Coreflooding

Coreflooding is a laboratory technique used in the petroleum industry to simulate the flow of fluids through a rock core sample. Rock cores, which are cylindrical samples of reservoir rock extracted from the earth, are placed in a specialized apparatus. This apparatus allows for precise control of pressure, temperature, and flow rates of various fluids, such as oil, water, and gas. The primary purpose of coreflooding is to study how these fluids interact with the rock's pore structure and to determine key reservoir properties.

During a coreflooding experiment, fluids are injected into the core sample, and the resulting effluent is collected and analyzed. This analysis helps determine parameters like permeability, which measures the ease with which fluids can flow through the rock, and porosity, which represents the amount of empty space within the rock. Coreflooding experiments are crucial for understanding reservoir behavior, predicting production performance, and optimizing enhanced oil recovery (EOR) methods. By observing how fluids displace each other within the core, engineers can gain insights into factors such as residual oil saturation, sweep efficiency, and the effectiveness of injected chemicals. The results from coreflooding provide essential data for reservoir modeling and management decisions.