Reservoir Rock Properties

Reservoir Fluid Saturations

Introduction
The pore spaces in reservoir rocks are occupied by fluids. In petroleum reservoirs, the fluids are
usually water and hydrocarbons. The relative volumes of water and hydrocarbons in the pore
volume of the reservoir rock are designated as saturations. Water saturation in the reservoir rock
is the fraction of the pore volume occupied by water. By the same definition, hydrocarbon
saturation in the reservoir rock is the fraction of the pore volume occupied by hydrocarbons.
Saturation is expressed mathematically by the following relationship:

Applying the above mathematical concept of saturation to each reservoir fluid gives:

Where, So = oil saturation

Sg = gas saturation
Sw = water saturation
Thus, all saturation values are based on pore volume and not on the gross reservoir volume.
The saturation of each individual phase ranges between zero to 100%. By definition, the sum of
the water and hydrocarbon saturations in the reservoir rock is equal to unity. This relationship
can be expressed simply as:
Sh + S w = 1
Where, Sh = hydrocarbon saturation, fraction. If the hydrocarbon in the reservoir exists in oil and
gas phases, Eq. above can be written as:
So + Sg + Sw = 1
Where, So = oil saturation, fraction; and Sg = gas saturation, fraction.
Sg + So + Sw = 1.0
The fluids in most reservoirs are believed to have reached a state of equilibrium and, therefore,
will have become separated according to their density, i.e., oil overlain by gas and underlain by
water. The connate water is distributed throughout the oil and gas zones. The water in these
zones will have been reduced to some irreducible minimum. The forces retaining the water in
the oil and gas zones are referred to as capillary forces. Connate (interstitial) water saturation
Swc is important primarily because it reduces the amount of space available between oil and gas.

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It is generally not uniformly distributed throughout the reservoir but varies with permeability,
lithology, and height above the free water table.
Another particular phase saturation of interest is called the critical saturation and it is associated
with each reservoir fluid. The definition and the significance of the critical saturation for each
phase is described below.

Critical oil saturation, Soc

For the oil phase to flow, the saturation of the oil must exceed a certain value, which is termed
critical oil saturation. At this particular saturation, the oil remains in the pores and, for all practical
purposes, will not flow.

Residual oil saturation, Sor

During the displacing process of the crude oil system from the porous media by water or gas
injection (or encroachment), there will be some remaining oil left that is quantitatively
characterized by a saturation value that is larger than the critical oil saturation. This saturation
value is called the residual oil saturation, Sor. The term residual saturation is usually associated
with the nonwetting phase when it is being displaced by a wetting phase.

Movable oil saturation, Som

Movable oil saturation Som is another saturation of interest and is defined as the fraction of
pore volume occupied by movable oil as expressed by the following equation:
Som = 1 − Swc − Soc
Where, Swc = connate water saturation
Soc = critical oil saturation

Critical gas saturation, Sgc

As the reservoir pressure declines below the bubble-point pressure, gas evolves from the oil
phase and consequently the saturation of the gas increases as the reservoir pressure declines.
The gas phase remains immobile until its saturation exceeds a certain saturation, called critical
gas saturation, above which gas begins to move.

Critical water saturation, Swc

The critical water saturation, connate water saturation, and irreducible water saturation are
extensively used interchangeably to define the maximum water saturation at which the water
phase will remain immobile.

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Average Saturation
Proper averaging of saturation data requires that the saturation values be weighted by both the
interval thickness hi and interval porosity φi. The average saturation of each reservoir fluid is
calculated from the following equations:

Where the subscript i refers to any individual measurement and hi represents the depth
interval to which φi , Soi, Sgi, and Swi apply.

Example
Calculate average oil and connate water saturation from the following measurements:

Solution
Construct the following table and calculate the average saturation for the oil and water phase:

Calculate average oil saturation:

So = 0.8047 / 1.054 = 0.7635
Calculate average water saturation:
Sw = 0.2493 / 1.054 = 0.2365

The importance of determining accurate data for water saturations in the reservoir, especially at
discovery, is evident from equations above. The presence of low water saturations in the

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reservoir indicates the presence of high hydrocarbon saturations. Conversely, high water
saturations are interpreted as representing the presence of low hydrocarbon saturations. This
rule is routinely applied to assess the potential hydrocarbon contents of a reservoir after it has
been penetrated with a well, especially at discovery. For calculation of the volume of
hydrocarbons in a reservoir, a general equation that applies is expressed as:
HCPV = Area * Thickness * ø * (1 - Sw)
Where, HCPV = hydrocarbon pore volume; Area = hydrocarbon-bearing area of the reservoir;
Thickness = net productive thickness or pay of the reservoir; ø = porosity, fraction; and Sw = water
saturation, fraction. Water saturation is one of the key data required in above Eq. If the water
saturation data are incorrect, it could result in the over- or under-estimation of the volume of
hydrocarbon present in the reservoir. The economic impact of erroneous calculation of in-place-
hydrocarbon volume cannot be overstated. It could lead to execution of uneconomic projects
with erroneously high estimated in-place-hydrocarbon volumes or lead to the abandonment of
projects with erroneously low estimates of in-place-hydrocarbon volumes.

