Phase Transformation Mechanisms and Controlling Factors of the Ultra-Deep Oil and Gas:Insights From Visual Thermal Simulation of Crude Oil
There is a lack of systematic experimental studies on the phase transformation processes of ultra-deep oil and gas and their controlling factors,as well as a lack of visual presentation of these processes.In this study,we used crude oil of the SHB7 well as a case study and conducted both online and offline visual observation ex-periments.The conclusions are summarized as follows:(1)Before the temperature of the thermal simulation experiment reaches the crude oil cracking point,the red-green quotient value(Q650/500)of the crude oil changes reversibly during the heating and cooling processes.This indicates that crude oil fluorescence is influ-enced not only by its composition and density,but also by temperature.(2)After the temperature reaches the cracking point,the Q650/500 of the crude oil changes irreversibly with temperature.This suggests that the oil's composition has undergone irreversible alterations due to heating and cracking.The observed trend of decrea-sing liquid oil and the increasing solid or semi-solid asphaltene content indicates that temperature plays a crucial role in controlling crude oil cracking and phase transformation.(3)Comparing the fluorescence evolution of crude oil at the heating rates of 0.1,0.7,and 5 ℃/min,the temperature required for the separation of residual oil components increases with the heating rate.This suggests that a lower heating rate is more conducive to oil cracking,implying that long-term and slow heating under geological conditions is unfavorable for the preserva-tion of liquid hydrocarbons.(4)Comparing the experimental results of different samples with various oil filling ratios,we conclude that an increase in pressure promotes the thermal evolution of crude oil after reaching a ther-mal maturity of Ro(1.89%).This suggests that pressure does not necessarily inhibit the cracking of liquid oil but may accelerate the process.(5)Based on the results of the visualization experiment,the process can be di-vided into three stages.In the first stage,with an Ro range of 0.80%-1.24%,heavy saturated hydrocarbons crack preferentially,leading to a redshift in the fluorescence color of the liquid hydrocarbons.In the second stage,with an Ro range of 1.24%-1.55%,numerous aromatic hydrocarbons condense into solid or semi-solid asphaltenes that adhere to the tube wall after cooling.This results in a slight increase in the ratio of saturated to aromatic hydrocarbons in the residual oil and a blue shift in the fluorescence of the liquid hydrocarbons.In the third stage,with an Ro greater than 1.90%,aromatic hydrocarbons continue to condense,forming solid or semi-solid asphaltene.The hydrocarbons in capillary capsules exhibit distinct fluorescence differentiation at room temperature.The blue fluorescent hydrocarbons represent light oil,primarily composed of non-polar saturated hydrocarbons,while the orange fluorescent hydrocarbons indicate heavy oil,predominantly containing polar as-phaltenes.This phenomenon may explain the coexistence of fluid inclusions with different fluorescence colors within the same microdomain.
normal oilsimulated thermal evolutionvisualization observationfluorescence evolution charac-teristicsoil cracking influence factor