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Scientific Reports,11,Ar-ticle No. 23445.https:///10.1038/s41598-021-02959-9[53]Lawal, A.I. and Kwon, S. (2021) Application of Artificial Intelligence to Rock Me-chanics: A n Overview. Journal of Rock Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering,13, 248-266.https:///10.1016/j.jrmge.2020.05.010World Journal of Engineering and Technology, 2023, 11, 273-280https:///journal/wjetISSN Online: 2331-4249ISSN Print: 2331-4222Establishment of Unstable Flow Model and Well Testing Analysis for Viscoelastic Polymer FloodingZheng Lv, Meinan WangBohai Oilfield Research Institute of CNOOC Ltd., Tianjin Branch, Tianjin, ChinaAbstractAt present, the polymer solution is usually assumed to be Newtonian fluid orpseudoplastic fluid, and its elasticity is not considered on the study of poly-mer flooding well testing model. A large number of experiments have shownthat polymer solutions have viscoelasticity, and disregarding the elasticity willcause certain errors in the analysis of polymer solution seepage law. Based onthe percolation theory, this paper describes the polymer flooding mechanismfrom the two aspects of viscous effect and elastic effect, the mathematicalmodel of oil water two-phase three components unsteady flow in viscoelasticpolymer flooding was established, and solved by finite difference method, andthe well-test curve was drawn to analyze the rule of well test curve in polymerflooding. The results show that, the degree of upward warping in the radialflow section of the pressure recovery curve when considering polymer elastic-ity is greater than the curve which not considering polymer elasticity. The re-laxation time, power-law index, polymer injection concentration mainly af-fect the radial flow stage of the well testing curve. The relaxation time, pow-er-law index, polymer injection concentration and other polymer floodingparameters mainly affect the radial flow stage of the well testing curve. Thelarger the polymer flooding parameters, the greater the degree of upwarpingof the radial flow derivative curve. This model has important reference signi-ficance for well-testing research in polymer flooding oilfields.KeywordsPolymer Flooding, Viscoelasticity, Well Testing, Mathematical Model,Seepage Law1. IntroductionPolymer flooding is an important way to improve oil recovery in production oil-How to cite this paper: Lv, Z. and Wang,M.N. (2023) Establishment of UnstableFlow Model and Well Testing Analysis forViscoelastic Polymer Flooding. World Jour-nal of Engineering and Technology, 11,273-280.https:///10.4236/wjet.2023.112019Received: April 6, 2023Accepted: May 6, 2023Published: May 9, 2023Copyright © 2023 by author(s) andScientific Research Publishing Inc.This work is licensed under the CreativeCommons Attribution InternationalLicense (CC BY 4.0)./licenses/by/4.0/Open AccessZ. Lv, M. N. Wangfields. It has been widely industrialized in China and has achieved good applica-tion results and economic benefits [1] [2] [3] [4] [5]. Most experts have con-ducted a lot of research on the percolation characteristics of polymer in porous media and its impact on oil displacement effect. However, in most analysis of polymer flooding percolation laws, people usually assume that polymer solution is Newtonian fluid or pseudoplastic fluid, without considering its elasticity. A large number of experiments have shown that polymer solutions have viscoelas-ticity, and disregarding their elasticity will cause certain errors in the analysis of polymer solution seepage law [6] [7] [8] [9] [10]. This article studies the rheo-logical and viscoelastic properties of polymer solution, provides a characteriza-tion method for the elastic viscosity of polymer solutions, and proposes a new polymer flooding well testing model which takes into account the viscoelastic properties of polymer, which guiding the study of percolation law in polymer flooding Oilfields.2. Mathematical Description for the Main Oil Displacement Mechanism of PolymerUnder certain temperature condition, the viscosity of polymer solution increases significantly with increasing concentration. Under static condition, the viscosity of the polymer solution can be expressed as the following equation.()023p w 1p 2p 3p 1A c A c A c µµ=++++ (1)In which, 0p µ is zero shear viscosity of polymer solution, Pa·s; μw is water viscosity, Pa·s; c p is Polymer solution concentration, mg/L; A 1, A 2, A 3 is coeffi-cient.Due to the generally low concentration of polymer solutions, 33pA c and its subsequent terms are often overlooked.()02p w 1p 2p 1A c A c µµ=++ (2)Using the Kerry model to describe the viscoelasticity of polymer solution.