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Abstract

AAPG Bulletin, V. 100, No. 9 (September 2016), P. 1399-1417.

Copyright ©2016. The American Association of Petroleum Geologists. All rights reserved.

DOI: 10.1306/04041615129

Fracture responses of conventional logs in tight-oil sandstones: A case study of the Upper Triassic Yanchang Formation in southwest Ordos Basin, China

Wenya Lyu,1 Lianbo Zeng,2 Zhongqun Liu,3 Guoping Liu,4 and Kewei Zu5

1State Key Laboratory of Petroleum Resources and Prospecting, China University of Petroleum, 18 Fuxue Road, Changping District, Beijing 102249, China; [email protected]
2State Key Laboratory of Petroleum Resources and Prospecting, China University of Petroleum, 18 Fuxue Road, Changping District, Beijing 102249, China; [email protected]
3Huabei Branch Company, Sinopec, 199 Longhai West Road, Zhongyuan District, Zhengzhou 450006, China; [email protected]
4State Key Laboratory of Petroleum Resources and Prospecting, China University of Petroleum, 18 Fuxue Road, Changping District, Beijing 102249, China; [email protected]
5Research Institute of Petroleum Exploration and Development, Zhongyuan Oilfield Company, Sinopec, 277 Zhongyuan Road, Puyang 457001, China; [email protected]

ABSTRACT

Fractures are the main fluid-flow pathways in tight-oil sandstones, and they have a significant influence on tight-oil distribution, exploration, and development. Cores and image logs are commonly unavailable because of their high costs, so employing conventional logs for fracture detection is imperative for tight-oil sandstones. We compared the fracture-response characteristics of conventional logs based on two data sets, one from 8 cored wells with fracture intensities greater than 1 m−1 (3.3 ft−1) and the other from 11 cored wells with fracture intensities less than 0.5 m−1 (1.6 ft−1), with a case study of the Upper Triassic Yanchang Formation in southwest Ordos Basin, China. The results indicate that when tight-oil sandstones are more intensely fractured, the caliper log, acoustic log, compensated neutron log, density log, dual induction logs, and laterolog 8 present fracture responses to some extent. However, it is difficult to make a distinction between fractured and nonfractured zones using conventional logs in sandstones with smaller fracture intensities. The fracture-response intensities of conventional logs are weak, and they are influenced by fracture abundance, fracture occurrence, fracture scale, and mineral-filling degree. Moreover, lithology, fluids, and rock physical properties can cause fracturelike responses. Hence, some ambiguity exists when using conventional logs to directly identify fractures. Accompanying fracture-sensitive conventional logs with some methods to enhance fracture-response intensity and eliminate nonfracture influence could enable fracture identification in tight-oil sandstones.

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