ESTIMATE INITIAL GAS IN PLACE

Naturally Fractured Reservoir

WHAT IS NATURALLY
FRACTURED RESERVOIR ?

A naturally fractured reservoir is a reservoir which contains fractures created by mother

nature. These natural fractures can have a positive or a negative effect on fluid flow. Open
uncemented or partially mineralized fractures might have, for example, a positive effect on oil flow
but a negative effect on water or gas flow due to coning effects. Totally mineral ized natural
fractures might create permeability barriers to all types of !low. This in turn might generate small
compartments within the reservoir that can lead to uneconomic or marginal recoveries.
In my opinion all reservoirs cuntain a certain amount of natural fracturing. However,
from a geologic and a reservoir engineering point of view, I regard as naturally fractured reservoirs
only those where the fractures have an effect, either positive or negative, on fluid tlow as
suggested by Nelson (1985).
ESTIMATE
GAS IN PLACE

Calculating gas in place in fractured shales is a complex problem. The presence of

absorbed gas , trapped gas, and free gas in fractures contributes to the complexity of the problem.
Most estimates of gas in place in the Appalachian Basin are based on measured or
assumed concentrations of gas expressed in scf gas/cu ft shale.
Smith (1978) made four estimates of gas in place in Devonian shales. These estimates
are reproduced below and include gas in place in West Virginia, Kentucky, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and
Virginia.
These estimates based on the general equation :
𝐺 = 27878400 𝐴 ℎ (𝐺. 𝐶. )
In conclusion, Smith (1978) estimates vary between 200 and 900 trillion cu ft. of gas.
This wide variation will be reduced with further research in Devonian shales.
Based on limited information in the St. Lawrence Lowlands of Quebec, it appears that
free gas in place within the fracture network can be calculated volumetrically from the equation :
43560 𝐴 ℎ ∅𝑓 (1 − 𝑆𝑤𝑓 )
𝐺=
𝐵𝑔𝑖
 OUTLINE

01 03 05
02 04 06
Bulk Volume Fluid Saturation Volumetric Reservoir

Material Balance
Porosity Formation Volume Factor determination of OGIP
BULK Determining Bulk Volume can be done
analytically and graphically. Or can be

VOLUME
calculated by multiplying Net pay zone and
Area
NET PAY
ZONE

Borehole televiewer , comparison of matrix porosity

exponent (mb) with the double porosity exponent (m), cycle
skipping, SP curves, Corresction curve on the compensated
density log, comparison of shale volume to uranium index,
lithoporosity crossplot, comparison long and short normal
curves, production index, temperature and sibiliation logs,
Gamma ray with and without introducing tracer
AREA

Reservoir Area can be obtained from Aerial Photography, Fractured Indices, Seismic
data, radius of curvature, and remote sensing imagery
 Porosity represents the void space in a rock.
It can be quantified by dividing the void
POROSITY space by the bulk volume of the rock. In
general, porosity can be classified as
primary and secondary porosity
POROSITY IN
NATURALLY FRACTURED RESERVOIR

Fracture porosity is usually very small.

Values between 0.0001 and 0.001 of rock volume
are typical (0.01% to 0.1%) Fracture-related
porosity, such as solution porosity in granite or
carbonate reservoirs, may attain much larger
values, but the porosity in the actual fracture is
still very small.
FRACTURED
POROSITY

An estimate fracture porosity is necessary to calculate the initial gas in place within
fracture system. The fracture porosity is equal to total porosity times the partitioning coefficient.
Total porosity can be calculated from logs , shole core analysis , and/or as a function
of the matric porosity and the partitioning coefficient from the equation.
The partitioning coefficient represents the fraction of total porosity made up
offractures. Its value can be estimated form cores using the method of locke and bliss, from well logs
using or from pressure analysis. The matrix porosity can be obtained from intergranular unfractured
core plugs in the laboratory.
FLUID
SATURATION
FLUID
SATURATION

• In typical field, fluids consists of connate water, oil, & free gas
• Water saturation (Sw) = volume filled by water/total pore volume
• The gas saturation (Sg) = volume filled by gas/total pore volume
• If gas & water are the only fluids present : Sw + Sg = 1
• Sw tends to increase as the porosity decrease
• Total water saturation , total water saturation can be calculated using pickets cross plots of the
statistical analysis discusid previously
• Water saturation in the fractures , the porosity of estimating water saturation in fractures is usually
overlooked in petroleum engineering literature but it is possible to make such estimate.
FORMATION The ratio of gas volume at reservoir
VOLUME condition to the gas volume at standard
condition

FACTOR
MATERIAL BALANCE
DETERMINATION OF
OGIP
MATERIAL-BALANCE
DETERMINATION OF OGIP

• Material-balance equations provide a relationship between original fluids in place, cumulative fluid
production, and average reservoir pressure. For many gas reservoirs, a simple material-balance
equation can be derived on the basis of the following assumptions:
• Gas-filled pore volume is constant
• Gas dissolved in water or liberated from the rock is negligible
• Reservoir temperature is uniform and constant
VOLUMETRIC
RESERVOIR
VOLUMETRIC
RESERVOIR

• In volumetric dry- and wet-gas reservoirs, p/z vs. cumulative gas production will be a straight line
intercepting the gas-production axis at the OGIP.
• When only a small amount of early data is available, the OGIP can be determined from any point
(Gp, p/z) by
ORIGINAL Original gas in place (OGIP) can be
GAS IN estimated volumetrically with geological
and petrophysical data:

PLACE
 THANKS
Does anyone have any questions?