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The study of pore characteristics is of great importance in reservoir evaluation, especially in deeply buried sandstone. It controls the storage mechanism and reservoir fluid properties of the permeable horizons. The first member of Eocene Shahejie Formation (Es1) sandstone is classified as feldspathic litharenite and lithic arkose. The present research investigates the pore characteristics and reservoir features of the deeply buried sandstone reservoir of Es1 member of Shahejie Formation. The techniques including thin-section petrography, mercury injection capillary pressure (MICP), scanning electron microscopy and laser scanning confocal microscope images were used to demarcate the pores including primary intergranular pores and secondary intergranular, intragranular, dissolution and fracture pores. Mercury injection test and routine core analysis were led to demarcate the pore network characteristics of the studied reservoir. Pore size and pore throat size distribution are acquired from mercury injection test. Porosity values range from 0.5% to 30%, and permeability ranges 0.006–7000 mD. Pore radii of coarse-grained sandstone and fine-grained sandstone range from 0.2 to > 4 µm and 1 nm to 1.60 µm, respectively, by MICP analysis. The mineral composition also plays an important role in protecting the pores with pressure from failure. Fractured sandstone and coarse-grained sandstone consist of large and interconnected pores that enhance the reservoir porosity and permeability, whereas fine-grained sandstone and siltstone consist of numerous pores but not well interconnected, and so they consist of high porosity with low permeability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Net pay cut-off values are key parameters in the evaluation of both conventional and unconventional reservoirs. However, there is no widely accepted method for determining net pay cut-off values. The low permeability turbidite reservoirs in the middle part of the third member of the Shahejie Formation (Es3z) in the Dongying Sag are taken as an example; the net pay permeability and porosity cut-off values are determined according to detailed core descriptions, thin section analyses, porosity and permeability test, mercury injection analyses, and well test data. Taking economic benefits into consideration, the concept of a net pay permeability cut-off value refers to the minimum permeability of a clastic reservoir that can produce hydrocarbons and meet the minimum economic benefits under the availability of existing technologies. The proposed methodology of this work is based on balancing the cost and income, and considers related parameters such as the cost of well drilling, investment in surface construction, operational cost, oil price, and oil production. The net pay permeability cut-off values of reservoirs with different thicknesses of development intervals are calculated based on the constraint of the oil price at $50/bbl. Then, the net pay porosity cut-off values are calculated following the pore-throat structure analyses. The proposed method and the net pay permeability and porosity cut-off values for the low permeability reservoirs in this article are acceptable since fit for purpose principle and data available principle have been considered. Meanwhile, this method enables the dynamic evaluation of reservoirs at any burial depth. • The concept of net-pay permeability cutoff in low permeability reservoirs. • The determination method of net-pay permeability cutoff values. • The determination method of net-pay porosity cutoff values. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Carbonate cements and chlorite can alter some pore spaces from water-wet to oil-wet. • High oil saturation occurred in tight reservoirs with moderate carbonates or chlorite. • The high quality reservoirs mainly located in between with sandstone-mudstone interfaces and central parts of the sand bodies. Oil accumulation, being difficult and complicated, is an important issue in petroleum exploration researches. Authigenic minerals, such as carbonate cements and chlorite, can in certain reservoirs alter the wettability of some pore spaces from water-wet to oil-wet. Generally, these oil-wet pore spaces are favorable for oil accumulation. The alteration of reservoir wettability induced by authigenic minerals and the impacts on oil accumulation in tight sandstone reservoirs were investigated using a suite of mineralogical and geochemical characterization techniques, including thin section observation, SEM-EDS, XRD, QEMSEM, CL, quantitative grain fluorescence (QGF), fluorescence spectral analysis, contact angle measurement and sealed coring oil saturation testing on the fourth member of the Lower Cretaceous Quantou Formation (K 1 q 4) in the southern Songliao Basin, China. The study shows that the tight sandstone reservoirs are compositionally immature with detrital grains distributed homogeneously. Quartz, carbonates and clay minerals that show heterogeneous distribution characteristics are the major authigenic minerals in some parts of the intergranular pores. The detrital mineral assemblage suggests that the reservoir rocks at deposition and before diagenesis had characterized by strong water-wet properties. With the