Continental Oil Company

Conoco Inc.

Harry A Wahl

William L Martin

Richard A Harmon

Derry D Sparlin

Gary C Young

Michael W Britton

Jack D McDaniel

A process for establishing well-to-well flow communication between a plurality of wells penetrating a subsurface formation is provided. A common fracture network is created by initiating a fracture from a first well, and then propagating that fracture from the first well to a second well. When the fracture has reached the second well, fracturing fluid is injected into the second well and thereby further propagates the fracture to a third well, and so on, so that the fracture is successively propagated to all of the wells. Such a fracture can be located adjacent either a lower or an upper boundary of a tilted subsurface formation, as desired. Techniques are also provided for reducing uneven areal distribution of injection fluids which are injected into fractures.

Methods for obtaining well-to-well flow communication

A zone of increased heat and enhanced fluid mobility is established between an injection well and a production well vertically traversing a heavy oil (bitumen, tar) reservoir by (a) first horizontally hydraulically fracturing between the wells, and (b) then injecting hot water and/or steam into the injection well at a very high rate, at a sufficient pressure, and for a sufficient time (holding sufficient back pressure on the production well if needed) to float the formation along the fracture system between the wells, to effect channel flow of fluids through the floated fracture system (with production from the production well), and to effect effective and uniform heating of substantial reservoir volume perpendicular to the channel flow. Thereupon, other thermal methods such as matrix flow steam flooding can be employed to recover additional oil.

Fracture preheat oil recovery process

A method for creating a zone of relatively high permeability within a subterranean carbonaceous deposit which includes gasifying a portion of the carbonaceous deposit to provide a cavity, placing at least one explosive device in the deposit in the vicinity of the cavity so that energy generated upon detonation of the explosive device extends into the cavity, and detonating the explosive device thereby causing a portion of the carbonaceous deposit to be fragmented and to collapse into the cavity.

Method for creating a permeable fragmented zone within a subterranean

A method for reducing the production of water from oil wells by injecting into the oil wells a viscous oil containing from about 0.01 to about 10 weight percent of a coupling agent in an amount sufficient to saturate the subterranean formations penetrated by the wellbore radially for distance up to about 100 feet.

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Ponca City, OK, United States of America

Harry A Wahl