THE RICE INSTITUTE

A Study of the Relationships Between Porosity

and Certain Size Parameters of Uncemented Natural Sands

by
William B. Head

A THESIS

SUBMITTED TO THE FACULTY

IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE

REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF

Master of Arts

Houston, Texas
May 1959
 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

This investigation was carried out under the direction

of Dr. John J. W. Rogers. The writer is particularly in¬

debted to Dr. Rogers for his helpful advice and suggestions

in all phases of this project.

Dr. H. J. Sawin helped in developing the impregnation

procedure. Dr. Sawin also suggested the use of a centrifuge

for achieving complete impregnation and introducing arti¬

ficial compaction into the sand samples.

The Humble Oil and Refining Co. was kind enough to

allow the writer to use their thin section cutting equip¬

ment. Personnel of the Humble Research Laboratory were

generous in their advice and assistance in cutting thin

sections.
The writer also desires to express his thanks to the

Texas Construction Materials Co., of Houston, Texas, for

providing some samples of sand which were used in this

investigation.

Finally, the writer appreciates the many useful

suggestions from the other members of the Geological Staff

at The Rice Institute.

 TABLE OP CONTENTS

page
Introduction '. 1

Summary of Previous. Work . . 5

General Considerations 8

Procedure . 13

Collection and Preparation of Sand 13

Synthesis of the Desired Sand Mixtures ... 14

Impregnation of the.Sand 25

Preparation of Thin Sections 26

Measurement of Porosity 26

Measurement of Sphericity 27

Experimental Error . . . 33

Synthesis of Sands with Lognormal Size-

Frequency Distributions 33

Measurement of Porosity 34

Results 37
Conclusions *45
.Bibliography 46
 LIST OP ILLUSTRATIONS

page

Figure

1 Size-frequency Distributions for

Median Diameter 0.106 mm 16

2 Size-frequency Distributions for

Median Diameter 0.151 mm 17

3 Size-frequency Distributions for

Median Diameter 0.213 mm l8

4 Size-frequency Distributions for

Median Diameter 0.335 mm 19

5-6 Photomicrographs of Samples #1 and #5 . . 30

7-8 Photomicrographs of Samples #9 and #l4 . . 31

9-12 Percent Porosity as a Function of

Sorting Coefficient 38-39

13 Percent Porosity as a Function of

Sorting Coefficient - Composite Plot ... 40

14 Percent Porosity as a Function of

Median Diameter Size at Different
Sorting Coefficients • 4l

15 Sphericity as a Function of Median

Diameter Size 43

Table

I Sieve Sizes Used in This Investigation . . 15

II Median Diameter Size in Millimeters,
Standard Deviation in Phi Units, and
Sorting Coefficient 20

III Weight Percentages for the Different

Size Fractions 23

IV Porosity Data „ 28
 page

Table

V Sphericity Data 32

VI Relationship between Indicated

Percent Porosity and Number of
Counts in Point-count Grid 35
 INTRODUCTION

Petroleum and natural gas are found under a wide

variety of geologic conditions throughout the world. None¬

theless , the primary prerequisites for the localization

and concentration of petroleum in any one particular place

appear to bet (l) the presence of a source rock in the

general area; (2) the availability of a suitable reservoir

rock; and (3) the presence of certain trapping conditions

which prevent the oil from escaping the reservoir.

Much work has been done on the origin of petroleum and

on source rocks. However, it is probable that most oil is

i

not found in and produced from its original source, but

rather has migrated some distance before being trapped.

The petroleum geologist is naturally interested in the

origin and source of oil, but his main interest is in the

discovery of new commercial accumulations. Consequently,

he must direct much of his attention to the reservoir rock

and the trapping conditions which hold the oil in the reser¬

voir .

It is possible that most of the major oil fields in

the world, whose traps are principally structural, have

already been found. As a result, the exploration geologist

will be forced to search for the more elusive "stratigraphic

traps.In order to be successful, he must, among other things,

have a thorough knowledge and understanding of oil reservoir

rocks and their characteristic features.

A great deal is already known about reservoir rocks,

 2

but much of this information is known only in a general

and qualitative way. In order to understand oil reservoir

rocks more completely, it will be necessary to reinvesti¬

gate their many aspects for the purpose of quantifying some

of the relations which are now only imperfectly known.

Porosity and permeability are perhaps the two most

important and fundamental characteristics of an oil reser¬

voir rock. Porosity is a measure of the total amount of

void space within the rock, and permeability is a measure

of the extent to which the void spaces are interconnected.

Many petroleum geologists have attached more importance

to permeability, as it is a direct measure of the capacity

of a rock to permit the flow of a fluid through it. If a

rock has low permeability, even though it may be completely

oil-saturated, it will produce little or no oil.

A rock of low porosity does not even have the capacity

to store oil, much less allow its passage through the rock.

Thus, in this sense, porosity is a requisite for, and more

fundamental than, permeability. Except in a few unusual

instances, a high primary permeability is not possible with¬

out considerable porosity, but a high porosity is possible

with or without a high permeability.

The porosity of a clastic sedimentary rock is influenced

and determined by a number of factors, some of which may be

considered primary in the sense that they are properties of

the sediment at the time of deposition, and others of which
 - 3 -

may be considered secondary in that they result from various

post-depositional processes. The secondary factors which

influence porosity include the degree of compaction, the

amount of secondary cement, and the extent of secondary

solution. The primary factors include the size, spheric¬

ity, and roundness of individual component grains, the dis¬

tribution of grain sizes, the manner in which the grains are

packed together, and the amount of primary clay matrix around

the grains.

It has long been recognized that the absolute size as

well as the nature of the distribution of the sizes of

particles definitely affect the porosity of an aggregate.

