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75

th
EAGE Conference & Exhibition incorporating SPE EUROPEC 2013
London, UK, 10-13 June 2013

Tu-01-02
Elastic Properties of Carbonate Reservoir Rocks
Using Digital Rock Physics
C. Ringstad* (Lithicon / Numerical Rocks), E. Westphal (Lithicon /
Numerical Rocks), A. Mock (Lithicon / Numerical Rocks), M. Al Hammadi
(ADCO), A. Al Ratrout (ADCO) & Z. Kalam (ADCO)
SUMMARY
Digital rock physics (DRP) is a new method which determines rock properties, including elastic moduli
and acoustic velocities. The concept is to generate representative 3D digital models of the rock structure at
different relevant scales and then calculate numerically the corresponding macroscopic properties. A multi-
scale method has been applied in order to characterize rock heterogeneities and to generate digital models
of more than 100 core plugs from four different Middle-Eastern carbonate fields. They comprise 16
different reservoir rock types with porosities ranging from 11 34% and permeabilities from micro-Darcy
to several Darcies. The effective elastic properties, including P- and S-wave velocities, were determined
by finite difference calculations. The velocities of carbonate rocks may vary significantly for a given
porosity due to different pore types that dominate the pore space. This effect was captured by the DRP
method. The study shows also that DRP derived P- and S-wave velocities yields reliable and consistent
results for heterogeneous carbonate core plugs.


75
th
EAGE Conference & Exhibition incorporating SPE EUROPEC 2013
London, UK, 10-13 June 2013
Introduction
Digital rock physics (DRP) is a new method which determines rock properties, including elastic
moduli and acoustic velocities. The concept is to generate representative 3D digital models of the rock
structure at relevant scales and then calculate numerically the corresponding macroscopic properties.

Arns et al. (2002) demonstrated a good agreement between DRP and laboratory measurements of
elastic properties on clean homogeneous sandstones. Kalam et al. (2011) presented the applicability of
DRP to determine SCAL, petrophysical and elastic parameters in complex carbonates. Derzhi et al.
(2011) performed a DRP study on carbonate samples where porosity below the model resolution was
accounted for. The results were compared with laboratory results at different effective stresses. They
concluded that the DRP method can provide elastic properties close to the ones measured at in situ
reservoir stress conditions. The elastic parameters are increasingly important in interpreting different
seismic attributes, and as inputs to geomechanical measurements to assess bore hole stability and
complex (geomechanical based) reservoir simulation models.

DRP models have traditionally been 1 6 mm
3
in size. However, such small models are not
representative of heterogeneous core plug samples. For instance, for carbonate rocks, diagnetic
overprinting can create a vast variety of rock fabrics and pore structures with pore sizes ranging over
more than four orders of magnitude (from cm to nm scale). Larger digital models are then needed in
order to obtain representative rock properties.

A multi-scale imaging and modelling method has been applied in order to characterize heterogeneities
and to calculate the elastic properties at different scales for more than 100 core plugs from highly
prolific reservoir zones of four different Middle-Eastern giant carbonate fields. They comprise 16
different reservoir rock types with porosities ranging from 11 34% and permeabilities from micro-
Darcy to several Darcies. Heterogeneity and dominant pore classes or rock types are characterized at
three different scales: nm-scale, m- to mm-scale and mm- to cm-scale (core plug scale).

Methodology
The elastic properties of 1.5 core plug samples have been determined by applying the following
methodology (Figure 1): The core plug samples were first scanned with a Nanotom S nanofocus X-
ray computed tomography system (MCT) at a resolution of 12.7 or 19 m per voxel. The resulting
plug images are used to select locations for thin section preparation according to the distribution of
local heterogeneities. Thin sections are analyzed with a transmitting light polarizing microscope and a
number of rock types are identified for each core plug based on micro-facies description and
classification. The rock types are then identified and located in the MCT scans of the core plugs, and
3D digital rock models of the core plugs are generated. In addition to the identified rock types, voxels
may also be pores (representing vugs) or solid (representing cement). The resolution is 500 950 m
for the digital core plug models.

For each core plug, micro-plug samples are drilled and imaged corresponding to the number of rock
types identified by the micro-facies analyses. The micro-plugs have diameters from 2 to 10 mm and
resulting images have resolutions between 0.7 and 5.0 m per voxel.

