Investigation of wettability by NMR microscopy and spin-lattice relaxation

摘要

The wettability of reservoir rock has an important impact on the efficiency of oil recovery processes and the distribution of oil and water within the reservoir. One of the potentially useful tools for wettability measurements is nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and spin-lattice relaxation. More recently using NMR microscopy NIPER has developed the capability of imaging one- and two-phase fluid systems in reservoir rock at resolutions to 25 microns. Effects seen in the images of fluids within the pore space of rocks near the rock grain surfaces hinted at the possibility of using NMR microscopy to map the wettability variations at grain sites within the pore space. Investigations were begun using NMR microscopy and spin-lattice relaxation time measurements on rock/fluid systems and on well-defined fractional wet model systems to study these effects. Relaxation data has been modelled using the stretched exponential relationship recently introduced. Comparisons of the NMR microscopy results of the model system with the rock results indicate that the observed effects probably do not reflect actual wettability variations within the pore space. The results of the relaxation time measurements reveal that even in the simple model studied, the behavior of two phases is somewhat ambiguous and much more complex and requires more study.