()()()1220eff pppf 1n µµµµθγ−∞∞ =+−+⋅(3)In which, μeff is viscoelastic polymer viscosity, Pa·s; pµ∞is ultimate shear rate viscosity, Pa·s; θf is relaxation time, s; n is power-law index.3. Establishment and Solution of a Mathematical Model for Oil-Water Two-Phase Flow in Polymer FloodingAssuming that polymer flooding is an isothermal displacement process and mul-tiphase flow satisfies the generalized Darcy’s law, the fluid consists of oil-water two-phase flow, with only oil components in the oil phase and water and polymer components in the water phase. Ignoring the influence of capillary pressure and gravity, the continuity equation of oil-water two-phase flow can be expressed as the following equations.()o ro o o o o o K K p q S t ρρφµ ⋅∂∇⋅∇+= ∂(4)Z. Lv, M. N. Wang()w rw w w w w eff KK p q S t ρρφµ ∂∇⋅∇+= ∂(5)()rw p w w p w p eff KK c p q c S c t φµ ∂∇⋅∇+= ∂(6)In which, ρo is oil phase density, kg/m 3; ρw is water phase density, kg/m 3; K is absolute permeability, m 2; K ro is oil relative permeability; K rw is water relative permeability; µo is oil phase viscosity, Pa·s; p o is oil phase pressure, Pa; p w is water phase pressure, Pa; ϕ is porosity; q o is oil recovery intensity, m 3/(s·m 3); q w is water injection intensity, m 3/(s·m 3); S o is oil saturation; S w is water saturation.From Equations (4) and (5), the pressure differential equations for the oil and water phases can be obtained as the following equations.o o o o o o ox oy wx wy w w o o o to w wp p p p x x y y x x y y p C q q t ρρλλλλρρρφρρ∂∂∂∂∂∂∂∂⋅+⋅+⋅+⋅ ∂∂∂∂∂∂∂∂∂−−∂ (7)o o wx wy ww o o w w w f w w w p p q x x y y S p p S C S C t t tλλφρρφφρ∂∂ ∂∂⋅+⋅+ ∂∂∂∂∂∂∂=++∂∂∂ (8) Under the condition of uniform grid, the oil phase pressure Equation (7), the water phase saturation seepage Equation (8), and the polymer component con-centration Equation (6) are respectively processed by finite difference, and the fi-nite difference model corresponding to the oil-water two-phase seepage mathe-matical model can be established.11111,o ,1,o 1,,o ,,o 1,,o ,1,n n n n n i j i j i j i j i j i j i j i j i j i j i j c p a p e p b p d p f +++++−−++++++=(9) ()()()111111w ,1,o ,11,o 1,1,o ,1,o 1,1,o ,1w ,w w w w f o w ,,w n n n n n n n i ji ji j i j i j i j i j i j i j i j i j i jnnni ji j t Scpa p e pb pd p V q tS C C p S φρφρρφ++++++−−++∆=++++∆ ++++ (10) ()()()111111p ,2,o ,12,o 1,2,o ,2,o 1,2,o ,1w ,1w p ,w ,w ,p ,p ,f o p ,,w w ,,nn n n n n n i j i ji j i j i j i j i j i j i j i j i j i jn n n nn i j i j i jn n ni ji j i jni ji ji jt c cp a p e p b p d p S V q c tS S c c C p c S V Sφφ++++++−−+++∆=++++∆− +−++(11)The coefficients in the above equation can be expressed as the following equa-tions.o,11o w w 22i j xi xi a TT ρρ−−=+; o ,11o w w 22i j xi xi b T T ρρ++=+; o ,11o w w 22i j yi yi c T T ρρ−−=+; o,11o w w 22i j yi yi d TT ρρ++=+; ()o t ,,,,,,i j i j i j i j i j i j n C V e a b c d t φρ =−++++ ∆;Z. Lv, M. N. Wang()o t ,o,w ,o ,,w i j n i ji j i j i j n C V f q V q V p t φρρρ=−−−∆; 1,1w 2i j xi a T −=; 1,1w 2i j xi b T+=; 1,1w 2i j yi c T−=; 1,1w 2i j yi d T+=;()w w w f ,1,1,1,1,1,i ji ji j i j i j i j nS C C V e a b c d tφρ + =−−−−−∆; 2,1w 2i jxi a T −=; 2,1w 2i j xi b T +=; 2,1w 2i j yi c T −=; 2,1w 2i j yi d T +=;w p f ,1,1,1,1,1,n i j i j i j i j i j i j n S c C V e a b c d t φ =−−−−−∆; 1o 21o 122j xi xi i i y h T x x λ±±±∆=∆+∆; 1o 21oy 122i yj j j j x h Ty y λ±±±∆=∆+∆; 1w 21w 122j xi xi i i y h Tx x λ±±±∆=∆+∆; 1w 21wy 122i yj j j j x h Ty y λ±±±∆=∆+∆;,i j i j V x y h =∆∆; o ro o o KK ρλµ=; w rww effKK ρλµ=; rw p p eff KK c λµ=The finite difference method is used to solve the problem, and the IMPES me-thod is used to solve the pressure implicitly, the saturation explicitly, and the po-lymer concentration explicitly. The solution process is as follows: Firstly, startingfrom the initial conditions, the pressure value at time n can be obtained from the pressure equation. A fter obtaining the pressure at each time step, the obtained node pressure is substituted into the saturation equation to obtain the water sa-turation value of each node at time n. Then, the water saturation value is substi-tuted into the polymer seepage equation to obtain the polymer concentration value of each node at time n. In this way, the reservoir pressure, oil saturation, water saturation, and polymer concentration values at different time steps can be obtained. Record the bottom hole pressure values at different times and the pres-sure values at any point in the formation, draw a well testing curve, and analyze the curve.4. Analysis of Polymer Flooding Well Testing CurveAfter the text edit has been completed, the paper is ready for the template. Dup-licate the template file by using the Save As command, and use the naming con-vention prescribed by your journal for the name of your paper. In this newly created file, highlight all of the contents and import your prepared text file. You are now ready to style your paper. The viscoelastic polymer flooding mathemat-ical model of the inverse five point method well pattern has been established, the basic parameter variables being are as follow, C t = 5.2 × 10−4 MPa −1, ϕ = 0.3, n = 0.4, K = 0.375 μm 2, c p = 2.0 × 103 mg/L, p e = 20 MPa, h = 10 m, S wi = 0.4. The shut-in pressure recovery test curve