Geologic Considerations

in production Operations
 FORMATION OF OIL
Oil is formed from the remains of
tiny plants and animals (plankton)
that died in ancient seas between
10 million and 600 million years ago.
After the organisms died, they
sank into the sand and mud at the
bottom of the sea.
Over the years, the organisms
decayed in the sedimentary layers.
In these layers, there was little or
no oxygen present. So
microorganisms broke the remains
into carbon-rich compounds that
formed organic layers.
The organic material mixed with
the sediments, forming fine-grained
shale, or source rock. As new
sedimentary layers were deposited,
they exerted intense pressure and
heat on the source rock.
The heat and pressure distilled the
organic material into crude oil and
natural gas. The oil flowed from the
source rock and accumulated in
thicker, more porous limestone or
sandstone, called reservoir rock.
 ORGANIC THEORY.

Although no one knows for sure how petroleum

was formed, most geologists believe the organic

theory. According to this theory, petroleum came

into being over the millions of years when the

prehistoric oceans were formed. Much of the

earth was covered by these oceans,

with tiny plants and animals living in the shallow

seas and along the coast. When these living

creatures died, bacteria caused them to decay. Their

remains were buried by deposits of sediment.

Layer after layer of fine mud and sand caused the

oceans floors to sink. Thus, the sedimentary rocks

sandstone, limestone, shale and dolomite were built

up
As the sedimentary layers built up, natural forces
such as bacteria, heat, and pressure changed the
decayed plant and animal forms into oil and gas.
Through millions of years, layers of less porous
rock formed above the oil and gas beds, trapping
the petroleum into underground pools. Later, the
ancient, shallow seas drained away to leave dry
land above the petroleum deposits.
The organic theory, therefore, indicates that
oil and gas will be found in areas of the earth
underlain with thick sections of sedimentary
rocks. And, indeed, it is in the pores of the
sandstones that oil and gas are commonly
found. Porous limestone and dolomite are
other sedimentary rocks in which petroleum
occurs.
In order for the geologist to accurately
predict the location of oil and gas, migration
patterns of petroleum must also be
understood. The movement of petroleum
from its place of origin to the traps is
believed to have occurred in an upward
direction. This movement took place as a
result of the tendency for oil and gas to rise.
Over the centuries, it rose through the pores
and cracks of sedimentary rock until it became
trapped by a layer of rock shaped to halt any
further migration. Such a seal ( often called a
cap rock or impermeable rock ) forced the
petroleum to gather in pools.
During the migratory process, the salt water
trapped in the pore spaces of the rock by the
sedimentation process was seldom completely
displaced by oil or gas. Frequently, these pore
spaces contain about 10 percent to over 50 percent
salt water, even in the midst of oil and gas
accumulations.
The trapped water, called connate water, fills
the smaller pores; it also exists as a coating or
film covering the rock surfaces of the larger
pore spaces. Because of the differences in the
weight of gas, oil, and salt water, these fluids
also separated vertically over the years.
As a result, gas ( if any is present as such ) is
found in the highest part of the trap, oil or oil
with gas is found next, and salt water is found
below the oil.
Movements of the Earth trapped the
oil and natural gas in the reservoir
rocks between layers of
impermeable rock, or cap rock,
such as granite or marble.
Oil reservoir rocks (red) and natural gas (blue) can
be trapped by folding (left), faulting (middle) or
pinching out (right).
 These movements of the Earth include

• Folding - Horizontal movements press inward

and move the rock layers upward into a fold
or anticline.
• Faulting - The layers of rock crack, and one
side shifts upward or downward.
• Pinching out - A layer of impermeable rock is
squeezed upward into the reservoir rock.
The Habitat of Gas and Oil
Most oil and gas reservoirs are found in
sandstones and / or carbonates. There are
very limited occurrences in shale, volcanic
rocks and fractured basement rock
(basalt).

