CARBONATE PORE SYSTEMS: NEW DEVELOPMENTS AND

CASE STUDIES

EDITED BY:

DONALD F. MCNEILL AND PAUL (MITCH) HARRIS

CSL Center for Carbonate Research, Department of Marine Geosciences, University of Miami,
4600 Rickenbacker Causeway, Miami, Florida 33149, USA

EUGENE C. RANKEY
Kansas Interdisciplinary Carbonates Consortium, Department of Geology, University of Kansas,
1414 Naismith Drive, Lawrence, Kansas 66045, USA

JEAN C.C. HSIEH

Technical E&P, Repsol Services Company,
2455 Technology Forest Boulevard, The Woodlands, Texas 77381, USA

SEPM SPECIAL PUBLICATION NO. 112

Image Information: A ImageJ colorized backscattered SEM photomicrograph of an argon ion-milled concretion
sample from the Vaca Muerta Formation, Upper Jurassic, Argentina. Backscatter SEM photograph and ImageJ
colorization by Don McNeill.

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 Carbonate Pore Systems: New Developments and Case Studies

Donald F. McNeill, Paul (Mitch) Harris, Eugene C. Rankey, and Jean C.C. Hsieh

CONTENTS
Carbonate Pore Systems: New Developments and Case Studies—Introduction
DONALD F. MCNEILL, PAUL (MITCH) HARRIS, EUGENE C. RANKEY, AND JEAN C.C. HSIEH.................................. 1

Sedimentologic, Stratigraphic, and Diagenetic Controls on Development of Carbonate Pore Systems

Porosity in Microbial Carbonate Reservoirs in the Middle Triassic Leikoupo Formation (Anisian Stage), Sichuan Basin, China
JINMIN SONG, SHUGEN LIU, ZHIWU LI, DI YANG, WEI SUN, TONG LIN, HAO WANG, YONGQIANG YU, YI LONG,
AND PING LUO ............................................................................................................................................................................ 5

Biochemical and Stratigraphic Controls on Pore-System Evolution, Phosphoria Rock Complex (Permian), Rocky Mountain
Region, USA
MAXWELL POMMER AND J. FREDERICK SARG ............................................................................................................... 25

A Petrophysical Multivariate Approach Using Geophysical Well Logs and Laboratory Measurements to Characterize an Albian
Carbonate Reservoir in the Campos Basin, Southeast Brazil
ABEL CARRASQUILLA AND RAPHAEL SILVA ................................................................................................................... 61

Sweet Spot and Porosity Development in an Unconventional Source Rock Play

AURELIEN O.E. PIERRE, KEVIN MAGEAU, PATRICK MILLER, ANDREA (ANNIE) COX, AARON SHELBY-JAMES,
AND TARA BRANTER .............................................................................................................................................................. 73

Interactions in Multimodal and Multiscale Pore Systems

Evolution of Pore Types and Petrophysical Properties of Fault Rocks in Low-Porosity Carbonates
A. CILONA, J.G. SOLUM, A. LUCCA, F. STORTI, F. BALSAMO, AND C. TABERNER.................................................... 94

Characterizing Facies, Pore Types, and Diagenesis of a Subtidal to Peritidal Carbonate Platform for Defining Flow Units
LUCY MANIFOLD, AHMED EL-BOZIE, CATHY HOLLIS, AND STEFAN SCHRÖDER ................................................ 108

Lateral and Vertical Trends of Preferred Flow Pathways Associated with Bioturbated Carbonate: Examples from Middle to Upper
Jurassic Strata, Central Saudi Arabia
HASSAN ELTOM AND STEPHEN T. HASIOTIS .................................................................................................................. 126

Characterizing the Distribution of Natural Fractures from Outcrop in a Mississippian-Aged Mixed Carbonate-Chert System, Mid-
Continent, USA
YULUN WANG AND G. MICHAEL GRAMMER.................................................................................................................. 141

Microporosity in Conventional and Unconventional Carbonate Reservoirs

Characterization of Porosity Within a Microporous Reservoir, Shuaiba Formation of Oman
CATHY HOLLIS, AISHA AL HAJRI, STEVEN VAN BOXEL, AND PETER LEE ............................................................. 162