of the central polymer injection well was drawn.The comparison of pressure dynamic curves between water flooding and po-lymer flooding is shown in Figure 1.Before polymer injection, the radial flow section of the water drive derivative curve is basically horizontal, and the recovery speed is stable. After polymer in-Z. Lv, M. N. Wangjection, a hump appears in the radial flow stage of the curve, and the pressure and pressure conductivity values are higher than those of water drive. The de-gree of warping in the radial flow section of the well testing curve when consi-dering polymer elasticity is greater than the curve which not considering poly-mer elasticity. A fter polymer injection, the viscosity of the displacement fluid increases, and the flow resistance within the formation increases, resulting in an upward trend in the radial flow section of the curve compared to water flooding. Compared with water flooding, polymer flooding has a higher viscosity of the displacement fluid, greater resistance to fluid flow in the formation, and higher injection pressure required. Therefore, the pressure and pressure derivative val-ues of polymer flooding well testing curves are higher than those of water flood-ing. Considering the elasticity of the polymer, in addition to shear viscosity, elas-tic viscosity is also taken into account. As the viscosity of the polymer increases, the flow resistance increases, resulting in a greater degree of upward warping in the radial flow section.The polymer flooding oil-water two-phase well test curves corresponding to different relaxation times are shown in Figure 2.Z. Lv, M. N. WangRelaxation time is a physical quantity that measures the elasticity of a polymersolution. From the graph, it can be seen that the relaxation time mainly affectsthe transition section and radial flow section of the well testing curve. The largerthe relaxation time, the greater the pressure and pressure derivative values. Thehigher the “hump” of the transition section and radial flow section, and thegreater the degree of upward warping of the radial flow section. Due to the con-sideration of the elastic viscosity of the polymer solution, the relaxation time af-fects the elastic viscosity of the polymer. As the relaxation time increases, the in-fluence of elasticity on the well testing curve gradually increases; The larger therelaxation time, the greater the elastic viscosity at the same shear rate, the greaterthe apparent viscosity, and the greater the seepage resistance of the fluid duringthe seepage process, resulting in a greater degree of upward warping of the radialflow section.The analysis curve of the influence factors of power law index on polymerflooding oil-water two-phase well testing is shown in Figure 3.The power-law index is a parameter to characterize the non-newtonian prop-erty of polymer solution, and the power-law index of Newtonian fluid is 1. Thepower-law index mainly affects the degree of upwarping in the radial flow sec-tion. The closer the power-law index is to 1, the higher the pressure and pressurederivative curve, and the greater the degree of upwarping in the radial flow sec-tion of the pressure derivative curve. Near the injection well, the closer the pow-er law index is to 1, the weaker the non-newtonian property of the polymer solu-tion is, the lower the shear thinning degree is at the same shear rate, the higherthe viscosity of the polymer solution is, the greater the seepage resistance is, andsistance, and the greater the degree of upward warping in the radial flow section; The higher the viscosity of the polymer, the smaller the range of influence dur-ing the same production time, and the shorter the radial flow section.5. Conclusions1) Compared with water flooding, the radial flow section of the pressure re-covery curve of polymer flooding will appear upward in the early stage, resulting in greater flow resistance in the formation and higher injection pressure re-quired; The degree of upward warping in the radial flow section of the pressure recovery curve when considering polymer elasticity is greater than the curve which not considering polymer elasticity.2) Through the analysis of the influencing factors on the pressure recovery curve of polymer flooding, it can be concluded that each factor mainly affects the radial flow stage. The larger the relaxation time, power law exponent, and poly-mer injection concentration, the greater the degree of upward warping of the radial flow derivative curve.3) The existence of viscoelasticity in polymer solutions is one of the reasons for the increasing in injection pressure. It is necessary to consider the viscoelas-ticity of polymer solutions in the flow theory and flow pattern analysis of poly-mer flooding.Conflicts of InterestThe authors declare no conflicts of interest regarding the publication of this pa-per.References[1]Wang, D.-M., Cheng, J.-C., Xia, H.-F., Li, Q. and Shi, J.-P. (2001) Visco-Elastic Flu-。