Section A

Answer ALL Questions, in the space provided in this book.

A1
What are the main differences between Igneous, Metamorphic and
Sedimentary rocks?
(2 marks)
Igneous rocks are formed by crystallization from magma, so are
crystalline (coarse or fine, if intrusive or extrusive…). Metamorphic rocks
are also crystalline, this is due to being formed by recrystallization of
minerals in solid state while heat and/or pressure is applied by
burial/compression/intrusions. Sedimentary rocks are either composed of
grains (clastic and organic including some carbonates) or crystals
(chemical including some carbonates), if composed of grains they will
have void space between grains, creating porosity which allows them to
act as reservoirs. Sedimentary rocks can therefore be reservoirs, seals
and sources, while igneous and metamorphic rocks will rarely act as
reservoirs, and often make good seals being crystalline and therefore
impermeable.
A2
Arrange the following chronostratigraphic terms in order of time (from
oldest to youngest) and also state which hierarchical rank each term
belongs to (Era, Period or Epoch).
Cenozoic, Pliocene, Silurian, Permian, Jurassic, Quaternary, Paleozoic,
Cambrian
(2 marks)
Quaternary (period)
Pliocene (epoch)
Cenozoic (Era, includes above two)
Jurassic (period, in Mesozoic era)
Permian (period)
Silurian (period)
Cambrian (period)
Paleozoic (Era, includes three above)

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A3
Draw a diagram of a normal fault, indicating the location of the hanging
wall and the footwall. How are these defined?.
(2 marks)
Diagram must show dipping fault plane, with either offset beds or arrows
indicating normal movement.
Hanging wall sits above the dipping fault plane, footwall lies beneath the
fault plane.

A4
Draw diagrams to illustrate the differences between divergent plate
margins in continental and oceanic crust. List the features that might be
expected to occur in the vicinity of this type of plate boundary.
(2 marks)
Diagrams should show differences in crust thickness and perhaps
composition (labels), lithosphere (combination of crust and part of the
mantle), normal faulting, volcanoes etc.
Features include, normal fault, volcanic activity, mid-ocean ridge, rift
valley, earthquakes, intrusions…

A5
Draw a diagram illustrating a plunging anticline and briefly describe
what features make it an anticline and what features make it plunging.
(2 marks)
Must show an upfold, with a fold axis inclined from horizontal… An
anticline is an upfold (convex up), with oldest strata in the centre,
dipping away from the axis. Plunge is when the axis is not horizontal, but
at some angle away from horizontal.

A6
Name four secondary sedimentary structures (those sedimentary
structures produced after initial deposition of the sediments)?
(2 marks)
Either deformation structures (convolute laminae, slumping, pillow and
flame, water escape, dish structures etc), or bioturbation (burrows,
tracks, trails etc, but only one or two allowed), or other structures (rain
drop imprints, syneresis or desiccation cracks etc).

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A7
List four of the golden rules of contour mapping.
(2 marks)
A contour line cannot cross itself or any other contour
A contour cannot merge with contours of the same or different values
A contour must pass between points whose values are lower and higher
than its own value
A contour line of a given value is repeated to indicate reversal of slope
direction
A contour line must close within the mapped area or end at the edge of
the map
Or other reasonable rules from the guidelines in Chapter 8…

A8
What lithologies, shapes, arrangements or structures are required to
create a stratigraphic trap? Draw some diagrams to illustrate your
answer.
(2 marks)
Need to mention:
Traps require suitable reservoir lithology, plus a geometric
arrangement to allow oil to migrate in but prevent oil from migrating
out, and a sealing layer or lithology to prevent leakage.
Stratigraphic traps are usuallydepositionally isolated reservoir
units, or pinch out relationships, or unconformity truncations. They
usually require a certain amount of tilting to provide the migration
pathway…

A9
Define the frequency and wavelength of seismic waves, and state the
formula by which they are related to each other. Draw a diagram to help
illustrate your answer.
(2 marks)
Frequency is number of cycles per second (Hertz). Wavelength is the
length in distance units (m, ft etc), from one point to the identical point
on the next wave (max, min, inflection etc). They are related by the
inverse relationship, frequency equals velocity divided by wavelength (or
reversed…)

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A10
List four rules or laws of stratigraphy.
(2 marks)
Laws:
Superposition
Horizontality
Continuity
Walther’s

Principles:
Present is key to the past
Cross-cutting relationships

A11
What kinds of architecture or depositional environments are likely to
result in the highest recovery factors?
(2 marks)
Studies show that layer cake architecture, so shallow marine, aeolian,
some turbidite deposits have the highest recovery factors.

