Equipping underground reservoirs with smart diversion valves.

Microsphere 2.0 technology is a breakthrough innovation achieved by the Oil & Gas Process Research Institute based on practical oilfield development and production needs. Building upon the nano-microsphere enhanced water flooding technology, this solution focuses on resolving long-standing bottlenecks that have constrained development. The approach features targeted breakthroughs and precise measures. This technology essentially installs an intelligent flow control valve on underground oil reservoirs, enabling full control over water flow direction and timing of plugging. Compared with similar foreign products, Microsphere 2.0 technology leads comprehensively in performance indicators, truly establishing an efficient profile control and flooding system characterized by "deep penetration, precise plugging, and long-lasting effectiveness."

Oilfield reservoirs are dense and tight, with pore diameters measuring less than 1/30th the width of a human hair. Facing the world-class development challenge of "oil present in wells but unable to flow," hydraulic fracturing technology has become a key support for the economic development of low-permeability reservoirs. However, due to geological constraints, issues such as injected water channeling through dominant pathways, inefficient circulation, and uneven water flooding have become prominent, severely limiting the economic benefits of water flooding and sustainable oilfield production stability.

Addressing this challenge, the institute proposed a core technical approach: controlling microspheres with a diameter of approximately 50 nanometers to maintain a stable small particle size during the initial injection phase. As the microspheres migrate with the injected fluid deep into the formation, they slowly expand, precisely plug the high-permeability dominant flow channels, effectively expand the swept volume of water flooding, and continuously enhance water flooding development performance.

Today, Microsphere 2.0 technology serves as a key technology for ensuring stable and increasing oilfield production. It has reduced the decline rate in major reservoirs by 2 to 4 percentage points, resulting in a rigid decrease in both the natural decline rate and the water cut increase rate of the oilfield.