In the MCT images, each voxel is represented by an 8-bit grey scale signal reflecting the amount of
X-ray attenuation experienced by the voxel. Micro-plug images are segmented into three phases
according to an analysis of the grey scale histogram. The phases are porosity, solid and micrite. The
latter carries porosity below the resolution of the MCT image. The grey value of the micrite phase is
assumed to reflect the amount of sub-resolution porosity within that voxel. Digital 3D models of
micrite have been constructed based on analysis of high resolution backscattered scanning electron
microscope (BSEM) images. The basic input for the 3D models are particle/grain size measured on
the BSEM images and porosity according to the analysis of grey value histograms of the


75
th
EAGE Conference & Exhibition incorporating SPE EUROPEC 2013
London, UK, 10-13 June 2013
corresponding micro plug image. The micrite models used in this study cover porosities from 0.6 to
0.05 and have a resolution of 50 nm.

The elastic properties have been determined by applying the finite difference code described by
Garboczi and Day (1995). Input to the calculations is the density and elastic properties (bulk and shear
modulus) of each phase in the digital model. All calculations were performed for dry samples and the
properties of air were therefore used as input to pore space voxels. Calcite mineral properties are used
as input to rock matrix voxels for the micrite models. For m mm scaled models (rock type models),
the effective elastic properties of the micrite models are used as input to micrite voxels and
calcite/dolomite minerals are used as input to rock matrix voxels. Corresponding input to core plug
models is the effective elastic properties of relevant rock types and of the calcite/dolomite minerals
(representing cement).

Results and discussion
DRP derived P- and S-wave velocities for the four carbonate fields in this study are shown in Figure 2
together with laboratory data found in the literature for dry carbonate core plugs: Anselmetti (1994),
Fabricius et al. (2007), Misaghi et al. (2010) and Rgen et al. (2012). All measurements were
performed at elevated pressures. The figure shows that DRP derived velocities are comparable to the
laboratory velocities found in the literature.

Figure 2 illustrates also that the velocities of carbonate rocks may vary significantly for a given
porosity. Eberli et al. (2003) explained this in terms of different pore types that dominate the pore
space: Frame-forming pore types such as moldic and intraframe porosity result in significantly higher
velocities than intercrystalline and intergranular porosity.


Rock type 1
Rock type 2
K
eff
G
eff

eff
K
eff
G
eff

eff
m mm scale mm cm scale
Micrite 1
Micrite 2
K
eff
G
eff

eff
K
eff
G
eff

eff
nm scale
K
eff
G
eff

eff
Minerals and pore fluid
.
.
.
.
.
.
Resolution: 0.7 5.0 m
Size: 700
3
1200
3
Resolution: 500 950 m
Size: 20
3
100
3
Resolution: 50 nm
Size: 1000
3
K [GPa] G [GPa] [g/cm
3
]
Calcite 63.7 31.7 2.70
Dolomite 76.4 49.7 2.87
Air 1.4210
-4
0.0 0.001225


Figure 1 Workflow for DRP of heterogeneous core plugs. Digital rock models at three different
scales: nm-scale, m- to mm-scale and mm- to cm-scale (core plug scale).


75
th
EAGE Conference & Exhibition incorporating SPE EUROPEC 2013
London, UK, 10-13 June 2013

The porosity of the micrite models used in this study is intergranular. Generic models with moldic
porosity as described by Eberli et al. (2003) have, in addition, been generated. The corresponding
velocities are shown in Figure 2, confirming the underlying assumption that moldic porosity models
have significantly higher velocities than the models with intergranular porosity. Figure 2 shows
further that DRP derived velocities are closer to the micrite line than the moldic line, indicating a
micrite dominated pore space for the carbonate samples in this study. This was confirmed by thin
section and SEM analyses.

The upper Hashin-Shtrickman bound for P- and S-wave velocities are also shown in Figure 2 (dotted
grey lines). The figure shows that the moldic velocities are relatively close to this bound. The physical
interpretation of the bound is an assembly of spherical pores of different sizes, each surrounded by a
shell of solid mineral. The resulting pore space resembles the moldic pore space and the
corresponding velocities are therefore relatively close. The difference between the velocities is
increasing with increasing porosity. This may be related to the connectivity of the pore space; the
pores stay isolated for the Hashin-Shtrickman assembly, while the moldic porosity becomes gradually
more connected as the porosity increases.

