Compositional gradient: its role in near-critical reservoir development

In thick reservoirs, gravity force can generate variation in composition along the hydrocarbon column. For near-critical reservoirs, compositional gradient can be appreciable, and as a result, it can significantly influence reservoir development strategy. Through simulation study, this paper investigates the effect of isothermal compositional gradient on the estimation of initial in situ hydrocarbon, prediction of gas/oil contact (GOC) location, and reservoir production performance.