Method for tracking a treatment fluid in a subterranean formation

Abstract

A method of tracking a treatment fluid in a subterranean formation penetrated by a wellbore provides for injecting the treatment fluid with the plurality of tracer agents into the well and the formation. The tracer agents are high viscous liquid droplets having a diameter of not more than 1000 nm. Location and distribution of the treatment fluid is determined by detecting changes in physical properties of the formation caused by arrival of the treatment fluid comprising the plurality of the tracer agents.

1 . A method of tracking a treatment fluid in a subterranean formation penetrated by a wellbore comprising:
 injecting the treatment fluid with a plurality of tracer agents into the wellbore and the formation, wherein the tracer agents are high viscous liquid droplets having a diameter not more than 1000 nm, and   determining location and distribution of the treatment fluid by detecting changes in physical properties of the formation caused by arrival of the treatment fluid comprising the plurality of the tracer agents.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the treatment fluid is selected from the group consisting of fracturing fluids, drilling fluids, acidizing fluids, injection fluids, brines and completion fluids, fluids for EOR/IOR including reservoir flooding fluids. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the treatment fluid is a water-based solution. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the treatment fluid is a hydrocarbon-based solution. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the high viscous liquid is crude oil or toluene. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the treatment fluid comprising the plurality of the tracer agents is provided by mixing the treatment fluid with the plurality of the tracer agents by means of a generator disposed in the wellbore. 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the treatment fluid comprising the plurality of the tracer agents is provided by mixing the treatment fluid with the plurality of the tracer agents by means of the surface located equipment. 
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the treatment fluid comprising the plurality of the tracer agents is injected periodically during a treatment of the formation. 
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the treatment fluid comprising the plurality of the tracer agents is injected continuously during a treatment of the formation. 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the treatment fluid comprising the plurality of the tracer agents is injected at any stage of a treatment of the formation. 
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the injection of the treatment fluid is accompanied by a physical treatment performed before, during or after the injection. 
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 11  wherein the physical treatment is vibration, or heating, or acoustic treatment. 
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the treatment fluid additionally comprises one or more additives selected from a group comprising gelling agents, foaming agents, friction reducers, surfactants. 
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the physical properties of the formation are acoustic impedance, or electric conductivity, or magnetic permittivity, or nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) response, or thermal propagation, or hydrodynamic flow capabilities, or combination thereof. 
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 1  wherein detecting of the changes of the physical properties of the formation is made by seismic, or acoustic, or electrical, or electrokinetical, or NMR, or thermal, or neutron, or gamma-ray means, or by combination thereof. 
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 15  wherein means for detecting the changes of the physical properties are located on the surface. 
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 15  wherein means for detecting the changes of the physical properties are located in the wellbore. 
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the treatment fluid with the plurality of the tracer agents is flowed back from the subterranean formation and analyzed for changes in the tracer agents concentration, size, type and distribution function between injected and produced treatment fluid.