Journal of Petroleum Research and Studies

Reservoir Characterization and Quantitive Interpretation (QI) Using 3D Seismic and Well Logs Data of Mishrif Formation a Case Study Southern Iraq

2025-05-08T09:00:34+03:00

Seismic reservoir property is one of the most important components of the seismic interpretation analysis. The research describes a successful use of a model-based seismic inversion tool and probabilistic neural network (PNN) to post-stack 3D seismic data for the identification of hydrocarbon reservoir zones within the Mishrif Formation. It represents an important formation in Iraq geologically and economically. The objective of this work is to evaluate reservoir characterization and increase the method to obtain better information about reservoir characterization by enhancement and assessment of petrophysical properties of Mishrif Formation such as (P-wave, effective porosity, density, and water saturation). Well logging data, well tops and 3D seismic were used as input to achieve the goal of this along with Petrel and Hampson Russel (The strata and emerge modules). Two horizons were picked in the Two-Way Travel Time (TWT) domain and converted to depth maps by using average velocity of wells. The TWT and depth maps of the Mishrif and near Ahmadi formations show highly developed structures in the southwest and southeast, with a N-S axis, and generally dipping toward the NW. The results of the acoustic impedance horizon units within the Mishrif Formation showed low acoustic impedance values, with higher values observed at the crest and on the northern sides of the N–S anticline axis, as well as in the southwestern part. The final results of the merged and horizon slices of P-wave data showed low velocity, high effective porosity, low water saturation, and low density within the reservoir units of the Mishrif Formation, with improved values observed at the crest, on the northern sides of the N–S anticline axis, and in the southwestern part. Two carbonate buildups within the Mishrif Formation were identified, and seismic attribute analysis was used to determine the boundaries of these buildups and to estimate their reservoir characteristics. The findings from the carbonate buildups and horizon slices revealed low acoustic impedance, low density, low P-wave velocity, high effective porosity, and low water saturation values. Based on all results and attribute analyses, it is recommended to drill an exploration well targeting the stratigraphic carbonate buildup located in the southwestern part of the 3D seismic survey area of the X Oilfield.

Detection Injection Zones in Carbonate Reservoir by Integration Production Log with Borehole Image Data at Horizontal Wells

2025-05-10T22:32:35+03:00

The Mid-Cretaceous Formation is a significant carbonate reservoir primarily located in the Middle East, notably in Iraq, Iran, and parts of the Arabian Gulf. It dates from the Late Cenomanian to Early Turonian period (94–90 million years ago). The formation comprises diverse lithologies, including bioclastic and rudist-rich limestone, grey-white limestone, foraminiferal-rich facies, and limonitic limestone. This study investigates the relationship between open-hole log data and dynamic injection data. The PoreSpect technique assumes that resistivity data from electrical borehole images reflect the flushed zone around the borehole. These electrical images, acquired using the Full-bore Formation MicroImager (FMI*), are calibrated with shallow resistivity and log-derived porosity to produce an effective porosity map. The underlying principle is that the FMI images provide a conductivity map of the borehole wall, which can be converted into porosity values using Archie’s equation for the flushed zone. Image log interpretation provides valuable insights into porosity types and distributions. Primary porosity is associated with depositional processes, while secondary porosity—such as fractures and vugs—is developed through diagenetic alterations and is typically irregular in nature. This study focuses on the behaviour of the injection profile along the lateral section of horizontal wells, using image-derived porosity and logging-while-drilling density data. The findings reveal two distinct porosity groups. The first group, characterized by high secondary porosity (greater than 5%), accounts for over 90% of the injected water. The second group, despite having good total porosity, shows low secondary porosity and accommodates less than 10% of the injected water. A strong correlation exists between secondary porosity distribution and the injection profile, where zones with higher secondary porosity exhibit higher injectivity. Conversely, zones with high resistivity are associated with low injectivity and minimal secondary porosity. The approach presented in this study enhances the understanding of how different forms of carbonate porosity influence injection behaviour. The results confirm that secondary porosity plays a more significant role in injectivity than primary porosity. Although limited by the availability of horizontal production logging tool (PLT) data in injector wells, the analysis provides meaningful insights into injection performance. These findings are essential for optimizing well completions, hydraulic fracture stage design, packer and inflow control device placement, and overall reservoir management strategies.

