PETROPHYSICS

ĐỊA VẬT LÝ DẦU KHÍ

3/6/2022 Thai Ba Ngoc – Faculty of Geology & Petroleum Engineering - HCMUT 1

 Introduction

3/6/2022 Thai Ba Ngoc – Faculty of Geology & Petroleum Engineering - HCMUT 2

Content
Introduction to Petrophysics will give participants an overview of petrophysics: well
logging concepts and basic rock properties, wellbore environment, petrophysical tools
and interpretation concepts. Lectures and associated class exercises provide a practical
understanding of the interpretation of wireline tools and techniques, including the
determination of lithology, porosity, fluid content and movement, and net pay. Both,
qualitative (quick look) and quantitative analyses methods are covered. Practical
aspects, such as logging operations, including MWD, and logging program design will
also be addressed. Practical examples are used throughout and case histories are used
to demonstrate specific aspects. The course also covers more recent technologies and
techniques such as NMR and permeability estimation from logs. At the end of the
course students will be able to integrate log, core and pressure data to fully
characterize a formation and its fluids.

3/6/2022 Thai Ba Ngoc – Faculty of Geology & Petroleum Engineering - HCMUT 3

Objectives
1. Understand the theoretical basis and practical limitations of logging
tools.
2. Integrate all other available data with wireline log data, including mud
logs, sample descriptions and core.
3. Evaluate reservoir intervals defined in clastic and shaly sandstone
systems; also understand the similarities and differences with carbonate
reservoirs.
4. Work in a group on a reservoir evaluation optimisation project.

3/6/2022 Thai Ba Ngoc – Faculty of Geology & Petroleum Engineering - HCMUT 4

A bit about me
•Education:B.Eng., Hydrogeology & Engineeringgeology, Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology,
Vietnam, 2009.
 MSc.D., Petroleum Geology_Application, Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology,Vietnam, 2012.
•Lecturer at The University of Technology, 2009– Present
• Academic Awards
 Outstanding graduates 2009
 Fellowship of spe 2005
 Typical young teachers
 Chaired many scientific topics
 Published many scientific articles in journals and conferences
• Work Experience
Description: teaching and participating research in the field: Reservoir Engineering, Reserve Estimation,
Modeling and Simulation, Applied Hydrogeology for O & G exploration, O & G formation evaluation,
Geotechnics, Geostatistics, Applied Mathematics for Petroleum Science.

3/6/2022 Thai Ba Ngoc – Faculty of Geology & Petroleum Engineering - HCMUT 5

Request
list of board staff, address and contact phone
subgroups: 4-5 students per group, group chief, information
email
Contact:
Thai Ba Ngoc – Geology Petroleum Department
Phone: 0972 42 77 55
E.mail: ngocbk44@gmail.com
tbngoc@hcmut.edu.vn

3/6/2022 Thai Ba Ngoc – Faculty of Geology & Petroleum Engineering - HCMUT 6

Course Structure
Chapter 1: Introduction
Chapter 2: Data Acquisition
Chapter 3: Rock and Fluid Properties
Chapter 4: Coring and Core Analysis
Chapter 5: WellLogging (Overview, Method, Interpretation)
Chapter 6: Quality Control of Raw Data and Petrophysical
Workflows
Chapter 7: Beyond Log Analysis
Chapter 9: Petrophysics for Reservoir Modelling

3/6/2022 Thai Ba Ngoc – Faculty of Geology & Petroleum Engineering - HCMUT 7

Assessment
•Overall Purpose
–to encourage you to revise, learn, read more broadly
–to test your understanding and learning - not just your ability to
recall (that is assumed)
•Assessment Summary
–The course will be assessed with a weighting of
•10% in-class tests,
•10% assignments,
•10% practical project,
•20% middle exam,
•50% final exam.
3/6/2022 Thai Ba Ngoc – Faculty of Geology & Petroleum Engineering - HCMUT 8
Assessment
•In-class tests,
–mainly for illustration/practice of final exam style Questions
–provide some timely feedback on how you go with them
•There will be 2 in-term tests that will count towards the final assessment.
Dates of the in-term tests will be given via MyUni two weeks in advance.
Approximate schedules are
–5th week
–9th week
•There are 3 assignments.
•Alternative test dates for students who cannot be present on the date of
the test on medical and compassionate grounds can be requested through
the Course Coordinator.

