Rock and Fluid Properties

CONTENTS
1

INTRODUCTION

ROCK CLASSIFICATION SYSTEM

POROSITY
3.1 Primary Porosity
3.2 Secondary Porosity

SATURATION

PERMEABILITY
5.1 Darcy's Law
5.2 Effective Permeability
5.3 Relative Permeability

CAPILLARY PRESSURE

FLUID PROPERTIES

WATER SALINITY

DETERMINATION OF FORMATION
TEMPERATURE

LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Having worked through this chapter the Student will be able to:
Rock Classification:
1. Distinguish between the main relevant rock types: sandstone, shale, carbonate.
Porosity:
2. Define the term primary porosity.
3. Describe the influence of packing and sorting on primary porosity.
4. Define secondary porosity.
Saturation:
5. Define the term fluid saturation.
Permeability:
6. Define permeability and Darcys Law.
7. Define the terms effective permeability, and relative permeability.
Capillary Pressure:
8. Define what is meant by capillary pressure.
Fluid Properties:
9. Distinguish between single phase liquid, single phase gas, and mixed two phase
(liquid and gas) areas on a P,T (pressure, temperature) diagram.
Water Salinity:
10. Describe what is meant by water salinity and the factors governing its variability.
Formation Temperature:
11. Describe how the formation temperature is measured.

Rock and Fluid Properties

1 INTRODUCTION
The response to measurements made with petrophysical logging tools will depend on
the formation being investigated.
The first step in the interpretation of the logging data is to determine the type of rock
which is being logged. The next step is to determine the porosity, saturation, and
permeability of the rocks.
Rocks are classified in a very specific way for the purposes of well log interpretation.
Evaluation of reservoir rocks or potential reservoir rocks requires basically three
pieces of data:

porosity - the capacity of the rock to contain fluids;

saturation - the relative amounts of these fluids; and
permeability - the ability of the fluids to flow through the rock to the well bore.
Separation of the hydrocarbons into either gas or oil is of lesser significance.

2 ROCK CLASSIFICATION SYSTEM

This classification system uses a pseudo-rock chemistry classification. The method
is very useful since many of the responses from well logging tools reflect physical and
chemical properties of the rocks. However the classification system, based on
chemistry, must be clearly defined so that it can be related to the geological description
of the rocks. This classification is used extensively in the evaluation of logs and in
particular in the charts used for interpretation.
This classification system is based on the following categories of rocks:

Sandstones - SiO2;
Limestones - CaCO3;
Dolomite - CaCO3Mg CO3;
NaCl, Anhydrite, Gypsum, Clay

On this rock chemistry basis, sandstones are SiO2. Therefore, anything that is SiO2
shows up on well logs as sandstone. Since the classification is on a purely chemical
basis and not on a grain size basis, silt is considered as a very small grained sandstone.
Chert is also classified as a sandstone although the crystal structure is different it looks
like sandstone on well logs.
Limestone is calcium carbonate (CaCO3). Since chalk results in the same response
on logs as calcium carbonate, it is classified as a limestone.
Dolomite (CaCO3Mg CO3) differs strongly from limestone on well log readings.
Physically, dolomite differs from limestone significantly in density, hardness and
other properties.
NaCl, Anhydrite, Gypsum and Clay are relatively common rocks, but differ significantly
from sandstone, limestone and dolomite. Halite is common table salt, (NaCl) and will
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record as NaCl. Anhydrite is calcium sulphate and although gypsum is calcium

sulphate plus crystalline water, the water in gypsum creates a large difference between
the two log responses.
The only apparent maverick in the system is shale, which in reality is clay, and is
classified as clay. For general usage, there is no need to differentiate between the
various clay minerals which make up shales as long as clean shales are considered as
being clay.
A few rock types have been omitted but these omissions are not considered serious.
For example, a conglomerate is nothing more than a grain size variation of sandstone,
limestones with regular, spherical grains are not classified as sandstones but as
limestone.

POROSITY

The porosity of a rock is the percentage of rock gross rock volume that is not made up
of matrix material. Porosity can however be subdivided into primary and secondary
porosity.

