Saturation Determination This section reviews in detail different methods of determining the water saturation of a rock system.

Once determined, the water saturation can be used to determine whether hydrocarbon production is probable and to calculate the volume of oil in a unit volume of rock (e.g., how many barrels/acre). Water saturation is defined as the fraction of the pore volume occupied by water. This is shown schematically in Figure 1 .

Figure 1

The actual bulk volume of water in a unit volume of porous rock is given by the product Sw and the bulk volume of hydrocarbons is given by (1Sw). This latter value is also referred to as the hydrocarbon pore volume, or HCPV. Two available methods for determining the water saturation of a rock sample are core analysis and log analysis. Although core analysis is not covered in detail here, it is worthwhile to mention that, in determining water saturation, only native state cores can be relied upon for representative Sw values. As regards the role of measurements of permeability from cores, many low-resistive pay sections with very high apparent water saturations do in fact produce water-free hydrocarbons. Since

these are generally formations of low permeability, core analysis can help evaluate such troublesome formations. Archie's Equation Formation Factor, F Archie combined three measurable observations into one equation. By saturating a rock sample with salt solutions of different salinities, he found that the resistivity of the "wet" (water-saturated) rock (Ro) was related to the resistivity of the saturating water (Rw) by the relation Ro = FRw where F is called the formation factor. This formation factor was found to vary predictably as the rock porosity changed according to

where a is a constant and m is known as the cementation exponent. Lastly, rocks with less than 100% water saturation and resistivity Rt were found to obey the rule

where n is the saturation exponent. Combining these relationships gives Archie's equation:

The values of a, m, and n can be set to generally accepted values when they are unknown. For serious petrophysical analysis, they should be determined by core analysis. Generally accepted values for these constants and formation-factor-to-porosity relationships are for sandstones: a = 0.81 m = 2 n = 2 or a = 0.62 m = 2.15 n = 2 for carbonates: a = 1 m = 2 n = 2 Thus, three commonly used versions of Archie's equation are, for sandstones:

or

for carbonates:

The analyst should avoid the mind set that locks the conventional values for a, m, and n into any and all log analysis evaluations. Some crossplot methods allow one or another of these parameters to be deduced; however, there is no substitute for rigorous core analysis to pin down the precise values required for each and every reservoir unit. While n is usually assumed to be 2, its exact value may vary depending on rock wetability. Oil-wet systems usually exhibit an n greater than 2. Some water-wet systems show an n less than 2. To find n, a core sample is prepared at a number of different water saturations and for each saturation the ratio of Ro to Rt is measured. By taking the logarithm of Archie's equation, it is transposed into

Therefore, a plot of log (Sw) versus log (Ro/Rt) should produce a straight line of slope n. Figure 2 illustrates the method.

Figure 2

It is worthwhile to explore the sensitivity of Sw to the value of n. Suppose a calculation of Sw is made using n = 2 and the resulting value of Sw is 0.5, or 50%. Then we can deduce

hence

Having found that F Rw/Rt is 0.25, we can now play a "what if" game and see the results of raising n to, say, 2.2:

or 53% Lowering n to, say, 1.7 gives

Sw = (0.25)1/1.7 = 0.44 or 44% In summary, other factors remaining the same, raising n raises Sw; likewise, lowering n lowers Sw. Each rock type has its characteristic formation-factor-toporosity relationship. Core measurements to determine this relationship require a range of core samples of different porosities. Then at each porosity, a measurement is made of Ro, the resistivity of the rock at 100% water saturation. If the value of Rw is known, the formation factor (F) can be deduced by using the definition F = Ro/Rw. Note that the solution used to saturate the core should be of the same NaCl concentration as that of the connate water found in the formation. By taking the logarithm of both sides of the equation that relates formation factor to porosity, the result is

Thus, a plot of log (F) versus log () should give a line of slope -m and an intercept at = 1 of a. Figure 3 illustrates this method.

Figure 3

Invaded Zone Saturation (Sxo)

Rmf

and Invasion Diameter

The reliability of any estimate of Sxo depends on familiarity with Rmf and on the invasion diameter. If the mud system is such that invasion is deep (generally greater than di = 60 in.) then the annular volume of formation measured by the Rxo devices is sufficiently large for a good measurement of Rxo to be made. On the other hand, if invasion is shallow, it is possible that the measurement of Rxo will be inaccurate, since part of the tool's measurement is in the uninvaded zone. Rmf changes when the mud composition in a drilling well is changed. As a consequence, mud filtrate salinity (hence Rmf) may vary with depth.