development of authigenic minerals, carbonate cements and authigenic chlorite tend to alter the wettability of some parts of the existing pore spaces from water-wet to oil-wet. In the K 1 q 4 sandstone reservoirs, oil prefers to accumulate in the cemented residual pore spaces around carbonate cements and chlorite. Reservoirs containing about 4–5% carbonate cements are suggested to be more preferable to oil accumulation. These reservoirs are mainly located between sandstone-mudstone interfaces and central parts of the sand bodies. Chlorites have mainly two effects: on one hand, chlorite alters the wettability of existing pore spaces and provides preferential accumulation sites for oil in the tight sandstone reservoirs, on the other hand it can reduce the adhesion of oil through forming "clay-oil flocs" and promote further migration. Consequently, the reservoirs with moderate amount of carbonate cements or chlorite always show relative high oil saturation in the K 1 q 4 tight sandstones. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Facies identification is a fundamental issue on evaluation and prediction for siliciclastic sediments. The purpose of this paper is to identify sedimentary-diagenetic facies and investigate the influence of sedimentary-diagenetic facies on reservoir quality in coarse-grained deposits from the Eocene Es4 interval, Dongying Depression, Bohai Bay Basin. Based on detailed core observation, thin section petrography combined with conventional wireline logs and core measurement analysis, 12 types of sedimentary- diagenetic facies were divided according to their lithofacies, diagenetic products and related contributions to reservoir quality. The identification and spatial distribution of these sedimentary-diagenetic facies can be determined based on the Bayes discriminant analysis and related cross-plot analysis. The variations of porosity and permeability with burial depth were precisely determined with ±2% for porosity and ±1 × 10–3 μm2 for permeability. The spatial distribution of reservoir porosity and permeability can be predicted quantitatively: high zones of porosity and permeability mainly distributed in the central sections of thick-bedded sandbody, ranging from 6% to greater than 12% for reservoir porosity and from 1 × 10–3 μm2 to greater than 6 × 10–3 μm2; relatively low zones of porosity (less than 6%) and permeability (less than 1 × 10–3 μm2) mainly occur in the bottom and the margin of the thick-bedded sandbody. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The lacustrine deep-water gravity-flow sandstone reservoirs in the third member of the Shahejie Formation are the main exploration target for hydrocarbons in the Dongying Sag, Eastern China. Carbonate cementation is responsible for much of the porosity and permeability reduction in the lacustrine deep-water gravity-flow sandstone reservoirs. The sandstones are mainly lithic arkose with an average framework composition of Q 43 F 33 L 24 . The carbonate cements are dominated by calcite, ferroan calcite, ankerite and a small amount of dolomite. The calcite and ferroan calcite are mainly poikilotopic blocky crystals, while the dolomite and ankerite are mainly euhedral rhombohedra crystals filling intergranular and intragranular pores. The relatively positive δ 13 C values (−2‰ to +3.9‰) of the carbonate cements in the sandstone reflect a mainly inorganically sourced carbon. From 32 Ma to 25 Ma, the pore water was rich in bicarbonate and Ca 2+ due to carbonate dissolution in mudstone, and which were transported with the pore water from mudstone to sandstone via advection and precipitated calcite cementation in thinly bedded sandstones and some high permeability zones in the middle of medium-to-thick sandstone beds. From 12 Ma to present, abundant Ca 2+ , Fe 3+ , Fe 2+ , Mg 2+ and bicarbonate had been transported from mudstone to sandstone via diffusion to form tight ferroan calcite cementation in the upper and lower parts of the medium-to-thick bedded sandstones. Ankerite is mainly distributed in the reservoirs associated with oil migration or charge, because change of Fe 3+ to Fe 2+ from oil charge may supply sufficient Fe 2+ for ankerite precipitation. The center of sandstone beds (>0.6 m) is with potential of high-quality reservoirs in the research area. Carbonate cementation appears to be an important factor that controls the accumulation of oil in deep-water gravity-flow sandstone reservoirs in the study area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pore-throat size is a very crucial factor controlling the reservoir quality and oiliness of tight sandstones, which primarily affects rock-properties such as permeability and drainage capillary pressure. However, the wide range of size makes it difficult to understand their distribution characteristics as well as the specific controls on reservoir quality and oiliness. In order to better understand about pore-throat size distribution, petrographic, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), pressure-controlled mercury injection (PMI), rate-controlled mercury injection (RMI), quantitative grain fluorescence (QGF) and environmental scanning electron microscopy (ESEM) investigations under laboratory pressure conditions were performed on a suite of tight reservoir from the fourth