A12
Draw a diagram illustrating current ripples and their resulting
sedimentary structures. State what criteria distinguish current ripples
from other bedforms.
(2 marks)
Diagram must show ripples, with stoss and lee sides (asymmetric), and
cross-lamination. Scale must be shown or mentioned.

Criteria – size (less than 5cm), shape (asymmetric), length/height ratios…

A13
What potential reservoir facies would be deposited in a shallow marine
depositional environment, and what would be their geometry? Draw
diagrams to illustrate your answer.
(2 marks)
Shallow marine deposits have a sheet-like geometry due to the migration
of the shoreline (progradation or retrogradation).
Lithologies will include sandstone, siltstone, mudstone, all likely to be
bioturbated, all interfingering/layered.

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Typical diagrams include the clastic shoreline definitions, a shoreface
depositional setting diagram, or the bar migration diagram.

A14
What is the ‘thin bed’ or ‘wedge’ effect in seismic reflection surveys?
(2 marks)
Thin bed effect refers to the difficulty in imaging thin beds that have a
thickness below the seismic resolution of approximately ¼ wavelength.
Wedge effect refers to the difficulty in resolving the exact location of
pinch out due to the bed thinning to below seismic resolution.
The effects arise because below ¼ wavelength, the reflection from the
top and the bottom of the bed, presumably opposite in polarity, will
cancel each other out during processing, as they will overlap
significantly.

A15
What is the difference between permeability heterogeneity and
anisotropy?
(2 marks)
Heterogeneity refers to the variability of a property (permeability) in
space. A homogeneous rock has the same permeability everywhere. A
heterogeneous rock has a variety of permeabilities in different locations.
Heterogeneity is measured by the coefficient of variation Cv. For
permeability measurements, Cv less than 0.5 is homogeneous, between
0.5 and 1 is heterogeneous and greater than 1 is very heterogeneous.
Anisotropy refers to the variation of a property with the direction of the
property (measurement). Permeability is a vector, because it is the flow
across a pressure gradient, which is directional. Isotropic rocks have the
same permeability in every direction. Anisotropic rocks have different
permeabilities in different directions. Anisotropy is commonly quantified
using the kv/kh ratio.

A16
What is biostratigraphy and how is it used in correlation?
(2 marks)
Biostratigraphy is the study or use of fossil data to correlate rock units or
determine rock ages.
Fossils represent the preserved (hard) parts of animals or plants that
lived while the sediment was being deposited. Studies worldwide have
accumulated knowledge about the evolution and extinction of particular

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organisms through time, and also about the absolute ages of these
events (using radiometric dating techniques).
In a well being investigated, biostratigraphy can give age ranges for the
rock units, and particular biostratigraphic events can be used to
subdivide the rock stratigraphy and/or correlate rock units that were
being deposited at the same time between wells.
Generally, well studies use appearance and disappearance events,
assuming that these correlate to evolution and extinction of organisms –
an assumption that is only valid if the organism in question rapidly
spread after evolution, lived in a variety of depositional environments,
and died out concurrently everywhere as well. Therefore only certain
organisms are suited for use as biostratigraphic markers.

A17
What processes can occur to create secondary porosity in both clastic
and carbonate sedimentary rocks?
(2 marks)
Secondary porosity is the development of porosity after initial deposition,
either during burial (diagenesis) or during and after uplift (weathering).
Secondary porosity can be created by:
Dissolution of grains
Dissolution of cement
Fracturing
Inter-crystalline porosity developed as a result of recrystallization.

A18
A composite log is being created for a well. A formation top has been
encountered at 2449 m TVDSS. Sonic logs suggest that the velocity of the
unit between this formation top and the seabed is 1980 m/s. Given that
the velocity of sea water is 1400 m/s, and the seabed was encountered
at 890 m or 1.271 secs TWT in this well, at what TWT would the reflector
corresponding to the formation top appear in a seismic line through this
well location (construct a small table to complete this answer)?
(2 marks)

Depth Thickness Velocity OWT (s) TWT (s) Cum

(m) (m) (m/s) TWT (s)
Seabed 890 890 1400 0.636 1.271 1.271
F-Top 2449 1559 1980 0.787 1.575 2.846

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A19
Name four reasons why rocks may be anisotropic?
(2 marks)
Grain alignment (highest perm in direction of paleoflow)
Bedding (differences in grainsize/sorting cause low perm in across-bed
direction) including cross-bedding
Continuous or discontinuous shales
Cement bands or nodules
Reservoir compartmentalization (layers or channels or other features not
in communication with each other, or in limited communication)