3.1

Primary Porosity

Primary Porosity, usually related to granular, is the porosity developed by the original
sedimentation process by which the rock was created. For all practical purposes,
porosity is the non-solid part of the rock, filled with fluids. Porosity is referred to in
terms of percentages, while in calculations it is always a number less than one.
Porosity, by definition, is the volume of the non-solid part of the rock (that filled with
fluids) divided by the bulk volume.

Bulk Volume
Representation

Grain Volume
Representation

Pore Volume
Representation

Figure 1
Diagram and equation of
porosity

Rock and Fluid Properties

Porosity =

Porosity =

Void volume
x 100
Bulk volume

Bulk volume Grain volume

x 100
Bulk volume

Porosity =

pore volume
100
void volume + grain volume

Figure 2
Column stacking of rock
grains - Porosity = 47.6%

Figure 3
Close packing of rock
grains - Porosity = 25.9%

To acquire a feel for the values of porosity generally encountered, assume some
marbles, all the same size, are stacked on top of each other in columns. Calculations
will show a porosity of 47.6% (Figure 2). Spherical sand grains 1/10 the size of the
marbles stacked one on top of the other will have the same porosity, 47.6%. If the same
marbles are packed in the closest possible arrangement in which the upper marble sits
in the valley between the four lower marbles, each touching, the porosity is reduced
to 25.9% (Figure 3). Again, changing the size of the marbles will not change the
porosity as long as all the marbles are the same size.
The highest porosity normally anticipated is 47.6%. A more probable porosity is in
the mid-twenties. In reality, porositys greater than 40% are rare. These may be found
in surface sands that are neither compacted nor consolidate. Porosity reduction occurs
with distribution of grain sizes so that smaller grains fit between larger grains
(Figure 4). Also, non-spherical shapes fit together better. This is closer to the real
situation. The normal range of porosity in granular systems is from 10% - 35% with
the actual complete range being from 3% to 40%.
In general, porosities tend to be lower in deeper and older rocks. This decrease in
porosity is due primarily to overburden, time, stresses on the rock, and cementation.

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There are many exceptions to this general trend when normal overburden conditions
do not prevail. Shales follow very much the same porosity/depth trend as sandstones
except that porosities are normally lower in shales. For example, in a recent mud the
porosity measures about 40%. It decreases rapidly with depth and overburden
pressure until, at about 10,000 feet depth, normal porosities are less than 5%. This is
typical of Tertiary shales, with older shales being considerably more compacted and
thus lower in porosity. Shales are essentially plastic and therefore compress more
easily than sands. These basic trends of porosity versus depth are not really noticeable
in carbonates, which tend to be pseudo-plastic and compress considerably more than
sands.

Figure 4
Impact of sorting on
porosity

3.2

Secondary Porosity

Secondary Porosity is created by processes which occur after deposition. An example

of secondary porosity can be found in limestones or dolomites which has been
dissolved by ground waters, a process which creates vugs or caverns (Figure 5).
Fracturing and dolomitization also create secondary porosity. Dolomitization is the
result of the shrinking of solid volume as the material transforms from limestone to
dolomite. In most cases, secondary porosity results in much higher permeability than
primary granular porosity.

Figure 5
Secondary Porosity in
Limestone

Rock and Fluid Properties

4 SATURATION
Saturation of any given fluid in a pore space is the ratio of the volume of the fluid to
the total pore space volume. For example, a water saturation of 10% means that 1/10
of the pore space is filled with water.
Where porosity is the capacity to hold fluids, saturation is the percentage or fraction
of this total capacity that actually holds any particular fluid. Porosity, hydrocarbon
saturation, the thickness of the reservoir rock and the areal extent of the reservoir rock
all contribute to the total hydrocarbons in place (Figures 6 and 7). These establish
the economic potential of any given reservoir.

Oil

Water

Figure 6
Reservoir rock - saturation
with different fluids (oil and
water)

Oil

Water

Gas

Figure 7
Reservoir rock - saturation
with different fluids (oil,
water and gas)

Of the total volume (barrels or millions of cubic feet) of gas present in a reservoir, the
percentage that is produced depends on the recovery factor. This recovery factor,
normally determined by experience, is typically in the 20% - 50% range. The
produced oil must be able to pay for the cost of drilling and casing the well and other
miscellaneous expenses, as well as supply a profit.

