Characteristics of Rotliegend sediments in view of X-ray microtomohraphy and optical microscopy investigations

Abstract

The article presents the results of microtomographic and petrographic investigations of Rotliegend sandstones collected from core material from wells located in the area of the Fore-Sudetic Monocline in its central and northern parts and also on the border of the Fore-Sudetic Monocline and the Mogilno - Łódź Synclinorium. Three areas were selected for the study: Czarna Wieś–Parzęczewo (19 samples), Środa Wielkopolska–Kromolice (21 samples) and Siekierki–Miłosław (21 samples). The aim of the petrologic and microtomographic studies was to investigate how the different reservoir properties of sandstones will be reflected in the results of the methods used. Strong differences between samples from the region of Środa Wielkopolska–Kromolice and the other studied areas have been demonstrated. In the case of this area several key factors were noticed: the highest average value of effective porosity; the highest average content of pores belonging to class VII (pore volume subsystem classification); three times higher average value of the CT porosity coefficient and the largest length of the average chord. Also in terms of petrography (composition of grains, cement type) it is a region where major differences, especially compared to the region of Czarna Wieś–Parzęczewo, can be seen. Based on the obtained results, it was possible to rank the examined regions in terms of their reservoir properties – from the worst (Czarna Wieś–Parzęczewo) to the best (Środa Wielkopolska–Kromolice). These conclusions are also confirmed by other petrophysical analyses (eg. mercury porosimetry, permeability analysis). Combination of the obtained microtomographic and petrographic results allowed to obtain a full characterization of the investigated samples – both in terms of the mineralogical composition of grains, as well as the development of the pore space. These data, especially in combination with the results of density and porosity analyses (helium pycnometry and mercury porosimetry), open up a number of possibilities to carry out different types of modeling (porosity, permeability) both on the scale of the sample itself, as well as the scale of a single well or even the whole basin, which is crucial for creating a hydrocarbon exploration strategy.