Pore Size and Ultrasonic Velocity: Lessons from Miss Lime Reservoirs
ROHIT RAJ, PRIYANK JAISWAL, BETH VANDEN BERG, AND G. MICHAEL GRAMMER......................................... 183

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 Multiscale Imaging and Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Pore Characterization in Unconventional Carbonate Mudrocks of the
Southern Midcontinent (USA): Mississippi Lime Play
IBUKUN Y. BODE, CHI ZHANG, BETH VANDEN BERG, AND G. MICHAEL GRAMMER ......................................... 196

Nature of Porosity in Marine Calcite Concretions: Insights from Ion-Micromilled Surfaces

DONALD F. MCNEILL, IBUKUN BODE-OMOLEYE, AND G. MICHAEL GRAMMER.................................................. 220

Visualization, Quantification, and Modeling of Carbonate Pore Systems and their Fluid-Flow Behavior
High-Resolution Large Area Scanning Electron Microscopy: An Imaging Tool for Porosity and Diagenesis of Carbonate Rock
Systems
JIM BUCKMAN, ELMA CHARALAMPIDOU, STEPHANIE ZIHMS, HELEN LEWIS, PATRICK CORBETT, GARY
COUPLES, ZEYUN JIANG, AND TIANSHEN HUANG ....................................................................................................... 233

Porosity Distribution and Evolution in Pleistocene Reefal Limestone: Implications for Scale-Dependent Fluid Flow
VIVIANA D. DIAZ, DONALD F. MCNEILL, ROBERT C. GOODIN, AND JAMES S. KLAUS ........................................ 252

Carbonate Pore-System Influence on Hydrocarbon Displacement and Potential Recovery

SHAWN FULLMER, HISHAM AL QASSAB, ANTONIO BUONO, BO GAO, BRIAN KELLEY, AND P.J. MOORE...... 268

Quantitative Digital Petrography: A Novel Approach to Reservoir Characterization

ANTONIO BUONO, KEITH PETERSON, KELLY LUCK, SHAWN FULLMER, AND PAUL J. MOORE ........................ 285

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 CARBONATE PORE SYSTEMS: NEW DEVELOPMENTS AND CASE STUDIES—
INTRODUCTION

DONALD F. McNEILL, PAUL (MITCH) HARRIS

CSL Center for Carbonate Research, Department of Marine Geosciences, University of Miami,
4600 Rickenbacker Causeway, Miami, Florida 33149, USA
e-mail: dmcneill@rsmas.miami.edu

EUGENE C. RANKEY
Kansas Interdisciplinary Carbonates Consortium, Department of Geology, University of Kansas,
1414 Naismith Drive, Lawrence, Kansas 66045, USA

AND

JEAN C.C. HSIEH

Technical E&P, Repsol Services Company, 2455 Technology Forest Boulevard, The Woodlands, Texas 77381, USA

