Core thermal profiling application in additional geology structure appraisal of Permian-Carboniferous deposits at Usinsk oil field

Abstract

Continuous non-destructive, non-contact, high-resolution thermal profiling of a set of the rock thermal properties has been performed for the first time in the geological and geophysical practice on all full-size core samples from two wells drilled in Permian-carboniferous deposits heavy oil reservoir of the Usinsk field with a total amount of studied core samples about 3 000. The representative data on thermal conductivity, volumetric heat capacity, thermal anisotropy coefficient of rocks and their mineral matrix were obtained. The data are necessary for the hydrodynamic modeling of the heat and mass transfer processes in reservoirs at the thermal methods of the enhanced oil recovery. The experimental data demonstrated essential variations of the thermal properties along the wells at a scale of 0,005 up to dozens of meters that provided new possibilities for the detailed analysis of the reservoir heterogeneity within a frame of the additional study of the oil field geological structure. It is shown that the results of the high-resolution thermal profiling allow to detail porosity variations and to define more accurately depth intervals with variations of rock mineralogical composition.