Seismic Reflections of Rock Properties

Description

This book provides an accessible guide to using the rock physics-based forward modeling approach for mapping the subsurface, systematically linking rock properties to seismic amplitude. Providing practical workflows, the book shows how to methodically vary lithology, porosity, rock type, and pore fluids and reservoir geometry, calculate the corresponding elastic properties, and then generate synthetic seismic traces. These synthetic traces can then be compared to actual seismic traces from the field: a similar actual seismic response implies similar rock properties in the subsurface. The book catalogs various cases, including clastic sediments, carbonates, and time-lapse seismic monitoring, and discusses the effect of attenuation on seismic reflections. It shows how to build earth models (pseudo-wells) using deterministic and statistical approaches, and includes case studies based on real well data. A vital guide for researchers and petroleum geologists, in industry and academia, providing sample catalogs of synthetic seismic reflections from a variety of realistic reservoir models.

Jack Dvorkin is a Senior Research Scientist in the Department of Geophysics at Stanford University, California. His primary research interests are theoretical rock physics and its practical applications as well as computational rock physics, and he has taught dozens of industrial rock physics short-courses worldwide (USA, Canada, Colombia, Brazil, India, China, Japan, Norway, Germany, Italy). Dr Dvorkin has published around 150 professional papers and has also co-authored two books including The Rock Physics Handbook (Cambridge, 2009). Mario A. Gutierrez is a Principal Geophysicist at Shell Exploration and Production Inc., working primarily on the application of seismic- and rock physics-based methods for evaluating and risking the presence of reservoir rocks and hydrocarbons to support business decisions and recommendations on oil and gas exploration projects worldwide. Dr Gutierrez holds a PhD in Geophysics from Stanford University, California, and has previously held leading applied research and operations positions at Shell, BHP Billiton Petroleum, Ecopetrol and various seismic contractors, working on rock physics and seismic attributes modeling, reservoir characterization, shallow geo-hazards and pore pressure prediction. Dario Grana is an Assistant Professor at the University of Wyoming. He worked for four years on seismic reservoir characterization at Eni Exploration and Production in Milan, then moved to Stanford University, California, where he received his PhD in geophysics in 2013 - during which time he also published six peer-reviewed journal papers and presented at several international conferences. Dr Grana's main research interests are rock physics, seismic reservoir characterization, geostatistics and inverse problems for reservoir modeling.

'This invaluable companion to Mavko et al.'s popular Rock Physics Handbook describes the deterministic and stochastic forward modeling tools a geophysicist needs to find reservoir parameter combinations whose seismic responses fit the data. The authors illustrate key concepts with simple applets, and cover the latest developments in digital rock physics and gas hydrates.' Sven Treitel, President, TriDekon, Inc. 'The authors superbly introduce readers to the field of rock physics and also educate practitioners on applying rock physics in seismic interpretation for hydrocarbon reservoirs. Systematically designed using templates and catalogues, this guide to exploration for and production mapping of hydrocarbons is honestly explained, including warnings for interpretation pitfalls. Supported by excellent figures, it is enjoyable to read and hard to resist turning to the next page.' Ivar Brevik, Specialist in Geophysics, Statoil 'Reading [this book] gave me a better appreciation for seismic-reflection characteristics of rock properties, and I am glad to have it on my bookshelf. I will surely reach for it during future seismic analyses.' Seth S. Haines, The Leading Edge '... provides a rich resource of theory, experimental data, thoughtful methodological considerations, and numerous examples. ... As a seismologist, I recommend this book to anyone interested in seismic exploration and rock physics.' Yu Chen, Pure and Applied Geophysics