Chapter 1 Flashcards
List the 8 steps in a hydrocarbon reservoir life cycle
Exploration, discovery, delineation, development, primary production, secondary production, tertiary production, and abandonment
Explain the steps of the hydrocarbon life cycle
Exploration - land is evaluated to determine its potential
Discovery – is it worth investing into
Delineation - it is worth investing in
Development – they make estimates of where to create wells, as they drill they update their predictions – uncertainties – take samples – rough approximations that are updated
Primary production – prodcution is done by natural energy of the resevoir of itself - depends on pressure and how deep you have to drill – sk does not have
Sedondary production – water flood – putting water in one well to force oil out of a nearby well. - for when oil does not come out easily and they are only breaking even. - injecting and producing well
Tertiary Production – only water in coming out of the second well so you use another technique. Add polymer to water to make it thicker and push the oil more efficiently. Or add heat to make oil thinner
abandonment - It is no longer worth extracting the oil
what professions play a part in oil production
Gas and chemical engineering
Research and development
Service
Environment
Legal
Land
Management
Grology and geophysics
Resevois engineering
Econmics
Drilling engineering
Production and operation engineering
What two elements comprise the majority of petroleum
Hydrogen – 13%, carbon – 85%
Petroleum is formed by the remains of
small organic material such as zooplankton and algae
What are the two steps that petroleum forms
Diagenesis, catagenesis
Describe diagenesis
process of compaction in low pressure and temperature conditions. Includes chemical, physical, and biological changes in sediment after the initial formation.
Describe catagenesis
thermal dehydration of kerogen due to increase in deeper burials. Catagenesis/cracking will turn the kerogen to hydrocarbon chains.
Higher temp and pressure leas to more complete cracking of the kerogen and more lighter and samller hydrocarbons.
What are the 3 main types of rocks
Igneous, sedimentary, metamorphic
Describe igneous rocks
how quickly the magma cools determines the grain size of the rock
The slower the cooling process, the larger grain size in the ingenious rock
Intrusive vs extrusive igneous rocks
Intrusive
Crystallize below Earth’s surface and the slow cooling that occurs there allows large crystals to form
Extrusive
Erupt onto the surface where they cool quickly to form small crystals
Describe sedimentary rocks
Formed by deposition of materials at the crust of earth. The source materials are resulted from erosion and weathering and they are transported to the deposition point by water, wind, ice and glacier.
What are the three main types of sedimentary rocks
clast, chemical, organic
What is clast sedimentary rocks
Accumulations of clast(small pieces of broken up rock which have piled up and been lithified by compaction and cementation
Shale, siltstone, conglomerate, sandstone
What is chemical sedimentary rocks
Form when standing water evaporates, leaving dissolved mineral behind
Common in arid lands, where seasonal playa lakes occur in closed depressions
Thick deposits of salt and gypsum can form due to repeated flooding and evaporation over long period of time
Rock salt, chert
What is organic sedimentary rocks
Any accumulation of sedimentary debris caused by organic processes
Bit of calcium (from animals, teeth, shells) can collect on the sea floor to form organic sedimentary rock
Dolomite, limestone
Describe metamorphic rocks
If there is a change in environmental conditions of the rock which result in instability of the rock minerals.
One of the major changes in environmental conditions come from the rise in pressure and temperature as a result of burial.
arise from the transformation of existing rock to new types of rock
What are the two main types of metamorphic rocks?
Foliated and non-foliated
Describe foliated and non-foliated metamorphic rocks
Foliated metamorphic rocks: apperance is layered or banded which is by exposure to heat and directed pressure.
Slate and gneiss
Non foliated metamorphic rocks: apperance is not layered or banded
Marble and quatizite
What are 3 factors affecting the occurrence of petroleum
Source rock
Reservoir rock
Traps
Describe source rock
petroleum is generate using this rock. Consist mainly of sedimentary rocks. Contains water and oil, they went into the rock at the same time.
Source bed is where the oil was formed
The temperature and pressure in the source rock will affect the insoluble organic materials (kerogen) to form the petroleum.
Describe reservoir rock
porous and permeable rock that contain hydrocarbon
Mainly consist of sedimentary rocks (sandstones and carbonates, they are connected to mature source beds)
On a much smaller scale, fractured igneous and metamorphic rocks have also been found to produce hydrocarbons.
Describe Traps
natural traps that hold oil, so when you make a well that oil is released
Traps are arrangement of rock layers which prevent the hydrocarbons to rise to the surface, resulting in a accumulation of hydrocarbons
Traps are consisted of an impermeable layer of rock on top of a porous media which contains hydrocarbons
Describe a structural trap
Formed by rock layers which are folded or faulted. Structural traps account for the majority of petroleum resources, and they include anticlinal trap, fault trap and salt dome trap.
