http://pages.geo.wvu.edu/~jtoro/Petroleum/Review%203.

htmlMethods of
Exploration:
1. Introduction
o The exploration process
o Regional Geologic Analysis
o Surface Geology, Geological Cross-Sections
o Subsurface Geological Maps
o Geochemical Sampling
o Remote Sensing
Reading: Ch. 3, pp. 125-131, Ch. 5, pp. 206-213
2. Geophysical Methods of Exploration.
o Seismic Reflection Surveying.
Acquisition
Processing
Interpretation
o Other Geophysical methods
Reading: Ch. 3, pp. 97-125
3. Well Drilling and Completion.
Reading: Ch. 3, pp. 37-55

4. Formation Evaluation
Mud logging and DST's
Well Logs
o Electric Logs.
o Radioactivity Logs.
o The Sonic Log.
o Dipmeter Log and Bore hole Imaging.
o Applications of Logs in Sedimentary Facies Analysis
o Reading: Ch. 3, pp. 55-89
o
o 5. Resource Assessment
o Regional Assesment (Basin scale)
o Prospect Evaluation (Play Maps)
o Risk Analysis
o Economic Analysis
o Reading: Ch. 10, pp. 443
o
o 6. Field Development
o Reservoir Simulations
o Production histories
o Reservoir Pressure Regimes
o Well spacing
o Injection Wells
Sedimentary Basins and Distribution of Petroleum :
o 7. Case Study: The North Slope Basin
o Basin Setting
o Main Stratigraphic Sequences
o Sources and Reservoirs
o Prudhoe Bay Field
8. Global Distributio of Hydrocarbons
Reading; Ch. 10, pp. 443-454.

