Introduction to Rock Mechanics

CE - 425

Lecture 4
Geological Exploration
(Coring)

Dr. Rana Muhammad Asad Khan

masadkhan87@gmail.com
03314438163
 Special Instructions

• No mercy on low attendance

• No Cross Talking
among students during lecture

• No Mobile Phone during Class

2
Lec No
Sections Covered/Reading Assignment
1 Introduction to Rock Mechanics CE-425, Objectives, Outcomes and
Assessment Method.
Geological Exploration: Methods of Coring
2 Geological Exploration: Core logging, and indexing

3 Index test, compressive strength, Tensile strength, Density and Porosity, HW 1

Durability, and Hardness and rebound
4 Intact Rock Classification: Hardness Classification, Deere and Miller, ISRM QUIZ 1
5 Planes of Weakness in Rock: Effect on strength, compressibility, and Hydraulic
conductivity
6 Planes of Weakness in Rock: Effect on strength, compressibility, and HW 2
Hydraulic conductivity
7 MID TERM EXAM (OHT-1) QUIZ 2
8 Rock mass Classification, Terzaghi, and Lauffer-pacher

9 Rock mass Classification, RQD, RSR QUIZ 3

10 Rock mass Classification, RMR, Q-system HW 3
11 Stress Strain - Strength Properties, Failure theories, Triaxial properties

12 Stress Strain - Strength Properties, Three dimension state of stress HW4

13 (OHT-2)

14 Properties of soft rock-creep QUIZ 4

15-16 ESE
Preserved Cores
Preserve from mechanical damage
• Rubber sleeved
• Keep frozen
Preserve wettability
• Wrap in saran film and Al-foil
• Immersion in wax (Core SealTM)
• Keep in a tube filled with brine
Oriented Cores
Scratched for in situ positioning
 Handle Carefully
The value of a core plug is more
than the value of the same
weight of gold
Core Segment (3 ft)
Core Recovery (%)
Recovered core length
 . 100
Drilled core length

Lost Core may Suggest

• Faulting
• Porous zone
• Unconsolidated bed
• Solution cavity
• Salt
Logging Drill Core

an introduction
Why is drill core cut?
• Drill core offers the most complete sampling
of rock encountered in the subsurface
• Geophysical logs are gathered under less than
ideal conditions, yield an incomplete picture,
and are subject of a fair bit of guesswork
• Drill cuttings (chips) yield insight into
mineralogy/lithology/texture, but none on
structures, offer poor vertical resolution, and
are too small to be used for assessing reservoir
properties
• Sidewall core allows for some reservoir data,
but yields an incomplete picture of the rock
structure, with little sed-strat applicability
Why not core everything?
• Unlike in hard-rock exploration,
geophysical tools do a reasonably good
job assessing rock character,
lithological variation is more
constrained.
• The combination of core and logs
allows for data to be extrapolated
laterally to other locations once the
logs have been ground truthed
 Logging core
• A job that most every
petroleum geologist is required
to do on occasion, but few
(aside from academics,
consultants and oil sands
geologists) do with regularity
or in great detail

•Usually done to solve problems not readily dealt with using more
“office-friendly” data, or when looking at the rock with an eye
towards reservoir characterization
•There are private labs, and government labs
•The EUB lab in Calgary is the behemoth (huge)
 Getting started
• Make sure you have what you want for core, and
in proper order
• Core orientation
• Key the core to the wireline logs, and measure it
out (depths on the boxes aren’t generally accurate)
• Clean the core if it is dirty
• Assess the core and break it down into broad
zones or intervals of consistent character
• Describe the rock, guided by this break-down,
taking what detail is prudent for the task at hand
• Usually this involves generating a detailed
lithological column
Additional stuff
• Detailed photographs of
representative material, and
anomalous/insightful features
• “Box shots” of the full core to
give context when returning
to the litholog and detail
photos
• Gather any samples needed
Core Numbering
Tray 12

Core 1 (44 ft) Core 1

Tray 8 Recovery 73%
Core 2

Core 3
Tray 5

Tray 1 Core 4
S. Saner 17
 Core Numbering
Core-1 60 ft
20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Trays

Core-2 58 ft
20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Core-1
Core-3 33 ft
12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Core-2

Core-3 Core-4 60 ft
Core-4 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
 DBase Report Report Report Report Report Report Report

