Defining a Simulation Case
To construct a simulation case within Petrel you use the Define simulation case process in the Simulation folder of the Processes; this will enable you to pull together already-defined models, functions and controls into a case defining the model that will run in this simulation.
The Define simulation case process will not be available before the necessary objects have been created. Full or partial cases can be created. When a case is saved or exported, a brief validation report is created and displayed, describing any missing, incorrect or inconsistent data within the case.
Simulation case process steps
Defining a simulation case consists of specifying the input properties, then selecting predefined initial conditions and fluids models, rock physics functions, and development strategies. You can select the results that the simulation should generate and the type of simulator. The completed simulation case will appear in the list in the Cases pane.
How to define a simulation case
To add a new simulation case to the list in the Cases pane:
1. In the Processes pane, open Simulation and select Define simulation case. This will open the Define simulation case dialog.
2. Select Create new case and enter the name for the new simulation case into the adjacent field.
3. Select the Simulator from the drop-down list.
4. Select the Type of simulation model from drop-down list. If you select Dual Porosity or Dual Permeability porosity models, then you are prompted for additional properties in the Grid tab. For most grid properties you can tick the checkbox in the final column on the Grid tab to define a different property for fractures as opposed to the rock matrix.
5. Select the Grid for the simulation from the drop-down list. This contains all the grids set up in the Models pane. The initial inputs for the simulation case will be extracted from the grid information, but you can change these if you want.
Note: The inputs must include permeability on three axes (I, J and K) and porosity.
6. To enter more inputs from an existing model into the Gridtab, add a new blank item at the appropriate place in the table using the buttons immediately above the table. Open the model in the Models pane, and then select a 3D grid property, a transmissibility multiplier, an aquifer or a local grid set. Click the Drop in selected item button. A new input will be created and if there is a default Keyword this will be shown. If there is no default, or if you wish to change the current selection, click on the keyword column and select from the list of permissible Keywords.
Note: You can select the keyword first, but you can then only insert an input that matches your keyword. If you click on the Multiple drop in the table button, clicking the Drop in selected item buttonwill fill the rest of the table in the column with objects listed below the selected object in the Properties folder of the Models pane.
7. In the Functionstab, define your PVT, saturation and other rock physics functions. You add functions to the left hand list by selecting them from the top drop-down menu, and then define the functions by dropping in your fluids and rock physics functions into the right hand table. Only one instance of each function can be added to the list.
a. First select Black Oil fluids model (PVT) in the Functions drop-down menu, to add Initial Conditions and PVT functions. Check Initialize by equilibration, unless you have provided the grid properties PRESSURE, SWAT, SGAS, RS or PBUB and RV or PDEW for initialization by enumeration.
If you have a single fluid and equilibration region in your reservoir, then you can just drop in the table your Initial condition(or Fluid model if you are not using equilibration), selected from the Fluids folder in the Input pane.
If you have multiple fluid or equilibration regions then you must check Region index property and select the grid property from the drop-down list that defines your fluid or equilibration regions. This will fill the table with a row for each region; you can then drop in an Initial condition(or Fluid model) to associate with each region.
b. Next, select Drainage relative permeabilities in the Functions drop-down list. Again, if you have a single rock type region for the whole reservoir, then you can drop in your Saturation Function, selected from the Rock physics functions folder in the Input pane.
If you have multiple rock type regions then you must check Region index property and select the grid property from the drop-down list that defines your rock type regions. This will fill the table with a row for each region; you can then drop in a Saturation Function to associate with each region.
c. Similarly, you can define other saturation functions for use when modeling hysteresis or anisotropy.
d. Select Rock compaction in the Functions drop-down list. Define single or regionally varying compaction behavior by dropping in Rock compaction functions from the Rock Physics Functions folder in the Input pane into the table. Check Export as tableto export tabular keywords, otherwise a single rock compressibility value will be exported for each rock compaction function.
8. In the Strategiestab, add your development strategy or strategies. Add a new blank item at the appropriate place in the table using the buttons immediately above the table. Open the Development strategies folder in the Input pane then select the strategy that you want to add. Click on the Insert button. The new strategy will be added into the table.