Sandstone reservoirs are more abundant,

yet limestone are more important as
reservoirs for hydrocarbons.
 TRAPS FOR OIL AND GAS ACCUMULATION
A trap may be a structural, stratigraphic or a
combination of the two. That portion of the trap in
which oil or gas is stored in nature is usually referred
to as a petroleum reservoir.
The three prerequisites to a commercial accumulation
of oil and / or gas are:
1. Source rock
2. Porous and permeable container rock
3. Impermeable caprock or seal
( a )Anticlines

A closed anticline has the shape of structural

dome. The anticline trap, with its concave upper
boundary, was formed by folding of the rock
layers. The resulting reservoir was filled by
upward migration of oil or gas. It is fairly
common also to find salt water in these traps
beneath the oil and gas.
( b )Fault Traps

A fault is a break in subsurface strata. Often

strata on one side of the fault line have been
displaced (upward, downward, or laterally )
relative to their original positions. Such an
occurrence can form a trap for accumulated oil
and gas. The oil is confined because of the tilt of
the rock layers.
( c )Unconformities

When the upward movement of petroleum has

been halted by an impermeable cap rock laid
down across the cut-off surfaces of the lower
beds, the resulting reservoir is called an
unconformity. Water or wind erosion is a
possible cause of such an occurrence.
( d )Dome and Plug Traps

An example of a dome and plug trap is the salt

dome. Conical masses of rock material ( in this
case, salt) originated at unknown depths and
pierced or lifted the overlying sedimentary
strata. In the process, reservoirs were formed
in the surrounding porous rock.
( e )Lens-Type Traps

Another type of reservoir is the lens type,

which is a trap sealed in its upper regions by
abrupt changes in the amount of connected
pore space within a formation. In this type of
trap, oil is confined within porous parts of the
rock by the nonporous and impermeable parts
of the rocks surrounding it.
( f )Combination Traps

Another common type of reservoir, the

combination trap, is formed by a
combination of folding, faulting,
changes in porosity, or other conditions.
Anticlinal structure is a common type of
structure which accounts for large
accumulations of oil and gas.
In a structural trap, oil and gas is trapped against
impermeable beds as a result of faulting. Many oil and gas
accumulations are associated with growth faults formed in
ancient river deltas. These “normal” or growth faults were
caused by rapid sedimentation on top of salt beds or under
compacted marine clays
In an oil accumulation under an unconformity the upward
movement of oil in a permeable zone has been blocked
by impermeable deposits laid down on the weathered
surface of lower beds.
Fig.5. represents an oil accumulation on
top and along the sides of a piercement –
type salt dome. River bed deposits on top
of thick beds of plastic clays or salt. With
continued deposition and added weight on
the shale or salt causes it to compress
resulting in growth faults or fractures,
forming huge salt plugs or domes.
Many radial faults are created around the
salt dome. Flow of oil or gas in an upward
direction along depositional strata is often
blocked by the salt domes. The many
radial faults caused the hydrocarbon
accumulation around a salt dome to be
broken into many reservoirs.
Oil accumulation in lenses within a sandstone bar,
representing one type of stratigraphic trap. Oil and gas are
found in many different types of stratigraphic traps in
sandstones and carbonates.
 STRUCTURAL GEOLOGY

Sedimentary rocks are deposited in layers or

beds. Plane of layering in sedimentary rocks is
called bedding or stratification.