A considerable amount of theoretical work has been done on

this problem. Moreover, there have been several experi¬

mental investigations of this effect using glass beads, ball

bearings, and various other objects. No systematic investi¬

gation, however, of the relationship between the porosity

and various size parameters of uncemented -natural sands is

known to this writer. •

Such an investigation was attempted and is reported

here. In brief, the investigation involved the synthesis

of sands with various size distributions, the measurement

of their porosity, and the determination of the relationship

between porosity and the median diameter size and sorting
coefficient of the sands. When it became apparent that the

porosity was related to median diameter, as well as the

 - 4 -

sorting coefficient, some sphericity measurements were taken

to determine whether or not the relationship between porosity

and median diameter was controlled by the change in shape of

sand grains which accompanies a change in their size.

 SUMMARY OP PREVIOUS WORK

The general topic of porosity has been either the

principal or supplementary subject of a considerable number

of studies (Cloud,, 1941; Furnas., 1928; Gaither, 1953;
Hubbert, 1940; King, 1898; Meinzer, 1923; Nissan, 1938;

Stearns, 1927; and others cited below). This section con¬

tains a summary of some of the pertinent information about

porosity as it is influenced by the absolute size and size

distribution of particles which comprise a porous medium.
Graton and Fraser (1935) have established that in

assemblages of uniformly sized spheres, the porosity ranges

from a maximum of 47.6 percent, if the spheres are cubically

packed, to 25.9 percent if they are rhombohedrally packed.

The mean porosity is 36.7 percent. Thus, the porosity of

an aggregate of spheres, all of the same size, is controlled

by the manner in which the spheres are packed together.

Highest porosities are invariably found in assemblages

of particles which are all of the same size. The addition

of particles which are either smaller or larger than the

mean tends to reduce the porosity. The decrease in porosity

appears to be a function of the range in particle sizes and

the relative amounts of the different sizes which comprise

the assemblage. These relationships have been shown to be

both theoretically and experimentally valid for aggregates

of natural as well as artificial particles (Fraser, 1935;

Tickell, Mechem, and McCurdy, 1933). In short, well sorted

assemblages have a higher porosity than poorly sorted ones,

 - 6 -

and the porosity is governed, at least to a certain extent,

by the degree of sorting.’

Slichter (l899) showed that, theoretically, the

porosity is independent of the absolute grain size. That

is, in assemblages of uniformly sized spheres packed in a

systematic manner, the porosity is not affected by the

actual size of the spheres. However, this relationship

does not seem to hold for aggregates of natural particles.

In most reported instances, assemblages of fine particles

are more porous than coarse ones (Cloud, 1941; Ellis and

Lee, 1919; Fraser, 1935; Griffiths, 1952; Trask, 1931).

However, Pye (1944) has reported an instance in which an

increase in grain size was accompanied by an increase in

porosity. Although anomalous relations have been reported,

it is widely believed, on experimental evidence, that an

aggregate of natural particles with a small median diameter

is more porous than one with a larger median.

This relationship is apparently contrary to the theo¬

retical considerations of Slichter, and thus porosity appears

not to be a function of particle size as such but rather a

result of other properties of natural particles which vary

as the size varies. In particular, the shape of natural

particles may vary appreciably as the size changes. In

general, quartz grains become less spherical with decreasing
size. A group of quartz grains with low sphericity generally

do not pack as closely together in natural sands as those

 - 7 -

with high sphericity; therefore, more open space occurs

between the less spherical grains, and the porosity is

higher. Furthermore, Fraser (1935) states that "As the

grain-size decreases, friction, adhesion, and bridging

become increasingly important because of the higher ratio

of surface area to volume and mass. Therefore, the porosity

increases with a decrease in grain size."

 GENERAL CONSIDERATIONS

This investigation was undertaken for the purpose of

verifying and quantifying some relationships between the

porosity and some size parameters of uncemented natural

sands. Specifically, the influence of variations in the

sorting coefficient and median diameter size on the porosity

was studied.•

To accomplish the above, a number of sands with dif¬

ferent grain size distributions and different median diam¬

eters were synthesized. This synthesis permits experimental

control of the size parameters, which can be varied accord¬

ing to a predetermined plan.

The literature is replete with size analyses of natural

sands, but instances in which sands have been synthesized

are rare. To the best of the writer's knowledge, Krumbein

and Monk (1942) were the first to employ this useful tech¬

nique. They mixed sands in order to study the relationship

between permeability and the size parameters of unconsoli¬

dated sand. Menard (1949) refers to some of his previous

work in which he too had synthesized sand to study the in¬

fluence of sorting on the transportation of bed load.

The procedure for synthesizing the sands used in this

investigation was patterned closely after Menard (1949),

in which he outlines a method for synthesizing sand mix¬

tures with a lognormal (log-Gaussian) size-frequency dis¬

tribution and any desired mean and sorting. In brief, this

procedure involves the construction of a number of straight-

 -9 -

line (normal) probability curves on log-probability paper.

Each curve is uniquely defined by the predetermined median

and standard deviation. The weight percentages correspond¬

ing to the various size intervals can be read directly from

each curve, and the sorting coefficient can be calculated.

Various size fractions of a natural sand, which had been

previously separated by sieving, are then mixed in the

proportions indicated for each curve.

It should be noted that all of the predetermined size

distributions used in this study are lognormal. Many natural

sediments have been found to have size-frequency distribu¬

tions which are approximately lognormal, and this distribu¬

tion is commonly used as a frame of reference in the analysis

of natural sediments. Hence, in an attempt to conform as

closely as possible to natural conditions, the sands were

synthesized such that they too had a lognormal size-fre¬

quency distribution.

Porosity is defined as the ratio of pore space to

total volume, and commonly is expressed as a percentage.