5 PERMEABILITY
Permeability refers to the ease with which fluids flow through a formation. It is not
sufficient to have oil or gas in a formation, the hydrocarbons must be able to flow from
the reservoir into the wellbore in order to be recovered at the surface. Permeability
is a physical characteristic of any given rock. Generally, permeability is measured by
flowing fluids through the rock under known conditions. To determine the permeability
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of a rock formation, several factors must be known: the size and shape of the
formation; its fluid properties; pressure exerted on the fluid; and the amount of fluid
flow. The greater the pressure exerted on the fluid, the higher the flow rate. The more
viscous the fluid, the more difficult it is to push it through rock. For example, it is a
lot more difficult to push honey through a rock than to push air through it.

5.1 Darcy's Law

Permeability is a measure of the ability of porous material to transmit fluid. The unit
of measurement is the Darcy, named after the French hydrologist who investigated
flow of water through filter beds in order to design the public drinking fountains of the
city of Dijon in the year 1856.
However, Henri d'Arcy was using clean water in his experiments. Subsequently, it
was Henri Poiseceuilles, who noted that viscosity was also inversely proportional to
the flow-rate. Hence it was essential to include a term for viscosity, in centipoise,
in the Darcy equation.

Q=

k A P
l

One darcy is defined as that permeability that will permit a fluid of one centipoise
viscosity to flow at a rate of one cubic centmetre per second through a cross-sectional
area of 1 square centimetre when the pressure gradient is one atmosphere per
centimetre.
where:
Q
k
A
P

=
=
=
=
l =

flow rate of fluid(cm3/sec)

permeability (Darcy)
cross-sectional area (cm2)
pressure change (atmospheres)
length (cm)

In practical units, one Darcy permeability will yield a flow of approximately one
barrel/day of one centipoise oil through one foot of formation thickness in a well bore
when the pressure differential is about one psi.
Darcy's Law is used to determine permeability, which is a constant when the following
boundary conditions are met:
1
2
3
4

Linear-laminar flow
No reaction between fluid and rock
One phase present at 100 percent pore-space saturation
Incompressible

Because of the relatively high value of the base-unit, the millidarcy mD, (one
thousandth, 1/1000, of a Darcy) is commonly in use in reservoir description. The
Darcy has a SI equivalent in the m2. Formation permeabilities typically vary from a
fraction to more than 10,000 millidarcies.
8

Rock and Fluid Properties

Permeabilities normally encountered in reservoir rocks are from less than one
millidarcy to about 50,000 millidarcies. The permeability of any rock is governed
primarily by the size of the pores. The larger the pore size, the higher the permeability.
For example, one four-inch diameter pipe will have a higher permeability than a
bundle of quarter-inch diameter pipes with the same flow cross sectional area. The
tortuosity of the path the fluid takes going from one end of the rock to the other also
determines permeability. This is due to the fluid flowing around all the sand grains
rather than in a straight line from one end of the core to the other.
Although there may be a correlation between increasing permeability with increasing
porosity, this does not necessarily hold for any given situation. An example can be
found in the earlier discussions in which the sand grains were stacked one on top of
the other and had a porosity of 47.6%. If the sand grains are large, the pore diameters
are large and the permeability is very high.
Reduce the size of the sand grains by a factor of 100 and the permeability is
considerably smaller because the diameters of the pores are considerably smaller.
Further, smaller pores mean larger surface areas around them, and therefore more
resistance to flow (lower permeability). Another example is in vuggy type rocks in
which the pores are often large and permeabilitys very high even though the porosity
may be only 5% - 10%.
The permeability of fractures has been shown to be almost a pure function of the width
of the fracture. A rough relationship for permeability versus width of fracture can be
shown as:
k = 54,000,000 x Width x Width
Therefore, a fracture .001 inches in width has a permeability of 54,000 millidarcies.
The very high permeability created by a very small fracture is the reason that fractures
significantly affect production capabilities in reservoirs. One small fracture in a
reservoir will result in the production of most of the fluids from the fracture area as
the fracture acts like a pipeline through the formation. Equivalently, if a formation is
fractured while drilling, the high permeability of the fracture results in the high flow
of drilling fluids into the formation.
When only one fluid is present in the pores the permeability of the formation is called
the absolute permeability.

