Reservoir Rock-Typing

& Capillary Pressure Fundamentals

Mohamedsamirghonaim@gmail.com

Mohamed Samir Ghonaim

Senior Petrophysicist 1
Introduction

2
 Objectives
• Generating continuous HFU (Lithofacies & Permeability) at well location for
cored and uncored Intervals/or wells (Prediction) using core data (RCA and
SCAL)
HFU for Cored Intervals

Prediction Algorithms
Core Data Continuous K (mD)

Continuous HFU
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 Data Availability

Core Data (RCAL/SCAL)

 Full Cored
 Partially Cored
 RCA: Porosity, Permeability, Lithology, Grain Density
 SCAL PC Data: Sat , Pc, Porosity, Permeability,…
 Facies Description

Logs
 Conventional: NPHI, RHOB, DT, GR, Resistivity, CALI
 Calculated: SW, PHIE, Lithology Volumes
• Well logs are 1D with measurements being made very
close to borehole
• Must extrapolate
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 Core Data Uncertainty

• Several different plug drying

techniques
• Drying impacts RCA data by
damaging clays or leaving water in
the pore space

• Introduces uncertainty on how

comparable RCA data points are
across the region (especially
important where fragile clays are in
the pore network

Grain Density & Core Porosity QC

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 Porosity-Permeability Data - Outliers

Core Permeability VS Core Porosity After Removing Data Outliers

& Depth Shifting

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RockTyping Concepts

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 PetroFacies (ElectroFacies) Concept

• Petrofacies (PF) are facies types

based on a electro-log
PetroFacies Cutoffs
response/log character
PF1 • Clean Blocky Sand
• Simple approach using logs and • Vshale <= 0.15
cutoffs (Vsh) to divide the PF2 • Laminated Sand
reservoir units into similar-looking • 0.15<Vshale <= 0.25
PF3 • Shaly Sand
“Petrofacies”
• 0.25<Vshale <= 0.4

• Petrofacies have no geological PF4 • Non-net (Non-Reservoir)

• Vshale >0.4
meaning – they are to sub-divide
the reservoir only

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Petrofacies Example

Core
PetroFacies
Photos

PF1

PF2

Clay Content
PF3

PF4

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 RRT Definition (Archie, 1950)

 Its classifying the reservoir rocks into distinct units with:

• Similar Depositional conditions

• Similar diagenetic processes.

• Similar PC profile

• Similar SW for a given height above FWL (each

rock type)

• Unique porosity-permeability relationship

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 Definitions

1. Geological /Depositional Facies Rock Typing:

 Rocks with common Lithology, grain size & texture which related to
the depositional environment

2. Petrophysical Rock Typing (PG: Petrophysical Group)

 Defined in the Poro-Perm and Pc domain to characterize rocks that
display common poro-perm relationship (Results from RCAL and
SCAL)

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Permeability Calculation Example

Log10(PERM) = 0.3468763 * PHIE - 2.684439

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 PRT Methods

Winland/Pittman
(1992)

RQI/ FZI
(Amaefule 1993)

Graphic Methods

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Winland & Pittman Method

1. Megaport flow unit, r35 ˃ 10 μm, and

produces tens of thousands of oil barrels a
day.
2. Macroport flow unit, r35 (10-2 μm), and
produces thousands of barrels of oil a day.
3. Mesoport flow unit, r35 (2-0.5 μm), and
allows only hundreds of barrels of oil a day.
4. Microport flow unit, that having r35 ˂ 0.5
μm, and produces only few barrels of oil per
day through pumping (Microport flow units
are decidedly non-reservoir).
5. Nanoport flow unit, r35 ˂ 0.1 μm

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 HFU Pore Throat Radius
@ R35 PORT
HFU1 R35 = 1 μm

HFU2 R35 = 3 μm

Which HFU is the best for

production?!!!!

Dan J. Hartmann
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 Poro-Perm Regression Equations

log R35 = 0.732 + 0.588 log Kair – 0.864 log Φ

K = 10^{[Log (R35)+(0.864Log(Φ)-0.732)]/0.588} R35 Equal Lines

Equation Modified

y = (1014*(FZI**2)*(x**3))/(1-x)**2
Perm = (1014*(FZI**2)*(CPOR**3)) /(1-CPOR)**2

 These equations can be shown graphically on a standard poro-perm chart, and can be
applied to a log derived porosity to create a log derived permeability.