At the beginning of deposition, bedding or

stratification is generally horizontal. Sometimes it
may be slightly inclined at the time of deposition.
This is called initial dip.
Subsequent to deposition the beds may
get tilted as a result of deforming forces
acting on the rocks. When bedding is
inclined its three dimensional orientation is
described by the terms dip and strike.
Strike is the direction of a horizontal line drawn
on the inclined plane; in other words it is the
direction of the lines of intersection of an inclined
plane with the horizontal surfaces. Amount of dip
is the angle between the inclined plane and the
horizontal plane and direction of dip is the
direction in which the plane is inclined, which is
perpendicular to the strike direction (Fig.1).
The part of a bed which is seen on the
surface of the earth is its outcrop or
exposure. On a horizontal surface the
extension of a bed is parallel to the strike
and its underground extension is along the
dip.
Structural contours can be drawn on a plane. These are
horizontal projections of lines joining the points of equal
elevation of a plane (Fig.2). From the structure contours
of different elevation one can visualize the direction and
amount of inclination of a plane.
For steeply inclined beds structure
contours are closely spaced. For gently
inclined beds structure contours are widely
spaced.
When a number of successive beds occur in an
area the arrangement of the beds from older to
younger or from lower to higher is called the
succession. On a horizontal surface if one
proceeds in the dip direction and encounters the
outcrop of successive younger beds (Fig.3)
 FOLDS

When layers are bent the undulations are

called folds.

When convexity is upward in a fold it is

called an antiform or sometimes an
anticline; when convexity is downwards it
is a synform or syncline. When convexity
is sideways it is a neutral fold.
In an anticline progressively older beds
are encountered towards the core of a
fold , in a syncline progressively younger
beds are encountered towards the core
(Fig.4)
On a particular folded surface the line joining
the points of maximum curvature is called axis
or hinge line. A surface which joins the fold
axes of successively folded planes is the axial
plane or axial surface (Fig.5).
• The region round the fold axis is the hinge zone.

• Sides or flanks of a fold extending from one hinge

zone to the next are the limbs of a fold.
• Line joining the points of maximum elevation on a
folded plane is the crestal line or crest.
• A surface joining the crestal plane is crestal
surface (Fig.6).
• A line joining the points of lowest elevation
on folded surface is the trough line.
• Trough plane joins successive trough
lines, since oil and gas migrates upwards,
delineation (demarcation) of crestal
regions is very important for locating
petroleum.
 Fig:6
When the angle between the limbs of a fold are
large it is called an open or gentle fold, when it is
small the fold is close or tight fold. When two
limbs are parallel it is an isoclinical fold (Fig.7).

(a)
(b) (c)
Fig: 7, (a) Open, (b) & ( C) Tight.
When the axial surface divides the fold
into two symmetrical halves it is a
symmetrical fold, when two halves are not
symmetrical the fold is asymmetrical
(Fig.8).

Fig.8.
Folds whose two limbs dip in the same
direction are called normal folds; the limbs
which is rotated more than 900 from the
original position is the overturned limb, the
other limb is normal limb
l Overturned
m a
r
No

Fig.9.
• Hinges of folds may be rounded or angular.

• A Parallel fold is a fold in which the layers

maintain constant orthogonal thickness. A
similar fold is one in which layers are thinned
on the limb and thickened on the hinge, but
the thickness measured parallel to the axial
plane remains constant.
 Petroleum Migration

Any Movement of oil and gas in the crust

is called petroleum migration, including
primary and secondary migration
 Migration
www.diveco.co.nz/img/gallery/2006/diver_bubbles.jpg • Hot oil and gas is less dense than
the source rock in which it occurs

• Oil and gas migrate upwards up

through the rock in much the same
way that the air bubbles of an
underwater diver rise to the surface

Rising oil

• The rising oil and gas eventually gets

trapped in pockets in the rock called
reservoirs
 Secondary Migration
Movement of oil and gas in the reservoir is called
secondary migration.
Secondary migration takes place within the
porous reservoir rock, or from one reservoir rock to
another . It is the process which collects oil and gas
into commercial pools.