Automated Depth Shifting of Core Data: A Python-Based Approach

2024-01-18T12:06:40+03:00

In the field of petroleum exploration and reservoir analysis, the precise correlation between core data and log data is paramount. However, the presence of broken or incomplete core data due to core crumbling, stretch of logging tools cables, and information loss on cored depths poses a significant challenge, as it can hinder the accuracy of interpretations derived from log data also Manually shifting is both demanding and time-consuming, and its precision falls short when compared to the efficiency and accuracy of an automated shifting process. This paper introduces a novel Python-based solution for automatic depth shifting of core data to log data, aimed at enhancing the alignment and integration of these two essential datasets. By adopting the issue of incomplete core recovery, this approach offers a practical and efficient method to optimize data consistency and improve the quality of geological interpretations.

An Experimental Investigation of the pH Effect on the Properties of Iraqi Cement Class G: A Comparative Study with UAE Cement

2024-07-15T11:30:15+03:00

The cement process is a crucial operation in the drilling of oil and gas wells, in which errors would be extremely costly and time-consuming to rectify. Some of the technical parameters that influence this process include the pH of water used in the preparation of the cement slurry. This study investigates the impact of water pH on the properties of Class-G cement slurry. The cement slurries have been mixed using distilled water and four water samples at pH 9.5, 10, 11, and 12, respectively, with no additives. Iraqi and UAE cements' physical and chemical analyses were performed according to API standard specifications. The findings indicate that UAE cement largely meets the API specifications. However, Iraqi cement has some deviations due to a difference in manufacturing processes, which caused failures when the tests were conducted with fresh water. The findings of three physical tests demonstrated that mixing cement with alkaline water (pH>7) has a negative effect on the cement physical properties, especially compressive strength and density. On the other hand, the thickening time test for two kinds of cement demonstrated that when the pH level increases, it contributes to a delay in the thickening time of roughly 50 minutes for both types. This study considers pH effects in the preparation of cement slurries to ensure that bonding was not impaired and exclude post-operational failures.

Kinetic Study of Thermal Pyrolysis of Polypropylene Waste from North Refineries Company

2024-06-05T10:18:56+03:00

The process of pyrolysis is the thermal degradation of plastic waste in the absence of oxygen at high temperatures, which leads to the decomposition of the material to form a mixture of gases, liquids, and some solid residues. To investigate the pattern of degradation that occurs in the plastic materials when subjected to the reaction conditions that would be employed for pyrolysis, thermal gravitational analysis studies were conducted. Consequently, the TGA analysis was conducted at a moderate reaction temperature of 900 °C for a duration of 30 minutes while being agitated with nitrogen flow. The objective of the experiment was to predict the plastic's weight reduction over time and temperature. The process included heating about 10 mg of the polypropylene (in nitrogen) at a rate of 5 °C min-1 to a final temperature of 900 °C. The sample spent thirty minutes at that temperature. The goal of this investigation was to construct a polypropylene thermal model for the production of green fuel. In the present work, a kinetic model was developed for the thermal degradation of North Refineries Company polypropylene plastic waste via TGA data obtained at no-isothermal conditions. The TGA data was coupled with the Arrhenius equation to find the thermal degradation kinetics. Different models were examined to figure out the most suitable model that fits the thermal degradation kinetics and it was found that the Coats-Redfern model is the one that fits the mechanism of thermal degradation of the waste. The predicted activation energy and pre-exponential factor obtained from analysis of the kinetics data based on the Coats-Redfern model were 128.74 kJ/mol and 2.603. The value of the activation energy for polypropylene indicates within average values of the activation energy in other literature, in agreement with other similar literature reports.