The exploration process
The exploration effort in any given area builds on the work that had been done previously by
others. Therefore the specific sequence of steps varies depending on how much information is
already available. Below I list a typical process for a frontier basin.
1. Regional Studies. Objective: to identify a sedimentary basin with good hydrocarbon potential
(good source and reservoir units). These are studies at the scale of a sedimentary basin.
Data Sources
Surface Geology Geological survey, other companies
Results of old wells
National oil company, other companies,
geological literature
Existing seismic data
Other oil companies, data repositories,
seismic contractors
Regional Stratigraphic and geologic
history
Geologic journals, university thesis,
company reports
Location of oil and gas seeps All the above sources
2. Land acquisition
After a prospective basin is identified the company must acquire the right to explore (and
exploit) the hydrocarbons in a given area. Different countries have different rules about the
ownership of the subsurface. In the US the surface owner also owns the minerals rights (except
off shore), in many other countries the state owns the subsurface mineral rights and they lease
them to the explorationist in exchange for cash or for a percentage of the oil production if there is
a discovery. Often the exploration rights are assigned on the basis of a competitive bidding
process. In some other countries only the national oil company is allowed to carry out
exploration, but often they establish partnerships with private companies to share the risk (and
hopefully also the profits).
This is a complicated political, economic, and legal issue that often determines whether
exploration can be carried out in a basin. Oil exploration also impacts the local population
(human or otherwise), so the explorationist must be aware of any potential conflicts. Recent
examples of this are:
-Debate in US congress over opening the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to exploration (Alaska
North Slope)
-Uwa indian community threatens to commit mass suicide if Occidental Petroleum drills in their
ancestral land (Northeastern Andes, Colombia)
-Talisman Energy (Canada) is criticized for investing in oil exploration in Sudan where a civil
war is in progress.
3. Exploration
Once the exploration rights are secured, a first pass of data is acquired over the lease area. This
includes:
-Regional seismic grid (lines are long but widely spaced)
-Detailed surface geological maps
-Geochemical sampling to evaluate source rock maturity and richness
-Age dating to refine knowledge of geological and thermal history
Goals: to identify plays and prospects.
What is a petroleum play?
Conceptual model of a system of possible petroleum accumulations in a basin taking into
account both the hydrocarbon source and the style of trap that may be present.
What is a prospect?
A specific trap that has been identified but not tested by the drill yet.
Frequently a second pass of seismic data (shorter, closely spaced lines) is acquired to fully
constrain the geometry of each prospect. Products:
-Structural map on the reservoir units
-Isopach maps of the reservoir
-Maps on basement structure and any other important structural feature
-Map of source rock .
The goal is to determine:
-Trap geometry and type.
-Closure
-Migration pathway
-Size of the trap
Other important studies are:
-Models of thermal maturity
-Structural analysis
-Geochemical modeling
This help determine the timing of hydrocarbon generation relative to the age of the trap, and they
type and amount of hydrocarbons expected.
4. Risk Assessment (Prospect evaluation)
Once the prospects have been identified and successfully mapped a business decision must be
made: Does it make sense to drill or not? To answer this question one must determine:
- What are the potential oil or gas reserves?
-What is the risk of the prospect?
-Cost of drilling?
-What infrastructure is needed? Cost?
-Is there a market for the hydrocarbons?
-How will they be transported to this market?
Companies often have to compare prospects from different basins in different parts of the world
in order to decide how to spend their exploration budget. It is the geologist's job to promote
his/her prospects within the company or to other potential partners.
5. Drilling an exploratory well
The objective of an exploratory well is not only to test a specific prospect but also to learn as
much as possible about the petroleum geology of the area. Historically the success rate of
exploratory wells is about 1 in 10. For this reason it is important to collect as much data as
possible from the well, even a dry well is very valuable in guiding future exploration. This
means:
-Complete well sample logging
-Full monitoring of gas and oil shows
-Full set of well logs
-Velocity survey, vertical seismic survey
-DST (drill stem tests)
-Sidewall cores
-Cores
-Biostratigraphy
-Source rock geochemistry
6. Well completion and testing
The decision of whether to complete a well (to set permanent casing) is the second turning point
in the history of a prospect. Completing a well is expensive, but the only way to know how much
a well can produce is by carrying out production tests. Surprisingly, after collecting all the data
possible from an open hole, it is still not known if a commercial HC accumulation was drilled.
7. If the well produces oil or gas
If the well produces significant HC, more wells are drilled to define the extent of the field. Once
a commercial deposit has been demonstrated to exist, and a way to transport the hydrocarbons to
market has been established, the field goes into development and production.
8. If the well produces mostly water,
Then the well is plugged and abandoned and a "post mortem" study is carried out to determine
what went wrong, and exploration of other prospects continues aided by the data from the dry
hole.
Can you describe the series of steps that lead to the discovery of an oil field?

Surface Geology, Geological Cross-Sections
Surface geological mapping is the oldest and cheapest exploration tool. A
geological map contains a wealth of information about the stratigraphy,
structure, and geological history of an area.
Examine the relationship between the map and the block diagram. If I
gave you a geological map, could you make a block diagram? Could you
write the geological history of the area?
Do you understand the relationship between a geological map and a cross section ? Could you
draw a cross section to illustrate the subsurface structure implied by the map relationships?
Subsurface Geological Maps
Subsurface structure contour maps are one of the most common ways to
represent geological structure in petroleum exploration. you must learn to
read and understand contour maps. Structure contour maps are very
similar to topographic contour maps. You must always be aware of the
contour interval and the reference datum used when making the map.
Rules of contouring:
1.Contours cannot cross (except for overhangs, and thrust faults)
2. A contour must pass between pair of points that are higher and lower
than the contour
3. A contour is repeated to show slope reversal
4. Every contour line must close, or go to the edge of the map
Isopach maps: Contours of equal stratigraphic thickness. These maps are
often used to find the thickest part of the reservoir. Other variables that are commonly contoured
are net pay, porosity, oil saturation, pressure, etc.
Example 1. Hibernia Field, off shore Newfoundland (Canada)

Structure contour map on the top of the Avalon
reservoir.
What is the overall structure?
What kind of faults are these?
Why do faults appear as broad gray areas?
Why are the faults on the map not straight?
What determines where the oil/water contact is?
Which is the high and low side of each fault?
Are the faults seals? Is the structure cut into several
independent compartments?
What is the vertical offset (or throw) on the G-55 fault?

