Benefits of the induced polarization geoelectric method to hydrocarbon exploration

Geophysics ◽  
2009 ◽  
Vol 74 (2) ◽  
pp. B47-B59 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul C. Veeken ◽  
Peter J. Legeydo ◽  
Yuri A. Davidenko ◽  
Elena O. Kudryavceva ◽  
Sergei A. Ivanov ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Processing Parameters ◽  
Induced Polarization ◽  
Hydrocarbon Exploration ◽  
Petroleum Exploration ◽  
Alteration Zone ◽  
Impermeable Barrier ◽  
Reasonable Cost ◽  
Impermeable Layer ◽  
Local Enrichment ◽  
Target Depth

Delineation of hydrocarbon prospective areas is an important issue in petroleum exploration. The geoelectric method helps to identify attractive areas and reduces the overall drilling risk. For this purpose, induced polarization (IP) effects are mapped caused by the presence of epigenetic pyrite microcrystals in sedimentary rocks. These crystals occur in a shallow halo-shaped mineralogical alteration zone, often overlying a deeper-seated hydrocarbon accumulation. Local enrichment in pyrite results from reducing geochemical conditions below an impermeable layer. The imperfect top seal of the accumulation permits minor amounts of hydrocarbons to escape and migrate through the overlying rocks to shallower levels. During migration, hydro-carbons encounter an impermeable barrier, forming an altera-tion zone. Induced polarization logging and coring in wells confirm this working model. Geoelectric surveying visual-izes anomalies in electric potential difference measured be-tween receiver electrodes. The differentially normalized method (DNME) inverts the registered decay in potential differences, establishing a depth model constrained by seismic and petro-physical data. Diagnostic geoelectric attributes are proposed, giving a better grip on chargeability and resistivity distribution. Acquisition and processing parameters are adjusted to the target depth. Encouraging results are obtained in deeper [Formula: see text] as well as in very shallow water. Onshore, a grounded current transmitter is used. Geoelectric surveys cover different geologic settings with varying target depths. The success ratio for predicting hydrocarbon occurrences is high. So far, 40 successful wells have been drilled in Russia on mapped geoelectric anomalies. Out of 126 wells, the method produced satisfactory results in all but two cases. The technique reduces the risk attached to new hydrocarbon prospects and allows better ranking at a reasonable cost.

The Latrobe Group and the 90-million-year beach

2013 ◽  
Vol 53 (2) ◽  
pp. 460
Author(s):  
Nick Hoffman ◽  
Natt Arian
Keyword(s):  
Sea Level ◽  
Co2 Storage ◽  
Hydrocarbon Exploration ◽  
Petroleum Exploration ◽  
3D Seismic ◽  
Fluvial Systems ◽  
Detailed Understanding ◽  
Marine Embayment ◽  
Gippsland Basin ◽  
Lake Systems

Carbon dioxide geosequestration requires a detailed understanding of the whole sedimentary section, with particular emphasis on topseals and intraformational seals. Hydrocarbon exploration is more focused on reservoirs but requires a similar basin understanding. This extended abstract reviews the knowledge gained from petroleum exploration in the Gippsland Basin to The CarbonNet Project’s exploration program for CO2 storage. The Ninety Mile Beach on the Gippsland coast is a prominent modern-day sand fairway where longshore drift transports sediments north-eastwards along a barrier-bar system, trapping lake systems behind the coastal strip. This beach is only 10,000 years old (dating to the last glacial rise of sea level) but is built on a platform of earlier beaches that can be traced back almost 90 million years to the initiation of Latrobe Group deposition in the Gippsland Basin. Using a recently compiled and open-file volume of merged 3D seismic surveys, the authors show the evolution of the Latrobe shoreline can be mapped continuously from the Upper Cretaceous to the present day. Sand fairways accumulate as a barrier-bar system at the edge of a steadily subsiding marine embayment, with distinct retrogradational geometries. Behind the barrier system, a series of trapped lakes and lagoons are mapped. In these, coal swamps, extensive shales, and tidal sediments were deposited at different stages of the sea-level curve, while fluvial systems prograded through these lowlands. Detailed 3D seismic extractions show the geometry, orientation and extent of coals, sealing shales, fluvial channels, and bayhead deltas. Detailed understanding of these reservoir and seal systems outlines multi-storey play fairways for hydrocarbon exploration and geosequestration. Use of modern basin resource needs careful coordination of activity and benefits greatly from established data-sharing practices.