9. In the Resultstab, set up the report properties and outputs that will be produced from the simulation when the case is run.
10. In the Advancedtab, specify the simulator version. If you are using FrontSim, this tab will also contain setup options for the simulator. Petrel will select default entries for these, and you must make changes only if you fully understand the consequences. If you have any doubts, please leave the default selections.
11. Click on Apply to create the new simulation case.
12. Repeat the process to create all your simulation cases.
13. Click on OK to close the dialog.
If you want to check the consistency of the simulation case, click on the Check button. Note that this will not run the full simulation.
If you want to export the simulation keywords and run the simulation, click on the Run button. The consistency of the case will be checked before the simulation runs. While the simulation is running, you can abort the run by clicking on Abort.
If you want to export the keywords without running the simulation, click on the Export button.
How to set up a Queue Definition for Remote Job Submission
To set up a new Queue Definition for Remote Job Submission of simulation runs:
1. From the menu toolbar, select Tools | System settings… This will open the System settings dialog.
2. In the window that opens, go to the Queue definition tab.
3. Select Add a new queue buttonto add a new queue definition to Petrel.
4. In the Name field, specify a name for the queue definition. This will be listed in the drop-down menu in the Advanced tab of the Define simulation case process.
5. In the Server field, specify the server address for the machine where the simulation should be submitted.
6. In the Remote directory field, enter a remote directory on the server machine to run the simulation.
7. In the Check every field, enter a time interval in minutes for fetching the simulation results in the check every field.
8. In the LSF queue field, specify the Load Sharing Facility (LSF) queue for the remote server machine.
9. In the Comms system field, enter the communication system used for message passing for parallel runs, if the remote server machine supports parallel runs.
10. In the Hostfile field, specify the hostfile location used on the remote server, if the remote server machine support parallel runs.
11. The remote server machine will also require that a userid and password be defined, in order to access the remote server for submitting simulation jobs. This information is only kept until Petrel exits, and you will need to re-type the userid and password when you re-run Petrel.
12. Click on OK to apply and close the dialog.
How to edit an existing simulation case
1. In the Processes pane, open Simulation and select Define simulation case. This will open the Define simulation case dialog.
2. Select Edit existing case and choose the simulation case from the drop-down list.
3. Change the simulation parameters as required.
4. Click on Apply to update the simulation case.
5. Click on OK to close the dialog.
How to export simulation keywords
Either:
1. In the Processes pane, open Simulation and select Define simulation case. This will open the Define simulation case dialog.
2. Select Edit existing case and choose the simulation case from the drop-down list.
3. Click on the Export button. This will not run the simulation.
Or:
1. Right-click on the simulation item for the case, in the Cases pane, and select Simulation Export Only from the context menu.
The consistency of the case will be checked before the keywords are exported; a validation report with warnings or errors will be displayed, if necessary. The export will create a set of data files on disk for the simulation, which include a “.DATA” file. The status of and path to the “.DATA” file is shown in the simulation case Settings dialog, in the Info tab.
How to run a simulation
Either:
1. In the Processes pane, open Simulation and select Define simulation case. This will open the Define Simulation Case dialog.
2. Select Edit existing case and choose the simulation case from the drop-down list.
3. To export the simulation keywords and run the simulation, click on the Run button.
Or:
1. Right-click on the simulator entry for the case in the Case pane.
2. Select either Simulation Export and Run or Simulation Run Onlyfrom the context menu.
The consistency of the case will be checked during export, before the simulation runs, and a validation report with warnings or errors will be displayed, if necessary. If there are errors in the case or in the export, then the simulation will not be run.
You can force the simulation to run, even if Petrel thinks there are errors, by checking the Run simulation even if validation fails checkbox on the Results tab of the Define simulation case dialog. This can be useful if you have defined parts of the case using the keyword editor, for example for compositional runs, that the Define simulation case process does not know about.
There is no pre-validation of the simulator data files if you right-click on the simulation case and select Simulation Run Only from the Cases pane.