4b 5b 6b 6c 12a
Profile Digital Geological Petrography Basic core
perm image description (TS, SEM, tests ф, k,
scan XRD) ρg

1/3 Slab
5c 11a
Epoxy impregnated Repair
TS & other samples improper
plugs

piec
End
es
Plug
1/3
2 2/3
Fix pieces 5a 6a 7a 8a 9a
Mark depths 3 4a
GR Scan Cut whole cores Trim Soxhle Endfac Oven Digital
Mark t e dry & plug 10a
orientation Dens scan Slab (1/3 & 2/3)
Cut biscuits-if needed cleanin grindin Vacuum photos Dimensio
Mark whole g g cool ns, wt
cores Drill plugs
Mark for V&H Veneer cut-if needed measure,
plugs plug
descriptio
n

1
Basic Core Analysis
Receive
Open
Clean
Storage boxes
Flow Chart
 DBase Report Report Report Report Report Report Report

4b 5b 6b 6c 12a
Profile perm Geological description Petrography (TS, SEM, Basic core tests
Digital image XRD) ф, k, ρg
scan

1/3 Slab
5c 11a
Epoxy impregnated TS & other
samples Repair
improper plugs

pieces
End
Plug
1/3

2 2/3
Fix pieces
4a 5a 6a 7a 8a 9a
Mark depths
Mark orientation 3 Cut whole cores Trim Soxhlet Endface Oven dry & Digital
Mark whole cores GR Scan Slab (1/3 & 2/3) cleaning grinding Vacuum plug
Mark for V&H plugs Dens scan Cut biscuits-if needed cool photos 10a
Drill plugs Dimensions,
Veneer cut-if needed wt measure,
plug
description

1
Basic Core Analysis
Receive
Open
Clean
Storage boxes
Flow Chart
 Receive
Open
Receive Clean Arrange Clean
Storage boxes
 Core Database
Identif Hole Asses Length Length Property Core # of Length Length
Property NT Core
icationRefere Company Name sment on Hand on Hand Referenc Labe Box Drilled Drilled Other Info
Name S# Location
# nce # # (Ft.) (M) e# l es (Ft.) (M)
Brunswick Mining & Madran
GB- Gilman 21J No GB-
0243 Smelting No Data No Data 031 Shed 26 495.3 151 No Data
001 Brook /10 Data 001
Corporation Ltd. 37B1r01
Brunswick Mining & Madran
GB- Gilman 21J No GB-
0244 Smelting No Data No Data 031 Shed 16 318.2 97 No Data
002 Brook /10 Data 002
Corporation Ltd. 37B1r08
Brunswick Mining & GB- Madran
GB-84- Gilman 21J No
0245 Smelting No Data No Data 031 84- Shed 19 332.6 101.4 boxes 6, 8-11, 24 missing
001 Brook /10 Data
Corporation Ltd. 001 37B1r12
Brunswick Mining & GB- Madran
GB-84- Gilman 21J No
0246 Smelting No Data No Data 031 84- Shed 16 280 85.37 No Data
002 Brook /10 Data
Corporation Ltd. 002 37B1r18
Brunswick Mining & GB- Madran
GB-84- Gilman 21J No
0247 Smelting No Data No Data 031 84- Shed 40 708 215.85 No Data
003 Brook /10 Data
Corporation Ltd. 003 37B1r22
Burnt Hill 21J BH- Madran logs, analyses for Wo, Mo,
BH-79- Miramichi Lumber No
3066 Tungsten /10 410 125 197 79- Shed 21 410 125 Ag, Bi, and Sn in F'ton Core
001 Company Ltd. Data
Deposit W 001 88B1r08 Bldg.
Burnt Hill 21J BH- Madran logs, analyses for Wo, Mo,
BH-79- Miramichi Lumber No
3067 Tungsten /10 787.2 240 197 79- Shed 39 787.2 240 Ag, Bi, and Sn in F'ton Core
003 Company Ltd. Data
Deposit W 003 88B1r12 Bldg.
Burnt Hill 21J BH- Madran logs, analyses for Wo, Mo,
BH-79- Miramichi Lumber No
3068 Tungsten /10 380.4 116 197 79- Shed 19 380.48 116 Ag, Bi, and Sn in F'ton Core
005 Company Ltd. Data
Deposit W 005 88B1r20 Bldg.
Burnt Hill 21J BH- Madran logs, analyses for Wo, Mo,
BH-79- Miramichi Lumber No
3069 Tungsten /10 738 225 197 79- Shed 38 738 225 Ag, Bi, and Sn in F'ton Core
006 Company Ltd. Data
Deposit W 006 88B2r03 Bldg.
Mark Up
Fix pieces
Mark depths
Mark orientation
Mark whole cores
Mark for V&H plugs
Laboratory Sampling
• Every 10 ft (3 trays) one (1 ft) whole core
• Every foot one horizontal plug
• Every 10 ft vertical plug
 Core Spectral Gamma Ray Log