Thus:

Percent porosity = Pore volume x 100

Bulk volume

Porosity measurements are often made by the use of the

following formula:
V v
P = B -
B rOr x 100
V-,
B
where P = percent porosity, VB bulk volume, and V^, = volume
 10

occupied by the grains. However, VQ and particularly -Vg are

commonly difficult to measure accurately. For this reason,

the above procedure was discarded in favor of visual measure

ment. Scheidegger (1957) states that "A direct way of

determining the porosity is simply by looking at a section

of the porous medium with a microscope. The reason why a

value of porosity can be obtained in this manner is that the

plane porosity of a random section must be the same as that

of a porous medium." He continues to say that "It is not

always possible to make a section of porous media conven¬
iently. Difficulties will be encountered especially if the

porous ^medium is dispersed.' Techniques have been developed

whereby the medium is first impregnated with wax or plastics

Scheidegger1s approach to the problem of determining

porosity was adopted for this investigation. The impreg¬

nating agent used was Scotchcast Resin No. 2, a product of .

the Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Co. This is an epon

resin, marketed in two parts which, when mixed together,

produce a polymerizing reaction. This particular resin

was recommended to the writer by personnel of the Humble

Oil and Refining Co. It was most satisfactory for this

purpose. Its binding qualities are so excellent that few

if any quartz grains were ever plucked out of the plastic

during the subsequent preparation of thin sections.

In order to accomplish the actual impregnation of the

sand with the plastic, the samples were subjected to an
 11

evacuation process followed by centrifuging. The evacua¬

tion process served to remove most of the air entrapped

between the sand grains and thereby allowed the plastic

to occupy those voids. The purpose of the centrifuging

was twofold: (l) to force the plastic down into any pre¬

viously unfilled voids between the sand grains; and (2) to

introduce uniform compaction in all of the samples.

Porosity is affected by compaction in the following

manner: if the compaction has not been sufficient to force

all of the sand grains into contact with one another, the

porosity will be greater than in samples in which all of

the grains are touching. Likewise, if the compaction has

been great enough to cause fracturing of the grains and

the consequent squeezing of the fragments closer together,

the porosity will be less than before fracturing commenced.

For the purposes of this investigation, it was only

necessary to introduce uniform compaction, but an attempt

was made to introduce enough compaction so that most of the

grains would be in contact with one another. As the arti¬

ficial compaction is a function of the length of centrifuge

time, a series of tests were made to investigate the effects

of centrifuge time on porosity. Five samples were prepared

from the same test sand and were centrifuged for 2, 5, 10,

15j and 20 minutes respectively. It was found that there

were no significant differences between the porosity of the

samples centrifuged for 5, 10/ 15, and 20 minutes, but the

 12

sample which had been centrifuged for 2 minutes had a

significantly higher porosity than the others. On this

basis, 10 minutes was accepted as a standard centrifuge

time.

In order to measure the porosity of each impregnated

sand sample, it was sufficient to measure the plane porosity

of a random section through each sample. Thin sections were

found to be preferable to polished sections because contacts

between grains and plastic are more easily discerned and

images of grains below the surface do not appear to be at

the surface.

During the impregnation process, all of the visible

pore spaces between the sand grains were filled with plastic.

It was therefore assumed that the area occupied by plastic

in the thin sections represents pore space. Consequently,

a point count of grains versus plastic would record percent

porosity.
 PROCEDURE

The laboratory work involved the following principal

phases: (l) collection and preparation of sand; (2) synthesis

of the desired sand mixtures; (3) impregnation of the sand;

(4) preparation of thin sections; (5) measurement of poros¬

ity; and (6) measurement of sphericity.

Collection and preparation of sand. The Lissie sand,

of Pleistocene age, was the main sand used in this study. It

was selected because it is friable and easy to disaggregate,
because it is fairly poorly sorted and therefore furnishes

a wide range of grain sizes, and because it crops out just

north of Houston and samples are easily collected. The

Lissie sand is somewhat deficient in the coarse size frac¬

tions, and it was therefore necessary to obtain some coarser

material. The Texas Construction Materials Co. furnished a

sample of Corrigan sand from its sand and gravel pit near

Corrigan, Texas.' The Corrigan sand is the basal sandy and

conglomeratic member of the Catahoula formation of Oligocene

age.
Inasmuch as a clean, fairly pure quartz sand was de¬

sirable for this study, the samples of sand were washed in

dilute hydrochloric acid for about one hour. The acid was
then elutriated out with fresh water. This treatment served

to remove the greater part of the shell fragments and other

calcareous matter and helped to clean iron oxide staining
from the quartz grains. Furthermore, the elutriation

process removed all of the clay-size particles as well

 - 14 -

as bits of carbonaceous matter. After the remaining material

had been thoroughly washed with fresh water, it was placed

under heat lamps to dry.

When the sand was completely dry, it was sieved in

order to separate it into a number of size fractions. Table

I shows the sieve sizes that were used. The sieves were

agitated in a Tyler Ro-Tap for fifteen minutes. Inasmuch

as the Ro-Tap used only holds six sieves and a pan, a two-

stage sieving procedure was employed to obtain the various

size fractions indicated in Table I.

Synthesis of the desired sand mixtures. Figures 1-4

show the size distribution curves of the samples used in

this investigation. These curves were drawn on log-proba¬

bility paper. The sieve opening size for each sieve is

indicated along the size scale. The median diameter was

determined for each sample and plotted on the 50% line.