• In secondary migration, the oil droplets are moved

about within the reservoir to from pools.
• Secondary migration can include a second step
during which crustal movements of the earth shift
the position of the pool within the reservoir rock
 Reservoir Rocks
• The permeable strata in an oil trap
is known as the Reservoir Rock

• Reservoir rocks have lots of

interconnected holes called pores.
These absorb the oil and gas like a
sponge

This is a highly magnified picture of

aAs oil migrates
sandy it fills
reservoir rockup the pores
(water-filled
(oil-filled
pores are pores
shownshown in black)
in blue)
Earth Science World Image Bank Image #h5innl
 Source of North Sea Oil
© Ian and Tonya West

Black Shale

Ancient Earth

The Kimmeridge Clay is a Black Shale with up to 50% organic

matter. It is the main source rock for the North Sea Oil & Gas Province
• In secondary migration in the carrier bed,
petroleum moves up dip in a carrier rock
predominantly because of its buoyancy,
since it has a lower density than the
surrounding formation waters. Petroleums
in the subsurface will typically have
densities ranging from 800 to 500 kg m−3
for oils and as low as 100 kg m−3 for gases
according to the pressure and temperature
 Hydrogeological evidence of fluid migration
• Petroleum reservoirs found far from source rocks (Hill, 1990)

• Biogenetic sulfur, calcite, and metal sulfates (barite, celestite)

deposits (Crawford and Wallace, 1993)

• Karst features (Carlsbad caverns) carved by sulfuric acid (Hill, 1990)

• MVT mineralization (sphalerite, pyrite, galena) by migrating brines

along basin margins (Hill, 1996)

• Regional dissolution of halite by eastward recharge of meteoric

water (Chaturvedi, 1993)
 Main forces of secondary
migration
 Buoyancy : It is upward acting
force caused by fluid pressure that
keeps thing float .
The main driving force for the upward
movement of oil through sea water is
buoyancy. Buoyancy is also the main
driving force for oil or gas migrating
through water-saturated rocks in the
subsurface.
• Hydrodynamic force
• A vector in the direction of water flow and
equal to the rate of change of pressure
measured along the flow path and
corrected to horizontal datum plane is the
hydrodynamic force , Ph, acting on the unit
volume of the oil as consequence of the
water flow.
• The hydrodynamic force interferes with
the buoyant force .The resultant of these
two forces controls the position of the oil in
the aquifer in relation to moving water.
  Capillary pressure—Resistant
force
• The pressure difference between the oil
phase and the water phase across a
curved oil-water interface.
• The factors that determine the magnitude
of this resistant force are (1) the radius of
the pore throats of the rock, and (2) the
hydrocarbon-water interfacial tension, and
(3) wettability.
  Physical requirements for secondary
migration
1. An adequate supply of hydrocarbons to
sustain it
2. adequately continuous permeable
pathways to facilitated it
3. The necessary pressure gradient to
impel it
 Secondary migration by water drive

• Buoyancy, reflecting the difference in

densities of hydrocarbons and waters, is
the main mechanism of secondary
migration under hydrostatic conditions ,
especially in coarse sand in which the
pressure readily equalize to hydrostatic ,
All crude oils float on salt water and nearly
all on fresh water.
Secondary migration by gas flushing

• Where two or more fluids of different

densities try to occupy the same trap, the
heaviest fluid is displaced because the
lighter ones move above it and force it
below the spill point. William Gussow
examined the case of the migration of gas
oil and water though a succession of
traps .
 Secondary migration via fractures
• Open fractures in the reservoir are the
channels of nearly infinite permeability
,they must constitute possible routes of
secondary migration through porous
strata.
• Fractures are a means of facilitating
secondary migration.
 Distance
• The total distance of secondary migration
of oil up to traps may vary fr0m a few
hundred meters to more than one hundred
kilometers
• In the Alberta basin of Canada , for
instance the formation of the Athabasca
tar sand requires secondary migration
over distance of at least 100 km.
 Petroleum System Processes
Petroleum System Elements
Petroleum System Elements

Gas
Cap
Oil
Accumulation
Entrapment Water Seal Rock
Reservoir
Rock

Migration
120° F

350° F
Generation
Source 24803

Rock
 Asphalt Seep
Viola Limestone (Oklahoma)