Micro-Nanopore Structure and Fractal Characteristics of Tight Sandstone Gas Reservoirs in the Eastern Ordos Basin, China

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
pp. 234-245
Author(s):  
Peng Qiao ◽  
Yiwen Ju ◽  
Jianchao Cai ◽  
Jun Zhao ◽  
Hongjian Zhu ◽  
...  

The complex pore system in tight sandstone reservoirs controls the storage and transport of natural gas. Thus, quantitatively characterizing the micro-nanopore structure of tight sandstone reservoirs is of great significance to determining the accumulation and distribution of tight gas. The pore structure of reservoirs was determined through polarizing microscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and the combination of mercury injection capillary pressure (MICP) and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) experiments on Late Paleozoic conventional and tight sandstone samples from the Linxing Block, Ordos Basin. The results show that in contrast to conventional sandstone, dissolution pores, with diameters less than 8 μm, are the main contributors to the gas storage space of tight sandstone reservoirs. The pore size distribution derived from the MICP experiment demonstrates that the main peak of tight sandstones corresponds to a pore radius in the range of 247 nm to 371 nm, while the secondary peak usually corresponds to 18 nm. The results of the NMR test illustrate that the T2 spectra of tight sandstones are unimodal, bimodal and multimodal, and the main NMR peak is highly related to the MICP peak. Fractal theory was proposed to quantitatively characterize the complex pore structure and rough porous surface. The sandstones show fractal characteristics including nanopore fractal dimension DN obtained from the MICP and large pore fractal dimension DL obtained from the NMR experiment. Both DN and DL are positively correlated with porosity and negatively correlated with permeability, demonstrating that complex and heterogeneous pore structure could increase the gas storage space and reduce the connectivity.

Energies ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 583 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiaohong Li ◽  
Zhiyong Gao ◽  
Siyi Fang ◽  
Chao Ren ◽  
Kun Yang ◽  
...  

The characteristics of the nanopore structure in shale, tight sandstone and mudstone from the Ordos Basin of China were investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis, porosity and permeability tests and low-pressure nitrogen adsorption experiments. Fractal dimensions D1 and D2 were determined from the low relative pressure range (0 < P/P0 < 0.4) and the high relative pressure range (0.4 < P/P0 < 1) of nitrogen adsorption data, respectively, using the Frenkel–Halsey–Hill (FHH) model. Relationships between pore structure parameters, mineral compositions and fractal dimensions were investigated. According to the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) isotherm classification standard, the morphologies of the nitrogen adsorption curves of these 14 samples belong to the H2 and H3 types. Relationships among average pore diameter, Brunner-Emmet-Teller (BET) specific surface area, pore volume, porosity and permeability have been discussed. The heterogeneities of shale nanopore structures were verified, and nanopore size mainly concentrates under 30 nm. The average fractal dimension D1 of all the samples is 2.1187, varying from 1.1755 to 2.6122, and the average fractal dimension D2 is 2.4645, with the range from 2.2144 to 2.7362. Compared with D1, D2 has stronger relationships with pore structure parameters, and can be used for analyzing pore structure characteristics.


Minerals ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 127 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhuo Li ◽  
Zhikai Liang ◽  
Zhenxue Jiang ◽  
Fenglin Gao ◽  
Yinghan Zhang ◽  
...  

The Lower Cretaceous Shahezi shales are the targets for lacustrine shale gas exploration in Changling Fault Depression (CFD), Southern Songliao Basin. In this study, the Shahezi shales were investigated to further understand the impacts of rock compositions, including organic matters and minerals on pore structure and fractal characteristics. An integrated experiment procedure, including total organic carbon (TOC) content, X-ray diffraction (XRD), field emission-scanning electron microscope (FE-SEM), low pressure nitrogen physisorption (LPNP), and mercury intrusion capillary pressure (MICP), was conducted. Seven lithofacies can be identified according to on a mineralogy-based classification scheme for shales. Inorganic mineral hosted pores are the most abundant pore type, while relatively few organic matter (OM) pores are observed in FE-SEM images of the Shahezi shales. Multimodal pore size distribution characteristics were shown in pore width ranges of 0.5–0.9 nm, 3–6 nm, and 10–40 nm. The primary controlling factors for pore structure in Shahezi shales are clay minerals rather than OM. Organic-medium mixed shale (OMMS) has the highest total pore volumes (0.0353 mL/g), followed by organic-rich mixed shale (ORMS) (0.02369 mL/g), while the organic-poor shale (OPS) has the lowest pore volumes of 0.0122 mL/g. Fractal dimensions D1 and D2 (at relative pressures of 0–0.5 and 0.5–1 of LPNP isotherms) were obtained using the Frenkel–Halsey–Hill (FHH) method, with D1 ranging from 2.0336 to 2.5957, and D2 between 2.5779 and 2.8821. Fractal dimensions are associated with specific lithofacies, because each lithofacies has a distinctive composition. Organic-medium argillaceous shale (OMAS), rich in clay, have comparatively high fractal dimension D1. In addition, organic-medium argillaceous shale (ORAS), rich in TOC, have comparatively high fractal dimension D2. OPS shale contains more siliceous and less TOC, with the lowest D1 and D2. Factor analysis indicates that clay contents is the most significant factor controlling the fractal dimensions of the lacustrine Shahezi shale.