As is shown in Table II, the group of curves in Figure 1

all have a median diameter of 0.106 mm. Likewise, the

median diameters for the curves in Figures 2, 3* and 4 are

0.151 mm., 0.213 mm., and 0.335 mm. respectively. These

values were selected for the following reasons: (l) they

are within the general size range which is most character¬

istic of oil reservoir sands (Griffiths, 1952; Nutting,

1930); and (2) each is equal to a size which corresponds

to the geometric midpoint between the sieve opening sizes
of two consecutive sieves. It should be remembered, in this
 - 15 -

U.S. Std. Opening Opening Sand Size

Sieve in mm. s in in. s Wentworth Scale

4 4.760 0.1870 Granule

12 1.680 0.0661 Very coarse sand

20 0.840 0.0331 Coarse sand

40 0.420 0.0165 Medium sand

60 0.250 0.0098
Pine sand
80 0.177 0.0070
120 0.125 0.0049
Very fine sand
170 0.088 0.0035
230 0.062 0.0024
270 0.053 0.0021 Silt

325 0.044 0.0017

Table I. Sieve sizes used in this investigation.

 - 16 -

(aiTSOS OTUitnTJBSoT;) sjaqaurfUTW uj 'azfS uf^JD

Figure 1. Size-Frequency Distributions for Median Diameter 0.106
 17

C\

ON

Size-Frequency Distributions for Median Diameter 0.151

Ch
o>

<D
rH
in cd
o
GO

o >>
OA

c3
;□
O
u
o

<u
to
cd
o -p
in c
CD
o
u
<U
cu
o
ro 4-5

«H
0)

0)
o >
4-5
<d
r—4

in 3

o Figure 2.

o
o*

(aiBOS oputni^Soi) sjsqaurpmw UT 'azTS UT'BJO

 18

Size-Frequency Distributions for Median Diameter 0.213

0
*—l
a
o
co
>5
4->

cd
&
o
0,
OH,

0
bO
cd
-p
c
0
o
0.
0
0-,
■P

&
■H
0

0
>
■H
P>
cd
3
6
3
o Figure 3.

(aiBos ofuimT^Soq) sja^suijTTTW uf ‘az^S UJHJO

 19

mm.
0.33b
Size-Frequency Distributions for Median Diameter
o
a
o
co

JD
a
&
o
E-.
Qu
CD
bO
cd
4->
c
o
o
Eu
<D
CU

*§>
«H
O
DS
o
>

cd
>—i
3
E
3
O

4.
Figure

(OXBOS oxuiqxT^^oi) SJ040UIXXTTW ux *0ZTS UJT2J0

 20

Sample Median Standard Sorting

No. Diameter Deviation Coefficient

1 0.106 1/8 / 1.058

2 0.106 1/4 / 1.127 .

3 0.106 1/2 0 1.283
4 0.106 1 / 1.621

5 0.151 1/8 / 1.06l

6 0.151 1/4 / 1.128

7 0.151 1/2 / 1.279

8 0.151 1 / 1.629
9 0.213 1/8 / 1.062

10 0.213 1/4 / 1.134

11 0.213 1/2 / 1.271
12 0.213 1 / 1.620

13 0.213 11/2/ 2.087

14 0.335 1/8 / 1.062

13 0.335 1/4 / 1.127

16 0.335 1/2 / 1.282

17 0.335 1 / 1.628

18 0.335 . 1 1/2 / 2.085

Table II. Median diameter size in millimeters

standard deviation in phi units, and
sorting coefficient.
 21

regard, that the material which passes through one sieve

but is retained on the next smaller sieve is not all of one

size, but rather has a continuous size-frequency distribu¬

tion itself. The exact nature of this distribution is

quantitatively difficult to evaluate, but it is presumed

to have a median which approximates the geometric midpoint

between the sieve opening sizes of the two sieves. Menard

(1949) discusses this point and states that "the pertinent

grain size is the nominal phi mean diameter rather than the
diameter of the sieve openings. The nominal phi mean diam¬

eter is equal to the sieve opening plus one half of the

sieving interval. Its use results in a plot on probability

paper which is symmetrical about the sieve size which con¬

tains the nominal mean of the whole sand mixture. By this

device, the weight percentage of any grain size can be

located directly below the size on the graph "

Hence, the median diameters used represent the nominal phi

mean diameters mentioned above, 0.106 mm. being the midpoint

between sieves 120 and 170, 0.151 nun. between sieves 80 and

120, 0.213 mm. between sieves 60 and 80, and 0.335 mm.

between sieves 40 and 60.

After the median diameter had been plotted on the log-

probability paper, the standard deviation for each curve

was determined. Following the procedure of Menard, the

standard deviation for each of the various curves was se¬

lected as a fraction or an increment of one phi unit.

 22

Krumbein (1936) has defined phi as:

$ = -log2 E

where E is the diameter of the particle in millimeters.

Therefore, the value of 1 0 can be measured directly on log-

probability paper, and fractions or increments thereof can

be calculated. Table II indicates the standard deviation,

in phi units, used for-each curve. The appropriate stand¬

ard deviation was then plotted on the 16$ and 84$ lines.

This follows from the fact that in a normal curve 34 per¬

cent of the distribution lies between the mean and a dis¬

tance of one standard deviation to the right or left. These

two points, together with the plot of the median diameter,

define a unique probability curve representing a lognormal

size-frequency distribution. A straight line was drawn

through these three points.

The weight percentage of each size interval can be

read directly from these curves. The intersection of the

upper and lower limits of any size interval (the size of

the sieve openings of any two successive sieves) with the

probability curve determines the percentage, by weight, of

the material within that particular size interval for that

particular curve. Table III indicates the weight percent¬

ages of the various size fractions for each curve.