Simulation of Atmospheric Distillation Unit for AL-Diwiniya Crude Oil Refinery by Using Aspen Hysys

2024-05-26T13:24:01+03:00

This study aims to examine the steady-state modeling of the current performance of the atmospheric distillation column at the Al-Diwiniya refinery, which can process up to 10,000 barrels per day of crude oil. The results of the steady-state simulations run by the Aspen Hysys V14 software were compared to the actual operating parameters of the refinery. These conditions included plant experimental ASTM D86 curves for various products, the flowrate of the refined products, and the temperature of the product trays. The simulation results showed a good agreement with laboratory ASTM D86 curves for all products except heavy Naphtha, which revealed a noticeable difference. The results of the flow rate of Light Naphtha, Heavy Naphtha, Kerosene and Gasoil showed good agreement except Off gas (Relative Error%= 25) and Atmospheric residue (Relative Error%=-0.6). Finally, the simulated temperature of draw trays for refinery products shows good agreement with the refinery data where Relative Error -8.3% for Off gas was the largest variance between the refinery and simulation results.

Novel Plan for Stripping Gas Recovery in Gas Dehydration Unit: Techno-Economical Evaluation for Khark Petrochemical Company as A Case Study

2025-04-23T08:47:07+03:00

The presence of water vapor in natural gas presents several challenges, including corrosion, pipeline blockages, and reduced pipeline capacity. Gas dehydration is therefore a critical process for reducing water content and mitigating these issues. In this study, the dehydration unit of Khark Petrochemical Company (KPC), which utilizes triethylene glycol (TEG) as the desiccant agent, was simulated using Aspen HYSYS v11.0. The innovation of this paper lies in proposing an optimized method for recovering vent gas used in the glycol solution regeneration process, which has been thoroughly evaluated from both technical and economic perspectives. Simulation results were validated in comparison to plant Process Flow Diagram (PFD) data. A sensitivity analysis was then performed to identify and investigate the impact of various parameters on the dehydration unit's performance and the produced dry gas. Increasing the solvent circulation rate, stripping gas flow rate, and reboiler temperature improves the water removal rate, as indicated by the results. Several options for recovering around 0.7 MMSCFD of stripping gas from the regeneration tower by raising the regenerator's operating pressure were evaluated, with estimated capital and operating expenditures for each. The optimal option, which routes the recovered stripping gas to a low-pressure feed gas compressor, has an estimated capital cost of $80,000 based on Aspen ICARUS software and additional costs were calculated as a percentage of the equipment price. This option, by preventing gas waste and converting it into methanol with an operational cost of approximately $67000, generate annual revenue of $1.7 million. The amount of emission reduction achieved through gas recovery is equivalent to 48 tons of CO₂ per day.

Removal and Preconcentration of Calcium from Industrial Water by Synthesis of Ionic Imprinted Polymer

2025-07-02T12:28:31+03:00

Removal and preconcentration of Calcium from industrial water By employing several monomers, including Styrene and 1-vinyl imidazole, bulk polymerization was used to create unique Calcium (II) ion-imprinted polymers (IIPs). To achieve the highest adsorption capacity, the molar ratios of the template, monomer, cross-linking agent, solvents, and different monomers for polymerization were studied. scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) were used to characterize the produced calcium-IIPs. The maximum capacity for calcium-IIP adsorption was 222.1 mol/g for calcium-IIP2 and 272.6 mol/g for calcium-IIP1 (both of which used styrene as a monomer). Calcium-IIP adsorption complied with Langmuir isotherm models. Before and after treatment, samples of industrial water are obtained from refineries to eliminate chemical components from the water. These solutions were filtered via a 0.5 m filter before being added to the Calcium-IIP-SPE packed column system. to eliminate calcium ions and measure them.

Bioremediation of Contaminated Soil with Hydrocarbons in Gas Stations with Alkane Hydroxylase Purified from Pseudomonas florescens

2024-06-26T13:16:36+03:00

Petroleum product pollution of soil is a worldwide issue that threatens human and environmental health and destroys natural ecosystems. It also interferes with the ecosystem's ability to function properly. Thus, the necessity to clean up polluted locations is vital. Bioremediation is an economical and ecologically friendly approach. The ability of certain bacteria to proliferate in situations contaminated with oil makes bacterial alkane hydroxylases highly desirable for bioremediation applications. Additionally, this enzyme facilitates specific hydroxylation of chemically inert alkanes, which is useful for synthesizing expensive compounds like medicines. In this study with a high level of alkane hydroxylase at 40°C after 72 hours of incubation, Pseudomonas fluorescens was found to be the most effective alkane degrader, followed by Pseudomonas aeruginosa, which had a lower productivity for alkane hydroxylase. Upon reaching a peak after 96 hours with 67% degradation of the hydrocarbons, alkane hydroxylase at a concentration of 150 µg/ml removed 43% of the hydrophobic pollutant from the polluted soil following a 24-hour incubation period.