member of the Lower Cretaceous Quantou Formation (K 1 q 4 ) in the southern Songliao Basin, China. The sandstones in this study showed different types of pore structures: intergranular pores, dissolution pores, pores within clay aggregates and even some pores related to micro fractures. The pore-throat sizes vary from nano- to micro-scale. The PMI technique views the pore-throat size ranging from 0.001 μm to 63 μm and revealed that the pore-throats with radius larger than 1.0 μm are rare and the pore-throat size distribution curves show evident fluctuations. RMI measurements indicated that the pore size distribution characteristics of the samples with different porosity and permeability values look similar. The throat size and pore throat radius ratio distribution curves had however significant differences. The overall pore-throat size distribution of the K 1 q 4 tight sandstones was obtained with the combination of the PMI and RMI methods. The permeability is mainly contributed by a small part of larger pore-throats (less than 30%) and the ratio of the smaller pore-throats in the samples increases with decreasing permeability. Although smaller pore-throats have negligible contribution on reservoir flow potential, they are very significant for the reservoir storage capacity. The pore-throats with average radius larger than 1.0 μm mainly exist in reservoirs with permeability higher than 0.1mD. When the permeability is lower than 0.1mD, the sandstones are mainly dominated by pore-throats with average radius from 0.1 μm to 1.0 μm. The ratio of different sized pore-throats controls the permeability of the tight sandstone reservoirs in different ways. We suggest that splitting or organizing key parameters defining permeability systematically into different classes or functions can enhance the ability of formulating predictive models about permeability in tight sandstone reservoirs. The PMI combined with QGF analyses indicate that oil emplacement mainly occurred in the pore-throats with radius larger than about 0.25–0.3 μm. This result is supported by the remnant oil micro-occurrence evidence observed by SEM and ESEM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Eocene, sublacustrine-fan, sandstones that developed in a rift basin are important tight gas reservoirs in the Dongying Depression, Bohai Bay Basin, northeastern China. Two units of evaporites, developed at the top and bottom of the lower unit of the Es4 interval (Es4x), consist predominantly of anhydrite with subordinate gypsum. Evaporite and related diagenetic processes greatly influenced reservoir quality. δ 13 C values for micritic dolomite cements in Es4x are depleted (−7.45 to −2.57‰) due to microbial sulfate reduction (MSR) under shallow burial conditions and this interpretation is supported by large δ 34 S fractionation between anhydrite and framboidal pyrite. Precipitation temperatures for micritic dolomite are calculated as 57.5–72.8 °C. Anhydritization of gypsum probably occurred at 100.5–145.2 °C during progressive burial as evidenced by homogenization temperatures of aqueous inclusions within anhydrite cements. This process resulted in dehydration fractures within anhydrite cements that increased reservoir permeability by connecting isolated pores. Thermochemical sulfate reduction (TSR) probably resulted in dissolution of gypsum and anhydrite cements under relatively deep burial conditions. Ankerite cements are replaced by anhydrite cements and are enclosed by solid bitumen in Es4x. Ankerite cements likely were derived from TSR as reflected in negative δ 13 C values (−7.12 to −3.70‰) and high calculated temperatures (121.3–185.1 °C). Dissolution by-products (e.g. saddle dolomite, ankerite, nodular pyrite) related to TSR precipitated in adjacent pores. A lack of significant δ 34 S fractionation between parent sulfate and nodular pyrite indicates that TSR occurred in a relatively closed system. Therefore, dissolution of gypsum and anhydrite related to TSR contributed little to reservoir quality. Middle-fan lithofacies with better sorting, porosity and permeability than inner- and outer-fan lithofacies constitute high-quality reservoirs in Es4x. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The compositions, distribution and its interaction with rocks of the evolving pore fluids controls the distribution of carbonate cements and reservoir storage spaces. The reservoir quality of the red-bed sandstone reservoirs in the Dongying Depression was investigated by an integrated and systematic analysis including carbonate cement petrology, mineralogy, carbon and oxygen isotope ratios and fluid inclusions. The investigation was also facilitated by probing the mineral origins, precipitation mechanisms, pore fluid evolution and distribution, and water-rock interaction of carbonate cements and their influences on reservoir quality. Diagenetic-evolving fluids in the interbedded mudstones are the main source for the precipitation of calcite cements that completely fill the intergranular volume (CFIV calcite) with heavier oxygen and carbon isotopes. The ferro-carbonate cements in the reservoir sandstone are enriched in lighter carbon and oxygen isotopes. In addition to the cations released by the conversion of clay minerals in reservoirs, products of organic acid decarboxylation