Influence of microgeometry on membrane potential of shaly sands
The microgeometry of the pore space influences the membrane potential [Formula: see text] and the dc electrical conductivity σ of a shaly sand in a similar manner, independent of the details of the geometry. [Formula: see text] and σ are related via the conductivities of cations and anions [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text], and [Formula: see text]. This explicit relationship is used to investigate the role of the geometrical factors that influence both [Formula: see text] and σ in a related manner. The dependence of σ on water conductivity [Formula: see text] can be well approximated with four geometrical parameters, which can be obtained from the slopes and the intercepts of curves of σ versus [Formula: see text] at high and low salinities. I show how these geometrical factors appear in the expression for [Formula: see text] as well. The geometrical parameters, one of them being the formation factor, vary from rock to rock; and any trend in the parameters depends on the local geology. For the data on a group of 140 different cores, the geometrical factors could be well approximated by functions of porosity, cementation exponent, and charge density, to give a simple conductivity formula analogous to the empirical formulas that are most widely used in formation evaluation. These empirical factors are used to obtain an approximate formula for [Formula: see text].