A Reservoir Rocks

Reservoir Rocks

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© Schlumberger 1999 1
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The Earth

pl
as
t ic
Crust
10 miles
plastic

liquid

solid

Inner Core Core Mantle

750 miles 1400 miles 1800 miles
ρ = 10.7 g/cc ρ = 4.0 g/cc

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The Earth 2

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Plate Tectonics 1

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Compressional Features

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Tensional Features

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Ocean plate - Ocean Plate

Trench

Mountains

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Ocean plate - Continental plate

Mid Ocean Ridge Mountains

Trench

Ocean plate

Magma Magma

Continental
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Continental - Continental

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Plates

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Rocks General

There are three major classes of rock:

Igneous:

(e.g. Granite).

Sedimentary:

(e.g. Sandstone).

Metamorphic:

(e.g. Marble).

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Igneous Rocks
Comprise 95% of the Earth's crust.
Originated from the solidification of molten
material from deep inside the Earth.
There are two types:
Volcanic - glassy in texture due to fast cooling.
Plutonic - slow-cooling, crystalline rocks.

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Igneous Rocks and Reservoirs

Igneous rocks can be part of reservoirs.

Fractured granites form reservoirs in some
parts of the world.

Volcanic tuffs are mixed with sand in some

reservoirs.

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Metamorphic Rocks

2) Metamorphic rocks
formed by the action of temperature
and/or pressure on sedimentary or
igneous rocks.

Examples are

Marble - formed from limestone

Hornfels - from shale or tuff
Gneiss - similar to granite but
formed by metamorphosis

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Sedimentary Rocks

The third category is Sedimentary rocks. These

are the most important for the oil industry as it
contains most of the source rocks and cap rocks
and virtually all reservoirs.

Sedimentary rocks come from the debris of

older rocks and are split into two categories

Clastic and Non-clastic.

Clastic rocks - formed from the materials of

older rocks by the actions of
erosion, transportation and
deposition.

Non-clastic rocks -
from chemical or biological
origin and then deposition.
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Depositional Environments
The depositional environment can be

Shallow or deep water.

Marine (sea) and lake or continental.

This environment determines many of the

reservoir characteristics

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Depositional Environments 2
Continental deposits are usually dunes.
A shallow marines environment has a lot of
turbulence hence varied grain sizes. It can also
have carbonate and evaporite formation.
A deep marine environment produces fine
sediments.

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Depositional Environments 3

The depositional characteristics of the rocks

lead to some of their properties and that of the
reservoir itself.

The reservoir rock type clastic or non-clastic.

The type of porosity (especially in carbonates) is
determined by the environment plus subsequent
events.

The structure of a reservoir can also be

determined by deposition; a river, a delta, a reef
and so on.

This can also lead to permeability and

producibility. of these properties are often
changed by further events.

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Depositional Environment 4

The environment is not static.

Folding and faulting change the structure.
Dissolution and fracturing can change the
permeability.

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Sedimentation

Sediments settle to
the bottom of the
sedimentary basin.

As the sediments
accumulate
the temperature and
pressure increase

expelling
water from the
sediments.

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Sedimentation 2

Sedimentary muds become sedimentary rocks.

Calcareous muds become limestone.

Sands become sandstone.

Another effect involves both the grains in the

matrix and the fluids reacting to create new
minerals changing the matrix and porosity.
Fluids can also change creating a new set of
minerals.

This whole process is called Diagenesis.

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Rock Cycle

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Clastic Rocks

Clastic rocks are sands, silts and shales. The

difference is in the size of the grains.

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Depositional Environment - Delta

Sediments are transported to the basins by

rivers.
A common depositional environment is the delta
where the river empties into the sea.
A good example of this is the Mississippi.

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Rivers

Some types of deposition occur in rivers and

sand bars.
The river forms a channel where sands are
deposited in layers. Rivers carry sediment down
from the mountains which is then deposited in
the river bed and on the flood plains at either
side.
Changes in the environment can cause these
sands to be overlain with a shale, trapping the
reservoir rock.
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Carbonates

Carbonates form a large proportion of all

sedimentary rocks.

