Heat flow as a basin model calibration? Not really
Many exploration geologists who work in data-lean basins or who do not have access to well data turn to published heat flow data as a calibration for basin models. More…
Geology & Geophysics
A geomechanics approach for natural fracture prediction
Natural fractures can provide the essential permeability in hydrocarbon and geothermal reservoirs. However, they exist in the sub-seismic domain and although they can be detected by well logs and cores,…
How to explain these rates?
The Jurassic Vaca Muerta unit is a treasure trove with an estimated potential of 308 TCF of gas and 16.2 billion barrels of oil. While there are various types of…
Riedel shears, my favorite kinematic indicator
Riedel shears are commonly the first set of subsidiary faults we see prior to the breakthrough of a master fault. They form systematically at an acute angle (~10-20°) to the…
Should you rely on geothermal gradients?
When I start a new project, I commonly get this question: “What is the geothermal gradient in this area?” The question stems from an underlying assumption that the gradient provides…
Permeability multipliers: allies or foes?
3D reservoir modelling is built on 2 pillars: the static and dynamic reservoir models. The static model quantifies the architecture of the reservoir and the volume in place at initial…
Geomodelling for CCS, a bridge too far?
Traditionally, geomodels are built in a simplistic fashion, taking into account the inherent degree of uncertainty in the input data. Attempting to accurately depict an unseen geological object, often multiple…
“We should have looked at that regional seismic line with more care before signing off on a plan for drilling”
We, geologists, have the primacy of observation of rocks dinned into us during our earliest work in the field, with that message then reinforced by later events in our lives.…
Bouma and Tybalt
The Bouma sequence, proposed by Arnold Bouma, has been a cornerstone in the interpretation of turbidites and high-density sediment currents since its publication in 1962. The Bouma sequence is a…
Can a seal fail?
A seal is a rock that has a higher capillary entry pressure relative to other adjacent rocks. The higher the contrast, the greater the hydrocarbon column it can hold. The…
Don’t forget to look deeper
As oil and gas geoscientists, we often focus on the reservoir we are targeting. Seldom do we consider what might be happening deeper, especially in basement rocks. However, what happens…
Not as straight as we sometimes think
Of course, field observations have long shown that faults are not the perfectly straight lines we often see in schematic cross-sections. However, subsurface data do not always allow the detailed…