3/6/2022 Thai Ba Ngoc – Faculty of Geology & Petroleum Engineering - HCMUT 9

Useful Text

3/6/2022 Thai Ba Ngoc – Faculty of Geology & Petroleum Engineering - HCMUT 10

1. Introduction
What is petrophysics? Petrophysics, as understood in the oil and
gas industry, is the characterization and interaction of the rock
and fluid properties of reservoirs and nonreservoirs:
1. determining the nature of an interconnected network of pore
spaces – porosity;
2. the distribution of oil, water and gas in the pore spaces –
water saturation; and
3. the potential for the fluids to flow through the network –
permeability.

3/6/2022 Thai Ba Ngoc – Faculty of Geology & Petroleum Engineering - HCMUT 11

1. Introduction
Petrophysical interpretation is fundamental to the much of the
work on the subsurface carried out by geologists, geophysicists
and reservoir engineers and drillers. To characterize the
subsurface successfully requires physical samples, electrical,
chemical, nuclear and magnetic measurements made through
surface logging, coring and drilling and wireline tools (sondes).
‘formation evaluation’ and ‘log analysis’???

3/6/2022 Thai Ba Ngoc – Faculty of Geology & Petroleum Engineering - HCMUT 12

1. Introduction
The evaluation, analysis and interpretation of these petrophysical
data is as much an art as a science, as it requires an
understanding of geology, chemistry, physics, electronics,
mechanics and drilling technology. At its simplest, petrophysics
determines the porosity and water saturation of a reservoir, then
estimates the permeability of the rock and the mobility of the
fluids in place.

3/6/2022 Thai Ba Ngoc – Faculty of Geology & Petroleum Engineering - HCMUT 13

1. Introduction

Figure 1.1 Petrophysical evaluation: schematic showing the primary data sources, products and deliverables of
an integrated petrophysical evaluation.

3/6/2022 Thai Ba Ngoc – Faculty of Geology & Petroleum Engineering - HCMUT 14

1.1 The basics

Figure 1.2 Depth measurement: terminology used to describe the stages and geometry of a well path designed
to achieve a number of geological objectives.

3/6/2022 Thai Ba Ngoc – Faculty of Geology & Petroleum Engineering - HCMUT 15

1.1.1 Units and abbreviations
Table 1.1 Comparison of different unit systems of measurement.

3/6/2022 Thai Ba Ngoc – Faculty of Geology & Petroleum Engineering - HCMUT 16

1.1.1 Units and abbreviations

Table 1.2 Common abbreviations and

three-letter acronyms.

3/6/2022 Thai Ba Ngoc – Faculty of Geology & Petroleum Engineering - HCMUT 17

1.1.2 Cores and logs
The two primary sources of reservoir information acquired during drilling of a well are cores and logs.
Coring can be an expensive and time-consuming process that is usually reserved for potential reservoir
sections. When the top reservoir is reached, signalled by a rapid increase in drilling rate and the
presence of hydrocarbon shows, drilling is halted and the drill string recovered and the bit replaced with
a core barrel. Core barrels are usually made up of 30 ft lengths of pipe with a special coring head and
retrieval mechanism, the catcher. There are in fact an inner and an outer barrel that can rotate
independently; the inner barrel is the repository for the core as it is being cut. Upon retrieval at the
surface, the core is stabilized and sent to shore for analysis; on occasion, some samples are evaluated at
the well site, but this is becoming less and less common.
Logs are acquired while drilling (LWD) and also at the end of a hole-section on wireline. LWD and
wireline logs represent among the most important data types available to a reservoir geoscientist or
petrophysicist because they provide a continuous record of borehole measurements that can be used to
interpret the environment of deposition of a sequence, the petrophysical properties and also the fluid
distribution in the reservoir; in other words, to answer the questions do these rocks contain oil and gas
and will it flow? However, the log measurements are greatly influenced by a number of variables,
including the borehole environment, the rocks themselves and the type of fluid used to drill the well.

3/6/2022 Thai Ba Ngoc – Faculty of Geology & Petroleum Engineering - HCMUT 18

1.1.3 Lithology identification

Figure 1.3 QFL plot: a standard lithology ternary Figure 1.4 Carbonate pore types: classification of carbonate
plot based on the proportions of quartz, rock into intergranular and vuggy pore types; comparison of
feldspar and rock fragments in sandstone. alternative classification schemes.