Conclusions

A digital rock physics (DRP) study on more than 100 core plugs comprising reservoir rock types from
micro-Darcy to Darcy magnitudes, from four different giant carbonate fields in the Middle-East have
been performed. The study confirms that DRP derived elastic properties (P- and S-wave velocities,
and elastic moduli) yield reliable and consistent results for heterogeneous carbonate core plugs,
representative of in situ reservoir stress conditions. Therefore, such measurements can be included
with high level of confidence in static and dynamic reservoir models.



0
1000
2000
3000
4000
5000
6000
7000
0 10 20 30 40 50
V
e
l
o
c
i
t
y

[
m
/
s
]
Porosity [%]


Figure 2 DRP derived P- and S-wave velocities are compared with laboratory measurements
performed on carbonate core plugs. The velocities obtained for micrite and moldic models are also
shown in the figure, together with the upper Hashin Shtrickman (HS) bound.
V
p
V
s
Field 1
Field 2
Field 3
Field 4
Litterature data
Micrite model
Moldic model
Upper HS bond


75
th
EAGE Conference & Exhibition incorporating SPE EUROPEC 2013
London, UK, 10-13 June 2013
Remark
The digital core plug models used in this study have also been used by Lopez et al. (2012) for
determination of absolute permeability, formation resistivity factor, cementation exponent, capillary
pressure and NMR T2 distributions, and by Kalam et al. (2012) for determination of relative
permeability responses. This illustrates the advantages of the DRP method; a variety of key reservoir
SCAL, petrophysical and elastic properties may be obtained from a single core plug. The result is a
complete data set with a high level of confidence, suitable for determination of cross-property
correlations and ideal as data repository.

Acknowledgements
The authors wish to acknowledge ADNOC and ADCO management for approval to submit this paper.
ADCO DRP team members are duly acknowledged for their positive cooperation in providing the
reservoir core samples, in addition to valuable contributions during the technical discussions.

Reference
Anselmetti, F.S. [1994] Physical properties and seismic response of carbonate sediments and rocks.
Ph.D. thesis, Eidgenssischen Technischen Hochschule (ETH), Zrich.

Arns, C. H., Knackstedt, M. A., Pincewski, W. V., and Garboczi, E. G. [2002] Computation of linear
elastic properties from microtomographic images: Methodology and agreement between theory and
experiment. Geophysics, 67, pp. 1396 1405.

Derzhi, N., Sisk, C., Kalam, Z. [2011] Application of digital rock physics for geophysical rock
properties. 12th international Congress of the Brazilian Geophysical Society, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Eberli, G. P., Baechle, G. T., Anselmetti, F. S. and Incze, M. L. [2003] Factors controlling elastic
properties in carbonate sediments and rocks. The Leading Edge, July 2003, pp. 654 660.

Fabricius, I.L., Hier, C., Japsen, P. and Korsbech, U. [2007] Modelling elastic properties of impure
chalk from South Arne Field, North Sea. Geophysical Prospecting, 55, pp. 487 506.

Garboczi , E. J. and Day, A. R. [1995] Algorithm for computing the effective linear elastic properties
of heterogeneous materials. Three-dimensional results for composites with equal phase Poisson ratios.
J. Mech. Phys. Solids, 43, pp. 1349 1362.

Lopez, O., Mock, A., ren, P.-E., Long, H., Kalam, Z., Vahrenkamp, V., Gibrata, M., Seraj, S.,
Chacko, S., Hammadi, M.A., Hosni, H.A., Sahn, H. and Vizamora, A. [2012] Validation of
fundamental carbonate reservoir core properties using digital rock physics. SCA International
Symposium, Aberdeen, UK. SCA2012-19.

Misaghi, A., Negahban, Landr, M and Javaherian, A. [2010] A comparison of rock physics models
for fluid substitution in carbonate rocks. Exploration Geophysics, 41, pp. 146 154.

Kalam, Z., Seraj, S., Bhatti, Z., Mock, A., ren, P.-E., Ravlo, V. and Lopez, O. [2012] Relative
permeability assessment in a giant carbonate reservoir using Digital Rock Physics. SCA International
Symposium, Aberdeen, UK. SCA2012-03.

Kalam, M Z, Al Dayyani, T, Grader, A and Sisk, C. [2011] Digital rock physics analysis in complex
carbonates, World Oil, May 2011.

Rgen, B., Fabricius, I.L., Japsen, P., Hier, C., Makov, G. and Pedersen, J.M. [2005] Ultrasonic
velocities of North Sea chalk samples: influence of porosity, fluid content and texture. Geophysical
Prospecting, 53, pp. 481 496.

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