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Gregor P. Eberli1,
G. Michael Grammer2,
Paul M. Harris3,
Hildegard Westphal4
(1) Comparative Sedimentology Laboratory, Miami, FL
(2) Texaco Upstream Technology, Houston, TX
(3) Chevron Petroleum Technology Company, Houston, TX
(4) Universität Hannover, Hannover, Germany
Abstract: Integration of petrophysical-based outcrop data for reservoir modeling and development
The outcrop-based rock record contains important information that can enhance exploration and production efforts in the subsurface. A key to the successful application of these data, however, is the transfer of sedimentologic and stratigraphic information into petrophysical characteristics that can then be related to available geophysical data.
Exploration play concepts are driven largely by recognition of large-scale facies trends. These trends can be anticipated from stratigraphic stacking patterns which predict transgressive and regressive facies successions. In the Paradox Basin of the southwestern U.S., regional shifts in Carboniferous algal mound development can be correlated to 3rd and 4th order transgressions and regressions. Facies partitioning in transgressive and regressive strata also creates differences in seismic facies. Synthetic seismic sections created from outcrops, combined with outcrop geometries and facies distribution, may help calibrate these differences and improve seismic interpretations.
Production strategies require accurate delineation of reservoir flow units which can be predicted through a combination of high-resolution sequence stratigraphy and petrophysical calibration. In the Paradox Basin, the smallest stratigraphic units (i.e. 5th-order cycles) define the primary flow units, and lateral facies variability within each unit is responsible for lateral heterogeneity in the reservoir. In cyclic Mississippian strata of the Madison Fm. (Wind River Basin, Wyoming), however, flow barriers between small-scale stratigraphic units are nonexistent, and the 4th-order sequences define the main reservoir flow units. This delineation of stratigraphic and reservoir architecture within a sequence stratigraphic framework, when tied to petrophysical characteristics of the reservoir, will enhance the ability to accurately model subsurface reservoirs.
AAPG Search and Discovery Article #90914©2000 AAPG Annual Convention, New Orleans, Louisiana