Permeability Distribution Research Articles

Effects of Fines Migration and Reservoir Heterogeneity on Well Productivity: Analytical Model and Field Cases

Abstract Formation damage due to fines migration after water breakthrough during oil and gas production results in significant well productivity decline. A recent study derived an analytical model for fines migration during commingled water–oil production in homogeneous reservoirs. Yet, reservoir heterogeneity highly affects formation damage and well productivity. This article develops an analytical model for layer-cake reservoirs. We develop a novel methodology for characterizing productivity decline by considering the impedance as a function of water-cut, two quantities that are commonly measured throughout the production life of the well. The methodology is based on a new analytical model for inflow performance in layer-cake reservoirs under fines migration. The new model integrates pseudo-phase-permeability functions for commingled water–oil production with equations for fines release and induced permeability damage. The analytical model reveals linear well impedance growth versus water-cut increase, where the slope is determined by a modified form of the mobility ratio which includes the extent of formation damage. This linear form is shown to arise when the formation damage factor is constant, regardless of the distribution of reservoir permeabilities. The model is validated by comparison with production histories of five wells from three fields, which exhibit good agreement with the linear trend predicted by the new model. The explicit formulae allows for the prediction of productivity at abandonment, determining the optimal well stimulation time, as well as reconstructing skin values during the early stages of production to better estimate the influences of other formation damage factors, like those induced during drilling and completion.

In-plane dynamic analysis of supershear rupture transition due to poroelastic pressurization

Summary Although pore fluid has received increased attention in the problems of earthquake rupture, its effects on coseismic rupture are not fully understood. In this paper, we numerically simulate dynamic rupture in saturated poroelastic media to study the interplay between poroelastic pressurization and rupture evolution. Particular attention is paid to the physical process of the supershear transition. The spontaneous rupture is assumed to be governed by slip weakening law and the fault is treated as a leaky interface where pore pressure equilibrium is delayed. Results show that the pore pressure induced by coseismic mechanical deformation can strengthen the fault on the extensional side but weaken the fault on the compressional side. As a result, the poroelastic pressurization on the compressional side can promote the occurrence of the transition to supershear rupture while its strengthening effect on the extensional side can suppress this transition even in the state of high initial shear stress. Meanwhile, it is found that the permeability distribution along the fault plane also affects rupture evolution. Faults with nucleation zones located in low permeability regions are more likely to undergo a supershear rupture.

The Effects of Bedrock Topography and Soil Permeability on Saturated Zone Distribution in a Mountainous Steep‐Slope Area

ABSTRACTSaturation development and distribution at the soil–bedrock interface are important for predicting shallow landslide occurrence. Previous studies have indicated that saturation is generated in bedrock depressions and valleys and that bedrock groundwater seepage generates locally saturated areas. However, the effects of soil permeability, which is known to be heterogeneously distributed, on saturation development and distribution are poorly understood. In this study, we performed unprecedented high‐resolution (approximately 50 cm grid) soil pore water pressure and soil temperature monitoring using 141 tensiometer–thermocouple sets in a plot measuring approximately 5 × 4 m to investigate the effects of topography and bedrock groundwater seepage on saturation development and distribution. We then measured permeability distribution of two soil profiles, including at the soil–bedrock interface, using the Guelph Permeameter method (GP method) for comparison with saturated zone distribution and saturation duration. The results indicated that a perennial saturated area was formed by bedrock groundwater seepage and was distributed downstream from a certain bedrock surface altitude in the lower region of the study plot. After a peak of rainfall, the perennial saturated area expanded upslope owing to the increased seepage. In areas without the influence of bedrock groundwater, saturation was observed to retreat rapidly at high permeability points and persist over long periods at low permeability points; however, the saturation duration was inconsistent with the bedrock surface topography. Therefore, it is suggested that the bedrock altitude controls the saturation distribution generated by bedrock groundwater, whereas the distribution of saturation that is associated with direct rainwater infiltration may be controlled by the permeability distribution during recession periods. Although the plot size was small, the unprecedented high‐resolution observations suggest that the permeability distribution, rather than the bedrock topography, may control the saturated zone distribution following rainfall.