5.2 Effective Permeability

The effective permeability to any given fluid in a rock refers to permeability when
more than one fluid is present. Effective permeability is less than absolute permeability
because the presence of a second fluid reduces the effective pore diameter available
for fluid flow.

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In the case of a reservoir where only water is present, the permeability measured will
be absolute. In the case where oil and water are present and the oil is flowing, the
effective permeability of the oil will be less than absolute permeability. This is due
to the water reducing the effective diameters of the pores through which the oil is
flowing.

5.3 Relative Permeability

Relative permeability is the ratio of effective permeability of a specific fluid to
absolute permeability. Relative permeability curves reflect the capacity of the rock
to produce given fluids by showing the permeability of those fluids as a function of
saturatio (Figure 8). Thus, in a typical relative permeability curve, it will be seen that
at low water saturations only oil will flow. As the water saturation increases, the
relative permeability of oil decreases until some critical level is reached, at which
point both oil and water flow. The oil flow continues to decrease and the water flow
to increase as water saturation increases. At some level of water saturation, the oil no
longer flows and only water flows. Beyond this point, as water saturation increases,
the flow of water within the core continues to increase.

Figure 8
Diagram of Relative
Permeability

In either case, the amount of fluid flowing is not a direct effect of the relative
permeability as different fluids have different viscosities. For example, if gas and oil
have equal relative permeabilities, more gas than oil will flow within the rock because
of the dramatic difference in viscosity.

6 CAPILLARY PRESSURE
Reservoir rocks are composed of many capillaries of varying sizes. Capillary pressure
is the phenomenon by which water or any wetting liquid is drawn up into a capillary.
The smaller the capillary, the higher the liquid rises.
Due to the variety of capillary diameters, the water saturation existing within a rock
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Rock and Fluid Properties

above the water table varies (Figure 9). The permeability of a rock is determined by
the size of the capillaries in the rock. These capillaries also define the irreducible
water saturation, which is the water saturation that exists above the transition zone.
The transition zone is the zone which displays a change in the water saturation with
height.
Most often it is considered the region in which both water and oil (or gas) flow. The
more small capillaries there are, the higher the water saturation, and the longer the
transition from irreducible water saturation to all water. The larger the pore spaces,
the fewer the small capillaries, the transition zone is shorter.

Oil
Sand
Grain

Pc
h

Transition Zone
WOC
hp
FWL
0%

Figure 9
Capillary Pressure and
Saturation

Water Saturation

100%

Water

7 FLUID PROPERTIES
Hydrocarbons existing within reservoirs are combinations of compounds such as
methane, propane, butane and pentane. In the oil business, oil and gas are referred to
as if they are separate and distinguishable items. They are produced either as liquid
or gas at surface temperature and pressure. The cut between liquid and gas often
depends on the method of separation used at the well site.
In the reservoir, oil and gas are not distinguishable as separate entities but are a system.
One way to define this system is with a pressure-temperature (P,T) diagram which
describes the conditions of the material in the reservoir at any given pressure or
temperature (Figure 10). For example, the hydrocarbons existing under the pressure
and temperature that would put them in the A part of the P,T diagram are
undersaturated oils, (liquid). Those existing in the B area are gases. The
hydrocarbon fluids in the envelope C exist as both oil (liquid) and gas. The location
within C determines the volumetric ratio between gas and oil. Every particular oil
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11

or hydrocarbon system has its own pressure/temperature phase diagram. The

composition of the hydrocarbon determines the shape and location of the two-phase
envelope.