THE INTERPRETATION OF AEROMAGNETIC SURVEYS FOR HYDROCARBON EXPLORATION

1999 ◽  
Vol 39 (1) ◽  
pp. 494
Author(s):  
I. Kivior ◽  
D. Boyd
Keyword(s):  
Spectral Analysis ◽  
Sedimentary Basins ◽  
Hydrocarbon Exploration ◽  
Petroleum Exploration ◽  
Magnetic Data ◽  
Curve Matching ◽  
Aeromagnetic Data ◽  
Profile Data ◽  
Aeromagnetic Survey ◽  
New Approach

Aeromagnetic surveys have been generally regarded in petroleum exploration as a reconnaissance tool for major structures. They were used commonly in the early stages of exploration to delineate the shape and depth of the sedimentary basin by detecting the strong magnetic contrast between the sediments and the underlying metamorphic basement. Recent developments in the application of computer technology to the study of the earth's magnetic field have significantly extended the scope of aeromagnetic surveys as a tool in the exploration for hydrocarbons. In this paper the two principal methods used in the analysis and interpretation of aeromagnetic data over sedimentary basins are: 1) energy spectral analysis applied to gridded data; and, 2) automatic curve matching applied to profile data. It is important to establish the magnetic character of sedimentary and basement rocks, and to determine the regional magnetic character of the area by applying energy spectral analysis. Application of automatic curve matching to profile data can provide results from the sedimentary section and deeper parts of a basin. High quality magnetic data from an experimental aeromagnetic survey flown over part of the Eromanga/Cooper Basin has recently been interpreted using this new approach. From this survey it is possible to detect major structures such as highs and troughs in the weakly magnetic basement, as well as pick out faults, and magnetic layers in the sedimentary section. The results are consistent with interpretation from seismic and demonstrate that aeromagnetic data can be used to assist seismic interpretation, for example to interpolate between widely spaced seismic lines and sometimes to locate structures which can not be detected from seismic surveys. This new approach to the interpretation of aeromagnetic data can provide a complementary tool for hydrocarbon exploration, which is ideal for logistically difficult terrain and environmentally sensitive areas.

scholarly journals Seismic and petrophysical properties of Faroe Islands basalts: the SeiFaBa project

2004 ◽  
Vol 4 ◽  
pp. 53-56 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter Japsen ◽  
Morten Sparre Andersen ◽  
Lars Ole Boldreel ◽  
Lars Ole Boldreel ◽  
Regin Waagstein ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Flood Basalt ◽  
Hydrocarbon Exploration ◽  
Petroleum Exploration ◽  
Special Focus ◽  
Continental Margins ◽  
Faroe Islands ◽  
Petrophysical Properties ◽  
Seismic Profiles ◽  
Offshore Area

Flood basalt-covered basins exist worldwide along continental margins and are now in focus as targets for future hydrocarbon exploration. It is generally difficult to image through the basalt cover by conventional seismic reflection methods, and this is a major challenge to future petroleum exploration offshore the Faroe Islands. Long-offset profiling has proven very successful (White et al. 2003). Surprisingly, however, it is possible to image through kilometre-thick basalt sequences on some conventional profiles. Details of basalt stratigraphy are revealed on old, reprocessed seismic profiles as well as on recently acquired profiles, even though the imaging may be unsuccessful on nearby profiles (e.g. Boldreel & Andersen 1993). This stresses the need for a better understanding of the acoustic and other physical properties of basalt as well as of the degree of three-dimensional heterogeneity. The SeiFaBa project (Seismic and petrophysical properties of Faroes Basalt, 2002–2005) is funded by the Sindri Group as part of the programmes for licensees within the Faroese offshore area, and addresses these issues with special focus on the subaerially extruded flood basalts of the Faroe Islands (cf. Japsen et al. in press).

scholarly journals Mineral Prospect Identification Using Inducedpolarization And Very Low Frequency-EM Methods At Sangon, Kalirejo Village, Kokap Sub-District, Kulonprogo Regency, Special Region Of Yogyakarta, Indonesia