2021 ◽  
pp. 1-59
Author(s):  
Quanpei Zhang ◽  
Tao Jiao ◽  
Hao Huang ◽  
Zhao Qi ◽  
Tao Jiang ◽  
...  

The complex pore structure and high heterogeneity of ultra-low permeability sandstone reservoirs have a significant effect on reservoir quality evaluation and hydrocarbon resource assessment. We collected 10 reservoir samples from the Upper Triassic Yanchang Formation Chang 8 in the Zhenbei area of the Ordos Basin. We measured the pore size distribution (PSD) and fluid occurrence characteristics of the reservoir by Pressure-controlled porosimetry (PCP), rate-controlled porosimetry (RCP) and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), and then analyzed the results via the fractal theory to determine the pore space fractal characteristics. Our analysis indicates that the three major pore types of these reservoirs are residual intergranular pores, dissolution pores and intercrystalline pores. The pore structure of the ultra-low permeability sandstone reservoirs is highly heterogeneous with pore throats of various scales, and the corresponding fractal characteristics are notably different, exhibiting multi-fractal features. Compared to macropores and mesopores, micropores are more uniform and regular in terms of their PSD and thus only slightly influence the reservoir quality. The complexity of the throat distribution and whole pore space is attributed to the development of dissolution pores and the content of feldspar minerals. Fractal features depend on the movable fluid pore space and effective pores, whose fractal dimensions reflect the complexity of interconnected pores and correlate well with the porosity and permeability. The development of different types and sizes of pore throats in these ultra-low permeability sandstone reservoirs resulted in the observed pore structure heterogeneity. The difference in mineral composition and content of these reservoirs aggravates the pore structure complexity and affects reservoir quality evaluation and further oilfield development.


2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
pp. 274-283
Author(s):  
Liang Liu ◽  
Wuling Mo ◽  
Min Wang ◽  
Nengwu Zhou ◽  
Yu Yan ◽  
...  

The fractal characteristics of marine shale from the Middle-Upper Ordovician Wulalike Formation (O2w) in the southwest margin of the Ordos Basin are studied. Based on low-temperature nitrogen adsorption experiments, the FHH (Frenkel-Halsey-Hill) model was employed to investigate the relationship between the marine shale composition, such as TOC, mineral content and shale gas content, and pore structure parameters, such as BET specific surface area, average pore diameter, porosity and fractal dimension. The results show that the pore size distribution curve of shale slowly decreased after the pore size was greater than 50 nm, the pore size distribution showed multiple peaks, and the peak value was mainly in the range of 2–10 nm. Most pores are nanopores, although the pore type and shape are different. Two different fractal dimensions D1 and D2 are obtained from the two segments with relative pressures of 0–0.5 and 0.5–1.0, respectively: the D1 range is 2.77–2.82, and the D2 range is 2.63–2.66. As D1 is larger than D2, the pore structure of small pores is more uniform than that of large pores in the shale samples. The relationship between the fractal dimensions D1 and D2 and the total organic carbon (TOC) content is a convex curve. Fractal dimension D reaches its maximum when TOC is 0.53 wt.%. Fractal dimension D decreases with increasing specific surface area, porosity and average pore size. The fractal dimension has a different influence on the gas storage and migration in shale; the larger the fractal dimension is, the stronger the heterogeneity and the more complex the pore structure, and this outcome is conducive to the storage of gas in shale but not beneficial to the permeability and production of gas.


2014 ◽  
Vol 1010-1012 ◽  
pp. 1387-1390
Author(s):  
Xiao Lei Wei ◽  
Xin Li ◽  
Rui Xu ◽  
Ling Ling Zhi

It is of great importance in classifying reservoirs and establishing the relationship of pore structure and productivity for formation evaluation and reserves estimation. In this study, based on the morphological characteristics and the difference of pore structure evaluation parameters acquired from mercury injection capillary pressure (MICP) data, which were obtained from the experimental results of 20 core samples drilled from Chang 6 tight sandstone Formation of north Ordos basin, the Chang 6 formation is classified into three types, and the corresponding average MICP curves of every types are obtained. These were usable in determining the potential target formation and predicting the productivity in tight sandstone reservoirs.


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