The Potential of Microbially Induced Calcium Carbonate Precipitation Technology in Producing Calcite Core to Use in Acidizing Modeling

The aim of performing an acidizing process in damaged formations is to enhance the oil recovery from the reservoir. The successful stimulation of carbonate reservoirs depends on an accurate prediction of optimum conditions and parameters of acidizing. Several models have been developed to predict the optimum conditions, but none is accurate in field applications. Several calcite cores are needed to modify the present models. However, the core extraction from the well is a complex and expensive process, and there is a need to construct artificial calcite cores to use in acidizing tests and modeling. With several applications in different fields, microbially induced calcite precipitation (MICP) has been extensively studied in multidisciplinary fields. Despite the other studies that use MICP in soil and sand matrix, in this study, the potential of this technology to bind the calcite particles together and increase the strength of the calcite specimen was investigated. To do so, a semi-continuous system was designed to inject different fluids into the calcite column and perform the MICP. At the end of the treatment period, the specimen was consolidated, and the scanning electron microscopy images showed that calcium carbonate crystals are formed on the calcite surfaces. In addition, they filled the space between two adjacent particles, acted as a bridge and bind the calcium carbonate particles together. This increased stiffness and strength of the specimen. This method has the potential to construct calcite cores with different porosity and permeability, and take advantage of them in acidizing modeling.

کلیدواژه ها:

Microbially induced calcite precipitation (MICP) ، Urease activity ، Sporosarcina pasteurii