Acid Placement in Acid Jetting Treatments in Long Horizontal Wells

In the Middle East, extended reach horizontal wells (on the order of 25,000 feet of horizontal displacement) are commonly acid stimulated by jetting acid out of drill pipe. The acid is jetted onto the face of the openhole wellbore as the drill pipe is withdrawn from the well. The jetting action helps to remove the drilling fluid filter cake and promote the acid to penetrate into the formation and form wormholes to stimulate the well. However, with very long sections of wellbore open to flow, the acid placement and subsequent wormhole distribution and penetration depths are uncertain.

This study has modeled the acid jetting process using a comprehensive model of acid placement and wormhole propagation in a horizontal well. It is presumed that the acid jetting tool removes the drilling mud filter cake, so that no filter cake exists between the end of the drill pipe and the toe of the well. Correspondingly, the model also assumes that there is an intact, low-permeability filter cake on the borehole wall between the end of the drill pipe and the heel of the well. The drill pipe is modeled as being withdrawn from the well during the acid jetting treatment, as is done in practice.

The acidizing simulator predicts the distribution of acid and the depths of wormholes formed as functions of time and position during the acid jetting treatment. The model shows that the acid jetting process as typically applied in these wells preferentially stimulates the toe region of the horizontal well. Comparisons of the simulation predictions with published data for acid jetting treatments in such wells showed good general agreement. Based on the simulation study, this study presents recommendations for improved acid jetting treatment procedures to improve the distribution of acid injected into the formation.