BACKGROUND—BASIS FOR SPECIAL
PUBLICATION
The SEPM (Society for Sedimentary Geology) and the CSPG
(Canadian Society of Petroleum Geologists) convened the 2017
Mountjoy Carbonate Research Conference (Mountjoy II) in Austin,
Texas, from June 25 to 29, 2017. The conference, honoring Eric
Mountjoy and his numerous contributions as a geologist and graduate
student supervisor, was attended by ~140 professors, students, and
industry geologists and engineers from around the world. The theme
for the conference and now the resultant SEPM special publication,
Carbonate Pore Systems, follows the general concept to have topics
that are relevant to the petroleum industry and therefore blend the best
of cutting-edge geoscience research with industry needs. The
conference included a mix of technical sessions, field trips, and a
core workshop with a broad focus centered on the overall theme. As
such, the hope of the sponsoring societies and the large group of
committee members responsible for organizing all aspects of the
conference was to bring together geoscientists from industry,
academia, and government to share the latest advances in their fields,
interact within this unique opportunity for networking provided by the
conference, and build new and lasting research partnerships and
friendships.
A major goal of the conference organizers was to encourage
presenters from the conference to contribute to a major publication
featuring studies with significant new results in the analysis of
carbonate pore systems. Interestingly, SEPM has not published a
carbonate porosity–permeability-focused volume since the 1980s
(Friedman and Ali 1981, Schneidermann and Harris 1985), and a brief
review of specific books or edited compilations outside of SEPM that
have focused on carbonate porosity1 and permeability produced a
surprisingly short list (Bebout and Moore 1979, Moore 1989, Budd et
al. 1995, Lucia 1999), which again highlights the significant amount
of time since the last meaningful publication.
This new SEPM–CSPG special publication is timely given the
renewed interest in carbonate reservoirs, including those in carbonate
mudrock deposits, as well as the many new technical advances and
approaches that are being utilized in diagenetic studies. Papers in the
volume are organized around subthemes, with arguably some overlap
between them, in an effort to provide some structure for better
addressing the topic and focusing on the newer aspects.
These porosity subthemes include:
 Sedimentologic, stratigraphic, and diagenetic controls on develop-
ment of carbonate pore systems;
 Interactions in multimodal and multiscale pore systems;
 Microporosity in conventional and unconventional carbonate
reservoirs; and
 Visualization, quantification, and modeling of carbonate pore
systems and their fluid-flow behavior.
OVERVIEW OF PAPERS IN THE VOLUME
Sedimentologic, Stratigraphic, and Diagenetic Controls
on Development of Carbonate Pore Systems
Four papers in the Mountjoy II special publication focus on some
aspect, or a combination of aspects, dealing with porosity as
influenced by properties of the original sediment, by some stratal
property, or, more commonly, the influence of diagenesis. The
following papers evaluate these three aspects of carbonate porosity.
In ‘‘Porosity in Microbial Carbonate Reservoirs in the Middle
Triassic Leikoupo Formation (Anisian Stage), Sichuan Basin, in
China,’’ Jinmin Song and coauthors discuss a regional-scale
stratigraphic and core-based porosity and permeability study of
microbial carbonates that form reservoir units in the Triassic section of
the Sichuan Basin, China. The authors assess both the lateral and
vertical nature of the microbial deposits. This analysis focuses on
where the most favorable reservoir properties occur and in which
microbial lithofacies. For example, the thrombolitic and stromatolitic
dolostone lithofacies host the best-quality reservoir intervals. This
favorable porosity is related to the microbial pore type and size
characteristics of the pores (200 lm in diameter and 40–50-lm-wide
pore throats). The high-quality reservoirs have distinct spatial extent,
and the authors speculate on the dolomitization development and

Carbonate Pore Systems: New Developments and Case Studies

DOI: 10.2110/sepmsp.112.17
SEPM Special Publication No. 112, Copyright Ó 2018
SEPM (Society for Sedimentary Geology), ISBN 978-1-56576-364-7, eISBN 978-1-56576-365-4, p. 1–4.