A20
The following two successions have been studied at outcrop. What
depositional environment do you think each has been deposited in?
1) Laterally extensive sheet-like thick layers of red sandstone, large
scale cross-bedding subdivided by a complex hierarchy of erosion
surfaces and changes in foreset orientation. Individual foresets
well sorted, well rounded fine to medium sand. Cross-bedded
layers are separated by thinner more poorly sorted sheets of
sandstone containing adhesion ripples, lag deposits and rootlets.
2) Repeated sheet-like coarsening upwards successions, each on a
scale of ~120 m thick. Each succession comprises (1) basal
mudstone containing marine fossils, overlain by (2) sandy
mudstone interrupted by thin layers of fine sandstone with
hummocky cross-stratification, (3) by swaley cross-stratified fine
to medium sandstone, (4) by laminated to cross-bedded medium
to coarse sandstone.
(2 marks)
1) Is aeolian
2) Is a delta (1/2 mark), specifically a wave dominated delta

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A21
Draw diagrams to illustrate the concepts of spill point and lowest known
oil in a simple anticlinal reservoir.
(2 marks)
Well A Well B

Reservoir
Spill point
LKO
Non-reservoir
rock
OWC
Maximum fill level
HKW

A spill point is the lowest closing contour on a map, or the lowest point
on the top surface of the reservoir. At this point, hydrocarbons can
escape the trap and migrate elsewhere.
If we imagine that this reservoir is filled to spill, i.e. the maximum fill level
is equal to the OWC, then if we had two wells (A and B) drilled where A
exits the reservoir without encountering the OWC and B enters the
reservoir in the water leg, then we do not actually know where the OWC
is. We have two levels, lowest known oil (LKO) and highest known water
(HKW), which we can use to calculate maximum and minimum
volumetrics.

A22
What architecture or arrangement of strata is likely to have an effective
permeability close to the harmonic average of core plug measurement
data?
(2 marks)
The harmonic average of permeability core plug measurements is usually
close to the effective permeability when flow is across the beds (bed
series), which occurs in a vertical direction when the beds are near
horizontal, or in a horizontal direction when the beds are steeply dipping.

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A23
Describe how hydrocarbons are created during burial of sediments.
(2 marks)
Hydrocarbons are generated by the alteration/maturation/changing of
organic molecules contained within the sediments to mobile and
immobile hydrocarbons with increased pressure and temperature.
Good source rocks tend to contain between 5 to 20% organic matter
(generally marine or lacustrine mudrocks) although coal may contain
above 90%. The different types of organic compounds result in different
types of hydrocarbon being generated – algal matter produces oils, plant
matter produces gas.
Muddy source rocks require a sufficient amount of hydrocarbon
generation to occur, this increases the pore pressure resulting in micro-
fracturing which allows migration of the hydrocarbon from source rock
to surrounding rocks (primary migration or expulsion).

A24
Draw a diagram to illustrate the relationship between true stratigraphic
thickness and true vertical thickness. What are the contour maps of
these values called?.
(2 marks)
Isopach (TST) and Isochore (TVT) maps

A25
What are carbonate sedimentary rocks?
(2 marks)
Carbonate sedimentary rocks are all those rocks composed of carbonate
minerals – i.e. calcite, aragonite and dolomite.
Carbonate sedimentary rocks can be formed by direct precipitation from
solution (limestones, dolostones, tufa, travertine) or by accumulation of
grains of carbonate derived either from precipitation (ooids) or organic
secretion of carbonate minerals as part of shells or skeletons (bioclasts).
Organic carbonate rocks include material created ‘in situ’, with no

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transportation involved (corals, reefs), or material that has been
transported and/or broken down from its original form (shell fragments).
Carbonate sedimentary rocks differ from clastic sedimentary rocks in
that the carbonate minerals are very reactive and early cementation
usually fills all available primary porosity. Therefore later dissolution and
fracturing processes are often very important in creating secondary
porosity in carbonate reservoirs.

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 Section B
B1

Fossil samples from the locations marked 1, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, and 11 were

found to contain marine fossils. The sample 2 contained palynomorphs
consistent with a temperate non-marine environment, while the
samples 6 and 10 contained pollen characteristic of an arid non-marine
environment. Dipmeter logs combined with initial analysis of the
biostratigraphy of the succession has identified a major angular
unconformity (change in dip) in the middle of the succession (marked by
a bold wiggly line in the logs), and two further unconformities not
associated with changes in dip (marked by wiggly lines in the logs) in the
succession underlying the angular unconformity. Assume that there is no
faulting disrupting the sedimentary packages.

a) On the attachment, correlate the various lithologies present. Is

this correlation a cross-section or a correlation panel, and why?