How to stop a running simulation
Either:
1. Right-click on the simulator case in the Cases pane and select Abort Running Simulation from the context menu.
2. You will get a message box asking you if you want to abort the simulation. Select OK to abort or Cancel to continue simulation.
Or:
1. In the Processes pane, open Simulation and select the Define simulation case process. This will open the Define simulation case dialog.
2. Select Edit existing case and choose the simulation case from the drop-down list.
3. To stop the simulation, click on Abort.
How to rename a simulation case
To rename a simulation case:
1. In the Cases pane, open the settings dialog for a simulation case and select the Info tab.
2. Change the name in the Name field and click on Apply.
For Petrel generated cases (i.e. not imported cases, or those derived from imported cases), a case rename will immediately change the names of, and any references to, the data files stored on disk for the simulation.
It is recommended that the project is saved following a case rename.
If the project is not saved following a case rename, then when the project is next loaded, the simulation will not correctly reference data files on disk (an exclamation mark will be overlaid on the simulation icon to alert the user to this). The simulation can be renamed again in this scenario to recover the data set on disk.
How to manipulate simulation case details
1. In the Cases pane double-click on the simulation case to be updated. This will display the Settings dialog for the case.
2. If you want to change the simulation name, enter the new text into the Name field, in the Info tab. For more information, see How to rename a simulation case. Note that the name for a simulation using a specified simulator shows the name of that simulator. You cannot change that entry.
3. Enter any additional information for the model into the Comments field.
4. You can view the simulation case parameters by clicking on the Definition tab. You cannot change the parameters in this dialog.
5. Click on Apply to update the fluid model details.
6. Click on OK to close the dialog.
How to open the keyword editor
Either:
1. Right-click on the simulation case, in the Cases pane, for which you want to edit the keywords.
2. Select the Keyword Editor option from the context menu. This will open the keyword editor with the selected simulation case ready for editing. For more information refer to the help for the appropriate simulator keywords.
Or:
1. In the Processes pane, open Simulation and select Define simulation case. This will open the Define simulation case dialog.
2. Select Edit existing case and choose the simulation case from the drop-down list.
3. Go to the Advanced tab and click on the Keyword Editor button. This will open the keyword editor with the simulation case deck ready for editing.
How to view messages from the validation and from the simulator
You can view messages generated by the validation when the simulation case is exported, and from the simulator after the simulation is run. The messages are displayed automatically, if there are errors to report.
1. Right-click on the simulation case in the Cases pane and select Show simulation log… from the context menu. This displays a spreadsheet showing the messages generated by the simulator during the run.
To automatically display this spreadsheet at the end of the simulation run, enable Always show validation and simulation message files on the Results tab of the Define simulation case process dialog.
How to view a simulator print file
You can view the print file generated by the simulator when the simulation is run. The print file contains all the messages in the message file, plus additional reports, such as well flows and fluids in place reports.
1. Right-click on the simulation case, in the Cases pane, and select Show print file… from the context menu. This opens the print file in a text editor.
How to import a Keyword Case into Petrel
To import a keyword case to Petrel:
1. Right-click on the background, in the Cases pane, and select Import (on tree)… from the context menu.
2. In the Import file dialog window select the file format type of the simulation case that you want to import.
3. Locate the case that you want to import and click on Open.
4. Depending on the file format you choose, you will get an Import window where you have the option to select whether or not you want to import the grid geometry, any grid properties, summary files and more.
5. Press on OK to complete the import. If the unit system of the keyword case differs from the Petrel project you are importing into, you will get an option to either convert the case or to change the units for your Petrel project. You will also be notified in a message window of inconsistent keywords or for keywords that Petrel cannot import.
How to (partially) convert a Keyword Case to a Petrel Case
To convert a keyword case to a Petrel case:
1. Once a keyword case has been imported into Petrel you can right-click on the simulation case in the Cases pane and select Convert to Petrel Case from the context menu.
2. All the data in the file that Petrel understands will be imported into the Input pane and Model pane, and added to a new case.