and the associated feldspar dissolution process provide important sources for such carbonate cementation. The carbon isotopes of CO 2 and the oxygen isotopic composition of fluids equilibrated with the CFIV calcite, ferro-calcite, dolomite and ankerite cements indicate that the pore in the red-bed reservoirs experienced high salinity fluids, which evolved from the early-formed interbedded mudstones, through organic acid input and to organic acid decarboxylation. Pore fluids from nearby mudstones migrated from the edge to the centre of sandbodies, causing strong calcite cementation along the sandbody boundaries and forming tight cementation zones. Pore fluids associated with organic CO 2 and acids and organic acid decarboxylation are mainly distributed in the internal portion of sandbodies, causing feldspar dissolution and precipitation of ferro-carbonate cements. The distribution of pore fluids caused the zonal distribution of carbonate cements in sandbodies during different periods. This may be advantageous to preserve the porosity of reservoirs as exemplified by the distribution of high-quality reservoirs in the red-bed sandbodies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The tight sandstones of the Cretaceous Quantou formation are the main exploration target for hydrocarbons in the southern Songliao basin. Authigenic quartz is a significant cementing material in these sandstones, significantly reducing porosity and permeability. For efficient predicting and extrapolating the petrophysical properties within these tight sandstones, the quartz cement and its origin need to be better understood. The tight sandstones have been examined by a variety of methods. The sandstones are mostly lithic arkoses and feldspathic litharenites, compositionally immature with an average framework composition of Q 43 F 26 L 31 , which are characterized by abundant volcanic rock fragments. Mixed-layer illite/smectite (I/S) ordered interstratified with R = 1 and R = 3 is the dominating clay mineral in the studied sandstone reservoirs. Two different types of quartz cementation modes, namely quartz grain overgrowth and pore-filling authigenic quartz, have been identified through petrographic observations, CL and SEM analysis. Homogenization temperatures of the aqueous fluid inclusions indicate that both quartz overgrowths and pore-filling authigenic quartz formed with a continuous process from about 70 °C to 130 °C. Sources for quartz cement produced are the conversion of volcanic fragments, smectite to illite reaction and pressure solution at micro stylolites. Potassium for the illitization of smectite has been sourced from K-feldspar dissolution and albitization. Silica sourced from K-feldspars dissolution and kaolinite to illite conversion is probably only minor amount and volumetrically insignificant. The internal supplied silica precipitate within a closed system where the transport mechanism is diffusion. The quartz cementation can destroy both porosity and permeability, but strengthen the rock framework and increase the rock brittleness effectively at the same time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Braided river sandstones in the Permian Upper Shihezi (US) Formation in the Huanghua Depression, Bohai Bay Basin, East China, are reservoirs with large accumulations of hydrocarbons. The Upper Paleozoic formations, including the Carboniferous and the Permian strata experienced multi-stage of subsidence and uplift in the past 320 Ma, leading to occurrence of subaerial exposure and deep burial of the Permian US sandstones. Due to complex tectonic evolution, the Upper Paleozoic formations in different tectonic zones of the Huanghua Depression experienced various burial-thermal histories, resulting in the development of long-term open (LTO), early-open to late-closed (EOLC), and long-term closed (LTC) geochemical systems in different Permian US sandstones, as well as different evolutionary patterns of diagenesis and reservoir quality. After extensive diagenetic alteration, the present sandstones are primarily quartzose, subfeldsarenite, and sublitharenite sandstones. Pores in shaly sandstones and fine-grained sandstones were destroyed extensively, only pebbly to medium-grained sandstones can be potential effective reservoirs. The Permian US sandstones with the LTO systems, which are currently overlain by the Paleogene strata and buried less than 2500 m, experienced two stages of meteoric freshwater leaching and are characterized by extensive feldspar dissolution and weak precipitation of authigenic kaolin and quartz. Intergranular and intragranular pores dominate the 10–20% porosity, and permeability ranges from 1mD to 800 mD. The Permian US sandstones with the EOLC systems, which are currently overlain by thick Jurassic and Cretaceous strata on a regional scale and buried deeper than 3000 m, experienced both meteoric freshwater leaching and deep burial leaching and are currently characterized by extensive feldspar dissolution, extensive kaolin precipitation, and weak-moderate quartz cementation. Intragranular secondary pores and kaolin intercrystal pores dominate the 5–15% porosity, and permeability ranges from 0.1 mD to 10 mD. The Permian US sandstones with the LTC systems, which are currently overlain by a thick Permian Shiqianfeng