Integration of viscous oil recovery processes

Abstract

The present disclosure relates generally to the integration of at least two viscous oil recovery processes (VORPs), at least one of which is a solvent-dominated recovery process (SDRP). Integration of the SDRP and the VORP may be achieved through at least one of: solvent, heat, a production stream, and a viscous oil reservoir.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A method of operating at least two different viscous oil recovery processes, the method comprising:
 operating a solvent dominated recovery process (SDRP);   operating a viscous oil recovery process (VORP); and   integrating the SDRP and the VORP through at least one of: solvent, heat, a production stream, and a viscous oil reservoir.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the VORP comprises extraction of mined oil sand. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 2 , wherein the extraction of the mined oil sand comprises aqueous-based extraction, and subsequent solvent use. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 2 , wherein the extraction of the mined oil sand comprises solvent-based extraction. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 2 , wherein the integration comprises sharing a common solvent source, method of solvent transportation, or solvent storage, or more than one of the foregoing. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 2 , comprising using solvent from the extraction of the mined oil sand in the SDRP for subsurface injection. 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 6 , wherein the solvent from the extraction of the mined oil sand comprises off-specification solvent. 
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 2 , wherein the integration comprises combining production streams of the SDRP and the VORP. 
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 8 , wherein the integration comprises combining a light liquid phase, having a lower proportion of pentane-insoluble components than bitumen, produced from an early stage of the SDRP, with an upgraded bitumen stream from the extraction of the mined oil sand. 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 8 , wherein the integration comprises combining a heavy liquid phase, having a higher proportion of pentane-insoluble components than bitumen, produced from a mid- to late-stage of the SDRP, with a bottom fraction produced by the extraction of the mined oil sand. 
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 2 , wherein the extraction of the mined oil sand generates heat, and wherein the integration comprises using the heat in the SDRP to heat:
 (a) solvent prior to subsurface solvent injection in the SDRP;   (b) solvent during production in the SDRP to assist flow assurance;   (c) a SDRP production stream to vapourize and recover solvent above ground; or   (d) a carrier fluid for downhole circulation to reduce a SDRP production stream's viscosity, to increase a SDRP production rate.   
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 11 , wherein the heat generated from the extraction of the mined oil sand comprises waste heat recovered from a tailings stream from a froth separation unit of the extraction of the mined oil sand. 
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 12 , wherein the heat is removed from the tailings stream by a heat exchanger. 
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 2 , wherein the integration comprises adding de-asphalted or upgraded bitumen from the extraction of the mined oil sand to solvent for subsurface injection in the SDRP, for improving miscibility and increasing viscous oil recovery. 
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 2 , wherein the integration comprises adding a byproduct gas from the extraction of the mined oil sand, comprising CO 2 , CH 4 , or SO 2 , or a combination thereof, to solvent for subsurface injection in one or more target wells in the SDRP, for enhancing viscous oil recovery, solvent recovery, or both. 
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 2 , wherein the integration comprises using a byproduct gas from the extraction of the mined oil sand as a gas lift gas for in one or more SDRP well. 
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 2 , wherein the integration comprises blending a viscous oil stream from the extraction of the mined oil sand with a heavier viscous oil stream from the SDRP, for reducing diluent demand in pipelining of the heavier viscous oil stream. 
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the VORP is an in situ VORP. 
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 18 , wherein the integration comprises sharing a common solvent source, method of transportation, or storage, or more than one of the foregoing. 
     
     
         20 . The method of  claim 19 , wherein:
 the SDRP comprises a cyclic SDRP (CSDRP); and   the integration comprises blending an early stage, light CSDRP production stream with an in situ VORP production stream, for reducing diluent demand in pipelining the in situ VORP production stream.   
     
     
         21 . The method of  claim 18 , wherein the in situ VORP generates heat, and wherein the integration comprises using the generated heat in the SDRP to heat:
 (a) solvent prior to subsurface solvent injection in the SDRP;   (b) solvent during production in the SDRP to assist flow assurance;   (c) a SDRP production stream to vapourize and recover solvent above ground; or   (d) a carrier fluid for downhole circulation to reduce a SDRP production stream's viscosity, to increase a SDRP production rate.   
     
     
         22 . The method of  claim 21 , wherein the heat generated in the in situ VORP comprises heat from boiler exhaust, a hot flow-back production stream, or a combination thereof. 
     
     
         23 . The method of  claim 18 , wherein the integration comprises injecting at least one greenhouse gas from the in situ VORP into SDRP wells. 
     
     
         24 . The method of  claim 23 , wherein the greenhouse gas comprises CO 2 . 
     
     
         25 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein:
 the VORP is an in situ VORP; and   the integration comprises operating the SDRP and then operating the in situ VORP in the same underground reservoir.   
     
     
         26 . The method of  claim 25 , wherein the SDRP is VAPEX. 
     
     
         27 . The method of  claim 25 , wherein the in situ VORP is SAGD, SA-SAGD, or steam flooding. 
     
     
         28 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein:
 the VORP is an in situ VORP; and   the integration comprises operating the in situ VORP and then operating the SDRP in the same reservoir.   
     
     
         29 . The method of  claim 28 , wherein the in situ VORP is steam flooding. 
     
     
         30 . The method of  claim 18 , wherein the in situ VORP is CSS (Cyclic Steam Stimulation), SAGD (Steam Assisted Gravity Drainage), SA-SAGD (Solvent Assisted-Steam Assisted Gravity Drainage), VAPEX (Vapor Extraction), LASER (Liquid Addition to Steam for Enhancing Recovery), SAVEX (Combined Steam and Vapor Extraction Process), CSD (Constant Steam Drainage), steam drive, solvent flood, FIRE (Fluidized In Situ Reservoir Extraction), or water flooding. 
     
     
         31 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the SDRP is VAPEX. 
     
     
         32 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the SDRP is a cyclic SDRP (CSDRP). 
     
     
         33 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the SDRP comprises:
 (a) injecting a volume of fluid comprising greater than 50 mass % of a solvent, wherein the solvent is a viscosity-reducing solvent, into an injection well completed in the reservoir;   (b) halting injection into the injection well and subsequently producing at least a fraction of the injected fluid and the in situ viscous oil from the reservoir through a production well;   (c) halting production through the production well; and   (d) subsequently repeating the cycle of steps (a) to (c);   
       wherein, in at least one subsequent cycle, an in situ volume of fluid injected in step (a) is equal to a net in situ volume of fluids produced from the production well in an immediately preceding cycle plus an additional in situ volume of the fluid. 
     
     
         34 . The method of  claim 33 , wherein immediately after halting injection into the injection well, at least 25 mass % of the injected solvent is in a liquid state in the reservoir. 
     
     
         35 . The method of  claim 33 , wherein the injection well and the production well utilize a common wellbore. 
     
     
         36 . The method of  claim 33 , wherein the viscous oil has an in situ viscosity of at least 10 cP at initial reservoir conditions.