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 2 DONALD F. McNEILL, PAUL (MITCH) HARRIS, EUGENE C. RANKEY,
causes of porosity generation and loss. The overarching diagenetic
(dolomitization) and stratigraphic (microbial lithofacies type) aspects
clearly place this paper in the sedimentologic, stratigraphic, and
diagenetic theme of this special publication.
Maxwell Pommer and J. Frederick Sarg focus on pore systems that
evolved as a result of the biotic and chemical dynamics in a shallow
epicontinental seaway undergoing extreme environmental shifts in
‘‘Biochemical and Stratigraphic Controls on Pore-System Evolution,
Phosphoria Rock Complex (Permian), Rocky Mountain Region,
USA.’’ By using petrographic methods and spatially resolved
measurements of d18O in a sequence-stratigraphic context, the
variability of pore systems is shown regionally and across systems
tracts on second- (9–10-million-year) and third-order (2–5-million-
year) timescales. Minimal porosity occurred in transgressive mudrock
units rich in organic matter, phosphorites, and carbonates, whereas
substantial reservoir porosity accumulated in highstand sediments,
varying with transitions from silicisponge spicule chert and calcitic
biota (brachiopods, bryozoans, and crinoids) to pervasively dolomi-
tized micritic lithofacies, aragonitic mollusks, and microbialites.
In ‘‘A Petrophysical Multivariate Approach Using Geophysical Well
Logs and Laboratory Measurements to Characterize an Albian
Carbonate Reservoir in the Campos Basin, Southeast Brazil,’’ authors
Abel Carrasquilla and Raphael Silva used petrophysics software and
petrophysical data to characterize the geophysical log-based electro-
facies of Albian carbonate reservoirs in the Campos Basin, offshore
Brazil. This paper is grouped in this category based on the
stratigraphic nature of the log data, but porosity development and
log-signature likely have a diagenetic component inclusive. This study
uses a multiple linear regression technique to delineate the
geophysical log-based electrofacies. The electrofacies were calibrated
with laboratory porosity and permeability data to identify the more
favorable flow units. The overall goal of this applied study was to use
this hindcast-type test and calibration to develop a method that
effectively predicts porosity, permeability, and water saturation.
Ultimately, as a validation of the methodology, in a test well where
well-specific laboratory data were absent and only geophysical log
data were available, this technique helped to identify key flow units.
A quantitative approach for porosity typing was conducted on two-
dimensional (2D) and 3D focused ion beam scanning electron
microscope (SEM) images from the Duvernay Formation by Aurelien
O.E. Pierre and co-authors in ‘‘Sweet Spot and Porosity Development
in an Unconventional Source Rock Play.’’ Their results indicate that
there are positive correlations between liquid yield and pore size, and
between thermal maturity and pore size. Likewise, the increases in
pore volume and number of effective pores (and thus permeability)
follow the same trend as the mean pore size. It is concluded that
matrix porosity and, more importantly, matrix permeability are
primarily the result of thermal maturation of kerogen. This
relationship was not recognized previously, perhaps due to limited
examination of the maturation window. The thermal diagenetic aspects
of this study put this paper clearly in the diagenetic controls on
porosity development.
Interactions in Multimodal and Multiscale Pore Systems
Four papers in this volume examine directly the scales, sizes, and
size distributions of carbonate pores, and how different pore sizes co-
occur. The issues of scale of measurement and the ability to upscale
laboratory- and field-based data are major challenges in carbonate
porosity and petrophysics. Prediction of porosity across multiple
scales remains one of the major goals of flow models for the
prediction of carbonate porosity and permeability. Although we group
four papers in this category, several, if not all, of the papers in this
volume address the issue of scale and multimodal pore systems.
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AND JEAN C.C. HSIEH
In ‘‘Evolution of Pore Types and Petrophysical Properties of Fault
Rocks in Low-Porosity Carbonates,’’ Antonio Cilona and coauthors
present an integrated structural and petrophysical study of two
carbonate outcrops in central Italy, where faults are known to act as
dynamic seals at depth in a karstified groundwater reservoir. Ranges
of porosity and permeability for each type of fault rock were measured
on a large number of plug samples collected in transects orthogonal to
the fault zones. Crackle breccias showed the highest plug permeabil-