2020 ◽  
Vol 22 (3) ◽  
pp. 1
Author(s):  
Adera Nurul ◽  
Arga Kunang ◽  
Arief Khoiruddin ◽  
Arif Fikri ◽  
Benedicta Nathania ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Electric Current ◽  
Current Density ◽  
Low Frequency ◽  
Induced Polarization ◽  
Electric Current Density ◽  
High Resistivity ◽  
Alteration Zone ◽  
Frequency Method ◽  
Very Low Frequency ◽  
Low Sulfidation

A research of induced polarization and very low frequency method was carried out at Sangon Village, Kulonprogo to identify mineralization zone. The result of these methods were able to be used to support each other. Mineralization zone is shown by high resistivity and high hargeability area of induced polarization method, and is also shown by high electric current density area of very low frequency method. Interpretation of resistivity and chargeability model shows that mineralization zone is mostly located at the depth below 10 m from surface. On the other hand, interpretation of electric current density models at depth 10 m and 20 m show that mineralization zone is not well distributed respect to alteration zone, which is the character of low sulfidation epithermal type, mostly at north-south direction.

scholarly journals New evidence for possible generation of oil off south-western Greenland

1969 ◽  
Vol 26 ◽  
pp. 65-68
Author(s):  
Troels Laier ◽  
Hans Peter Nytoft
Keyword(s):  
Sedimentary Basin ◽  
Hydrocarbon Exploration ◽  
Source Rocks ◽  
Petroleum Exploration ◽  
Careful Examination ◽  
Labrador Sea ◽  
Seismic Profiles ◽  
Recent Interest ◽  
Marine Source ◽  
New Evidence

In 2011, traces of bitumen in the 1160 Ma old Ilímaussaq intrusion in South Greenland have been examined in order to determine their origin. The investigation was prompted by the recent interest in hydrocarbon exploration off western Greenland, an interest expressed in the form of four new licences in the region (Christiansen 2011). The hydrocarbon potential in the region was realised after reinterpretation of seismic profiles across the Labrador Sea, and this indicates the presence of a sedimentary basin off south-western Greenland (Fig. 1; Chalmers & Pulvertaft 2001). However, the main problem in petroleum exploration off south-western Greenland is that no prolific marine source rocks have been demonstrated (Christiansen 2011). Therefore, any trace of hydrocarbons, however small that may help demonstrate the occurrence of source rocks in the region, deserves careful examination.

A PARAMETRIC STUDY OF INDUCED‐POLARIZATION MODELS

Geophysics ◽  
1977 ◽  
Vol 42 (3) ◽  
pp. 623-641 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. R. Dodds ◽  
A. P. Raiche ◽  
K. Vozoff
Keyword(s):  
Horizontal Cylinder ◽  
Induced Polarization ◽  
Frequency Effect ◽  
Model Parameters ◽  
Electrode Arrays ◽  
Sharp Drop ◽  
Peak Response ◽  
Overburden Thickness ◽  
Polarization Models ◽  
Target Depth

The transmission surface or network technique was used to study the induced‐polarization response of a model having infinite strike length. The model consisted of a horizontal cylinder (the target) in a uniform half‐space overlain by an overburden. Responses to the dipole‐dipole, pole‐dipole, and gradient electrode arrays were compared as model parameters were systematically varied. Target conductivity, target depth, and overburden thickness and conductivity were each changed in turn. For different electrode spacings and locations, the peak response amplitudes and positions were plotted. It was found that the peak response amplitude did not decrease when large electrode spacings were used. The maximum percent frequency effect (PFE) response remains relatively constant for mildly conductive to very conductive targets. At the same time, the electrode separation required to achieve this maximum response increases by about a factor of two. The position of the peak PFE and the amplitude of the peak metal factor (MF) response were insensitive to overburden conductivity. There is a sharp drop of both PFE and MF when a thin overburden is introduced, and a gradual further reduction as its thickness increases. Responses to the pole‐dipole and dipole‐dipole arrays were comparable in magnitude, whereas results for the gradient arrays were at best equivalent and sometimes much smaller.

“Benefits of the induced polarization geoelectric method to hydrocarbon exploration,” GEOPHYSICS, 74, no. 2, B47–B59

Geophysics ◽  
2009 ◽  
Vol 74 (4) ◽  
pp. Y7-Y7 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul C. Veeken ◽  
Peter J. Legeydo ◽  
Yuri A. Davidenko ◽  
Elena O. Kudryavceva ◽  
Sergei A. Ivanov ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Induced Polarization ◽  
Hydrocarbon Exploration
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