3/6/2022 Thai Ba Ngoc – Faculty of Geology & Petroleum Engineering - HCMUT 19

1.1.4 Rock properties
The presence of an effective pore network and the capacity of it to allow fluids to flow
through it are a function of a rock’s primary depositional process, the resulting grain
size distribution, and the effect of post-depositional processes, principally compaction,
chemical diagenesis and fracturing. This statement applies equally to clastic or
carbonate reservoirs; however, the effects of post-depositional processes are generally
more significant in carbonates. Clastic reservoirs can be unconsolidated or consolidated
or lithified to varying extents depending on the post-depositional history of the
sediments, the process of compaction and cementation. The degree of lithification can
be obvious in some logs, such as an acoustic log, where the transit time of the sound
waves will vary from slow to fast depending on the consolidation of the rock. This in
turn may have an effect on the porosity of the rock; softer rocks generally have higher
porosity.

3/6/2022 Thai Ba Ngoc – Faculty of Geology & Petroleum Engineering - HCMUT 20

1.1.5 Physics of a reservoir

Figure 1.5 Physics of the reservoir: representation of fluid distribution within an oil reservoir based on the
relationship between water saturation, capillary pressure and the free water level datum.

3/6/2022 Thai Ba Ngoc – Faculty of Geology & Petroleum Engineering - HCMUT 21

1.1.6 Porosity-Water saturation-Permeability

Figure 1.6 (a) Porosity: the relationship between volume of pore space and total volume of rock is a function of
grain size, sorting and packing at time of deposition. Post-depositional processes such as compaction and
diagenesis can alter the original relationship. (b) Water saturation: the proportion of the total reservoir pore
volume filled with water: the remaining pore volume is filled with oil or gas, not necessarily hydrocarbon gas. (c)
Permeability: the ability of a reservoir to conduct fluids through an interconnected pore network.

3/6/2022 Thai Ba Ngoc – Faculty of Geology & Petroleum Engineering - HCMUT 22

1.1.7 Capillary pressure- Wettability

Figure 1.7 Capillary pressure (Pc) and wettability: (a) representation of a liquid-filled apillary tube and the
relationship between the buoyancy pressure generated between two immiscible fluids; (b) the difference
between wetting and non-wetting liquids as a function of the surface tension and contact angle.

3/6/2022 Thai Ba Ngoc – Faculty of Geology & Petroleum Engineering - HCMUT 23

1.2 The results
When the petrophysical analysis of a single well or group of wells has been completed, the results will be used
in a number of ways: as the estimate of hydrocarbon pay in a well; in making the decision to production test
an exploration well; as input for a simple volumetric calculation; to build a 3D property model of a field; or as
a key element in a major investment or divestment decision.
1.2.1 Hydrocarbon pay

Figure 1.8 Net to gross: terminology used to describe the proportions of an oil or gas reservoir in terms the
different interval thicknesses.

3/6/2022 Thai Ba Ngoc – Faculty of Geology & Petroleum Engineering - HCMUT 24

1.2.2 Simple volumetrics

Figure 1.9 Volume of HIIP: schematic to show the calculation of the volume of hydrocarbons in place in an oil or
gas reservoir; to estimate potential resources it is necessary to apply the appropriate conversion factor from
reservoir volume to surface volume, the formation volume factor.

3/6/2022 Thai Ba Ngoc – Faculty of Geology & Petroleum Engineering - HCMUT 25

1.2.3 3D static models
The most accurate volumetrics can be calculated in a 3D static or
geocellular model; this is because it will be geometrically more correct,
especially where the field is faulted. The inputsremain the same,
although now the petrophysical properties are distributed throughout
the model randomly or following some established trend, and
uncertainties can be modelled to establish volumetric ranges for the
field. These should always be compared with the simple Monte-Carlo
results above to provide a sense check. As a rule of thumb, variations in
hydrocarbon initially in place (HIIP) greater than ~25% are a function of
the GRV; petrophysical properties properly constrained and distributed
seldom impact the result by more than a few per cent.

3/6/2022 Thai Ba Ngoc – Faculty of Geology & Petroleum Engineering - HCMUT 26

1.2.4 Value of information
The key decision making data sets are as follows:
• Logs to establish lithology, porosity and fluids.
• Cores to confirm lithology and calibrate the log-derived properties and
to establish a depositional environment; in an exploration well, cores
may be replaced by image and scanner tools, but cores should be
acquired in subsequent appraisal wells.
• Pressure measurements and fluid samples.
• Production data to establish that the reservoir will flow, recover fluids
and test the limits of the hydrocarbons connected to the well.

3/6/2022 Thai Ba Ngoc – Faculty of Geology & Petroleum Engineering - HCMUT 27

 ENJOY IT

3/6/2022 Thai Ba Ngoc – Faculty of Geology & Petroleum Engineering - HCMUT 28