In addition, the sorting coefficient for each curve

can be calculated. Trask (1939') has defined the sorting

coefficient as:
 - 23 -

Sieve Sample Sample Sample Sample Sample Sample Sample Sample Sample Sample Sample Sample- Sample Sample Sample Sample Sample Sample
Size 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18
12 1.26 6.80
20 0.22 0.92 2.90 10.20 .0.56 8.94 13.10
40 0.01 2.58 0.29 7.08 0.02 3.10 14.40 16.30 0.50 11.40 26.34 27.-60 21.90
60 0.96 8.90 0.37 8.41 16.50 4.50 19.48 29.90 24.00 17.70 99.43 83.10 52.00 28.00 18.50
80 0.25 6.83 11.80 4.50 20.63 25.20 17.00 93.60 65.50 37.00 18.90 12.80 0.07 5.47 16.95 15.40 11.60
120 2.50 17.75 24.40 17.30 93.90 65.OO 36.30 19.00 1.90 14.83 23.30 16.80 12.00 0.03 3.78 10.10 9.80
170 95.40 66.70 36.80 19.10 1.60 13.88 23.10 16.70 0.17 6.00 12.00 10.50 0.37 5.40 7.20
230 2.10 15.15 23.90 17.10 0.12 6.03 12.00 0.70 6.60 7.80 2.28 4.90
270 0.15 4.20 6.00 0.50 3.50 1.70 2.70 0.46 1.55
325 2.11 5.80 0.14 2.90 1.29 2.80 0.29 1.40
-325 0.79 11.20 0.03 4.40 l.4l 7.20 O.27 3.25
Total 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00

Table III. Weight percentages for the different size fractions;

numbers represent material retained on the indicated
sieves.
 an are
where ^ Q]_ the size values which correspond to the

75th and 25th percentiles. The larger size value is repre¬

an
sented by and the smaller by ^ Qq can be read

directly from the curves, and SQ can therefore be calculated.

Table II indicates the sorting coefficient value for each

curve.
After the size-frequency curves had been constructed

and the weight percentages of the various size intervals

determined, it was necessary to mix the size fractions in

the indicated proportions in order to obtain sands of the

desired size distribution. It was decided to synthesize

a 250-gram sand sample representing each curve. The weight

percentages of each size fraction were converted to weight

in grams, and these amounts were weighed on an Ohaus

Harvard Trip Balance with an accuracy to the nearest 0.1

gram. The different fractions for each curve were placed

in a one-pint ice cream carton. These were then placed

in a Fisher-Kendall mixer, and the sample was allowed to

rotate in the mixer for 30 minutes. Complete homogeniza¬

tion was achieved in most samples except the most poorly

sorted ones, in which the larger, heavier grains tended to

separate as the sample tumbled back and forth in the carton.

It was found that stirring with a spoon produced more

thorough mixing in these samples.

 - 25 -

Impregnation of the sand. About 30 grams of each sand

sample studied was carefully introduced into a standard

50 ml. glass centrifuge tube. This was accomplished by

carefully spooning out the desired amount of sand onto a

small piece of paper. The paper was then rolled around the

sand so as to form a cylinder slightly smaller than the in¬

side diameter of the glass tube. With the tube held in a
horizontal position, the paper cylinder containing the sand

was slipped into the tube. The tube was quickly moved into

a vertical position, allowing the sand to settle on the

bottom of the tube. The paper cylinder was then carefully

removed. This proved to be the most effective way of in¬

troducing the sand into the tube without causing appreciable

separation of the sand grains according to size.

The two parts of the plastic were mixed together in

equal amounts by weight according to the manufacturer's

directions. Sufficient plastic was prepared to impregnate

the sand samples being handled at a particular time. The

plastic was then poured in on top of the sand in the cen¬

trifuge tube.
The centrifuge tubes, containing the sand and plastic,

were then placed in a sealed desiccator jar to which a

vacuum pump was attached. The evacuation was accomplished

slowly and in steps; more rapid evacuation caused the sand

grains to be greatly disturbed by the escaping air, and
the plastic bubbled over the top of the centrifuge tube.
 - 26 -

A three-stage evacuation process was found to be satisfactory.

The pump was turned on and left running for about two minutes

until air was being bubbled off in generous quantities. The

pump was then turned off, and the vacuum was retained in the

desiccator jar for another two minutes. Air was then slowly

bled back into the jar, and the samples were allowed to re¬

main under atmospheric pressure for two minutes. This pro¬

cedure was repeated twice more. In many instances, 100 per¬

cent impregnation was achieved through the evacuation process.

Following evacuation, the samples were placed in a

centrifuge for 10 minutes at 2,500 r.p.m. After the samples

were removed from the centrifuge, they were allowed to re¬

main at roqm temperature for about one hour. The tubes

were then suspended in a hot water bath to shorten the cur¬

ing time of the plastic. The water was maintained at

approximately 70°C. The samples were allowed to remain in

the bath for about two hours, after which they were removed

and permitted to return to room temperature.

In most instances, it was necessary to break the glass

tube to remove the core of impregnated sand.

Preparation of thin sections. Thin slices were cut

from the middle of the core of impregnated sand on a diamond

saw. Thin sections were then made from these slices. Stand¬

ard thin section grinding procedure was utilized.

Measurement of porosity. Each thin section was examined

under a petrographic microscope equipped with a point

 - 27 -

counting mechanical stage.. 200X magnification (8x ocular

and 25X objective) was used. The section was oriented on

the stage so that a 1,000-point grid would cover a repre¬

sentative portion of the section. A count of 1,000 points

(20 rows of 50 points each) was made, recording "grain" or

"cement" on a key-actuated laboratory counter. "Grain" and

"cement" was determined by what was directly below the

cross-hairs of the ocular. The number of "cement" counts,

divided by 10, is a direct measurement of the percent

porosity.

Each section was counted twice, at different times,

and the arithmetic average of the two indicated porosities

was taken as the true porosity. The porosity data are

presented in Table IV.