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Rock Resistivity
Definition
Resistivity is a measure of the resistance of a substance to the flow of electrical current. It is equal
to the resistance of a sample of the substance having a volume of unity. For samples with regular
geometric shapes, the resistivity can be computed as follows:
R=rA/L
Where, R = resistivity of sample, Ω.m , r = resistance of sample, Ω , A = cross-sectional area of
2
sample, m , L = length of sample, m
The resistance is measured by a simple electric circuit (Fig. 1) where
r=V/I

Measurement of electrical resistance

Most rock minerals have very high resistivities; so do all crude oils and natural gas. However,
water, especially salt water, is an excellent conductor and, thus, shows low resistivity. It is this
resistivity contrast that is utilized by reservoir engineers to look for oil and estimate its saturation
within reservoir rock. To illustrate this principle, let us follow a simple experiment. Suppose we
have an empty rubber tube fitted with a circuit to measure resistivity (Fig. 2). The copper plates
are only to ensure good electrical contact with whatever substance that fills the tube’s cavity.
With only air filling the tube, the resistivity would be near infinite as air is an excellent insulator.
If sweet water fills the tube, the resistivity would drop to 30 Ω.m, since water is a better
conductor. Replacing sweet water with brine - salt water - the resistivity would drop to about 1
Ωm. Again brine is a good conductor. Now suppose we insert in the tube a sandstone core sample
saturated completely with the brine. The resistivity would increase to 95 Ω.m. The reason is that
only part of the cross-sectional area of the core sample, namely the brine-saturated pores, is
available for current flow since the sand grains are nonconductors. Another reason is that the
current has to travel a longer distance between the terminals, having to follow a tortuous path
between the grains. Finally, suppose we reduce the water (brine) saturation in the sample by
replacing some of it with crude oil. The resistivity would jump to 300 Ωm, as oil is a poorer
conductor than brine. If we repeat the last step with different water saturations, we can construct

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a graph of resistivity versus water saturation, which can be used to estimate other water
saturations in the core sample by simply measuring its resistivity. However, such a graph would
be limited to that particular sample. To generalize this technique to other core samples or the
reservoir as a whole we need to develop a basic theory of rock resistivity.

Measurement of resistivity

Mathematical formulations
Let us begin with some definitions:
Rw = resistivity of reservoir water, Ω m
Ro = resistivity of reservoir rock saturated with reservoir water, Ω m
Rt = resistivity of reservoir rock saturated with both oil and water, Ω m
For a clean rock that is fully saturated with water, formation resistivity factor (sometimes called
formation factor), F, is defined as:
F = Ro / Rw ------------------------------------------- (1)
Obviously, the formation factor is always greater than unity since the only difference between
the two resistivities is the presence of the rock matrix. The more tortuous the path of current
flow, the larger Ro becomes. Also, the smaller the fraction of pore area, relative to the total area
of the rock, the larger Ro becomes. One can, therefore, conclude that the porosity of the rock has
a considerable influence on F, and indeed it does.

Determination of Water Saturations

Many models and equations have been developed over many years for the determination of
water saturations in hydrocarbon-bearing formations. The models and equations vary in terms
of complexity from the Archie equation developed for clean sands to more elaborate models
developed for shaly sands and carbonate reservoirs.

Clean Sands
Clean sands are sands that do not contain clays or clay minerals. In such sands, conduction of
electricity occurs only through free ions within the formation water. There is an absence of the
“shale effect.” Archie equations are assumed to apply at these “perfect” rock conditions. In

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practice, Archie equations are generally applied under rock conditions that do not meet these
ideal conditions.

Archie Equations
Archie expressed the formation factor, F, as a function of total porosity, øt. thus:
F = φt –m
Winsauer et al. modified above equation later by inserting the tortuosity factor, a, to get:
F = a φt –m -------------------------------------------- (2)
Where, a = tortuousity constant, m = cementation factor and φt = total porosity
The two parameters a and m, vary with the type of rock. For clean sandstone, a widely used form
of Archie’s correlation is the Humble equation:
F = 0.62 φ –2.15 ------------------------------------- (3)
To introduce the effect of other fluids within the rock, let us define the resistivity index, I, as
I = R t / R o ------------------------------------------- (4)
Again, the resistivity index is always greater than unity since the only difference between the two
resistivities is the presence of oil within the rock matrix. Therefore, it must be related to Sw.
Archie was able to correlate this effect by his second equation:
I = 1 / Swn ------------------------------------------- (5)
Where n is called the saturation exponent and varies with the type of rock; a common value used
is 2. Combining equations 1 and 4, the following relationship is derived:
1/I = F R w / R t --------------------------------------- (6)
Substituting for I and F, Equs. 5 and 2 in Equ. 6 yields
n –m
Sw = a φ R w / R t --------------------------------- (7)

--------------------------------- (8)

Equation 8 is the basic tool of the theory of rock resistivity. All that is needed is the values of the
three constants, a, m and n, which are usually fixed for a given reservoir and can be determined
from simple laboratory experiments.

Determination of Archie Parameters n, m, and a

The Archie parameters m, n and a can be determined by applying the expression derived by
rearranging Archie equation as:

A least-squares straight line fitted through a log-log plot of Rt versus laboratory Sw data from
core samples has a negative slope equal to the parameter n. An equivalent alternative method
that is:
I = 1 / Swn

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log I = - n log Sw
The parameters m and a can be determined by:
log F = -m log øt + log a

Example: Calculation of the Water Saturation Using the Archie Equation

Problem
Calculate the water saturation of clean consolidated sandstone given the following rock
properties and Archie parameters:
Total porosity, øt 0.26
Resistivity of sandstone, Rt 22.5 Ω . m
Resistivity of formation water, Rw 0.265 Ω . m
Archie parameter, m 1.953
Archie parameter, n 1.861
Archie parameter, a 0.838

Solution
Substituting the given data and Archie parameters into Archie equation, water saturation for
the clean sandstone is calculated as:

Tortuosity
The departure of the porous system from being equivalent to a system made up of straight
capillary tubes is measured by the tortuosity factor, τ, which is defined by equation:
τ = (La/L)2
where L is the length of the rock sample, and La is the actual length of the flow path as shown in
Figure below.

Actual flow path and tortuosity Ideal porous material of n straight

cylindrical capillaries

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