VAPEX Experiments in an Annular Packing of Glass Beads and the Numerical Simulation of VAPEX using Comsol®

Abstract

Vapour Extraction (VAPEX) is an in-situ bitumen recovery technique that utilizes light hydrocarbons to reduce the viscosity of bitumen. The mechanism of VAPEX is governed by the mass transfer of light hydrocarbons into bitumen and gravity drainage. The focus of this research is three-fold: 1) to validate a new annulus apparatus design 2) to investigate the effect of connate water and solvent condensation on live oil and bitumen production rates, solvent chamber growth, and solvent requirements, and 3) to develop a numerical model to simulate the solvent chamber growth of VAPEX under isothermal conditions and constant pressure operation.