Numerical Modeling and Simulation of Fractured-Vuggy Reservoirs Based on Field Outcrops

We propose a novel workflow to investigate the complex flow behaviors and remaining oil distribution related to the oil-gas-water three-phase system based on information from typical outcrops of fractured-vuggy reservoirs. A refined geological model is built to represent the size, geometry, and spatial distribution of the karst caves and fractures extracted from the field outcrop photographs. The combination of the perpendicular bisector (PEBI) grid technique and the control-volume finite difference method is adopted for space discretization. We have validated the numerical model against experimental data. Numerical simulations were performed to explore the impacts of the permeability of karst cave and natural fractures and the position of natural water bodies upon oil production performance. Numerical results indicate that (1) the cave permeability has few impacts on the oil production, yet the fracture permeability plays a significant role in determining the oil recovery; (2) a higher permeability of the fractures will lead to a longer period of time for no-water oil production and, thus, a higher oil recovery; (3) the position of natural water body shows significant impacts on oil recovery, e.g., a short distance between the natural water body and the production well tends to form preferential passages, causing severe reduction of water flooding range; and (4) the distribution of remaining oil is controlled by spatial patterns of the fractured-vuggy system and reservoir development schemes. We found that the remaining oil is mainly distributed along the model boundaries and at the corner of the caves with single or multiple connection/s to fractures.