Numerical analysis of stress distribution due to upper protective layer mining and its impact on gas extraction

Pressure-relief gas extraction through the floor directional long boreholes is an advanced and effective gas control technology for the upper protective layer of contiguous coal seams. This study systematically analyzed the effects of mining activities on stress distribution in the underlying strata and developed an analytical equation to calculate the permeability distribution of the protected layer under mining-induced conditions. The results indicate that the effective extraction radius of directional long boreholes increased by 186% as the mining distance of the upper protective layer extended from 50 to 150 m. Furthermore, increasing the borehole diameter from 89 to 153 mm led to a 14.8% improvement in gas extraction efficiency, while raising the negative pressure from 15 to 35 kPa resulted in a 19.6% increase in the effective extraction radius. These findings provide valuable guidance for optimizing borehole design parameters and gas extraction efficiency, ensuring safer and more effective gas control in coal mining operations.

Spatio-temporal neural networks for monitoring and prediction of CO[formula omitted] plume migration from measurable field data

Carbon capture and storage (CCS) technologies are crucial for mitigating greenhouse gas emissions. The success of CCS projects hinges on accurately predicting and monitoring the CO2 plume migration during and after injection. To address the computational burden of traditional numerical simulation methods, previous studies have used neural networks as proxy models to expedite the prediction of the CO2 plume migration. However, these models rely on uncertain inputs, such as the distribution of heterogeneous rock permeability and porosity maps, which can lead to erroneous predictions and limit their adoption in real-world applications. To address this issue, this study introduces a framework for reconstruction and short-term prediction of CO2 plume migration based solely on field measurements that directly provide information on the migration of the CO2 plumes, thus eliminating the dependency on uncertain geological information as model input. The framework trains a spatio-temporal neural network model using simulated data under various geologic settings to capture the plume evolution dynamics without constraining it to a specific geological scenario. Once trained, the model integrates global and local field measurements from multiple sources to reconstruct the CO2 plume and predict its spatio-temporal evolution. The effectiveness of the proposed framework is tested using two case studies: one using a synthetic dataset and another with data generated from a model of a real field in the Southern San Joaquin Basin. The results show that the proposed framework can accurately reconstruct and perform short-term predictions of the CO2 plume migration by integrating various forms of field measurements.

Study on the influence of aerosol atomization by ultrasonic atomization on coal spontaneous combustion

ABSTRACT Influenced by the complex environment and the nature of process materials in goaf, the prevention and control of spontaneous combustion of coal (CSC) in the deep part of goaf were facing many difficulties. To investigate the performance of ultrasonic atomized aerosols, a series of atomization experiments were conducted using a self-developed ultrasonic atomization device. The main conclusions are as follows: under the same atomization conditions, the atomized particle sizes of several inhibitors (except PAS-W) are concentrated in the <8 μm range, with a content of more than 88%, indicating that the aerosol particles produced by ultrasonic atomization are small in size and uniform in distribution. Compared with water and MgCl2 inhibitors, aerosol particles produced by PAS-W are less likely to pass through the voids of the coal body, and have poorer permeability and diffusivity. As the temperature increases, the viscosity and surface tension of the inhibitor decrease, and the percentage of aerosol particles with particle size <8 μm produced by ultrasonic atomization is more than 88%, indicating that the atomization effect is improved. After increasing the temperature, the contact angle between PAS-W inhibitor and coal reduces from 54.7° to 40.8°, and the wettability is better. Compared with raw coal, the final temperature of the PAS-W aerosol treated coal sample is delayed 21.86°C, and has significant retarding property. When the wind speed is 3 m/s, the effect of PAS-W aerosol particle generation, permeability, and particle size distribution is the best. The results of the study are of great significance in improving the ultrasonic atomized aerosol fire prevention technology and realizing large-scale CSC prevention in goaf.