ities, whereas the ultra-cataclastites had the lowest plug permeability,
roughly equivalent to unfractured host rock. These data reveal the
interplay between various fault rocks and host-rock permeability and
the development of permeability anisotropy of fault zones in
carbonates.
Lucy Manifold and coauthors, in ‘‘Characterizing Facies, Pore
Types, and Diagenesis of a Subtidal to Peritidal Carbonate Platform
for Defining Flow Units,’’ utilized the Miocene Santanyı́ Limestone
Formation from Mallorca, Spain, to integrate sedimentology, facies
architecture, and diagenesis to determine how porosity evolves within
individual facies in the shallow subsurface. Petrophysical analyses
document an anisotropy that is not related directly to either geological
facies or pore type but instead relates to diagenetic pathways that were
followed after deposition. The best reservoir quality is associated with
facies that have undergone pervasive recrystallization or dolomitiza-
tion, producing rocks with a low formation resistivity factor and thus
the simplest pore systems. In contrast, the poorest reservoir properties
are in facies that have not been recrystallized and hence are dominated
by a simple network of micropores. This study serves as an example
of diagenesis as a cause for the diversification of pore types and thus a
multimodal pore system.
In ‘‘Lateral and Vertical Trends of Preferred Flow Pathways
Associated with Bioturbated Carbonate: Examples from Middle to
Upper Jurassic Strata, Central Saudi Arabia,’’ Hassan Eltom and
Stephen T. Hasiotis document how shallowly to deeply penetrating
bioturbation by organisms on carbonate shelves can alter the original
depositional texture of carbonate sediments, rearrange and alternate
the primary porosity and permeability pattern, and effectively increase
the overall flow properties in multiple intervals. A key finding is that
complex and deep, 3D Thalassinoides burrow networks in mud-
dominated lithofacies result in open and partially open macropores, as
well as interparticle and moldic pores within the burrow filling. Such
beds provide permeability pathways in an otherwise less permeable
medium. Controls on the lateral and vertical variability of the
pathways can be attributed to changes in the water chemistry of the
depositional environments, which were likely linked to global and
local controls.
Yulun Wang and G. Michael Grammer utilized an outcrop of
Mississippian-aged strata in northwestern Arkansas to characterize
the type, attributes, and distribution of natural fractures, and to test
its suitability as a fracture analog for the subsurface in ‘‘Character-
izing the Distribution of Natural Fractures from Outcrop in a
Mississippian-Aged Mixed Carbonate–Chert System, Midcontinent,
USA.’’ Planar and nodular beds of lime mudstone and chert contain
near-vertical cemented ptygmatic and opening-mode fractures. Lime
mudstone–chert variations affect fracture growth, and chert shows a
higher average value than the lime mudstone. Best-fitting trends,
including negative exponential and power law, are observed in
fracture size (height, kinematic aperture, aspect ratio) and spacing
distributions. The observed patterns point to a likely incorporative
role of lithology, fracture type, and fracture-bedding relationships, as
well as the dynamics of mechanical stratigraphy, in affecting the
distribution of fracture size and spacing. From a porosity standpoint,
the nature of the porosity and the associated flow characteristics
likely are strongly controlled by the nature of natural mechanical
fractures.
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 CARBONATE PORE SYSTEMS: NEW DEVELOPMENTS AND CASE STUDIES—INTRODUCTION
Microporosity in Conventional and Unconventional
Carbonate Reservoirs
Four papers focus on microporosity and characterization of
micropores. Carbonate microporosity has undergone a resurgence in
recent years with the advent of unconventional reservoirs in carbonate
mudrock. This theme encompasses the unconventional interest, but
also the importance of matrix microporosity in more conventional
carbonate reservoir settings.
In ‘‘Characterization of Porosity within a Microporous Reservoir,
Shuaiba Formation of Oman,’’ Cathy Hollis and coauthors analyzed
select samples from seven hydrocarbon fields using electron
microscopy and advanced X-ray imaging to quantify carbonate pore
size and shape. The samples represent a range of lithofacies
associations that occur immediately beneath the Shuaiba–Nahr Umr
unconformity, within an interval that is recognized for possessing
higher permeability than the underlying reservoir and wherein over
70% of the total pore volume is ,1 lm in diameter. The highest
measured permeability coincides with the highest volume of resolved
porosity, highest aspect ratio, and highest coordination number.