Rxo Determination
Where only single Rxo measuring devices are used, there is no way of confirming the validity of the measurement. A better estimate of Rxo can be made when multiple resistivity devices are used. Since the use of the dual induction tool in conjunction with the tornado chart outputs the ratio of Rxo to Rt, it is thus possible to backcalculate a good representative value for Rxo within a fairly wide range of invasion diameters.

Sxo and the Movable oil Plot

The water (filtrate) saturation in the flushed zone (Sxo) may be estimated by using Archie's equation:

where

To solve this equation, the values of a, m, n, , Rmf (at formation temperature), and Rxo must be known. The value of Sxo may not reveal much about the amount of oil in place, but it does reveal a great deal about whether the oil in place is likely to flow or not. The invasion process acts like a mini-waterflood. Invading filtrate displaces not only connate water, but also any movable hydrocarbons. In the undisturbed state at initial reservoir conditions, the fractional pore volume occupied by oil is (1 - Sw). After filtrate invasion has taken place, the fractional pore volume occupied by oil is (1 Sxo). The difference between these two values is the fractional pore volume that contained movable oil. Figure 1 gives a pictorial representation of this process.

Figure 1

The pore volume fraction of movable oil is determined by the relationship (Sxo - Sw). The fraction of the original oil in place that has moved is determined by This index can then be used as a measure of the quality of the pay. In formations where the relative permeability to oil is low, Sxo is likely to be close to Sw and the index will be low. This same formation will not be as productive as another with the same value of Sw, but will have better relative permeability to oil and hence a higher value of Sxo.

Effects of Different Mud Systems on Saturation Measurements

Water-base Muds
In general, water-base muds produce a moderate invasion diameter and thus a measurable invaded zone. In cases where the water loss is excessively high or the mud column highly overbalanced, invasion diameters can be quite large. In such instances the measurement of Rxo is easy but that of Rt is more difficult, and the corresponding value for Sw is less reliable.

Oil-base Muds
Oil-base mud systems generally produce an oil filtrate. In water-bearing formations, the relative permeability to oil is low and invasion is slight. In oil-bearing formations, reservoir oil may be replaced by invading oil filtrate, but only a small portion of the connate water is likely to be displaced. Consequently, Sxo is likely to be equal to or lower than Sw when oil-base muds are used. For the same reasons, Rxo may be equal to or greater than Rt.

Effects of Clays on Calculated Saturations

Surface Conductance
The log analyst faces formidable problems when confronted by shaly sands. Porosity, hydrocarbon content, permeability, and productivity must be defined from logs (and any other available data) for situations where neither an adequate model exists nor the fundamental electrical behavior of the rock system is understood. Complications arise whenever clay material is present with a quartz matrix and formation waters are fresh, in which case conventional log analysis overestimates water saturation; or whenever formation waters are relatively salty and abnormally low formation resistivities are observed in pay zones. Both situations lead to bypassed production, unless adequate steps are taken to identify these difficult zones. The problem is that the classical Archie relationship fails to hold up under conditions encountered in shaly sands. Here the postulate that Co (wet rock conductivity) is linearly related to Cw (water conductivity) is found to be false. Figure 1 shows that as formation water conductivity increases, Co increases through a nonlinear zone until it reaches a plateau at some conductivity offset (X) above the clean sand line.

Figure 1

The form of the Co versus Cw plot is a function of the shaliness of the sand. Figure 2 shows that the apparent formation factor, Fa (= Cw/Co) decreases as shale content

increases.

Figure 2

Note that at high values of Cw (salty formation waters) Fa approaches the classical Archie formation factor. An explanation is therefore sought for the source of the "excess" conductivity, X. In general the approach first models the behavior of the 100% wet shaly sand system and then transposes the model to include nonconductive hydrocarbons as well. A large body of published material is available on the subject; the reader may check the SPWLA reprint volume Shaly Sand (SPWLA 1982).

Clay Distribution and Type

In discussions of shaly sand, the distinction is usually made between the terms clay and shale. In this discussion, the term clay or dry clay is used to refer to dehydrated shale and shale is used to refer to rehydrated dry-clay materials. Shale effects depend on distribution of clay material type of clay material amount of clay material formation water salinity

 water saturation Figure 3 illustrates three different states in which clay materials may be found.