This is an East West cross section through the map
above.
Make sure you understand the relationship between the
structures on the map and on the cross section.
Why was well G-55A dry?
What do you make of the fact the the oil/water contact
is at -2600m on the fault block with wells I-46 and J-34
(see map) and at about 4100m on the fault block of well
O-35?

This is a seismic line through the Hibernia structure.
The area shown in the cross-section above is the left
part of the line.
What is the relationship between the Murre fault and the
anticline?
Can you see the minor faults on the seismic line?
Notice the unconformity above the Avalon
reservoir.What does it tell you about the age of the
structure?
Example 2. Wilson Creek Anticline, Uinta Basin, NW Colorado

This is an anticline formed over a thrust fault that cuts
basement. It is located southeast of the Uinta Mts in
Colorado.
Compare the map and cross section. Pay special
attention to the way the different fault blocks are shown.
Notice that part of each footwall block is hidden
underneath the hanging wall.
Do you see any undrilled prospects on the map?

Notice that if the Husky well were deeper, it would drill
through the Kd-Pmi section a second time. Repetitions
like this are typical of thrust faulted areas.
Example 3. Contour map of a stratigraphic trap

This is an example of a contour map of the Burbank
field in Oklahoma. The oil is found in Mississippian
deltaic sandstones that are surrounded by shale. It is a
strictly stratigraphic trap. It was discovered by chance
while drilling on some minor surface anticlines. Notice
that the structure contours do not have any closure in
the area of the field. The convoluted contours are
typical of an area with minor relief that is mapped with
a tight contour interval (100 ft in this case).

2. Geophysical Methods of Exploration.
Seismic Reflection Surveying.
Seismic surveying involves three distinct stages of work:
Acquisition: The data is gathered by a specialized company n the field
Processing: Intense computer processing is required to transform the field data into a
meaningful seismic section
Interpretation: This is the task of geologist/geophysicist who are familiar with the
geology of the area surveyed.

Seismic reflection surveys input a sound wave at the
surface and record the echoes, or reflections that bounce
back from the earth's layers. These reflections are used
to create an image of the subsurface structure.
Seismic reflection method uses P-waves.
What is the difference between P- and S- waves?

The seismic (or sonic) velocity of rocks depends mostly
on their density, which generally increases with
compaction due to burial. Seismic velocity increases
with depth. Salt, limestone and dolomite are generally
faster than sandstone and shale.
A reflection is produced when the wave front encounters
a sharp velocity contrast. Most lithological boundaries
represent a velocity contrast.
Why is the seismic velocity such an important variable
in seismic reflection profiling?

In this figure the earth is represented as a pile of rock
layers. Each layer has a characteristic acoustic
impedance (density * sonic velocity). The contrast in
acoustic impedance at each boundary produces a
reflection coefficient. This coefficient determines what
fractions of the energy are reflected up or transmitted
downwards. A high reflection coefficient produces a
high amplitude reflection on the seismic record. The
seismic trace is the product of the series of reflection
coefficients times the input signal.
Make sure you understand this figure

During seismic reflection profiling the input pulse may
be a blast of dynamite, a pressure wave from an air gun
(in water), or a series of vibrations from a vibroseis
truck.

In this example shows the response of a three layer
sedimentary sequence to a vibroseis input signal. The
reflections from the first layer arrive after some delay
(time for the wave to travel down to the reflector and
back up tot he surface). After some more time the
reflections from the second layer arrive, and then from
the third layer. Because the three reflected waveforms
overlap in time the trace recorded in the field is the sum
of the three. In order to recover the earth's signal, it is
necessary to subtract the signal from the vibroseis sweep
from the field signal (last trace on figure).