 The permeability data is then used in several ways: flow estimation, height function
calculations and upscaled for use in the reservoir model.
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 RQI/FZI Method

 Reservoir Quality Indicator

RQI = 0.0314 𝑲/𝚽𝐞

 Flow Zone Indicator (FZI)

0.0314 𝑲/𝚽𝐞
FZI = RQI/ Φz = 𝚽𝐞
𝟏−𝚽𝐞

 Samples that have same FZI will be

classified into the same HFU has a similar
Generate phi-K Equations
1. Pore geometry
2. Rock textures (i.e. Grain size, Sorting,
𝚽𝐞
Diagenesis) Normalized Porosity: Φz =
𝟏−𝚽𝐞
Which exhibiting a similar fluid flow
characteristics
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 Reservoir RockTyping Workflow

Run the FZI Interactive Charts Generate phi-K Equations Poro-Perm Regression Equations
to help identify trends in the
core data

Rock units prediction

in uncored wells

Apply Model to Logs

Create Model

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Capillary Pressure
(Reservoir Condition)

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 PC Applications

• Saturation-height models
• Original saturations
• Problems with resistivity logs
• Swirr and Sro determinations
• Derivation of free water level (FWL)
• Differences in contacts between wells

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 Migration & Reservoir Fill

 Reservoir rocks are initially filled with formation water and are assumed to
be water wet 21
 Cont. Migration & Reservoir Fill

The capillary pressure

(Pc) resists the
displacement of water
by hydrocarbons

The buoyancy pressure (Pb) enables the hydrocarbons to migrate and

enter the pore space occupied by water

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 Capillary and Buoyancy Pressure

PC Pb

Pc (KPa) = 2scosq/r Pb (KPa) = Drgh

s Interfacial tension (N/m) Dr Density difference (w / hc) (g/cc)
q Contact angle (deg) g Acceleration due to gravity (m/sec)
r Pore throat radius (um) h Hydrocarbon column height (m)
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 Reservoir Pore System
 The reservoir rock will contain a variety of pore
sizes connected by pore throats also of
different sizes 10 μm

 Sorting and diagenesis will determine the

dominant pore and throat sizes 6 μm

 The variety of pore and throat sizes determine

2 μm
the capillary pressure characteristics of the
reservoir rock system

Reservoir system with different

pore bodies & throat sizes

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Reservoir Heterogeneous Pore System

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 Reservoir Water Pore System

Consider a homogeneous reservoir that is initially water filled and

being charged by oil
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 Pressure and Saturation Development

Depth
PC/HAFWL
Pressure

0 1 FWL (PC=0)
Water Saturation

 The reservoir start fill so the buoyancy pressure increases and is balanced
by the capillary pressure

 The saturation development in the reservoir will be controlled by the pore

sizes and interconnecting pore throats together with the increasing of the
capillary pressure
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 Pressure and Saturation Development

FWL

Depth
Pressure

PC/HAFWL
0 1 FWL (PC=0)
Water Saturation

 Once the entry pressure has been passed, the oil will enter the pore system
and fill the pore spaces connected by the large pore throats, decreasing the
water saturation

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 Pressure and Saturation Development

Depth
FWL

Pressure

PC/HAFWL
0 1 FWL (PC=0)
Water Saturation

 A further increase in the buoyancy pressure will result in entry into smaller
pore throats connecting more pore spaces, further decreasing the water
saturation

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 Pressure and Saturation Development

Depth
FWL

Pressure

PC/HAFWL
0 1 FWL (PC=0)
Water Saturation

 The buoyancy pressure continues to increase, filling ever smaller pore

throats until the spill point is reached, after which no further water saturation
reduction is possible

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 Pressure and Saturation Development

 The capillary pressure curve joins the Pc/Sw data

pairs and as water is removed or drained from the
pore space it is termed a “drainage curve”

Steep Slope  Good quality reservoirs generally have a sharp “L”

shaped curve with poorer quality reservoirs being
more “C” shaped
PC/HAFWL

Plateau

Entry Pressure
0 1 FWL (PC=0)
SWi Water Saturation

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 PC/SW During Production
 During production the Pc/Sw relationship changes due to water returning to
replace the produced oil, some of which remains trapped in the pore system
forming residual oil pockets

 The capillary pressure curve during PC/HAFWL

production joins the Pc/Sw data pairs
and as water is returned to or imbibed
into the pore space it is termed an Sor
0 1 FWL (PC=0)
“imbibition curve” Water Saturation
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 Drainage & Imbibition
 Drainage:

• Fluid flow process in which the saturation of the Sm = 1 – (Swirr + Sor)

non-wetting phase increases.

• Mobility of non-wetting fluid phase increases.

 Imbibition:

• Fluid flow process in which the saturation of the

wetting phase increases

• Mobility of wetting phase increases.

SWir = irreducible wetting phase saturation.

Sor = residual non-wetting phase saturation.
Pd = displacement pressure, the pressure required
to force non -wetting fluid into largest pores.

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Hydrocarbon / Transition and Water Zones

Decreasing Sw to Swirreducible / Increasing Hydrocarbon Saturation

Increasing Height above the Hydrocarbon / Water Contact
Water-free
Hydrocarbon
Hydrocarbons
Production

PC

Transition
Mixed Hydrocarbon Zone
and Water
Production

OIL / WATER CONTACT

FREE WATER LEVEL

Water Production Water

0 Sw Irreducible SW 1.0
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 Effect of Pore Size on Wetting Phase Saturation

Chalk 4 mD

Sandstone
8 mD
Sandstone
350 mD

 Smaller Pore Sizes:

• Higher cap Pressures
 Low Reservoir Quality: • Higher Sw
• Function moves up & right
• Less “L” Shaped 35
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