However, average permeability overall is highest in those facies
associations with abundant macropores, the representative elemental
volume of which is greater than the sample size required for X-ray
computed tomography (CT) analysis and even routine core analysis. In
these samples, high permeability is facilitated by a connectivity of a
low volume of large (..30 lm) pores embedded within a network of
micropores. In these samples, sweep efficiency during hydrocarbon
production is likely to be poor. The results provide good evidence that
the .1 lm fraction of these rocks contributes to single-phase flow, but
they demonstrate the complexity of pore shape even at the micron
scale.
Rohit Raj and coauthors investigated the relationship between rock
properties (composition, porosity, and pore architecture) and dry
ultrasonic P-wave velocity (VP) in ‘‘Pore Size and Ultrasonic Velocity:
Lessons from Miss Lime Reservoirs.’’ When their samples are
categorized based on facies and composition (quartz fraction), VP
shows a better trend with dominant pore size rather than bulk porosity.
Results show dependence of elastic properties on texture and highlight
the need to incorporate pore-size distribution in seismic models used
for seismic interpretation of low-permeability reservoirs.
Ibukun Y. Bode and coauthors identified and evaluated controls on
petrophysical rock types in unconventional low-porosity, low-
permeability carbonate reservoirs in ‘‘Multiscale Imaging and NMR
Pore Characterization in Unconventional Carbonate Mudrocks of the
Southern Midcontinent (USA): Mississippi Lime Play.’’ Pore
structure, permeability, and natural magnetic remanence (NMR)
response are closely linked to the dominant pore types, pore sizes,
and mineralogy, which are distinctive for specific rocks, allowing for
petrophysical rock-type (PRT) grouping. Petrographic analyses
suggest that the primary cause of pore-scale heterogeneity and
varying petrophysical response is related to postdepositional diagen-
esis, such as silicification, cementation, dissolution, and mineraliza-
tion, along pores and pore throats that produces complicated pore
systems and affects matrix permeability. The distinct geometries in
each PRT group establish the viability of utilizing NMR as a rock
typing tool based on the correlative relationships among NMR
response, pore types, and facies.
In ‘‘Nature of Porosity in Calcite Marine Concretions: Insights from
Ion Micromilled Surfaces,’’ Donald F. McNeill and coauthors focus on
the pore system found in calcite concretions, which are widespread in
many siliciclastic and mixed carbonate–siliciclastic shelf and basinal
settings. Samples of Miocene and Jurassic concretions were examined
to provide the first detailed characterization of concretion porosity.
Porosity occurs between small (mostly 2–10 lm), equant, mostly
subhedral, low-magnesian calcite crystals. Equidimensional and oval
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pores occur at the intersections of calcite crystals (along with clay
minerals and organic material). Elongate pores of uncertain origin are
found at the boundaries between adjacent calcite crystals. The size and
shape of cement crystals and pores suggest that relatively early, rapid,
and pervasive precipitation produced a homogeneous mass of calcite
and small isolated pores. The precipitation of calcite near the seafloor
suggests that the porosity in the concretions is reduced upon initial
burial in organic-rich sediments that support a shallow zone of
bacterial sulfate reduction. Due to their low porosity and permeability,
concretions can act as flow barriers throughout their burial history, and
they can present challenges during drilling, logging, or hydraulic
fracturing of unconventional mudrock reservoirs.
Visualization, Quantification, and Modeling of
Carbonate Pore Systems and their Fluid-Flow Behavior
Four papers in this volume address the quantification and
visualization of pore networks as they related to pore evolution, pore
modification (cementation), dynamic fluid-flow characterization, and
the ways in which petrographic data can be integrated to better
quantify reservoir flow properties.
Jim Buckman and coauthors demonstrate automated SEM image
collection from polished thin sections, in conjunction with autono-
mous stitching, to construct high-resolution (micron- to submicron-
resolution) image montages over areas up to several square
centimeters as a tool to study carbonate porosity and diagenesis in
‘‘High-Resolution, Large-Area Scanning Electron Microscopy: An
Imaging Tool for Porosity and Diagenesis of Carbonate Rock
Systems.’’ Montages constructed from backscattered electron images
are ideally suited to the extraction of data on microporosity, with