Formation on a regional scale and buried deeper than 3000 m, experienced no meteoric freshwater leaching but only burial dissolution; they are currently characterized by extensive feldspar dissolution and extensive precipitation of clays and quartz cements. Intercrystal pores in the authigenic clay and intragranular secondary pores dominate the 5–10% porosity, and permeability ranges from 0.01mD to 1mD. Since the unconformities, overlying strata, and tectonic evolution relevant to the Permian US sandstone unit can be analyzed using seismic data, the proposed genetic models can support the predrill evaluation of reservoir quality of the Permian sandstones. • Multi-stage subsidence and uplift led to development of different diagenetic systems in the different Permian US sandstones. • After extensive diagenesis, only pebbly to medium-grained sandstones can be potential effective reservoirs. • Sandstones in LTO systems have the highest poroperm, followed by sandstones in EOLC systems, and then in LTC systems. • Deeply buried sandstones on slopes and in sags serving as ancient freshwater recharge zones are potentially good reservoirs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Understanding reservoir heterogeneity and associated diagenesis, have a paramount importance for efficient petroleum exploration and development strategies. Diagenetic variations and factors that control these processes have, therefore, been investigated in this study using petrographic and geochemical methods, including cathodoluminescence, scanning electron microscopy, x-ray fluorescence, electron probe microanalyses and stable isotope analysis. Mechanical compaction and chemical diagenesis trends have obviously varied as a function of rock types and geological locations. The conglomerate reservoirs with high content of tuffaceous matrix and characterized by poor sorting showed stronger compaction. The tuffaceous matrix displays a large degree of dissolution during the progressive burial diagenesis due to its thermodynamic instability. The tuffaceous matrix in Na-rich conglomerate reservoir rocks mainly transformed into analcite, while it transformed into illite in K-rich conglomerate reservoir rocks. In most conglomerate reservoirs far away from deep-rooted faults, calcite cements are indicated to have been sourced from the decarboxylation of organic matter in the interbedded mudstones. Carbonate cements in conglomerate reservoirs near the deep-rooted faults possibly formed from hydrothermal fluids or thermochemical oxidation of pre-existing methane accumulations. This study can serve us an excellent example for the control of sediment composition and paleo-fluid evolution on diagenetic variations in fan-delta conglomerate reservoirs. • Compaction and dissolution in conglomerate reservoirs were controlled by sediment composition and texture. • Authigenic silicoaluminate minerals formation in conglomerate reservoirs were controlled by sediment composition. • Carbonate cements formation in conglomerate reservoirs were controlled by paleo-fluids evolution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Eocene sandstones in the northern Dongying Sag, Bohai Bay Basin, China, are reservoirs for large accumulations of hydrocarbons. The sandstones are mainly lithic arkoses and feldspathic litharenites, texturally and compositionally immature. These sandstones have a wide range of porosity (0.4–37%) and permeability (0.004–6969 mD) and show an overall decrease in reservoir quality from 1500 m to 5000 m below sea level. The reduction in reservoir quality is a product of several digenetic processes; these include compaction, precipitation of dolomite and calcite in eodiagenetic stage; compaction, feldspar dissolution, precipitation of quartz cements and clays (kaolin and illite) and precipitation of ferrocalcite and ankerite in mesodiagenetic stage. Mineral distribution pattern and isotopic composition suggest carbonate cements in sandstones originate from sources outside the sandstones. Carbonate cementation, together with compaction reduced the sandstones’ porosity and permeability significantly. In a sandstone bed, marginal sandstones with distance to sandstone/mudstone interface less than one meter always have lower porosity than central sandstones. As burial depth exceeds 4000 m, marginal sandstones have very low porosities (<5%), indicating that thin sandstone beds (<2 m) were totally destroyed by cementation and compaction, and only thick sandstone beds (>2 m) can be potential effective reservoirs. Feldspar dissolution and precipitation of clays and quartz cements have little impact on absolute porosity. Mineral distribution pattern and quantitative data show that leached feldspars are the internal source of authigenic quartz and clays in sandstones, and the volume difference between feldspar secondary porosity and related authigenic cements is generally less than 0.25%. However, although there is little or no net import of matter to the sandstones, the pore architecture changes dramatically. Primary macropores are lost as clays and quartz precipitate while the proportion of microporosity increases, occurring mainly between clay crystals. The overall result is that permeability is significantly degraded. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]