The earth acts like a filter which absorbs some
frequencies preferentially. Seismic data usually contains
frequencies ranging from 8 to 60 Hertz. The low
frequencies dominate the deep part of a seismic profile.
This means that the vertical resolution of seismic data is
limited. Only layers on 10's to 100's of feet thick can be
resolved. The seismic signal is the product of the
interference of many thin layers that are not individually
resolved.
How does the vertical resolution of seismic data
compare to that of well logs?

The geometry of a reflected ray is such that the travel-
times from a horizontal reflector increase with
horizontal distance away from the shot. Normally a long
array of geophones are laid out on the ground to receive
the reflections. The increase in travel-time with distance
away from shot is known as "move-out" and it follows a
hyperbolic function.
Why is move-out usefull?

The geometry shown above means that the uncorrected
seismic records from a single shot recorded by 25
geophones spread out on each side of the shot would
look like this figure. Flat reflectors appear curved as
hyperbolas. With increasing seismic velocity (increasing
depth) the hyperbolas become flatter. This effect must
be corrected out during processing. Accurate correction
requires knowledge of the seismic velocity .

During a seismic survey many input signals (shots) are
recorded at uniform intervals along a line. Because of
the geometry of reflections (incidence angle=reflection
angle) data from the same spot in the subsurface is
gathered from each shot at a different geophone. This
means that the data is very redundant. This redundancy
can be used to enhance the signal-to-noise ratio by
summing redundant records. This process is known as
stacking. The use of stacking brought about the most
dramatic improvement in the quality of seismic data.
Why does stacking iprove the signal to noise ratio?

This line shows an example of common problem with
marine data. The shallow structure appears repeated
several times. This repetitions are known as multiples
and are due to seismic energy bouncing between the
seabottom and the surface of the ocean several times.
Multiples can be removed during stacking.
Is everything that appears on a seismic line real
structure?

Another common problem:
During the initial calculation of moveout it is assumed
that the layers are flat. If this is not true some of the
reflected energy is misplaced on the section. For
example in the case of the small sycline on the left
reflections from three different spots on the syncline are
plotted right below the receiver. The syncline appears as
a bow tie on the seismic line. Migration is a process
that corrects for this effect and restores the energy where
it belongs.(Do not confuse with migration of
hydrocarbons)


Unmigrated line (notice
bow ties, and diffractions)
Migrated line. The syncline appears correctly.

Seismic lines are presented with distance in the
horizontal axis and travel-time in the vertical axis. In
order to make accurate depth conversions, and good
correlations with well data one needs accurate interval
velocities for all the layers. On way to get this data is
from the sonic log. A better way is to run a well velocity
survey where a geophone is lowered down the well and
seismic shots are done at the surface. This way the travel
time and velocities can be measured directly.

This is an example of a vertical seismic profile (a more
sophisticated version of a velocity survey) used to
correlate a well to the seismic data. Another way to do
this is to use the sonic and density logs to calculate the
reflectivity series, and then produce a synthetic
seismogram that can be used to correlate with the real
seismic data.

Other Geophysical methods
Gravity Surveying

The gravitational acceleration at the earth's surface is
about 9.8 m/s^2. However there are small variations due
to differences in the distribution of mass below the
surface. Gravity surveying takes advantage of this. The
sketch to the left shows the principle behind a
gravimeter. An increase in the pull of gravity will cause
the spring to stretch slightly.

This example shows the shape of the gravitational
anomaly (solid black line) above a buried body with
density lower than the surrounding area. A sedimentary
basin could be such a body. Quantitative modeling of the
anomaly provides an estimate of the depth, and shape of
the basin. Gravity are much cheaper than seismic
surveys, they provide a first approximation to the
subsurface geology of an area. They are specially useful
for locating salt diapirs because the salt is less dense than
the surrounding rock. However gravity modeling is
inherently ambiguous because a shallow body with a
small density contrast can produce the same anomaly as a
deep body with a large density contrast.
What types of traps might be found by this method?

