Application of visual 3D physical simulation experiment technology in oil and gas accumulation research: a case study of well S53-2 in Shunbei area of Tarim Basin

The physical simulation experiment technology for oil and gas reservoir formation is an important technical means to study the process of oil and gas migration and accumulation. Under laboratory conditions, dynamic, visual, and quantitative research on oil and gas migration and reservoir formation can be achieved. However, traditional two-dimensional physics simulation experimental techniques have shortcomings such as a lack of subtle phenomena, difficulty in measuring oil content, and a single observation surface. To address these issues, and to reveal the characteristics of ultra-deep oil and gas accumulation, a visual 3D physical simulation experiment technology of oil and gas accumulation was developed, and the accumulation process of well S53-2 in Shunbei area of Tarim Basin was successfully simulated. The influencing factors of oil and gas accumulation in ultra-deep fault controlled oil and gas reservoirs have been clarified, revealing that faults and fracture network systems play a dual role in the formation process of fault controlled oil and gas reservoirs, serving as both oil and gas migration channels and important oil and gas storage spaces. It has been proposed that the main fault, fracture network, and the graben fault on one side of the fracture network are advantageous areas for oil and gas accumulation, and a "buoyancy vertical migration, first fault core and then damage zone, first main trunk and then graben, fracture network integrated transportation and storage, and different main and secondary faults" oil and gas accumulation model has been established. The new technology makes the experimental process clearer, the experimental parameters more accurate, and the experimental phenomena more three-dimensional, providing new support for laboratory oil and gas reservoir simulation work.