Geology 435 Lab #11; Due 11/16 (to get back graded before the exam) or 11/20 Subsurface

Techniques in Stratigraphic Analysis: Conventional Core Description, Wire Line Logs and Core to Log Correlation (See Nichols, Ch 22, Subsurface Stratigraphy; pp 341-48; Ch 22 ppt presentation, and The Oz Machine) Introduction Subsurface data, and especially wire-line logs, are important for the three dimensional reconstruction of depositional environments. In most cases only a small record of the overall volume and lateral extent of any stratigraphic unit is represented in outcrop and conventional core material is not typical collected in most subsurface boreholes. Various subsurface stratigraphic techniques must be employed to determine the lithology, lithologic variation, and regional extent of sedimentary rock units. In this context we are mainly interested in the interpretation of logs for the determination of rock properties rather than for the determination of derivative properties such as fluid saturation and content. The wire line logs that we will be introduced to for this exercise and (Lab 12 after the exam) are: natural gamma-ray, gamma-ray neutron, bulk density, and neutron porosity logs. The purpose of this lab is twofold: 1) To give you an opportunity to describe conventional core (courteously provided by the WMU Core Research Laboratory) in terms of sedimentary facies and rock properties and 2) To compare or correlate these observations to wireline petrophysical logs, specifically the gamma-ray log. An important component of this lab is to introduce you to subsurface wireline petrophysical logs and, in particular, recognize the utility of these logs as indicators of rock types in the subsurface since logs are the most common type of subsurface geological data. Lab Exercise This is the first of two labs dealing with sedimentary facies in conventional core (subsurface rock sample material taken during the drilling of a borehole; including oil and gas exploration or production wells, and water wells), subsurface wireline logs, and stratigraphic maps and correlation. You will work with rocks and log data from (refer to the Michigan basin stratigraphic section, Figure 1): 1. Pennsylvanian Grand River /Saginaw formations from a ground water monitoring well (MW-46) and adjacent monitoring wells at a site of bed rock aquifer contamination (Americhem) near Mason, Ingham CO. MI; and in lab # 12 (following the exam) 2. Mississippian Sunbury Shale and Berea Sandstone formations in two wells, Retzlof 2-31 and 1-31, from the Williams oil field of Bay and Midland Cos. MI. The bolded and italicized parts of this lab exercise are the things that you are responsible for. Remember: you have a limited time to do this lab, especially the core descriptions; describe the core in terms of the time you have available but make sure and complete the job! This is not an unreasonable project; it can take as long as you want it to take! You will use the core description from the Sunbury/ Berea in the second part of the lab next week.

Section 1 & 2 are due this week

1) Pennsylvanian Grand River/Saginaw Fm: You have conventional core and a natural gamma-ray log from MW-46, a ground water monitoring well near Mason, MI. Your main objective is to: a. Describe the core using the core description template (provided) and subdivide the core into a small number of manageable sedimentary facies. Pay particular attention to grain size trends and propose a sedimentary depositional environment for the succession on the basis of these facies. Defend your interpretation in a short (a paragraph or 2) narrative. b. Correlate your facies in MW-46 to the gamma ray log (G-R log, Figure 2). Is there a direct correlation between lithology and GR log character? c. Sketch in litho-correlation lines from MW-46 to the other wells on the G-R section (Figure 3) with emphasis on aquifers and confining units. d. Provide a brief geological assessment of the potential for wide-spread aquifer contamination from dense, non-aqueous liquids (chlorinated hydrocarbon contaminants) due to a surface spill and your geological observations at Americhem, including the probable stratal geometry of the Grand River. The chlorinated hydrocarbon contaminants will tend to flow downwards and along the ground water flow gradient. 2) Go through the Oz Machine (see the link in the title of the lab) and do three (3) log interpretation exercises to hand in, see instructions, below a. Screen grab (Alt key with Print SC key) a new log (without lithology), see figure 1 below b. Interpret (Paint) the lithology for the section and screen grab the completed lithology interpretation

Section 3 will be part of lab #12 following the exam

3) Mississippian Sunbury and Berea formations: a. You are provided with 2 gamma-ray neutron (GRN) logs from the Williams oil field of Bay and Midland Co. MI (Figures 3 and 4). The Wiser Oil Co. 2-31 Retzloff well is a producing oil well in this field. It may be considered a type section for the Sunbury-Berea section in the field. A copy of a Petroleum Information "Scout ticket" is included (Figure 5) with basic information about the well. Note the tops of the formations encountered in the well, initial production (IPP) of 45 barrels of oil per day and the depth of cores taken in the well (core #1, 2360'-2410'; core #2, 2410'-2445'; and core #3, 2445'-2457'). Part 1 b. Describe the core (from top through core #1, 2392') using the template you have been given. Subdivide the core into a manageable number of lithofacies based on lithology, sedimentary structures, trace fossils, bedding style, grain size and grain size trends and any other primary features. Use the core description format to guide your recording of data. You will have to generalize the description of your lithofacies; it is not possible to indicate each bed on your description. Write a short narrative documenting your interpretation of the Berea based on your lithofacies analysis. Part 2 c. Check the log and core depths for the #2-31. This involves finding a distinct lithologic break in the cored interval and matching the depth of that break with the break in the log. Log and core depths may be off by some significant amount. Indicate any correction between log and core. d. e. f. Draw a line on your Retzloff #2-31 gamma ray log (Figure 3) to indicate pure shale in the Berea Fm based on the core description. Draw a line on your Retzloff #2-31 gamma ray log to indicate essentially clay-free sandstone in the Berea based on the core description. Based on your observations in core and comparison of gamma ray log to neutron log determine if there are any noteworthy porosity zones. On the Retzloff #2-31 neutron log draw a line indicating a "good" porosity cutoff in sandstone and color the enclosed zone (left of your line and right of the curve) a bright color to indicate porous sandstone. Draw the same lines on the log from the Retzloff #1-31 (Figure 4) i.e. a shale line, and a sandstone line on the gamma ray log and an acceptable porosity cutoff line on the neutron log. Indicate the intervals you would recommend for perforation ("shooting" holes in the steel casing in order to flow oil) in the Retzloff #1-31. Remember: perforation costs money! Your promotion will be based on how accurately you determine the perforation points in the well.

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Use the log cross section (Figure 6; including modern FDC-CNL logs) to correlate the potential sandstone reservoir units from well to well. Note that there is a second log display (Figure 7) with interpretive fill. Make interpretations of rock types across the section from this log display and write the lithology on the cross section.

Figure 2

Figure 1

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Figure 8