Measurement of sphericity. The true sphericity of an

object has been defined by Wadell (1932) as:

Sp = s
S
where Sp is sphericity, s = the surface area of a sphere

which has the same volume as the object in question, and

S = the actual surface area of the object. The surface

area of an irregularly shaped object is difficult to

measure. A more usable formula for the measurement of

sphericity is:

Sp = a
A
where a = the area of a circle which has the same area as
 - 28 -

Sample $ Porosity $ Porosity Average

No. 1st. count 2nd. count Porosity

1 46.3 46.6 46.4

2 43.1 43.7 43.4

3 4l.O 43.0 42.0

4 39.2 41.4 40.3

5 45.1 44.9 45.0

6 43.0 41.8 42.4

7 41.6 40.2 40.9

8 38.6 37.3 38.0

9 46.1 43.9 45.0

10 43.3 42.6 42.9

11 4l.l 40.5 40.8

12 37.1 37.3 37.2

13 32.1 32.4 32.2

14 45.4 45.7 45.5

15 43.1 42.6 42.8

16 40.1 ■ 40.7 40.4

17 35.0 36.4 35.7

18 29.2 32.0 30.6

Table IV. Porosity data.

 - 29 -

the largest projected image of the object, and A = the

area of the smallest circle that circumscribes the projected

image.
Photomicrographs were taken of a portion of the thin

sections from samples #1, #5.> #9.> and #l4. These are the

best sorted samples for each of the respective median

diameters. Different magnifications were used for each

photomicrograph to insure that the size of the individual

grains appearing in the printed picture would be large

enough to work with conveniently. Figures 5-8 are the

photomicrographs of the respective samples.

Twenty-five grains were selected at random from each

photograph. The area of each grain was measured with a

polar planimeter, and the longest diameter was measured

with a graduated rule. The area of the smallest circum¬

scribing circle (A in the above formula) was calculated

from the long diameter. The grain area was then divided
by the area of the smallest circumscribing circle. This

value is a measurement of the sphericity of each grain.

The arithmetic average of the twenty-five grains was taken

as the average sphericity for that sample. Table V shows

the sphericity data.

 30

Figure 5. Photomicrograph of Sample #1 (ll8x Magnification)

Figure 6. Photomicrograph of Sample #5 (110X Magnification)

 31

Figure 7- Photomicrograph of Sample #9 (60X Magnification)

Figure 8. Photomicrograph of Sample #l4 (49X Magnification)

Grain Sample #1 Sample #5 Sample #9 Sample #14
No. Sphericity Sphericity Sphericity Sphericity
1 0.428 0. 6o4 0.528 0.613
2 0.628 0. 642 0.734 0*. 601

3 0.578 0. 433 0.542 0.591

4 0.487 0. 578 0.333 0.509

5 0.566 0. 509 0.573 0.398

6 0.597 0. 554 0.539 0.601

7 0.425 0. 637 0.849 0.632

8 0.572 0. 288 0.499 0.489

9 0.441 0. 552 0.527 0.634

10 0.716 0. 791 - 0.357

11 p.716 0. 822 - 0.631
12 0.342 0. 462 0.649 0.799

13 0.721 0. 361 0.507 0.672

l4 0.628 0. 725 0.613 0.532

15 0.636 0. 578 0.637 0.543

16 0.676 0. 452 0.605 0.64l

17 0.485 0. 531 0.461 0.707

18 0.654 0. 666 0.459 0.487

19 0.602 0. 396 0.714 0.572

20 0.578 0. 434 0.798 0.362

21 0.605 0. 749 0.452 0.678

22 0.404 0. 527 0.490 0.748

23 0.424 0. 512 0.428 0.723

24 O.661 0. 572 0.499 0.474

25 0.283 0. 683 0.669 0.549

Avg. 0.553 0. 562 0.570 0.582

Table V. Sphericity data

 EXPERIMENTAL ERROR

The possibility of significant experimental error

exists at two main places in this investigation: (l) in

the synthesis of sands with lognormal size-frequency dis¬

tributions ; and (2) in the measurement of porosity.

Snythesis of sands with lognormal size-frequency

distributions. The sands which were synthesized for use in
this investigation have a size-frequency distribution which

is approximately lognormal. They deviate from lognormality

in that they are somewhat deficient in the very coarse and

very fine size fractions. Inasmuch as most of the sands

are within the fine to very fine sand range (Wentworth

scale), the deficiency in very fine material was more of

a problem than the very coarse.

As shown in Table I, the sieve with the smallest

openings was 325. Any material which passes through the

325 sieve is of unknown size. Nevertheless, as is shown in

Figures 1-4 and in Table III, many of the constructed curves
require a considerable percentage of material which is

finer than the 325 sieve openings. Thus, the use of a

large percentage of this material would introduce con¬

siderable uncertainty as to the precise nature of the size-

frequency distribution that was being synthesized.

A microscopic examination of the minus 325 material

revealed that it was mostly quartz and within the general
silt size range. It was therefore decided that use of a

small percentage of this material would not materially

 - 34 -

alter the indicated size distribution. Consequently,

curves which required less than 10 percent of minus 325

material were used, except curve #4 which required 11.2

percent. It is for this reason that no samples were syn¬

thesized with median diameters 0.106 mm. and 0.151 mm.

and a sorting coefficient of about 2.086.

Measurement of porosity. The measurement of porosity

by a point-count technique is potentially very accurate.

However, it is a statistical measure and subject to some

error. The 1,000-point grid was selected after first hav¬

ing made an examination of a test specimen in which the

indicated porosity was recorded after every 100 counts.

As is shown in Table VT, there was no significant varia¬

tion in the indicated porosity after 800 counts.

