Pressure Drawdown and Buildup Analysis of Horizontal Wells in Anisotropic Media

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Abstract
Summary: An analytic solution is presented for the pressure response during drawdown and buildup of a horizontal well. This method results from solving the three-dimensional diffusion equation with successive integral transforms. Simplified solutions for short, intermediate, and long times that exhibit straight-line sections when pressure is plotted vs. time are presented. The validity of the method is demonstrated by comparing with results generated numerically by a reservoir simulator and with an analogous analytic solution. Methods for analyzing pressure drawdown and buildup data are presented with examples. The method allows reservoir characteristics, including permeability, skin, and distance to boundaries to be determined. The early-time effects, where the well behaves as if it were in an infinite reservoir, are also discussed. Expressions to determine times to critical events, which are important for well test design, are presented.