Integration of Electrofacies and Hydraulic Flow Units to Delineate Reservoir Quality in Uncored Reservoirs: A Case Study,Nubia Sandstone Reservoir,Gulf of Suez,Egypt

Natural Resources Research - Recognition of reservoir quality is an important objective in reservoir characterization process. By definition, the quality of a reservoir is described by its...     

Estimating porosity and permeability using Digital Image Analysis (DIA) technique for highly porous sandstones

In the present study, 12 theoretical models have been introduced for studying the effect of the grain size and shape on the intergranular porosity, ?. From the first eight models, it is stated that the grain size has no effect on the intergranular porosity, but it is declared that the smaller the grain size means the smaller the interstitial pore spaces and therefore, the less the ability of the pore spaces to receive finer sediments, then the higher the porosity. On the other hand, studying the present models revealed that the total intergranular porosity decreases when increasing the grain elongation ‘E’ (the length of the grain/the diameter of the grain) as a shape anisotropy parameter. A new equation has been introduced relating the total pore volume to the grain shape/elongation. $$ \emptyset = 26.188\ {E^{-1 }} + 21.431 $$ The grain sorting of the present models has been studied by adding another group of grains of the critical grain size of occupation inside the pore spaces; the pore volume decreases by about 41.0 % of the total porosity. To check the applicability of the proposed equation, 46 samples of highly porous sandstone have been selected from different places in Egypt and studied petrographically, and their total pore volume have been measured using Digital Image Analysis (DIA) ‘? _Im’ and helium injection technique ‘? _He.’ Petrographically, the studied samples are quartz arenite and ferruginous quartz arenite. The pore types are mostly characterized mostly as (1) intergranular porosity and rarely as (2) intragranular porosity, (3) vuggy porosity, and (4) fracture porosity. The grain elongation ‘E’ for the present samples has been measured using the DIA technique; it varies from 1.34 to 1.73. Porosity ‘? _He’ varies between 25.8 and 34.7 %, gas permeability ‘k’ varies from 0.14 to 6.92 μm² (very good to excellent rank), and the mean pore diameter ‘D’ varies between 3.9 and 25.7 μm (macro to mega pores). The study stated the applicability of the present equation and introduced a number of equations that could be used to calculate porosity, permeability, and pore radius in terms of grain elongation. The applicability of the present study has some limitations due to (1) cementation, (2) microporosity, and (3) fracturing. The effect of cementation can be minimized by processing the grains and the surrounding cement statistically as a bulk ellipsoid unit, whereas the micropores/fractures can be measured by helium injection.     

Subsurface Structural Setting and Hydrocarbon Potentiality of the Komombo and Nuqra Basins,South Egypt: A Seismic and Petrophysical Integrated Study

Natural Resources Research - Sedimentary basins in south Egypt, in particular Komombo and Nuqra basins, have been paid more attention during the last few decades, due to their hydrocarbon...     

Impacts of dolomitization on the petrophysical properties of El-Halal Formation, North Sinai, Egypt

The Cenomanian marine sequence in north Sinai is mostly represented by El-Halal Formation. Petrographically, it is composed of four microfacies, namely: (1) dolomitic micrite, (2) dolomicrite, (3) dolowackestone and (4) dolosparite. The assigned pore volume (10–25%) could be differentiated into: micro intercrystalline pore spaces, micro to meso vugs and micro pore channels. The present pore spaces are frequently reduced by drusy and/or xenotopic dolosparite and micro sparry calcite. El-Halal Formation has been deposited in a restricted marine platform (SMF-23, FZ-8) with a progressive shallowing sea level upward. The diagenetic history has been controlled by cementation, dolomitization, aggrading neomorphism and creation of authigenic illite. Petrophysically, the studied samples could be grouped into three petrophysical facies: (1) dolomitic micrite/dolomicrite facies, (2) dolowackestone and (3) dolosparite. The permeability (ave. 3.54, 12.9 and 0.49 md, respectively) is dependent on the pore channel radius (ave. 1.03, 1.92 and 0.19 μm, respectively) and porosity (ave. 22.1%, 25.8% and 11.4%, respectively); it could be related to the electrical tortuosity as well (ave. 3.28, 1.40 and 5.06, respectively). The apparent formation resistivity factor was measured at five consequent saline concentrations of 6, 30, 60, 90 and 120 kppm and the true one has been calculated. It is controlled by the effective porosity and electrical tortuosity. Though dolomitization has an enhancing effect on the studied petrophysical features, it had a reducing effect in its first stages of invasion through filling the pore spaces and in the last stages through the aggrading neomorphism.     

