As gas condensate wells mature they begin producing less gas and more formation water. At this point the wells will likely begin to experience non-annular flow. A model has been developed which fully describes slug flow, and a criterion has been established to locate the slug-chum hydrodynamic transition in the non-annular region. The model has been verified using laboratory generated data. It has been applied to several wells being produced in the Gulf of Mexico to indicate whether they are in slug or chum flow. The information generated has been usefid in providing a method for calculating the residence time of the liquids inside the tubing and the pressure drop per 100 feet of tubing.
Keywords : multiphase flow, non-annular flow, slug-chum transition, gas
condensate wells