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Minimum Miscibility Enrichment (MME) Module

In this module, minimum miscibility enrichment by first contact (\(MME_{FC}\)) and multi-contact (\(MME_{MC}\)) are calculated. The data required is:

  • Reservoir fluid composition (generated with any of the available methods)
  • Reservoir temperature
  • Injection gas composition
  • Enrichment gas composition
  • MMP target

Minimum Miscibility Enrichment (MME)

Minimum miscibility enrichment is defined as the minimum quantity of additional components, such as intermediate-chain gases or CO2, that must be added to an injection gas to reach the minimum miscibility pressure with a reservoir fluid at a given temperature and pressure. The MME for multi-contact (MC) and first-contact (FC) is different. Another term for MME is "minimum miscibility concentration".

Miscibility

In petroleum engineering, we consider two types of miscibility: first-contact miscibility (FCM) and multi-contact miscibility (MCM). First-contact miscibility is relevant for the gas huff-n-puff (HnP) method, while multi-contact miscibility is relevant for displacment processes.

First-Contact Miscibility

At a given pressure and temperature, first-contact (FC) miscibility refers to the process in which two fluids mix in all proportions – at any concentration of either fluid – such that the resulting mixture remains a single phase. This is the formal, text-book definition of “miscibility”. In petroleum systems, we use the term first-contact miscibility pressure (FCMP) to define any pressure at which the injection gas and reservoir fluid mix on first contact (in any proportion), forming a single phase. The minimum first-contact miscibility pressure (\(MMP_{FC}\)) is obtained from a swell test, defined as the maximum pressure on a p-x diagram (saturation pressure vs. mol% injection gas); shown in the figure below, for a rich and a lean injection gas.

swell-test

Multi-Contact Miscibility

In a conventional displacement process, miscibility between a reservoir fluid and an injection gas develops through a dynamic process of mixing, with component exchange controlled by phase equilibria (K-values) and local compositional variation along the path of displacement. In such a process, the injection gas and reservoir fluid are said to be multi-contact miscible (MCM). Multi-contact (dynamic) miscibility investigates the mixtures that form as a result of interaction of phases with different compositions flowing at different velocities in a porous medium (Jessen & Orr, 2008).