Pore Fabric Anisotropy of the Cambrian–Ordovician Nubia Sandstone in the Onshore Gulf of Suez,Egypt: A Surface Outcrop Analog

Natural Resources Research - Integrated studies on pore fabric anisotropy have increased the general understanding of fluid flow patterns through reservoir rocks. In this study, pore anisotropy was...     

Impacts of fossil anisotropy on the electric and permeability anisotropy of highly fossiliferous limestone: a case study

The Middle Eocene Lutetian Samalut formation is among the best examples of anisotropic fossiliferous rocks in Egypt, where the effect of the anisotropic Nummulite Gizehensis fossils on the petrophysical behavior can be traced. The Samalut formation has been sampled and studied at Wadi Feiran in SW Sinai. Petrographically, it is composed of two microfacies; Nummulitic packstone and Fusulinid mudstone. Tight cementation by micro to pseudosparite, aggrading neomorphism and compaction with increasing load pressure are the most important porosity-reducing factors. The anisotropy of the fossil content (λ_F), due to shape and orientation, and its effect on the petrophysical properties were assigned by measuring the lengths of the longest and shortest axes. Petrophysically, both microfacies are characterized by low porosity values (1.47 ≤ \({\emptyset _{{\text{He}}}}\) ≤ 5.29%). The formation resistivity factor (F) and permeability (k) were measured in the horizontal and vertical directions (parallel and perpendicular to the bedding plane, respectively). The studied samples are characterized by high to very high formation resistivity factor (190?≤?F?≤?8938) and relatively very low permeability (0.012?≤?k?≤?0.110 md). The studied samples are characterized by fair to medium electric anisotropy ‘λ_E’, which is attributed to a relatively medium to fair degree of electric foliation. It has been shown that, the fossil shape anisotropy and orientation ‘λ_F’ (1.5?≤?λ_F?≤?3.5) is the main contributor for the electric and permeability anisotropy that corrected for the same porosity value (1.61?≤?λ_EC?≤?2.25 and 1.03?≤?λ_kC?≤?2.04; respectively). Foliation of the studied microfacies has been contributed to the orientation of the fossil remains parallel to the bedding plane. The anisotropy degree is relatively greater for the Nummulitic packstone microfacies than that of the Fusulinid mudstone. The present study refers to the possible anisotropic effect of fossil content (due to shape and orientation) on the petrophysical properties of the studied rocks which may be extended to the anisotropy of reservoir rocks on the bedding scale.     

Mineralogic and Diagenetic Controls on Reservoir Quality of Paleozoic Sandstones,Gebel El-Zeit,North Eastern Desert,Egypt

Natural Resources Research - Studying the mineral composition and petrophysical properties of the Cambro–Ordovician sequence in Gebel El-Zeit indicates that it can be discriminated into four...     

Implementation of Rock Typing on Waterflooding Process During Secondary Recovery in Oil Reservoirs: A Case Study,El Morgan Oil Field,Gulf of Suez,Egypt

Waterflooding is one of the most common secondary recovery methods in the oil and gas industry. Globally, this process sometimes suffers a technical failure and inefficiency. Therefore, a better understanding of geology, reservoir characteristics, rock typing and discrimination, hydraulic flow units, and production data is essential to analyze reasons and mechanisms of water injection failure in the injection wells. Water injection failure was reported in the Middle Miocene Hammam Faraun reservoir at El Morgan oil field in the Gulf of Suez, where two wells have been selected as injector’s wells. In the first well (A1), the efficiency of injection was not good, whereas in the other analog A2 well good efficiency was assigned. Therefore, it is required to assess the injection loss in the low efficiency well, where all aspects of the geological, reservoir and production data of the studied wells were integrated to get a complete vision for the reasons of injection failure. The available data include core analysis data (vertical and horizontal permeabilities, helium porosity, bulk density, and water and oil saturations), petrographical studies injection and reservoir water chemistry, reservoir geology, production, and injection history. The quality of the data was examined and a set of reliable X–Y plots between the available data were introduced and the reservoir quality in both wells was estimated using reservoir quality index, normalized porosity index, and flow zone indicator. Integration and processing of the core and reservoir engineering data indicate that heterogeneity of the studied sequence was the main reason for the waterflooding inefficiency at the El Morgan A1 well. The best reservoir quality was assigned to the topmost part of the reservoir, which caused disturbance of the flow regime of reservoir fluids. Therefore, it is clearly indicated that rock typing and inadequate injection perforation strategy that has not been aligned with accurate hydraulic flow units are the key control parameters in the waterflooding efficiency.