Polydopamine modified carbon fiber to improve the comprehensive properties of carbon paper for proton exchange membrane fuel cell

In this study, polydopamine (PDA) was used to modify functional groups on the surface of carbon fiber (CF), and the effects of different dopamine hydrochloride (DPH) concentrations on the surface morphology, functional groups, contact angle and dispersion stability of CF were studied. Subsequently, the raw carbon paper (RCP), hot-pressed carbon paper (HPCP) and carbon paper (CP) were prepared successively using the modified CF through wet forming, impregnation/hot-pressing, and carbonization methods. The surface morphology, tensile strength, flexural strength, electrical resistivity, air permeability and pore size distribution were analyzed for these materials. It was observed that the introduction of −OH and − NH2 groups improved the hydrophilicity and dispersion of PDA modified CFs, resulting in an increase in formation index (FI) from 39.2 to 48.1 for RCP samples. With increasing DPH concentration, the tensile strength of CP initially increased but then decreased while its electrical resistivity showed an opposite trend. Finally, PDA modified CP was assembled into proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFC). The PEMFC assembled from DPH-CP-2.5 achieved a maximum limiting current density of 1440.0 mA/cm2 and power density of 458.25 mW/cm2. Meanwhile, the lower material transmission impedance for DPH-CP-2.5 as well as excellent water management ability and gas transmission performance.

Detective generalized multiscale hybridizable discontinuous Galerkin(GMsHDG) method for porous media

The Detective Generalized Multiscale Hybridizable Discontinuous Galerkin (Detective GMsHDG) method aims to further reduce the computational cost of the GMsHDG method. The GMsHDG method itself reduces the computational cost of the HDG method by employing an upscaled structure on a two-grid mesh. Given a PDE within a specified domain, we subdivide the domain into polygonal subdomains and transforms a HDG problem into globular and local problems. Globular problem concerns whether the solutions on smaller domains glue well to form a globular solution. The process involves generation of multiscale spaces, which is a vector space of functions defined on edges of the polygonal regions. A naive approximation by polynomials fails, especially in porous media, necessitating the generation of problem-specific spaces. The Detective GMsHDG method improves this process by replacing the generation of the multiscale space with the detective algorithm. The Detective GMsHDG method has two stages. First is called an offline stage. During the offline stage, we construct a detective function which, given a permeability distribution, it gives a multiscale space. Later stage is called the offline stage where, given the multiscale space, we use GMsHDG method to solve a given PDE numerically. We show numerical results to argue the liability of the solution using the detective GMsHDG method.

Analyzing the permeability distribution of multilayered specimens using pulsed eddy-current testing with multi-scale 1D-ResNet

The mechanical properties of steel are determined by its microstructure, which is closely related to its permeability profile. In thermal processing, layered structures are formed in steel and different layers have different mechanical and magnetic properties. Therefore, it is crucial to propose a practical method to monitor the change of permeability profile along the depth, which can indicate the evolution of the microstructure of steel during thermal processing, such as hot rolling. This paper presents a method for determining the layered structure and permeability profile of the steel by using pulsed eddy current testing (PECT), which offers better penetration ability. An analytical model has been deduced for calculating the time-domain pulsed eddy current (PEC) response from a Hall sensor of a triple-layer conductor system based on the inverse Laplace transform. It is found the Tau (τ) curve is closely related to the permeability profile of the conductor. For the inverse solution, the Simultaneous Iterative Reconstruction Technique (SIRT) is utilized to determine the permeability profile of the multilayered specimens from the measured response. The approximate Jacobian matrix (sensitivity matrix) is obtained by the perturbation method based on the Tau curve. However, the permeability profile suffers from smoothing effect and sharp features are lost. Deep learning (DL) algorithm based on the Multi-Scale 1D-ResNet model is therefore introduced to address this issue. Numerical simulations and experiments have been performed to evaluate the proposed method for permeability profile estimation with various materials and thicknesses. The DL method can achieve an accurate estimation of the plate permeability profile with a relative error under 5%.

Morphology-Mediated Tumor Deep Penetration for Enhanced Near Infrared II Photothermal and Chemotherapy of Colorectal Cancer.

