The term petrophysics has evolved during the past two decades from a fairly restrictive definition, applying to the study of the physical properties of reservoir rocks, to a more general meaning, the physics of rocks. Laboratory
measurements of rock physical properties including compressional and shear wave velocity, seismic attenuation, density, electrical conductivity, thermal conductivity, permeability, porosity, and many other quantities are important not only in locating natural resources such as oil and gas reserves, but also critical in the interpretation of geophysical data focusing on the nature of the Earth's crust, mantle, and core. The link between geophysical data and petrology is petrophysics.
This book is a collection of twenty-one papers presented at a meeting of petrophysicists from industry and academia at Burlington, London in September 1995. The papers presented at the conference originated from an open call for papers on the general theme "Developments in Petrophysics." The wide variety of research covered in the book nicely illustrates several topics, which are part of the field of petrophysics. Many, but not all of the papers, focus on physical properties of sedimentary rocks and relate in some degree to hydrocarbon reservoir evaluation.
The first paper summarizes a new non-contacting resistivity method for continuously logging oil industry core. This is followed by the description of a new probe permeameter, which has been designed to be portable for field applications. The next three papers deal with different aspects of rock pore structures, including wettability variations, pore networks of partially molten igneous rock, and relating pore geometry parameters to rock properties.
This is followed by five papers dealing with acoustic wave propagation in a variety of rocks including sandstone, gneiss, and granite. Relationships between permeability, velocities, and attenuation in rock with aligned cracks are investigated, as well as the relationship between tensile strength and seismic anisotropy, and crack aspect ratio changes with pressure.
The next four papers relate geophysical logging data to rock properties which are important in petrophysics, including matrix density, magnetic susceptibility, and intergranular permeability. Next are three papers dealing with the electrical behavior of rocks. Surface electrical properties of minerals are shown to be important in describing electrical conduction, spontaneous potential, and ionic diffusion in porous media. A model is presented from which electrochemical effects can be separated from electromagnetic effects in field data. The last four papers deal with tortuosity, borehole imaging in horizontal wells drilled for hydrocarbons, in situ velocity attenuation in the upper oceanic crust, and the use of moire fringes to study the distribution of strain during sandstone failure.
This book is an important reference for researchers in petrophysics and presents a nice collection of "state of the art" papers covering a wide variety of topics. It is not intended to be a tutorial covering the basics of petrophysics, and thus is of little use to students wishing to learn principles of rock physics for the first time. If, however, you are a rock physicist working at the leading edge of investigative techniques, you will find this volume a useful addition to your library.
NIKOLAS I. CHRISTENSEN
Department of Geology and Geophysics
University of Wisconsin
Madison, WI 53706-1600, USA
Source
http://archives.datapages.com/data/sepm/journals/v66-67/data/068/068005/1054.HTM