Figure 3

1. Shale can exist in the form of laminae separated by layers of sand. Laminar shale does not affect the porosity or permeability of the sand streaks themselves. As laminar shale increases, however, and the porous medium decreases, the overall average effective porosity is reduced in proportion. 2. Shale can exist as grains or nodules in the formation matrix. This matrix or structural shale is usually considered to have properties similar to those of laminar shale and nearby massive shales. 3. Shale material can be dispersed throughout the sand, partially filling the intergranular interstices. This dispersed shale may adhere to or coat the sand grains, or partially fill smaller pore channels, thus markedly reducing the permeability of the formation. All these forms of shale can, of course, occur simultaneously in the same formation. Clay Types There are two ways of defining shales: defining grain size and describing mineral content. Standard definitions for grain-size diameter are:

sand 0.05 to 2 mm (50 to 2000 micron) silt 0.004 to 0.05 mm (4 to 50 micron) clay less than 0.004 mm (less than 4 micron)

Mineralogical analysis defines the common clay minerals as montmorillonite (smectite), illite, kaolinite, and chlorite. These are various molecular arrangements of alumino-silicates with various quantities of quartz and feldspar. These clays are further subclassified by their origin. Detrital clays are deposited with the sandstone at the time the sediments are laid down. Authigenic clays appear as precipitates from solution at a later time. A schematic of the molecular building blocks and their various arrangements to form clay crystals is shown in Figure 4 .

Figure 4

The most important effect of these minerals is their ability to hold adsorbed water on their grain surfaces. Table 1

Table 1

lists the specific areas of porous formations; Figure 5 generalizes the relationship between grain size and grain surface area.

Figure 5

The Archie water saturation equation (4.1), relating rock resistivity to water saturation, assumes that formation water is the only electrically conductive material in the formation. The presence, then, of another conductive material (i.e., shale) requires either that the Archie equation be modified to accommodate the existence of another conductive material or that a new model be developed to relate rock resistivity to water saturation in shaly formations. The presence of clay also complicates the definition of rock porosity. Although the layer of closely bound surface water on the clay particle can represent a very significant amount of porosity, this porosity is not available as a potential reservoir for hydrocarbons. Thus, a shale or shaly formation may exhibit a high total porosity yet a low effective porosity as a potential hydrocarbon reservoir.

Microporosity
As grain diameter decreases, so too does pore throat radius. This decrease, accompanied by an increase in capillary pressure, increases the amount of water that can be imbibed into the system. When silt- and clay-sized particles are present, "microporosity" accounts for a large percentage of the total porosity. Under these circumstances irreducible water saturation can be very high. To give a visual understanding of where and how the micro pore system develops, Figure 6 shows SEM photos of the major clay types.

Figure 6

Cation Exchange Capacity

Crystal surfaces have what are known as "exchange sites," where ions can temporally reside as the result of the charge imbalance on the external surface of the clay's molecular building blocks. These exchange sites effectively offer an electrical path through the clay by means of surface conductance. A dry clay is an insulator; a wet clay is not. To quantify the conductivity of wet clays, the cation exchange capacity (CEC) can be measured. It will come as no surprise to find that in general the larger the specific surface area, the larger the CEC. The clay type per se is not important, only its specific surface area. Figure 7 shows the relationship between CEC and specific surface area.

Figure 7

Chlorite, one of the principal clay minerals, may not follow the trend shown in Figure 7 quite as well as the other clay minerals. Even quartz sand grains, if sufficiently small, exhibit surface conductance and can be ascribed a CEC value.

Unfortunately, log measurements do not allow a direct measurement of either CEC or specific surface area. Table 2 lists the properties of, and log responses to, the common clay minerals.

Table 2

Notice in Table 2 that there is no general correlation between the CEC or specific area numbers and any one clay indicator. Perhaps the best hope for determining clay type from logs is to note that the least electrically active clays have a large neutron/density difference and the most active a small one.

Summary of Shaly Sand Models

Presence of shale in reservoir rock is an extremely troublesome factor in formation evaluation. Most sands contain some clay or shale, which reduces the effective porosity, lowers the permeability, and alters the resistivity predicted by the Archie equation. Over the years, a large number of models relating resistivity and fluid saturations have been proposed. Many have been developed assuming shale exists in a specific geometric form (i.e., laminar, dispersed, structural) in shaly sand. All these models are composed of a clean sand term, described by the Archie water saturation, plus a shale term. The shale term, whether fairly simple or quite complex, may be relatively independent of, or interact with, the clean sand term. All models reduce to the Archie water saturation equation when the fraction of shale is zero; for relatively small amounts of shaliness, most models and methods yield similar results.

The key to successful log analysis in these difficult formations lies in the experimental sciences. The observations are to hand. What is lacking is an adequate theory to explain the observations and adequate logging tools to make the necessary measurements. Figure 8 shows the key observation,

Figure 8

that the Cw/Co versus Cw plot is dependent on both Cw and "shaliness," expressed via CEC or specific surface area.