There is also the possibility of introducing some

experimental error into the porosity measurements from

errors made in counting. Although the grains were, in

most cases, easily distinguished from the cement, it was

often difficult to determine whether a particular point

should be recorded as "grain" or "cement" when the cross¬

hairs of the ocular were very close to the contact between

grain and cement. If the cross-hairs were directly on the

contact, no recording was made and that point was omitted,
(in general, not more than ten points per slide had to be

omitted'for this reason.) Otherwise, every effort was

made to determine the correct recording. Nevertheless,
 - 35 -

No. of Counts $ Porosity-

100 44.0
200 44.5
300 40.6
400 41.3
500 41.3
600 41.5
700 40.7
800 41.8
900 42.8
1000 42.4
1100 42.2
1200 42.0
1300 42.5
1400 42.9
1500 42.7

Table VI. Relationship between indicated percent porosity

and number of counts in point-count grid.
 - 36 -

it seems advisable to allow for a certain amount of count¬

ing error. Table IV shows the porosity (counting) data,

which was taken twice, and it is apparent that the repro¬

ducibility of the data was reasonably good. The maximum

variation between the two values of porosity was 2.8 per¬

cent, or 28 counts out of 1,000. The average difference

is about 1.0 percent, or 10 counts out of 1,000. Hence,

the counting error is believed to be about ±0.5 percent.

One further point regarding counting error seems

advisable. The very poorly sorted samples, especially

the coarser ones, contain a number of very large grains

which are randomly placed in the thin section. Depending

on how the thin sections of these samples are placed on
the microscope stage and how and where the 1,000-point

grid is located over the section, a greater or fewer

number of these large grains may appear in the counting

area. Thus, it appears that a possibility for greater

variation in counting exists for these samples because

the presence or absence of just one grain can make a

difference of about 8 to 10 counts.

 RESULTS

Figures 9-12 are graphs on which percent porosity

has been plotted against sorting coefficient. The data

from which the graphs were constructed are given in

Tables II and IV; plotted porosity values are the average

of two measurements. Each individual curve is the plot of

the porosity data for sands with the same median diameter
but different sorting coefficients. In all cases., the

percent porosity increases with a decrease in sorting

coefficient (better sorting). Furthermore, it appears

that a straight-line relationship exists between porosity

and sorting, except where the sorting is very good. As the

sorting becomes very good, the porosity increases at an

even greater rate. It is interesting to note here that

the highest porosities approach the theoretical maximum

of 47.6 percent (Graton and Fraser, 1935).

Figure 13 is a composite plot of the curves shown in

Figures 9-12. As shown by this figure, the curves do not

coincide with one another except where the sorting is very

good. As the sorting becomes poorer, the curves diverge

from one another, and it appears that as the median diameter

decreases the percent porosity increases for the same sort¬

ing coefficient.
These relationships can be more readily visualized

from Figure l4, which is a plot of median diameter size

versus percent porosity at various sorting coefficients.

No significant change in the porosity due to a change in

Sorting Coefficient (Arithmetic Scale) Sorting Coefficient (Arithmetic Scale)
38
Sorting Coefficient
39

Figure 11. Percent Porosity as a Function of Sorting Coefficient

(Arithmetic S:ale)
Sorting Coefficient

Figure 12. Percent Porosity as a Function of Sorting Coefficient

 40

- Composite Plot
Percent Porosity as a Function of Sorting Coefficient
<D
(—I
cd
o
co
o

d)
6
JZ
4->

<

>5
-P
•H
CD
O
£H
O
PH

p>
c
<D
O
U
0)
Pu.
Figure 13.

(GT120S OT^auiq^fJV) iuaTOTJJ^oO 3UTIUOS

 - 4l -

Percent Porosity (Arithmetic Scale)

Figure 14. Percent Porosity as a Function of Median Diameter Size at Different Sorting Coefficients
 - 42 -

median diameter is seen so long as the sorting is exceed¬

ingly good. However, as the sorting becomes poorer, the

effects of changing median diameter on porosity become

more and more apparent. In short, where the sorting is

good, the porosity appears to be independent of the actual

grain size and is only a function of the sorting coeffi¬

cient. As the sorting becomes poorer, the porosity be¬

comes increasingly dependent on median diameter size as

well as the degree of sorting; the porosity increases with

decreasing median diameter. Again, it appears that a

straight-line relationship exists between porosity and

median diameter size except where the median is very small,

in which case the porosity increases at an even greater

rate.
If all of the sand grains were perfect spheres, the

porosity should be independent of the absolute grain size

of the spheres, no matter what the sorting coefficient.

However, natural sand grains are not perfect spheres, and

it has been often noticed that an assemblage of fine sand

grains is more porous than one of coarse grains. This

phenomenon is commonly attributed to the change in shape

of sand particles which accompanies a change in their size.

Therefore, a few sphericity measurements were taken to

determine whether or not there is a systematic change in

shape of the sand grains as their size is varied. Figure

15 is a plot of median diameter versus sphericity. It can

 - '43 -

in
oo
in
o

o
co

Sphericity as a Function of Median Diameter Size

in
o

in
t>-
Ln
o
<1)
i—1
0j
o
CO
o
o 4->
(D
in• £
o 4->
•H
<
>5
4->
•H
in O
VO •H
in
• CD
o
o.
co

o
VO
Figure 15.

in
o

in
in
in
o

o
in
in
o*

(eiBOS aziS ja^aure-pa u^-ppaw

 - 44 -

be seen that the sphericity does, in fact, decrease as the

median diameter decreases. The decrease in sphericity is

very slight, but the change in median diameter is also not

very great. However, these sphericity measurements seem

to establish a trend, and it is presumed that the greater

range in grain sizes would be accompanied by a greater

range in grain shapes.