The low permeability and heterogeneous distribution of drugs (including nanomedicines) have limited their deep penetration into solid tumors. Herein we report the design of gold nanoparticles with virus-like spikes (AuNVs) to mimic viral shapes and facilitate tumor penetration. Mechanistic studies revealed that AuNVs mainly entered cells through macropinocytosis, then transported to the Golgi/endoplasmic reticulum system via Rab11-regulated pathway, and finally exocytosed through recycling endosomes, leading to high cellular uptake, effective transcytosis, and deep tumor penetration compared to gold nanospheres (AuNPs) and gold nanostars (AuNSs). The high tumor accumulation and deep tumor penetration of mitoxantrone (MTO) facilitated by AuNVs endowed effective chemophotothermal therapy when exposed to a near-infrared II laser, significantly reducing tumor sizes in a mouse model of colorectal cancer. This study reveals a potent mechanism of viral-like structures in tissue penetration and highlights their potential as effective drug delivery carriers.

A prediction method of oil recovery for hot water chemical flooding in heavy oil reservoirs: Semi-analytical stream tube model

Abstract Chemical agents (polymer and surfactant) assisted hot water flooding is an effective means of enhancing oil recovery in heterogeneous and heavy oil reservoirs. The rapid prediction of oil recovery through hot water chemical flooding is very important. The stream tube model is a fast analytical method for predicting water flooding recovery, but it is not suitable for hot water chemical flooding. In this paper, a permeability distribution model for multi-stream tubes is established based on permeability variation coefficient using normal distribution function for reservoir heterogeneity, Using GOMPERTZ growth function model to characterize the changes in stream tube temperature, polymer viscosity, and surfactant concentration with injection volume, Using Brooks-Corey model to describe the influence of interfacial tension and temperature on the relative permeability curve. Finally, an analytical stream tube model for hot water chemical flooding of heavy oil reservoirs was established. The time discrete method is used to solve the model, then the graphs of the relationship between oil recovery and water cut are obtained. Compared with numerical simulation methods, the prediction error of oil recovery is less than 2%, and the calculation time is reduced by 89%. This model has been successfully applied to X oilfield. Based on historical fitting, it is predicted that hot water chemical flooding can enhance oil recovery by 6.3% compared to water flooding. This paper provides a fast calculation method for predicting and evaluating the effectiveness of hot water chemical flooding in heavy oil reservoirs.

The influence of major faults and fractures on the development of non-matrix porosity system in a pre-salt carbonate reservoir, Santos Basin – Brazil

Faults and fractures are central for characterizing the permeability distribution in carbonate reservoirs since they act as pathways for diagenetic fluids that often favor intense rock dissolution and permeability. Usually, high permeability zones and fractures are not easily recognized in seismic data due to limited resolution and they are often associated with higher concentrations of hydrocarbons or even significant fluid losses during drilling, thus creating a challenge for hydrocarbon exploration. In the Santos Basin, southeast Brazil, the pre-salt carbonate reservoirs from the Barra Velha Formation (BVE) are the main hydrocarbon producers in Brazilian Atlantic margin and well-known for being extremely heterogeneous, exhibiting complex dual-porosity systems. In this study, we built a conceptual model of these fracture zones and non-matrix porosity formation that helped narrowing the understanding of these complex systems. The characterization of faults and fractures was carried out using seismic, well-logs, and borehole image data to understand the influence of these structures in the porosity formation along the Barra Velha Formation. In the study area, three fault sets were defined (F1, F2, and F3) from seismic data. F1 represents to the larger faults, while the F3 fault set represents the smaller faults related to the reactivation of F1; both sets being oriented NE-SW. The F2 fault set is associated with the rift formation and is oriented to NNE-SSW. These three fault sets compartmentalized the studied area into different domains, each exhibiting distinct fracture sets. The natural open fractures were formed during the reactivation of rift faults and are oriented mainly NW, NNE-NNW, NE, and ENE and were identified across the entire study area, but with different intensity values. The fracture intensity closely relates to the distance from major faults where the wells with the highest fracture intensity occurs located 150–590 m from the larger F1 fault set. Scan-lines were conducted throughout the area to determine the fault width, and an average value of 1.2 km was established. Seven non-matrix porosity classes were characterized and classified into stratigraphically concordant and discordant non-matrix pore types at well scale through borehole image interpretation. The Barra Velha Formation exhibit higher occurrence of stratigraphically discordant non-matrix porosity related to fractured zones while stratigraphically concordant non-matrix porosity is mainly controlled by the paleotopography of the study area. Overall, non-matrix porosity formation tends to follow an orientation that suggests a preferential dissolution flow towards NE and ENE directions. Intervals with higher silica content shows a positive correlation with both fracture intensity and stratigraphically discordant non-matrix porosities. This work provides a conceptual model about the fractures and non-matrix porosity distribution in pre-salt carbonate rocks that can help address some of associated structural and stratigraphic uncertainties during field appraisal and development.