possibilities including the construction of contoured maps to illustrate
spatial variation in porosity, porosity logs to illustrate trends in
porosity across thin sections, and stochastic construction of digital
rock models for subsequent permeability calculation. Montages taken
with a gaseous secondary electron detector in low-vacuum mode can
utilize charge contrast imaging at a variety of scales and are here used
to examine the evolution of carbonate cementation.
Viviana D. Diaz and coauthors calculate vertical profiles of
hydraulic conductivity from short-interval straddle packer injection
tests in a three-well transect in ‘‘Porosity Distribution and Evolution in
Pleistocene Reefal Limestone: Implications for Scale-Dependent Fluid
Flow.’’ Combined with whole-core porosity and plug values for matrix
porosity and permeability, these data provide a means of assessing the
scale-dependent petrophysical variability within a complex carbonate
pore system, as well as the primary factors that control flow within
such a system. Interval permeability values are up to three orders of
magnitude higher than associated plug permeability values. Although
plug permeability is related to depositional environment (backreef,
reef crest, forereef), injection tests did not show a relation to
environment. Interval injection permeability was correlated to ‘‘total’’
(whole-core) porosity and even more so to larger-scale ‘‘vuggy’’ (.~5
mm) porosity, quantified by subtracting the plug-based ‘‘matrix’’
porosity from the whole-core ‘‘total’’ porosity. The differences in
permeability between plug and interval injection tests for these vuggy
carbonates becomes greater over time as cementation occludes matrix
porosity, and dissolution opens up larger molds and vugs. A touching-
vug pore system shifts the scale dependence of hydraulic conductivity
from the plug scale to the packer (bed) scale, and probably towards the
regional scale.
Shawn Fullmer and coauthors, in ‘‘Carbonate Pore System
Influence on Hydrocarbon Displacement and Recovery,’’ summarize
results from carbonate reservoirs across a broad spectrum of geologic
conditions, fluid types, and field maturities to give key insights on the
links between pore-system characteristics and dynamic fluid-flow
Page 3
 4 DONALD F. McNEILL, PAUL (MITCH) HARRIS, EUGENE C. RANKEY,
behavior. Their findings are the result of leveraging new techniques
for quantifying the distribution of the various components of the
carbonate pore system, integrating this information with special core
analyses and other dynamic data, and distributing the dynamically
calibrated pore-system information in sector-scale models, which are
then validated against further dynamic control. Pore-system hetero-
geneity is a primary control on hydrocarbon displacement efficiency.
Multiphase flow through heterogeneous pore systems with a mix of
pore types results in lower recovery than flow through more
homogeneous pore systems. A major control on multiphase fluid
movement in reservoirs with interlayered mixed and micropore-
dominated flow units is the contrast in capillary pressure (Pc) and
water relative permeability (Krw) between these distinct pore systems.
Simulation scenarios were executed to investigate impacts on areal
sweep and recovery.
Antonio Buono and coauthors present a new method of
computerized object-based image analysis that relies on a predefined
rule set to enable rapid, automated thin-section quantification, with
only minor human interaction, in ‘‘Quantitative Digital Petrography:
Full Thin-Section Quantification of Pore Space and Grains.’’ Using
their technique, statistically relevant numbers of thin sections can be
rapidly batch processed and quality controlled, thereby allowing
quantitative data such as Mercury Injection Capillary Pressure (MICP)
wettability, and surveillance data to be integrated with the petro-
graphic data. Their approach provides a data set that can be
incorporated across an entire well or field to better address common
challenges associated with carbonate reservoir characterization, such
as understanding pore type and cement abundance, pore connectivity,
grain distribution, and reservoir flow characteristics.
SIGNIFICANCE OF THIS SPECIAL PUBLICATION
In an effort to better emphasize some of the key findings of the
studies, the 16 papers of this volume are presented within four
subthemes: (1) Sedimentologic, stratigraphic, and diagenetic controls
on development of carbonate pore systems, (2) Interactions in
multimodal and multiscale pore systems, (3) Microporosity in
conventional and unconventional carbonate reservoirs, and (4)
Visualization, quantification, and modeling of carbonate pore systems
and their fluid-flow behavior. Depending on background and interests,
individual readers will likely identify papers and results that are of