They consist of:

Limestone.

Dolomite.

Carbonates usually have an irregular structure.

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Carbonate types

Chalk is a special form of limestone and is

formed from the skeletons of small creatures
(cocoliths).

Dolomite is formed by the replacement of some

of thecalcium by a lesser volume of magnesium
in limestone by magnesium. Magnesium is
smaller than calcium, hence the matrix becomes
smaller and more porosity is created.

Limestone CaCO3

Dolomite CaMg(CO3)2

Evaporites such as Salt (NaCl) and Anhydrite

(CaSO4) can also form in these environments.

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Depositional Environment
Carbonates

Carbonates are formed in shallow seas

containing features such as:

Reefs.

Lagoons.

Shore-bars.
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Rock Properties

Rocks are described by three properties:

Porosity - quantity of pore space

Permeability - ability of a formation to flow

Matrix - major constituent of the rock

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Definition of Porosity

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Porosity Sandstones
The porosity of a sandstone depends on the
packing arrangement of its grains.
The system can be examined using spheres.

In a Rhombohedral packing, the pore

space accounts for 26% of the total
volume.

With a Cubic packing arrangement,

the pore space fills 47% of the total
volume.

In practice, the theoretical value is

rarely reached because:
a) the grains are not perfectly round,
and
b) the grains are not of uniform size.

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Porosity and Grain Size

A rock can be made up of small grains or large

grains but have the same porosity.

Porosity depends on grain packing, not the

grain size.

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Diagenesis

The environment can also involve subsequent

alterations of the rock such as:
Chemical changes.
Diagenesis is the chemical alteration of a rock
after burial. An example is the replacement of
some of the calcium atoms in limestone by
magnesium to form dolomite.

Mechanical changes - fracturing in a

tectonically-active region.

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Carbonate Porosity Types 1

Carbonate porosity is very heterogeneous. It is
classified into a number of types:
Interparticle porosity:
Each grain is separated,
giving a similar pore space
arrangement as sandstone.
Intergranular porosity:
Pore space is created inside
the individual grains which
are interconnected.
Intercrystalline porosity:
Produced by spaces between
carbonate crystals.
Mouldic porosity:
Pores created by the
dissolution of shells, etc.

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Carbonate Porosity Types 2

Fracture porosity:
Pore spacing created
by the cracking of the
rock fabric.

Channel porosity:
Similar to fracture
porosity but larger.

Vuggy porosity:
Created by the
dissolution of
fragments, but
unconnected.
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Carbonate Porosity

Intergranular porosity is called "primary

porosity".

Porosity created after deposition is called

"secondary porosity".

The latter is in two forms:

Fractures

Vugs.

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Fractures

Fractures are caused when a rigid rock is

strained beyond its elastic limit - it cracks.
The forces causing it to break are in a constant
direction, hence all the fractures are also
aligned.

Fractures are an important source of

permeability in low porosity carbonate
reservoirs.

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Vugs

Vugs are defined as non-connected pore space.

They do not contribute to the producible fluid
total.
Vugs are caused by the dissolution of soluble
material such as shell fragments after the rock
has been formed.
They usually have irregular shapes.

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Permeability Definition
The rate of flow of a liquid through a formation
depends on:
The pressure drop.
The viscosity of the fluid.
The permeability.

The pressure drop is a reservoir property.

The viscosity is a fluid property.
The permeability is a measure of the ease at
which a fluid can flow through a formation.

Relationships exist between permeability and

porosity for given formations, although they are
not universal.
A rock must have porosity to have any
permeability.
The unit of measurement is the Darcy.
Reservoir permeability is usually quoted in
millidarcies, (md).
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Darcy Experiment
The flow of fluid of viscosity m through a
porous medium was first investigated in 1856 by
Henri Darcy.
He related the flow of water through a unit
volume of sand to the pressure gradient across
it.
In the experiment the flow rate can be changed
by altering the parameters as follows:

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Darcy Law

K = permeability, in Darcies.
L = length of the section of rock, in centimetres.
Q = flow rate in centimetres / sec.
P1, P2 = pressures in bars.
A = surface area, in cm2.
µ = viscocity in centipoise.