Welding Robot Controlled Using PSO-Fuzzy Technique

2025-07-09T13:06:00+03:00

This work addressed the use of a robot arm with flexible joints as a welding robot for oil pipeline networks. One of the trickiest processes with strict quality criteria is welding oil pipelines. A highly skilled welder with considerable expertise is typically required. At the moment, robotics technology is sophisticated and is used in many technical applications. Robotics are highly precise workers; They operate with high precision and minimal error during their job implementations. In this paper, a classic PID controller is employed to control the welding robot arm movements since the Proportional-Integral-Derivative (PID) controller requires parameter tuning in the presence of any disturbance. Intelligent controllers are required, and for this purpose, a fuzzy logic controller is presented to improve the welding robot's performance during changing circumstances of operation. To optimize the fuzzy parameters, a particle swarm optimization method (PSO) is proposed to determine the selection of the optimal values of the fuzzy membership’s parameters. The simulation results show that the suggested controller has high performance during welding, even in the presence of disturbances.

Six-Bucket Sim-Savonius Hybrid Turbine: Experimental Analysis and Performance Evaluation

2025-07-02T10:34:59+03:00

The growing awareness and apprehension regarding environmental issues have led to a surge in the demand for energy alternatives that are environmentally sustainable. Wind energy is widely recognized as a prominent and environmentally sustainable sort of electricity generation on a global scale. Fossil fuel is widely recognized as a crucial energy source, the accessibility of which is progressively declining. Nevertheless, wind power is considered a sustainable and renewable energy source that can serve as an alternative or supplementary option to conventional fossil fuels. Vertical axis wind turbines are good option for deployment in urban environments because to their exceptional characteristics, aesthetic appeal, minimal noise emissions, and enhanced safety measures. In order to accomplish these aims, a series of vertical axis wind turbines featuring many blades, constructed from light material, have been developed, produced, and subjected to experimental analysis to assess their performance. The turbine blade is created in the shape of a half-cylinder blade. The SIM-Savonius hybrid wind turbine's experimental evaluation involves manipulating blade angles and locations. This study investigates performance of the turbine at various speeds of winds and radius dimensions for the traditional turbine and (40cm, 50cm, 55cm) for the hybrid turbine. A graphical link was constructed between the power coefficient, blade angles, and tip speed ratio. Speed of wind, blade placement, blade count, and blade angle are all proven to have a major impact on wind turbine performance. The hybrid turbine has the highest power coefficient (31.111%) when the speed of the wind is 1.5 m/s, R is 50 cm, and r is 30 cm, the tip speed ratio (TSR) is 2.8, the blade angle is 45^o. It should also be noted that the power factor of the multi-blade hybrid turbine increases by 1.383% when compared to the vertical axis wind turbine with six blades.

A Numerical Investigation to Enhance Latent Heat Thermal Energy Storage Through the Utilization of Spiral Fins Composed of Aluminum

2025-07-15T11:11:18+03:00

The use of phase change materials (PCM) to store latent thermal energy is critical to bridging the disparity between energy production and consumption. This paper investigates numerically the use of double and quadruple spiral fins, spiral foam fins, and rectangular and cylindrical fins in the horizontal position to improve heat transfer in a shell-and-tube heat exchanger and compares the different types with the finless design. Comsol Multiphysics (6.0) was used to create a 3D model. In this simulation, natural convection was taken into account, and an approximately equal amount of phase change material was used in all cases. Water as the heat transfer fluid and commercial paraffin (RT-28) as the phase change material were used in this simulation. The results show that the melting time was significantly decreased when the spiral fins were used, and the heat transfer rate was significantly improved when the spiral foam fins were used.

Iraq Crude Oil Exports – July, August, September/ 2024

2025-09-21T07:55:22+03:00

Table 1. Iraq Crude Oil Exports – July 2024

Table 2. Iraq Crude Oil Exports – August 2024

Table 3. Iraq Crude Oil Exports – September 2024