Population Pharmacokinetic Model of Intravenous Immunoglobulin in Patients Treated for Various Immune System Disorders

Intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) is used to treat various immune system disorders, but the factors influencing its disposition are not well understood. This study aimed to estimate the population pharmacokinetic parameters of IVIG and to investigate the effect of genetic polymorphism of the FCGRT gene encoding the neonatal Fc receptor (FcRn) and clinical variability on the pharmacokinetic properties of IVIG in patients with immune system disorders. Patients were recruited from 4 hospitals in Malaysia. Clinical data were recorded, and blood samples were taken for pharmacokinetic and genetic studies. Population pharmacokinetic parameters were estimated by nonlinear mixed-effects modeling in Monolix. Age, weight, baseline immunoglobulin G concentration, ethnicity, sex, genotype, disease type, and comorbidity were investigated as potential covariates. Models were evaluated using the difference in objective function value, goodness-of-fit plots, visual predictive checks, and bootstrap analysis. A total of 292 blood samples were analyzed from 79 patients. The IVIG concentrations were best described by a 2-compartment model with linear elimination. Weight was found to be an important covariate for volume of distribution in the central compartment (Vc), volume of distribution in the peripheral compartment (Vp), and clearance in the central compartment, whereas disease type was found to be an important covariate for Vp. Goodness-of-fit plots indicated that the model fit the data adequately. Genetic polymorphism of the FCGRT gene encoding the neonatal Fc receptor did not affect the pharmacokinetic properties of IVIG. This study supports the use of dosage based on weight as per current practice. The study findings highlight that Vp is significantly influenced by the type of disease being treated with IVIG. This relationship suggests that different disease types, particularly inflammatory and autoimmune conditions, may alter tissue permeability and fluid distribution due to varying degrees of inflammation. Increased inflammation can lead to enhanced permeability and retention of IVIG in peripheral tissues, reflecting higher Vp values.

Surrogate model for reservoir performance prediction with time-varying well control based on depth generative network

This paper proposes a novel intelligent method for defining and solving the reservoir performance prediction problem within a manifold space, fully considering geological uncertainty and the characteristics of reservoirs performance under time-varying well control conditions, creating a surrogate model for reservoir performance prediction based on Conditional Evolutionary Generative Adversarial Networks (CE-GAN). The CE-GAN leverages conditional evolution in the feature space to direct the evolution of the generative network in previously uncontrollable directions, and transforms the problem of reservoir performance prediction into an image evolution problem based on permeability distribution, initial reservoir performance and time-varying well control, thereby enabling fast and accurate reservoir performance prediction under time-varying well control conditions. The experimental results in basic (egg model) and actual water-flooding reservoirs show that the model predictions align well with numerical simulations. In the basic reservoir model validation, the median relative residuals for pressure and oil saturation are 0.5% and 9.0%, respectively. In the actual reservoir model validation, the median relative residuals for both pressure and oil saturation are 4.0%. Regarding time efficiency, the surrogate model after training achieves approximately 160-fold and 280-fold increases in computational speed for the basic and actual reservoir models, respectively, compared with traditional numerical simulations. The reservoir performance prediction surrogate model based on the CE-GAN can effectively enhance the efficiency of production optimization.

