ABSTRACT: Determination of Two Phase Flow Characteristics in Sandstones by Dynamic Neutron Radiography and BSE Image Analysis

Solymar, Mikael¹, Mike F. Middleton², and Ida L. Fabricius³
(1) Chalmers University of Technology, Gothenburg, Sweden
(2) Curtin University of Technology, Perth, Australia
(3) Technical University of Denmark, Copenhagen, Denmark

The two phase flow characteristics of a selection of glauconitic sandstones was imaged by Dynamic Neutron Radiography (DNR) in a displacement experiment, where oil was pressed into a sample initially saturated with a simulated formation brine. The oil/water saturation variations with time were determined by image analysis of the DNR images. The variations in the observed flow characteristic and in saturation are further interpreted by petrographic image analysis of Backscattered Electron (BSE) images acquired from polished thin sections of the investigated samples. Using the saturation from DNR images, the pore volume occupied by oil and water is modelled in the BSE images. The BSE images are overlapping and arranged in a profile across a plane perpendicular to the displacement direction. Thus a modelled BSE saturation profile can be compared to a saturation profile from the DNR image.

AAPG Search and Discovery Article #90913©2000 AAPG International Conference and Exhibition, Bali, Indonesia