3. Well Drilling and Completion.

A modern rotary drill rig is composed of four separate
systems:
Engines-Power everything
Hoist syst.-Used to lift, lower and suspend the drill
string in the well
Rotating syst.-
Mud System

The rotating system consists of the kelly, rotary table,
the drill string, the drill collars and the bit.

The mud system is used to pump drilling mud down the
drill string and back up to the surface. This system has
multiple functions:
Control the subsurface pressure via
Mud weight
Blow-out preventers (valves)
Prevent the hole from collapsing
Cool the drill bit
Remove the drill cuttings
Drilling mud is a key element of the drilling process. If
the mud weight is too high the reservoir may be
damaged, if too low there may be a blow out if a high
pressure zone is encountered.

Steel casing (heavy gage pipe) is used to maintain the
integrity of the hole and to isolate specific strata.
Surface casing is always set in order to attach the blow-
out preventers to control pressure. If the well is
successful, production casing is lowered to the
reservoir, cemented to the walls and perforated in front
of the reservoir unit in order to be able to test and
produce that interval.

In some cases it is necessary to set an intermediate
casing in order to isolate an over pressured (or under
pressured) layer. Otherwise it would be necessary to
maintain excessively high mud weight that would
invade the reservoir damaging it.
Know how over pressured zones can be handdled.

Wells are not always vertical. If the beds are tilted the
well will tend to "walk" up-dip causing the well to
deviate. In other cases the well is deviated on purpose,
such as in order to drill several wells from a single
surface location, or if it necessary to "side-track" the
hole to avoid an obstruction. Directional drilling is
done with a bit that is powered by a down hole motor
(or turbine) instead of powered by turning the entire
drill string from the surface.
How are horizontal wells drilled?

4. Formation Evaluation.

During drilling well side geologists monitor many
parameters that help figure out the stratigraphy that is
being drilled, as well as detect any hydrocarbons that
may be present.
Log of the well cuttings
Log of gas and gas chromatography
Oil shows
Drilling rate
Mud weight
Any kicks (high pressure zones)
Drilling rate depends on lithology. Sandstones are fast to
drill, shales are more difficult as well as carbonates.

Cores can be used to sample any unit of interest.
Sidewall cores are collected by lowering a tool that has
hollow sampling bullets attached with a wire. Small
cylindrical plugs are recovered when the tool is pulled
back out.
Conventional cores are cut with a bit that cuts a cylinder
of rock and traps it inside the drill string.

Drill-stem-tests (DST): It is possible to test the fluids in
an open hole by setting packers above and below the
interval of interest. This way a unit is isolated and the
formation fluids are allowed to flow into the drill string.
This way the formation pressure, and permeability can be
measured and the formation fluids sampled. DST's are
often unreliable because it is difficult to completely
isolate the reservoir unit. Also frequently some of the
drilling mud has invaded the formation, so pristine fluids
do not flow into the well.

Well Logs


Well logs are the main tool for
characterizing a well. The book has a
reasonable summary of the different types
of logs available and the principles behind
them.
The table on the left summarizes the main
types of logs and their uses. The principal
uses of well logs are:
Lithologic determinations
Stratigraphic correlations
Evaluation of formation fluids
Porosity determination
Correlation with seismic data
Location of faults and fractures
Determination of the dip of strata