(11 Marks)
Cross-section because wells are spaced unevenly (presumably relative to
their real spacing) (2 marks)
Neatness (1), connect top and base of units (1), show channels as boat
shapes (1), correlate unconformities (3), dipping strata (1), interfingering
(1), cut-off by erosional unconformity (1).

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 b) Explain your choice of correlation, specifically mentioning your
interpretation of the depositional environments.
(6 Marks)
(1) Marine environments tend to correlate between wells (below and
above angular unconformity) (2 marks)
(2) Non-marine environment with coal = fluvial (1 mark), tends to
have channels, no correlation (1 mark)
(3) Arid environment with sands at odd heights = fluvial (1 mark),
channels, may be connected (some at the same relative height to
the unconformity) (1 mark).

c) Explain the geological history of the area, starting with the oldest
depositional event. Specifically explain the changes in depositional
environment and then post-depositional deformation that has
affected the succession.
(6 Marks)
Arid fluvial environment, may have connected channel deposits.
After unconformity (missing time) marine environment (indicates
major subsidence/sea-level rise = transgression).
Marine environment shallows, then becomes non-marine
(progradation/delta?)
Another unconformity overlain by marine environment (major
subsidence/sea-level rise = transgression).
Burial, tilting/folding, uplift then erosion.
Flooding (subsidence or sea-level rise) results in marine
environment.
Progradation of shallow marine sandstones
Volcanic eruption event.
(Start right = 1, order = 2, unconformities = 1, tilting/erosion in
correct place/order = 1, end right = 1)

d) Identify a potential trap on your correlation. Is this a stratigraphic

or a structural trap?
(2 Marks)
The sandstone underlying the unconformity are all tilted and truncated
by the unconformity overlain by sealing lithologies. These form ideal
stratigraphic traps.

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B2

You have been provided with a map of a field and an example log of a
well from the same field (Attachments B2-1 and B2-2). .

a) Estimate the area covered by the OWC on the map, and then
calculate the GRV, assuming that the OWC is within the reservoir
thickness. Draw a graph of area versus height to illustrate your
working, and state clearly the derivation of your values. Show
your working on the map.

(6 Marks)

Area = 2.675 km2 or 2.675 ×106 m2

GRV (using triangle simplification) = 97.6×106 m3
Marks: 1 for process shown on map, 1 for graph drawn, 2 for correctish
area (within 20% +-), 2 for correct calculation of GRV from area.

b) Given the information in the table below, calculate the STOOIP in

the reservoir formation. Show all your working and justify your
method.

(8 Marks)

Unit Thickness (ft) Porosity % Water Net-to-

Saturation % Gross
Sc 25 1 1.0 0
Sh 25 2 0.95 0.10
N a-d 100 12 0.3 0.50
E 65 18 0.15 0.88
R a-b 184 15 0.45 0.78
D 250 5 0.95 0.12
Conversion ft to m = 0.3048
Conversion m3 to barrels = 6.285
B0 = 1.22 STB/RB

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 80

70

60

50
N
40

30
E
20

10 R
0
0 500000 1000000 1500000 2000000 2500000 3000000

Height points (in m) are 22.5 and 42.5 m – area points are 800000 and 1550000 m2

GRV STOOIP BBLS

Total 97637500
N 64700000
E 23937500
R 9000000
Average 6050323.8 38026285
N 2227377 13999065
E 2641758.2 16603450
R 474713.11 2983572
Total N-
E-R 5343848.4 33586087

c) Draw a sketch showing your interpretation of the reservoir

structure and internal layers from NW to SE across the map
(accuracy is not required for this question).
(6 Marks)
Sketch must show normal fault dipping to W, top surface dipping to east,
and may or may not show the eastern boundary normal fault. Sketch
should show OWC and NER layers within the reservoir.

d) Given that the units R, E and N form a prograding delta system,

explain why the different units have different reservoir properties,
and what differences in production efficiency may we expect from
them?
(5 Marks)
The R and E units form a prograding delta front with shoreface
successions – relatively high N/G and porosity, coarsening upwards. The
sharp drop in N/G and other factors in the N formation suggests this
might be delta top facies (fluvial).

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B3

An old set of paper 2D seismic lines has been made available over a
potential field, along with a depth conversion algorithm based on well
data. Based on the initial interpretation of these lines, the top reservoir
surface has been identified and some normal faults have also been
located. Depth data in feet for discrete points along the lines and the
fault locations have been plotted on the attached base map (Attachment
B3). The OWC in the field has been identified as occurring at 9200 feet.

a) On the attachment, contour the depth data provided using a

contour interval of 100 feet. What type of map is this? Label the
OWC, and shade in the area within which oil occurs.