Single Phase Region (Gas)

Single Phase Region (Liquid)

Black
Oil

P
b

Pressure

l
bb
Bu

t
o in
eP

Lin

Volatile
Gas
Oil
Condensate

Gas

Y1

CP

% Liquid
100

Two Phase Region

Where:

75

50

25
20
15
10
5
0

= Bubble point pressure

at indicated temperature

P = Maximum pressure at which

m
two phases can coexist
m

oint
ew P
Y2 D
Single Phase Region

Lin e

= Maximum temperature at
which two phases can coexist

C = Critical conditions

Gas

= Cricondentherm

X5

Temperature

Where a two phase system exists, a free gas and a free liquid phase, the two are in
contact but not necessarily in a dispersed condition. In this state, the oils are called
saturated. That is, they have in solution all the gas they can hold at that particular
pressure and temperature, and often exist as an oilfield with a gas cap. The size of the
gas cap is dependent upon its location in the P,T envelope. For example, if it was on
the 75% line, oil volume would be 75% and gas volume 25% of the reservoir. It should
be noted that there is no distinct barrier between A and B. The area that separates
A and B is miscible in the sense that it is impossible to tell when the material goes
from liquid to gas; within this region are the condensate reservoirs.
Every particular hydrocarbon system has its own P,T phase diagram. What will
happen during the life of the oil or gas field can be determined from the P,T diagram.
For example, assume the pressure/temperature is such that the oilfield is produced at
a constant temperature condition where just the pressure is reduced. As pressure
drops, the fluid eventually reaches the bubble point line which separates A from
C. Having once crossed the bubble point line, the reservoir then develops larger and
larger amounts of gas or in many cases, develops a gas cap.
A gas cap develops only when the vertical permeability in the reservoir is large enough
to allow the gas to move upward. This presumes the system is closed and there is no
water encroachment. If the reservoir is initially at Y1 on this chart and the pressure
drops, as shown going from Y1 to Y2, the reservoir fluids change from a single
phase to a two-phase liquid and gas, and then to a single gas phase. This is a retrograde
condensation system in which you first develop the liquids within the reservoir as the
pressure drops. As the pressure continues to drop, the reservoir fluid becomes a single
phase gas and ends up a gas field.

12

Figure 10
Phase Behaviour of Fluid

Rock and Fluid Properties

An oil being produced from the reservoir to the surface has both pressure and
temperature reduction, and will change from a liquid to a combination of gas and
liquid.
The phenomena occurring is very much like the Coke bottle phenomena. As the well
is agitated (the pressure dropped), the gas comes out of solution. A Coke bottle that
has been agitated, when you take the top off, blows Coke everywhere. The gas in the
Coke is coming out of solution and represents the driving force that pushed the Coke
out of the bottle. An oilfield is essentially the equivalent with the natural gas forcing
the oil out of the formation.

8 WATER SALINITY
The waters in reservoirs in the earth vary from fresh to salt saturated solutions. Near
the surface, waters are generally very fresh with low sodium chloride concentrations.
Deeper, the waters tend to become saltier until some maximum concentration occurs
and the water often becomes fresher.
The salinity of the water is a result not only of its vertical position in the earth, but also
the age of the rocks and the physical position of the rocks relative to surface outcrops.
Salinities used are generally in parts per million by weight. In the logging business,
sodium chloride concentrations generally are used. At normal room temperatures,
250,000 ppm (parts per million) is a saturated solution, while at higher temperatures
the saturation point for waters is higher. For example, at 300 degrees C, a 300,000
ppm sodium chloride solution is saturated.

9 DETERMINATION OF FORMATION TEMPERATURE

It is often necessary to know the resistivity of formation waters and the drilling mud
at the depth of some formation of interest. The resistivity of aqueous solutions is a
function of temperature. It is thus necessary to be able to determine the approximate
temperature in a well bore at any given depth.
The logic is very straight forward. A mean surface temperature can be obtained or
estimated for any given location. A maximum reading thermometer is run with the
logging instrument and the temperature reported on the log heading. This maximum
temperature reading is assumed to be obtained at total depth or the maximum depth
at which the logging tool stopped. The temperature between the surface and the depth
at which the maximum temperature is recorded is assumed to change linearly. The
assumption that the geothermal gradient (the rate at which temperature increases with
increased depth) is linear is a good approximation.
Sometimes the maximum temperature in the borehole is less than the actual formation
temperature due to the cooling effect of circulating mud while drilling the hole. If this
is a problem, multiple runs with the maximum reading thermometer should be made
to determine a stabilised temperature. The normal approach is to assume bottom hole
temperature and formation temperature are equal.

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