more interest and application than others. However, we hope that the
collection of papers finds a balance to ultimately be of interest to the
widest audience possible.
There is a particular emphasis on microporous systems in the
volume, reflecting the current interest in fine-grained depositional
systems and reservoirs. Carbonate-rich (.50% carbonate) mudrock
units in unconventional systems provide a new challenge because their
diagenesis and pore network can evolve differently from more
traditional (less carbonate-rich) mudrock units.
Because several of the papers highlight some of the latest
techniques that are being utilized to study carbonate diagenesis and
resultant pore systems, this special publication should provide new
direction in that regard. For example, automated SEM and image
montages (Buckman and others), computerized object-based image
analysis (Buono and others), NMR application to unconventional
carbonates (Bode and others), micromilled imaging of carbonates
(McNeill and others), and focused ion beam SEM (Pierre and others)
are some of the microscale techniques used to image carbonate pores.
Likewise, data and observations from the field are also promoting a
better understanding of porosity and permeability, often in the applied
realm. For example, it is important to understand the development of
vuggy porosity and scaling issues (Diaz and others), porosity and
permeability associated with faults (Cilona and others), the relation-
ships among fractures, porosity, and mechanical stratigraphy (Wang
//titan/production/s/sepb/live_jobs/sepb-18/sepb-18-02/sepb-18-02-17/layouts/sepb-18-02-17.3d  8 October 2019  2:17 pm  Allen Press, Inc.
AND JEAN C.C. HSIEH
and Grammer), and even the biological impact on porosity
development and enhancement at the reservoir scale (Eltom and
Hasiotis).
There is also an emphasis on the newest approaches, often an
integration of techniques and results, which should provide case
studies to serve as examples for a new or improved workflow. This
special publication offers seven papers that utilized field and/or
borehole data to provide applied porosity case studies. These case
studies include: porosity associated with microbial carbonate and
dolomitization (Song and others); porosity distribution in a sequence
stratigraphic framework (Pommer and Sarg); the influence of the
carbonate pore system on hydrocarbon displacement and recovery
(Fullmer and others); the impact of diagenesis on pore evolution in
shallow-marine carbonates (Manifold and others); the relationship
between porosity and acoustic properties in carbonate mudrock (Raj
and others); the pore aspects in a microporous limestone reservoir
(Hollis and others); and the development of log-based electrofacies
that incorporate laboratory-calibrated porosity and permeability data
(Carrasquilla and Silva).
NOTES
1. Nomenclature caveat: Strictly speaking, porosity is a property of
a rock (i.e., a number), whereas a pore is a 3D void space in the rock
(i.e., a thing). The papers in this volume, as well as most papers in
general, do not consistently adhere to these definitions. As editors for
this volume, we chose not to force authors to change their particular
usage as the common usage and particular terms have become so
ingrained.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
We are indebted to the conference sponsors: SEPM, CSPG, Shell,
Statoil, Eby Petrographic, Repsol, ConocoPhillips, and the Bureau of
Economic Geology University of Texas at Austin. The editors are
grateful for the support given to the production of this volume by
SEPM, and especially that of Michele Tomlinson. We gratefully
acknowledge the technical review and editorial assistance provided by
the group of dedicated peer reviewers whose names are listed at the
beginning of this book.
REFERENCES
Bebout DG, Moore CH. 1979. Geology of Carbonate Porosity, Continuing
Education Course Note 11: American Association of Petroleum Geologists,
Tulsa, Oklahoma. 246 p.
Budd DA, Saller AH, Harris PM (Editors). 1995. Unconformities and Porosity
in Carbonate Strata, Memoir 63: American Association of Petroleum
Geologists, Tulsa, Oklahoma. 313 p.
Friedman GM, Ali SA (Editors). 1981. Diagenesis of Carbonate Rocks:
Cement–Porosity Relationships, Reprint Series 10: SEPM (Society for
Sedimentary Geology), Tulsa, Oklahoma. 295 p.
Lucia FJ. 1999. Carbonate Reservoir Characterization—An Integrated
Approach: Springer Verlag, Berlin. 227 p.
Moore CH. 1989. Carbonate Diagenesis and Porosity, Developments in
Sedimentology 46: Elsevier, Amsterdam. 337 p.
Schneidermann N, Harris PM (Editors). 1985. Carbonate Cements, Special
Publication 36: SEPM (Society for Sedimentary Geology), Tulsa, Oklahoma.
379 p.
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