Thus, it appears that the manner in which grains of

uniform size, and therefore presumably of about uniform

shape, are packed together is independent of their actual

size and shape (within the size ranges studied in-this

investigation). But, as the uniformity of grain size

decreases there is a consequent greater variety of grain

shapes, and as the grains become less spherical they can

not be packed as closely together as spheres of the same

size. As a result, the porosity of an aggregate of smaller

grains is higher than one of coarser grains so long as the

grains are not uniformly sized.
 CONCLUSIONS

On the basis of the information obtained in this

investigation, the following conclusions can be drawn

regarding the porosity of aggregates of uncemented natural

sand grains whose sizes are within the ranges here studied

1. Well sorted sands are more porous than poorly

sorted ones. The rate of increase in percent porosity

is approximately proportional to the rate of increase in

sorting except as the sorting becomes exceptionally good,

in which case the percent porosity increases at an even

greater rate.

2. In well sorted sands, the porosity is independent

of the actual grain size.

3. In poorly sorted sands, the finer ones are more

porous than the coarser ones. This effect becomes in¬

creasingly apparent as the sorting becomes poorer. The

rate of increase in percent porosity is approximately

proportional to the rate of decrease in median diameter

size except as the median size becomes very small, in

which case the percent porosity increases at an even

greater rate. This relationship is presumably due to the

lower sphericity of the smaller grains.

 BIBLIOGRAPHY

Cloud., W. F., 1941, "Effects of Sand Grain Size Distribu¬

tion Upon Porosity and Permeability," The Oil Weekly,
Vol. 3, No. 8, pp. 26-32.

Ellis, A. J. and Lee, C. H., 1919, Geology and Ground Waters

of the Western Part of San Diego County, California,
U. S. Geol. Survey Water Supply Paper 44b, 313 PP-

Fraser, H. J., 1935, "Experimental Study of Porosity and

Permeability of Clastic Sediments," Jour. Geol., Vol.
43, No. 8, pp. 910-1010.

Furnas, C. C., 1928, Relations between Specific Volume, Voids,

and Size Composition in Systems of Broken Solids, U. S.
Bur. Mines Repts. Investigations No. 2894.

Gaither, A., 1953, "A Study of Porosity and Grain Relation¬

ships in Experimental Sands," Jour. Sed. Pet., Vol. 23,
No. 3, PP. 180-195.

Graton, L. C. and Fraser, H. J., 1935, "Systematic Packing

of Spheres with Particular Relation to Porosity and
Permeability," Jour. Geol., Vol. 43, No. 8, pp. 785-909.

Griffiths, J. C., 1952, "Grain Size Distribution and Reser¬

voir Rock Characteristics," Bull. Amer. Assoc. Petrol.
Geol., Vol. 36, No. 2, pp. 205-229.

Hubbert, M. K., 1940, "The Theory of Ground Water Motion,"

Jour. Geol., Vol. 48, No. 8, pp. 785-944.

King, F, H., 1898, Principles and Conditions of the Move-

ment of Ground Water, U. S. Geol. Survey 19th Ann.
Rept., Pt. II, pp. 208-218.

Krumbein, W. C., 1936, "Application of Logarithmic Moments

to Size Frequency Distributions of Sediments," Jour.
Sed. Pet., Vol. 6, No. 1, pp. 35-47.

and Monk, G. D., 1942, "Permeability as a

Function of the Size Parameters of Unconsolidated
Sand," Amer. Inst. Min. Metal. Eng., Petroleum Tech¬
nology, Vol. 5, No. 4, pp. 1-11.

Meinzer, 0. E-., 1923, The Occurrence of Ground Water in the

U. S. A. with a Discussion of Principles, U. S. Geol.
Survey Water Supply Paper 4&9, 321 pp.

Menard, H. W., 1949, "Synthesis of Sand Mixtures," Jour.

Sed. Pet., Vol. 19, No. 2, pp. 71-77-
 - 47 -

Nissan, A. H., 1938, "The Application of Physico-Chemical

Principles to the Investigation of the Properties of
Rocks; Part I, Porosity - Origin, Significance, and
Measurement," Jour. Inst. Petrol. Tech., Vol. 24,
Part 1, pp. 351-369.

Nutting, P. G., 1930, "Physical Analysis of Oil Sands,"

Bull. Amer. Assoc. Petrol. Geol., Vol. l4, No. 2,
pp. 1337-1349.

Pye, W. D., 1944, "Petrology of Bethel Sandstone of South-

Central Illinois," Bull. Amer. Assoc. Petrol. Geol.,
Vol. 28, No. 1, pp. 63-122.

Scheidegger, A. E., 1957* The Physics of Flow Through

Porous Media, The Macmillan Co., New York, 23b pp.

Slichter, C. S., 1899* Investigation of the Motion of

Ground Waters, U. S. Geol. Survey 19th Ann. Rept.,
Part II, pp. 295-384.

Stearns, N. D., 1927., Laboratory Tests on Physical Properties

of Water-Bearing Materials, U. S. Geol. Survey Water
Supply Paper 596-P, pp. 121-176.

Tickell, F. G., Mechem, 0. E., and McCurdy, R. C., 1933:,

"Some Studies on the Porosity and Permeability of
Rocks," Trans. Amer. Inst. Min. Metal. Eng., Vol.
103* PP- 250-260.

Trask, P. D., 1931* "Compaction of Sediments," Bull. Amer.

Assoc. Petrol.. Geol., Vol. 15* No. 3* PP* 271-276.

* 1939* Recent Marine Sediments, Amer. Assoc.

Petrol. Geol., Tulsa, 73b pp.

Wadell, H. A., 1932, "Volume, Shape, and Roundness of Rock

Particles," Jour. Geol., Vol. 40, No. 5* PP- 443-451.