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Permeability and Rocks

In formations with large grains, the

permeability is high and the flow rate larger.

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Permeability and Rocks 2

In a rock with small grains the permeability is

less and the flow lower.

Grain size has no bearing on porosity, but has a

large effect on permeability.

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Reservoir Rocks

Reservoir rocks need two properties to be

successful:
Pore spaces able to retain hydrocarbon.
Permeability which allows the fluid to move.

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Clastic Reservoirs

Sandstone usually has regular grains; and is

referred to as a grainstone.

Porosity
Determined mainly by the packing and
mixing of grains.

Permeability
Determined mainly by grain size and
packing, connectivity and shale content.

Fractures may be present.

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Carbonate Reservoirs

Carbonates normally have a very irregular

structure.

Porosity:
Determined by the type of shells, etc. and
by depositional and post-depositional events
(fracturing, leaching, etc.).

Permeability:
Determined by deposition and post-
deposition events, fractures.

Fractures can be very important in carbonate

reservoirs.

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Cap Rock

A reservoir needs a cap rock.

Impermeable cap rock keeps the fluids trapped

in the reservoir.
It must have zero permeability.
Some examples are:
Shales.
Evaporites such as salt or
anhyhdrite.
Zero-porosity carbonates.
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Source Rocks
Hydrocarbon originates from minute organisms
in seas and lakes. When they die, they sink to
the bottom where they form organic-rich
"muds" in fine sediments.
These "muds" are in a reducing environment or
"kitchen", which strips oxygen from the
sediments leaving hydrogen and carbon.
The sediments are compacted to form organic-
rich rocks with very low permeability.
The hydrocarbon can migrate very slowly to
nearby porous rocks, displacing the original
formation water.

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Temperature Window

If the temperature is too low, the organic

material cannot transform into hydrocarbon.
If the temperature is too high, the organic
material and hydrocarbons are destroyed.

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Hydrocarbon Migration

Hydrocarbon migration takes place in two

stages:
Primary migration - from the source rock to a porous
rock.
This is a complex process and not fully understood.
It is probably limited to a few hundred metres.

Secondary migration - along the porous rock to the trap.

This occurs by buoyancy, capillary pressure and hydrodynamics
through a continuous water-filled pore system.
It can take place over large distances. 50
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Rock Classification

Clastics
Rock type Particle diameter

Conglomerate Pebbles 2 - 64mm

Sandstone Sand .06 - 2mm
Siltstone Silt .003 - .06mm
Shale Clay <.003mm

Non-Clastics
Rock type Composition

Limestone CaCO3
Dolomite CaMg(CO3)2
Salt NaCl
Anhydrite CaSO4
Gypsum CaSO4.2H2O
Coal Carbon
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Reservoir Structure
There are many other types of structure.
The criteria for a structure is that it must have:
Closure, i.e. the fluids are unable to
escape.
Be large enough to be economical.

The exact form of the reservoir depends on the

depositional environment and post depositional
events such as foldings and faulting.

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Traps General

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Structural Traps
The simplest form of trap is a dome.
This is created by upward movement or folding
of underlying sediments.

An anticline is another form of simple trap. This

is formed by the folding of layers of sedimentary
rock.

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Fault Traps
Faults occur when the rock shears due to
stresses. Reservoirs often form in these fault
zones.
A porous and permeable layer may trap fluids
due to its location alongside an impermeable
fault or its juxtaposition alongside an
impermeable bed.
Faults are found in conjunction with other
structures such as anticlines, domes and salt
domes.

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Salt Dome Trap

Salt Dome traps are caused when "plastic" salt
is forced upwards.
The salt dome pierces through layers and
compresses rocks above. This results in the
formation of various traps:
In domes created by formations pushed up by
the salt.
Along the flanks and below the overhang in
porous rock abutting on the impermeable salt
itself.

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Stratigraphic Traps

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Reservoir Mapping

Reservoir contours are usually measured to be

below Mean Sea Level (MSL).
They can represent either the reservoir
formation structure or fluid layers.

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