Core Density Log

 ROCK PROPERTY DETERMINATION

CORE PLUG
A core plug is a much
smaller portion of the
whole core sample

1.0 or 1.5 inch in diameter

Length = 2 × Diameter
•
Core Plugs
Slab and Plug
Slabbed & Drilled Except Whole Core
 Trimming
• Trimming for even circular surfaces
• Appropriate length
• Plug end pieces for thin section petrography
ROCK & PORE
CHARACTERIZATION
THIN SECT, SEM-EDS, XRD, XRF etc.
Mineral characterization
Clay minerals
Pore characterization

MERCURY INJECTION
Pore interconnectivity
 DBase Report Report Report Report Report Report Report

4b 5b 6b 6c 12a
Profile perm Geological description Petrography (TS, SEM, Basic core tests
Digital image XRD) ф, k, ρg
scan

1/3 Slab
5c 11a
Epoxy impregnated TS & other
samples Repair
improper plugs

pieces
End
Plug
1/3

2 2/3
Fix pieces
4a 5a 6a 7a 8a 9a
Mark depths
Mark orientation 3 Cut whole cores Trim Soxhlet Endface Oven dry & Digital
Mark whole cores GR Scan Slab (1/3 & 2/3) cleaning grinding Vacuum plug
Mark for V&H plugs Dens scan Cut biscuits-if needed cool photos 10a
Drill plugs Dimensions,
Veneer cut-if needed wt measure,
plug
description

1
Basic Core Analysis
Receive
Open
Clean
Storage boxes
Flow Chart
Core Reports
• Core database
• Density Logs
• Profile Permeability
• Core Images
• Plug Images
• Geological description
• Petrographic Analyses
• Basic Core Data
Stored Material
• Drill Cuttings (Washed, Unwashed)
• Core
• Whole Core Samples
• 2/3 Portion
• 1/3 portion - Only for Archiving
• Biscuits - Only for Archiving
• Plugs (V, H)
• Plug End Pieces
• Thin Sections
 Special Core Analyses

• Water – Oil Saturation

• Electrical Measurements
• Geomechanical Tests
• Acoustic Tests
• Capillary Pressure Tests
– Centrifuge
– Porous Plate
– Mercury
• Relative Permeability tests
• Wettability Tests
• Recovery Tests
 Porosity
The porosity of carbonates can be grouped into three
types:
a) Connected porosity- exists between the carbonate
grains.
b) Vugs- they are unconnected pores resulting from the
dissolution of calcite by water during diagenesis.
c) Fracture porosity- caused by stresses following
deposition. These can also cause styolites, which can
form horizontal flow barriers, and can sometimes
extend over kilometers within the rock.
 When Logging the Core
• When written descriptions are required, a standardized order of description:
(1) reduces the chance of not recording all important properties,
(2) increases the uniformity of description among geologists, and
(3), saves time in obtaining specific information from descriptions.

1. Color- note mottling, variegation. Common colors are: brown, tan, buff, cream,
pink, white, rust, brick red, grey, etc.
2. Texture- Crystalline (give size): sucrosic or granular: oolitic pseudo-oolitic,
pelletoid: fossil fragmental microbreccia: matte, dense, extra fine x-line: chalky,
earthy: vuggy, microvuggy (note if filled)
3. Cementing- co-deposited, or disseminated material - limy, dolomitic, cherty or
siliceous, silty, sandy anhydritic, gypsiferous, saliferous, argillaceous, floating quartz,
druse quartz.
4. Accessories- glauconite, chlorite, iron oxides, phosphate, bitumen.
5. Structures- brecciation, fracturing, stylolites, laminae.
6. Common associates- anhydrite, salt, chert, shale.
7. Dunham Classification
8. Porosity, oil staining
Graphic core logs