Recovery Factor Calculator

Work out recovery factor instantly with clear inputs, formula shown and shareable results.

About Recovery Factor Calculator

Recovery factor is recoverable volume divided by oil in place, and it is governed largely by drive mechanism: solution gas drive typically recovers 15-25%, gas cap expansion 25-40%, water drive 35-55% and gravity drainage up to 60%. Waterflood or gas injection adds a further 5-15 percentage points.

Formulas

Recovery factor

RF % = recoverable volume x 100 / OOIP

With secondary recovery

RF total = primary RF + secondary uplift in percentage points

Worked example

With the default values below, Recovery Factor Calculator returns Recovery Factor of 32.000%. Change any input above and every figure here is recalculated in your browser.

Inputs used

Original Oil In Placeminimum 0 million bbl: 250 million bbl
Recoverable Volumeminimum 0 million bbl: 80 million bbl
Drive Mechanismone of Solution gas drive, Gas cap expansion, Water drive, Gravity drainage: Water drive
Secondary Recovery Upliftaccepts 0–60 % points: 8 % points

Results

Recovery Factor: 32.000%
Typical Factor For This Drive: 42.0%
Recovery With Secondary Uplift: 40.000%
Incremental Recoverable Volume: 20.000

Step by step

1Values used
2Recovery factor
3With secondary recovery
4Recovery Factor= 32.000
5Typical Factor For This Drive= 42.0
6Recovery With Secondary Uplift= 40.000
7Incremental Recoverable Volume= 20.000

Assumptions and limits

The result is derived only from the 4 inputs listed above. Anything not among them is not part of the calculation.
In particular, this calculator does not take inflation, tax, fees or charges or compounding frequency into account.
Figures are rounded for display to 3 decimal places, so totals built from several rounded parts can differ slightly from the unrounded arithmetic.

How these calculators are built and tested is described on the Methodology page. If a figure looks wrong, please report it.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why is water drive so much more efficient?

An active aquifer maintains reservoir pressure and physically displaces oil towards the wells, so oil is swept rather than left behind by pressure depletion.

What limits recovery even with waterflood?

Residual oil saturation trapped by capillary forces in swept zones, plus unswept zones from heterogeneity and viscous fingering. Enhanced oil recovery targets the residual saturation directly.