(12 Marks)
Marks: Reasonable
contours – 6 marks.
Structure contour map – 2
marks.
OWC labelled – 1 mark
Shaded area – 1 mark,
including smaller pockets
– 1 mark.
Neatened contours – 1
mark.

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 b) Draw a cross-section of the reservoir top surface on a west-east
alignment – carefully plotting the location of your cross-section on
the map. Do NOT use any vertical exaggeration.

(8 Marks)

Marks: Faulted surface with reasonable curves etc – 3 marks, no vertical

exaggeration – 2 marks, E-W – 1 mark, plotted on map – 1 mark, Faults
angled to be normal – 1 mark.

c) Describe the structure represented in your map and cross-

section.

(5 Marks)
Horst and Graben
Faulted surface
Dipping strata/folded strata faulted two ways (reasonable
combination of these descriptive terms).

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B4

The following core plug permeability measurements have been made

available for a well in a sandstone reservoir:

Depth (m) Permeability (mD)

3210.00 56.00
3210.30 302.00
3210.60 294.00
3210.90 167.00
3211.20 61.00
3211.50 301.00
3211.80 286.00
3212.10 252.00
3212.40 167.00
3212.70 66.00
3213.00 315.00
3213.30 252.00
3213.60 167.00
3213.90 132.00
3214.20 72.00

a) Calculate the arithmetic, geometric and harmonic averages, the

median and the mode for this data.
(10 Marks)
ArithmeticGeometric
Av Harmonic
Av Av
Median Mode
192.67 163.02 132.1897 167 167
(2 marks each)

b) The variance for the data is 9782, and the Cv is 0.51. Is the data
homogeneous, heterogeneous or very heterogeneous?

(2 Marks)
Heterogeneous

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 c) The following table contains a partial variogram calculation. Given
the formula for the variogram function given below, calculate the
normalised gamma for the lags 4 and 5 and complete the graph.

(6 Marks)

Lag Distance
Perm (mD) 2 3 1 4 5 6 7 8
56.00
302.00 60516
294.00 64 56644
167.00 16129 18225 12321
61.00 11236 54289 58081 25
301.00 57600 17956 49 1 60025
286.00 225 50625 14161 64 256 52900
252.00 1156 2401 36481 7225 1764 2500 38416
167.00 7225 14161 17956 11236 0 16129 18225 12321
66.00 10201 34596 48400 55225 25 10201 51984 55696
315.00 62001 21904 3969 841 196 64516 21904 441
252.00 3969 34596 7225 0 1156 2401 36481 7225
167.00 7225 21904 10201 0 7225 14161 17956 11236
132.00 1225 14400 33489 4356 1225 14400 23716 28561
72.00 3600 9025 32400 59049 36 9025 32400 45796
Count 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7
SUM 242372 350726 274733 138022 71908 186233 241082 161276
Gamma 8656.143 13489.46 11447.21 6273.727 3595.4 10346.28 15067.63 11519.71
NormGamma 0.884884 1.378975 1.170203 0.641339 0.367544 1.05766 1.540304 1.177615
VAR 9782.24
(calculation of gamma 2 marks,
Variogramcalculation of normalised gamma

2 marks, graph 2 marks)

1.4

1.2
Normalised gamma

0.8

0.6

0.4

0.2

0
0 2 4 6 8

Lag distance

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 d) On the variogram plot, identify SILL, RANGE, NUGGET, and HOLE.

(4 marks)
Sill – students may indicate correlation of highest four values, or
normalised gamma = 1 ish, or they may state that this data has no
sill. Either is correct – 1 mark
Range – if a sill is drawn, then the range is to the start of the sill (in
lag distance). If no sill, no range – 1 mark
Nugget – connect the first two points, extrapolate to y axis, this is
the nugget – 1 mark
Hole is the lowest point in the data after the start, i.e. lag 5 – 1
mark

e) What does the presence of a hole imply about the data being
plotted? At what scale in meters is this feature (state ‘lag distance’
and then translate into meters distance)?

(3 Marks)
A hole in a variogram indicates that data at that lag distance is
correlated, or is of similar values. Therefore a hole at lag 5 indicates that
every 5th data point is similar to the original point, indicating cyclicity or
bedding. Since the data is plotted at every 30 cm, a hole at 5 lags is 5
times 30 cm, equals 1.5 m.

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