Study on Pressure Drop in Wellbore of Horizontal Wells Considering Its Wellbore Trajectory Effects
摘要
Liquid accumulation in wellbores severely impacts pressure distribution in low-permeability gas fields, leading to increased pressure drop, impeded drainage, and reduced gas production and recovery. The complexity of liquid-loading mechanisms and pressure drop patterns in horizontal wells arises from variations in the curvature radius of deviated sections and undulating trajectories within reservoirs. This necessitates urgent investigation into the effects of wellbore trajectory on pressure distribution. An experimental platform was designed based on the Froude similarity criterion to simulate gas-liquid two-phase flow. Key parameters investigated include the number of undulations, wellbore inclination angle, build-up rate of deviated sections, and liquid-gas ratio. Increased undulation frequency leads to a significant rise in pressure drop within subsequent uphill pipeline segments. The mean pressure drop in uphill section a (3.351 kPa) is approximately 37.4% lower than that in section c (5.353 kPa), demonstrating a cumulative pressure loss effect with repeated elevation changes. Reduced undulation gradient decreases overall pressure drop. When inclination decreases from 9° to 3°, pressure drops in sections a and c decline from 3.787 kPa to 3.073 kPa and 5.700 kPa to 5.11 kPa, respectively. Higher build-up rate intensifies pressure drop. Increasing build-up rate from 3°/30m to 5°/30m raises the average pressure drop in deviated sections from 9.653 kPa to 11.477 kPa. Lower liquid-gas ratio reduces pressure drop. Decreasing the ratio from 1.6 m3/104 m3 to 0.6 m3/104 m3 reduces average pressure drops: Sections a and c: 3.787 kPa →2.62 kPa; 5.7 kPa → 5.553 kPa; Section b (downhill): 2.22 kPa → 1.850 kPa; Section d (deviated): 10.04 kPa → 9.73 kPa. These findings elucidate the impact of wellbore trajectory on pressure loss, providing critical insights for optimizing drainage strategies in field operations.