This is an example of the use of the
Gamma ray (GR), SP, Resistivity (Rsn,
Ril), Neutron (CNL), and Density (FDC)
logs to identify a gas-rich zone. The
Gamma Ray and SP indicate the location
of the reservoir bed, the high Resistivity
at the top of the bed shows that it is
saturated with hydrocarbons, the cross-
over of the Neutron and Density logs
shows that the hydrocarbon in question is
gas.
o
6. Field Development
Objectives:
1. Maximize Rate of rrturn of investiment (Recover invested dollars as fast as possible, plus some
profit)
2. Maximize Ultimate Recovery of oil and gas. (Be able to sell the greatest amount of oil and gas
possible over the life of the field)
These two objectives are somewhat in conflict because pumping the oil out too fast will damage the
reservoir. So a good development paln is required

Reservoir Simulations
In order to predict the production potential for
each well location and for the field as a whole, a
good reservoir model is required. This requires
knowledge of: trap geometry , porosity
distribution, permeability distribution (including
fractures), water saturation, oil-gas ratios, and
pressure regime. The model typically grids the
field area, assigns values for all these
parameters to each cell, runs the flow equations
and outputs production rates for oil, gas and
water and predicts the life of each well. In
practice, the parameters of the field are poorly
known to begin with, but become better
constrained as wells are drilled and produced.

Production Histories
Typically oil production ramps up rapidly and
then declines as reservoir pressure goes down,
as water enters the well, etc. Gas production
climbs more slowly if it comes from gas
exsolution (which also occurs due to the
pressure drop).

Reservoir Pressure regimes
Three common pressure regimes are : Gas
exsolution drive, gas cap drive, and water drive.
Gas exsolution drive occurs in reservoirs filled
with liquid hydrocabons only. As the pressure
drops, gas comes out of solution repalcing some
of the fluid that has been removed thus helping
sustain the pressure. If the reservoir contains
both oil and free gas, as the oil is produced, the
gas expands helping sustain pressure. In this
case pressure does not drop as fast in the
reservoir and there is higher ultimate recovery
than under gas exsolution drive. Water drive
occurs when there is an active acquifer. In this
case there is very little pressure loss, but water
tends to invade the reservoir more easily as it is
driven by the hydrostatic head of the acquifer,
instead of only by the pressure difference
created by pumping the well. Reservoirs of this
type may have high recovery factors, but also
high water production.

Well Spacing
One of the objectives of reservoir models is to
determine what the most efficient well spacing
should be in the field. Also to decide what the
best distribution and position of injection wells
should be. For fields in dipping strata a common
strategy is to use 'line drive" where a row of
injection wells are used to displace the
hydrocarbons towards the updip production
wells.

Deviated Wells
In order to minimize surface impact, or in order
to reach reservoirs that are not direcrtly below
the well location, deviated wells are used. Off
shore, essentially all develoment wells are
deviated from a central platform. Also,
horizontal wells can maximaze the volume of
reservoir rock in contact with the borehole thus
giving access to larger reservers from a single
well and they can be orriented to intersect
facture systems at the ideal angle.



Fluid Injection
An important issue to consider when planning
an injection program is that the injected fluids
will follow the highest permability paths within
the reservoir. Fluids injected into high
permeability zones may bi-pass large volume of
hydrocarbons and invade adjacent wells.




In general a "Lead" is any indication or hint of the presence of a trap in the subsurface which may
allow explorationists to explore it further. Usually a portfolio is made which holds some basic
characteristics the interpreter can write down pretty quickly. From this portfolio the leads that are
thought to have the highest potential are selected for further investigation.

At this stage these leads become prospects which will be further evaluated. Like further 2D or 3D
seismic and well-log interpretation. All this is done to get insight in the effectiveness of the Trap,
presence and quality of reservoir and effectiveness and thickness of overlying and lateral seal. Larger
scale basin analysis usually gives insight in the existence of mature and rich source rock and the
timing of generation and expulsion of hydrocarbon from this source rock and time of trap formation.
This can all be fitted in the "Prospect Evaluation" phase. Usually estimates of volumes and a risk
assessment is also incorporated to get initial insight in economic viability of the prospect.

The process of selecting leads from the Lead portfolio for further investigation may be deemed what
you refer to as "Prospect Generation".