289-B2
Application number	US-202418680320-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	May 31, 2024
Priority date	Jul 27, 2022
Publication date	Oct 14, 2025
Grant date	Oct 14, 2025

Abstract

A method includes introducing a fluoro-based small molecule tracer into a stimulation fluid, injecting the stimulation fluid into a target zone of a subterranean formation, and maintaining the fluoro-based small molecule tracer inside the target zone of the subterranean formation for an amount of time. While being maintained inside the target zone, the fluoro-based small molecule tracer comes into contact with water at a downhole temperature resulting in hydrolysis of the fluoro-based small molecule tracer to produce a fluorinated tracer and a nonfluorinated group. Then, produced fluid that includes the fluorinated tracer is recovered, a concentration of the fluorinated tracer in the hydrocarbons is determined, and the concentration of the fluorinated tracer is correlated to a productivity of the target zone of the subterranean formation.

First claim

What is claimed:

1. A method comprising:
injecting a fluoro-based molecule tracer and a nonreactive tracer into a first well in a subterranean formation;
maintaining the fluoro-based molecule tracer and the nonreactive tracer in the subterranean formation for an amount of time, during which the fluoro-based molecule tracer comes into contact with water at a downhole temperature, wherein the water at the downhole temperature hydrolyzes bonds of the fluoro-based molecule tracer to provide a fluorinated tracer and a nonfluorinated group, wherein the fluorinated tracer is different from the nonreactive tracer;
producing a hydrocarbon fluid at a second well;
analyzing the hydrocarbon fluid for a presence of the fluorinated tracer, the fluoro-based molecule tracer, and the nonreactive tracer; and
determining a residual oil saturation of a location of the subterranean formation based on the presence of the fluorinated tracer, the fluoro-based molecule tracer, and the nonreactive tracer in the hydrocarbon fluid.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the nonreactive tracer is a fluoro alcohol.

3. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
after injecting the fluoro-based molecule tracer into the first well, injecting a volume of an aqueous phase to push the fluoro-based molecule tracer a certain depth into the subterranean formation.

4. The method of claim 3 , wherein the volume of the aqueous phase is 4 to 6 times the volume of the fluoro-based molecule tracer.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the determining the residual oil saturation of the subterranean formation is based on a ratio between the presence of the fluorinated tracer, the fluoro-based molecule tracer, and the nonreactive tracer.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the maintaining the fluoro-based molecule tracer in the subterranean formation occurs for a duration of 1 to 10 days.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the location of the subterranean formation is an inter-well region between the first well and the second well.

8. The method of claim 1 , wherein the determining the residual oil saturation of the subterranean formation is based on a difference in production times of the nonreactive tracer and the fluoro-based molecule tracer and fluorinated tracer.

9. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
prior to injecting the fluoro-based molecule tracer and the nonreactive tracer into the first well in the subterranean formation, injecting an initial nonreactive tracer into the first well;
after flowing through an inter-well region between the first well and the second well, producing the initial nonreactive tracer at the second well; and
analyzing an inter-well connectivity between the first well and the second well based on the amount of the initial nonreactive tracer produced.

10. The method of claim 1 , wherein the fluorinated tracer is a low boiling fluoro alcohol having a boiling point of 90° C. or less selected from the group consisting of trifluoromethanol, trifluoroethanol, hexafluoro-2-propanol, nanofluoro-tert-butyl alcohol, 1,1,1,3,3,3-hexafluoro-2-methyl-2-propanol, 1,1,1-trifluoro-2-propanol, and combinations thereof.

11. The method of claim 1 , wherein the fluorinated tracer is a high boiling fluoro alcohol having a boiling point above 90° C. selected from the group consisting of 2,2-difluoroethanol, 2-fluoroethanol, 2,2,3,3-tetrafluoro-1-propanol, pentafluorophenol, fluoroalcohols having an alkyl chain length ranging from C4-C12, pentafluorophenol, 5-fluoro-1H-benzo[d][1,2,3]triazole-6-carboxylic acid, 4-fluoro-phenylcarbamoyl)-3H-imidazole-4-carboxylic acid, 5-fluoro-1H-benzo[d]imidazole-2-carboxylic acid, 2,2,3,3-tetrafluoro-1,4-butanediol, 2,2,3,3,4,4,5,5-octafluoro-1,6-hexanediol, and combinations thereof.

Assignees

• Saudi Arabian Oil Co

Inventors

• Saini Rajesh Kumar
• Cairns Amy J
• Zhu Shitong Sherry
• Gizzatov Ayrat
• Wang Wei
• Sayed Mohammed
• Ow Hooisweng

Classifications

• E21B43/26 Primary

  by forming crevices or fractures · CPC title

• E21B43/28

  Dissolving minerals other than hydrocarbons, e.g. by an alkaline or acid leaching agent (E21B43/241 takes precedence) · CPC title

• E21B43/27

  by use of eroding chemicals, e.g. acids · CPC title

• E21B43/267

  reinforcing fractures by propping · CPC title

• E21B47/11 Primary

  using tracers; using radioactivity · CPC title