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Diagenetic Traps

Middle East Blog

The workshop aims at providing a state of the art review of the contrasted structural styles of the Middle East. Based on this review, a focus should be dedicated to the implications of these regional styles and structural evolutions on the region’s economical prospectivity in terms of hydrocarbon resources. Among others, the specific challenges occurring during the exploration and production of these resources should be tackled.

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
Explorer Emphasis Article

One of the most productive regions in the petroleum world for almost a century, the Permian Basin is far from tapped out, according to a new U.S. Geological Survey assessment.

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
Explorer Emphasis Article

The recent and apparently large oil discoveries on Alaska’s North Slope by Caelus Energy Alaska and Armstrong Oil & Gas, Inc. and its partner Repsol have shown the world that giants may still exist in the 49th state. And, more might be waiting to be found.

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
Explorer Division Column DEG

From mid-September through mid-October, I had the unique opportunity to represent the Division of Environmental Geosciences at four events, and want to share some of the highlights with you.

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
Learn! Blog

The dynamics of fluid behavior and structural movement on the nano-scale can be complicated and not always what was expected. New research that analyzes the well information and cores using new techniques and technologies is yielding important and useful results. Welcome to an interview with Wen Zhou, Chengdu University of Technology, who discusses recent research findings.

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
Learn! Blog

Primary research in hydrocarbon generation is yielding new insights into the natural gas geochemical characteristics of conventional and unconventional reservoirs, along with discoveries relating to the geomechanical processes. Welcome to an interview with Chenglin Liu, China University of Petroleum-Beijing, who discusses enlightening new findings regarding the relationship between salinity and hydrocarbon geochemical characteristics.

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
Learn! Blog

Hot pipes set me free! Tar sands, heavy oil, paraffin — three killers of mature fields. Finally, a simple and effective solution — hot pipes! It’s a great concept, but does it work? Here’s a continuation of an interview with Dr. Richard Snow, Pyrophase, who answers questions about their technology that helps stimulate flow in wells with paraffin or low-gravity oil problems.

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
Explorer Emphasis Article

Researchers from the University of Calgary found just what they weren’t looking for when they monitored microseismic signals from an unconventional resource unit in the Hoadley field in central Alberta.

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
Explorer Emphasis Article

Understanding the complex makeup of reservoirs is essential, and it requires considerable evaluation and time.

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
Explorer Article

It’s been just over a year and a half since the AAPG House of Delegates approved the formation of SIGs and TIGs, and the new classification structure is steadily catching on.

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
VG Abstract

Production from unconventional petroleum reservoirs includes petroleum from shale, coal, tight-sand and oil-sand. These reservoirs contain enormous quantities of oil and natural gas but pose a technology challenge to both geoscientists and engineers to produce economically on a commercial scale. These reservoirs store large volumes and are widely distributed at different stratigraphic levels and basin types, offering long-term potential for energy supply. Most of these reservoirs are low permeability and porosity that need enhancement with hydraulic fracture stimulation to maximize fluid drainage. Production from these reservoirs is increasing with continued advancement in geological characterization techniques and technology for well drilling, logging, and completion with drainage enhancement. Currently, Australia, Argentina, Canada, Egypt, USA, and Venezuela are producing natural gas from low permeability reservoirs: tight-sand, shale, and coal (CBM). Canada, Russia, USA, and Venezuela are producing heavy oil from oilsand. USA is leading the development of techniques for exploring, and technology for exploiting unconventional gas resources, which can help to develop potential gas-bearing shales of Thailand. The main focus is on source-reservoir-seal shale petroleum plays. In these tight rocks petroleum resides in the micro-pores as well as adsorbed on and in the organics. Shale has very low matrix permeability (nano-darcies) and has highly layered formations with differences in vertical and horizontal properties, vertically non-homogeneous and horizontally anisotropic with complicate natural fractures. Understanding the rocks is critical in selecting fluid drainage enhancement mechanisms; rock properties such as where shale is clay or silica rich, clay types and maturation , kerogen type and maturation, permeability, porosity, and saturation. Most of these plays require horizontal development with large numbers of wells that require an understanding of formation structure, setting and reservoir character and its lateral extension. The quality of shale-gas resources depend on thickness of net pay (>100 m), adequate porosity (>2%), high reservoir pressure (ideally overpressure), high thermal maturity (>1.5% Ro), high organic richness (>2% TOC), low in clay (<50%), high in brittle minerals (quartz, carbonates, feldspars), and favourable in-situ stress. During the past decade, unconventional shale and tight-sand gas plays have become an important supply of natural gas in the US, and now in shale oil as well. As a consequence, interest to assess and explore these plays is rapidly spreading worldwide. The high production potential of shale petroleum resources has contributed to a comparably favourable outlook for increased future petroleum supplies globally. Application of 2D and 3D seismic for defining reservoirs and micro seismic for monitoring fracturing, measuring rock properties downhole (borehole imaging) and in laboratory (mineralogy, porosity, permeability), horizontal drilling (downhole GPS), and hydraulic fracture stimulation (cross-linked gel, slick-water, nitrogen or nitrogen foam) is key in improving production from these huge resources with low productivity factors.

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American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)

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