Sample description

Order of written descriptions

Written descriptions are required in a standardized order of description

because of the following:

1- it reduces the chance of not recording all important properties

2- increases the uniformity of description among surface data logger

3- saves time in obtaining information from descriptions

The following order is used:

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Cont. Order of written description
1- Rock type

2- Color
3- Texture: (grain/crystal size, shape, roundness, hardness and sorting)
4- Cement and/or matrix materials
5- Fossils and accessories
6- Porosity and permeability
7- Hydrocarbon shows
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Cont. Order of written description

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Rock Types
The recording of rock type consists of two fundamental parts:

1- the basic rock name (e.g., dolomite, limestone, sandstone)

2- the proper compositional or textural classification term (e.g., lithic,

oolitic grainstone)

NB: The second part is not generally taken into consideration except
in some special lithologies and situations

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Cont. Order of written description

Rock color
- Color of rocks may be a mass effect of the colors of the component grains,
or result from the color of the cement or matrix, or staining of these

- Colors may occur in combinations and patterns, e.g., mottled, banded,

spotted, variegated

- It is recommended that colors be described on wet samples under ten-

power magnification

- It is important to use the same source of light all the time and to use
constant magnification for all routine logging
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Cont. Order of written description

Cont. Rock color

- General terms, such as dark grey and medium brown, generally
suffice

- Ferruginous, carbonaceous, siliceous, and calcareous matters are the

most important staining or coloring agents

- From limonite or hematite come yellow, red, or brown shades

- Gray to black color can result from the presence of carbonaceous or

phosphatic material, iron sulfide, or manganese
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Cont. Order of written description

Cont. Rock color

- Glauconite, ferrous iron, serpentine, chlorite, and apatite impart green
coloring

- Red or orange mottling is derived from surface weathering or subsurface

oxidation by the action of circulating waters

- Colors of cuttings may be alerted, after the samples are caught, by

oxidation caused by storage in a damp place, insufficient drying after
washing, or by overheating

- Bit or pipe fragments in samples can rust and stain the samples
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Cont. Order of written description
Cont. Rock color
- Drilling mud additives may also cause staining

- Place a wet sample next to color swatches, to determine which color most
closely matches the dominant color of the sample

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Rock texture
Texture is a function of the size, shape, and arrangement of the
constituent elements of a rock

a- Grain or crystal sizes

- Size, grades and sorting of sediments are important characteristics

- They have a bearing on the porosity and the permeability of the rocks
and may be a reflection of the environment in which sediment was
deposited

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Cont. Order of written description

Cont. Rock texture

a- Grain or crystal sizes
- Size classifications are to be based on a Wentworth scale

- The surface data logger should not try to record size grades without
reference to a standard comparator of mounted sieved sand grains

- Other comparators are photomicrographs of thin sections showing both

grain size and sorting

- A simple and useful method is a photographic grid of half-millimeter

squares, which may be placed near the microscope
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Cont. Order of written description
End. Rock texture
a- Grain or crystal sizes (Wentworth scale)

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