--> Abstract: Bridging the Scale Gap: Geological and Seismic Forward Modeling of Outcrop Data, by Mark Tomasso, Renaud Bouroullec, and David R. Pyles; #90082 (2008)
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Bridging the Scale Gap: Geological and Previous HitSeismicNext Hit Previous HitForwardNext Hit Previous HitModelingNext Hit of Outcrop Previous HitDataNext Hit

Mark Tomasso1, Renaud Bouroullec2, and David R. Pyles2
1Enhanced Oil Recovery Institute, The University of Wyoming, Laramie, WY
2Chevron Center of Research Excellence, Dept. of Geology and Geological Engineering, Colorado School of Mines, Golden, CO

Reservoir stratigraphy is commonly interpreted from Previous HitseismicNext Hit images. Exploration-grade Previous HitseismicNext Hit Previous HitdataNext Hit is typically acquired with peak frequencies varying from 30 to 60 Hz, giving average vertical stratigraphic resolution of between ~23 to ~11 m in siliciclastic sediments. Many stratigraphic bodies, for example architectural elements and beds, cannot be resolved with those Previous HitdataNext Hit. Previous HitSeismicNext Hit Previous HitforwardNext Hit Previous HitmodelingNext Hit of outcrop analogs provides a method to address those uncertainties. Previous HitSeismicNext Hit Previous HitforwardNext Hit Previous HitmodelingNext Hit is a process by which a Previous HitseismicNext Hit image is constructed from outcrops, where architectural elements, bedding, and facies are known.

One of the key strengths of this technique is the ability to bridge the gap between concepts learned about high-resolution stratigraphic architecture in outcrop analogs and lower resolution Previous HitseismicNext Hit Previous HitdataNext Hit sets. Ground-based lidar acquisition of outcrops has influenced a step-change in the way outcrops are modeled. Previous techniques utilized classic cliff exposures to derive 2D and pseudo-3D geological models. With lidar technology, complex three-dimensional exposures can be captured and interrogated in the digital realm. Combining these capabilities with traditional outcrop Previous HitdataNext Hit enables rigorous three-dimensional geological models of outcrops to be constructed which honor the architectures that are observed in the field. Models are presented from a series of 3D outcrops covering several siliciclastic depositional environments. High-resolution interpretations of the outcrops were combined with the lidar Previous HitdataNext Hit to build detailed geological framework and facies models. Petrophysical parameters from analog subsurface reservoirs were assigned to the facies. The resulting Previous HitseismicNext Hit Previous HitforwardNext Hit models, acquired at several different frequencies, can be compared to outcrop interpretations, allowing a direct comparison between outcrop and Previous HitseismicTop architecture.

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