Projects

Projects

Investigation of seismic attributes to study fractured and saturated media

  • Dr. Fateh Bouchaala

Properties of natural fractures play an important role in determining hydraulic parameters of saturated media such as reservoir zones. The orientation of fractures controls the direction of fluid flow in reservoirs which has a direct influence on reservoir properties and production. In addition to that, the openness degree of fractures has a great impact on the permeability due to the fact that the connectivity between open fractures on one hand and between open fractures and pores on the other increases the permeability of the reservoir. However, close fractures reduce the permeability of reservoirs which results on limitation of fluids circulation and therefore reduces the production. Fractures density and aperture also have an impact on the permeability of hydrocarbon reservoirs. Accordingly, getting information about fractures is critical for assessing the quality of the reservoirs and for well drilling.

The aim of this project is to perform a comprehensive study of fractured reservoirs by using several methods and integrating different data. We target to develop new methods and investigate existing ones usually used to characterize fractured media. Similarity between the results obtained from different methods and seismic attributes is a good way to validate the results. Also, the results can be complimentary which improve the understanding of fracture properties. Empirical relationships between fracture parameters and seismic attributes can be derived.