Numerical analysis of water injection in coal seams under mining influence

This study investigates the diffusion characteristics and optimization of borehole water injection in the 3# coal seam of Licun Coal Mine under mining influence. The distribution of stress and permeability ahead of working face using FLAC3D combined COMSOL Multiphysics. The influence of distances between the borehole along with the diameters of the boreholes on the stress distribution around the borehole is studied. Additionally, the diffusion characteristics of coal seam water injection are analyzed under various parameters. The study found that borehole proximity to the working face significantly enhances stress relief and permeability, while borehole diameter has a minor impact. Simulation results from COMSOL Multiphysics indicated that increasing injection pressure significantly improves seepage velocity and wetting range, though borehole diameter effects remain negligible. Optimal water injection parameters were identified, suggesting that the most effective water injection occurs at a borehole 3 m from the working face, with a diameter of 0.11 m and an injection pressure of 10 MPa, achieving saturation within 48 h. This research contributes to the theoretical and practical understanding of optimizing borehole water injection in complex geological settings and thick coal seams.

Influence of Heterogeneous Reservoir on Carbon Sequestration and Carbon Displacement

Abstract Carbon Capture, Utilization and Sequestration (CCUS) is a method of burying CO2 captured in various ways into the reservoir and extracting the remaining oil from the reservoir. It is one of the important methods to reduce carbon emissions and achieve carbon neutrality in the next few decades, and it is also considered to be the most economical and effective method to slow down the greenhouse effect. It is very important to study the influence of reservoir heterogeneity on CO2 storage and oil recovery in order to make CCUS scheme store more CO2 and recover more remaining oil. Firstly, the numerical simulation model of reservoir is established in this paper. Its injection-production mode is gas injection in vertical wells at the top of the reservoir at a fixed gas injection rate, and oil production in horizontal wells at the bottom of the reservoir at a fixed pressure. Secondly, the distribution of reservoir porosity and permeability is designed, and four reservoir models are established: homogeneous reservoir, heterogeneous reservoir, positive rhythm heterogeneous reservoir and reverse rhythm heterogeneous reservoir. Finally, the effects of four reservoir models on CO2 storage and oil recovery are studied, and the migration law of CO2 is comprehensively analyzed according to the characteristics of reservoir pressure distribution. The reverse rhythm reservoir has the best CO2 storage effect, and the positive rhythm reservoir has the highest oil recovery. That is, when burying is the main method, the reverse rhythm heterogeneous reservoir is preferred; When oil displacement is the main method, positive rhythm reservoir is preferred. Among the four homogeneous or heterogeneous reservoirs, the migration law of CO2 in reservoirs is quite different, mainly due to the influence of reservoir heterogeneity. CO2 preferentially migrates from the dominant channels in the reservoir, but regardless of the reservoir type, the molar fraction of CO2 at the top of the reservoir is the highest. In addition, the CO2 invasion of four kinds of reservoirs in different stages of caprock is analyzed and its safety is analyzed. This study provides an effective reference for the establishment of numerical simulation models of different types of heterogeneous reservoirs, the migration characteristics of carbon dioxide in reservoirs and the effective operation and evaluation of CCUS scheme.

The characteristics of volcanic lithofacies and volcanic reservoirs in the Permian Jiamuhe Formation, Southern Zhongguai Rise, Junggar Basin, NW China

The southern Zhongguai Rise has gained wide attentions due to its commercial hydrocarbon discoveries from volcanic deposits in Jinlong Oilfield. The integrated analysis of geological and geophysical data assist in determination and depiction of volcanic lithology and volcanic facie, characterization of volcanic reservoirs as well as discussion of constrains on volcanic lithology/lithofacies. The conclusions suggest that two types of volcanic lithology, including volcaniclastic rocks and silicic moltenlava, can be identified based on cores. In addition, two types of volcanic lithofacies can be delineated according to cores and wireline responses. The explosive facies are mainly developed in early depositional period while the effusive facies are developed through depositional period. Furthermore, the reservoir space predominantly consists of pores and fractures according to thin sections. The physical property varies from time to time. That is, porosity distribution varies slightly. In contrast, permeability distribution varies significantly. The volcanic reservoirs can be generally attributed to high-porosity and low-permeability reservoirs no matter in volcaniclastic rocks or silicic molten lava. The volcanic lithofacies, facies distribution, diagenism and paleogeomorphology exserts controls on physical property and reservoir performance of volcanic reservoirs together.

