Reservoir Properties

• Petroleum reservoirs contain gas and water, or oil and water, with the
petroleum usually in the central parts of the pores and the water in
pendular rings around the grain contacts. This water is apparently
immobile, and the irreducible water saturation is commonly 20-40%
of the pore volume.
• Pressures in the petroleum are higher than normal hydrostatic water
pressures because of its smaller weight density.
• Porosity is an important rock property because it is a measure of the
potential storage volume for hydrocarbons. Porosity in carbonate
reservoirs ranges from 1 to 35% and, in the United States, averages
10% in dolomite reservoirs and 12% in limestone reservoirs.
• Permeability is the property of rocks that is an indication of the ability for
fluids (gas or liquid) to flow through rocks.
• High permeability will allow fluids to move rapidly through rocks.
• Permeability is affected by the pressure in a rock. The unit of measure is
called the darcy.
• Sandstones may vary in permeability from less than one to over 50,000
millidarcys (md).
• Permeabilities are more commonly in the range of tens to hundreds of
millidarcies.
• A rock with 25% porosity and a permeability of 1 md will not yield a
significant flow of water. Such “tight” rocks are usually artificially
stimulated (fractured or acidized) to create permeability and yield a flow.
Rift Basin
 Basin Types
1. Passive Margins and Rift Basin
2. Transform Basin
3. Foreland Basin
4. Forearc Basin
5. Intra-continental Basin