Analysis of classification results of rock cores with different physical properties based on clustering algorithm

Abstract In response to the problem of high difficulty in development caused by different physical properties differences during water flooding in high water bearing oil fields, effective flow unit division and analysis were carried out in Zone 1 of Gangxi through flow unit analysis. The physical property classification of each rock core in the flow unit was determined using the GMM cluster algorithm. The results show that Class I flow units have high permeability and porosity, and good pore permeability performance; The porosity and permeability distribution range of Class II flow units is the widest, with some pore permeability performance comparable to or even higher than Class I, and overall pore permeability performance is good; The porosity and permeability of Class III flow units are lower than the first two types, and their pore permeability performance is relatively poor. The types of core porosity and permeability in the study area can be divided into four categories, with the majority being high permeability, ultra-high permeability, and high permeability. The new research results provide a reference basis for the study of physical property distribution and later well network deployment in the first block of Gangxi District.

Advanced Technique of Rock Typing Characterization of Mishrif Formation, Amara Oil Field in Southern Iraq

Reservoir rock typing integrates geological, petrophysical, seismic, and reservoir data to identify zones with similar storage and flow capacities. Therefore, three different methods to determine the type of reservoir rocks in the Mushrif Formation of the Amara oil field. The first method represents cluster analysis, a statistical method that classifies data points based on effective porosity, clay volume, and sonic transient time from well logs or core samples. The second method is the electrical rock type, which classifies reservoir rocks based on electrical resistivity. The permeability of rock types varies due to differences in pore geometry, mineral composition, and fluid saturation. Resistivity data are usually obtained from well logs, and resistivity logs are available. The third method is the storage capacity of rocks. The focus is on the ability of rocks to store liquids, especially hydrocarbons. This method analyzes porosity, permeability, and pore size distribution data. After that, we compared the previous three methods to identify the types of rocks and determine the best method. In the first method (Cluster Analysis), three types of rocks were identified (Bad, Moderate, and Good). In the second method, electrical rock type (ERT), four types of rocks were identified (Bad, Moderate, Good, and Very good). Then, the third method (Storage Capacity) came and enhanced the results of the second method, so the second method is considered the best and most accurate method determining the types of rocks.

Deletion of PMP3 increases ketoconazole resistance by affecting plasma membrane potential in Candida albicans

Ketoconazole is a classical antifungal drug commonly used in the clinic. With the increased use of ketoconazole in recent years, an increasing number of drug-resistant strains have emerged during clinical treatment. It is well known that fungi acquire drug resistance in multiple ways, while the molecular mechanisms underlying ketoconazole resistance remain for comprehensive exploration. In this study, we found that the expression of the small plasma membrane protein-encoding gene PMP3 was significantly down-regulated in several clinically isolated ketoconazole-resistant strains, indicating the relationship between PMP3 expression and ketoconazole resistance. By knocking out the PMP3, we found that the absence of the Pmp3 resulted in a significant increase in resistance of Candida albicans to ketoconazole, which was also confirmed in a systemic infection model in mice. We further demonstrated that various physiological properties, such as cell membrane fluidity, plasma membrane potential, permeability and ergosterol distribution were altered in the pmp3Δ/Δ mutant, which is associated with the enhanced cellular resistance to ketoconazole. In addition, overexpression rather than deletion of PMP3 alters the hyphal development and biofilm formation capacity in C. albicans. This study reveals the contribution of Pmp3 to alteration of drug resistance in fungal pathogens, which may guide the development of novel antifungal strategies.