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Geology
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The first necessity in the heavy oil industry is FINDING heavy oil
We need the skills of the geologist and many other scientists and
technicians to understand the structure of the Earth and the nature of oil deposits and
then use this understanding to predict where heavy oil is located. |
See graphic and text panels - click here
| Exhibit 5 |
Display Case of fossils, rocks, core samples |
A Visit to a Core Lab
Alberta and Saskatchewan Map
Shown here are our modern provinces
but superimposed on them are several maps.
Push the labeled buttons to see, for example, the ancient seas that
once covered our area (except for the islands to the south and west); or the modern
distribution of oil reserves and associated infrastructure
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Many other maps available from the Alberta Geological Survey
The Sweep of Time
Depicted here is the 650 million year period during which life is
thought to have existed on Earth.
Note the bar representing heavy oil's formation; from the time of
initial organic deposit during the Devonian Era, and continuing through its chemical
development to the present.
The era of "modern" humans, thought to be about 10,000 years;
when shown to scale, constitutes only 0.1846 mm of this 12 meter time line.
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| Exhibit 8 |
Air Rock Demonstration |
text panel (below)
Migration
Oil, lighter than water, has a natural tendency to move upwards toward
the surface
The air bubbles you see here represent oil droplets which are
"migrating" toward the surface. They find it easy to pass through sand and
gravel but eventually they are trapped by non-porous rock. Oil's tendency to migrate
means that it can be found in reservoirs far from where it originated (source rock) and
this further complicates the challenge of finding it. |
Porosity and Permeability
Porosity is a word for the number and size of spaces in a material
through which I can wriggle.
Permeability is a word for the degree to which all these spaces are
connected to each other to give me tunnels to run through.
I am always trying to find my way to the surface. I can run
through the big spaces in gravel (high porosity and permeabilty). Sand is usually
easy to get through. I can even crawl through some rock providing the pores are
interconnected (permeability), but any material with very few interconnected holes will
trap me deep underground.
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| Exhibit 9A |
Slice of Earth |
Text Panels now Developed CLICK HERE
See Alberta Geological Survey Article on
Cretaceous
Mannville Group of the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin
| Exhibit 10 |
Seismic Operation Demonstration |
Seismic Demonstration
Technicians set off blasts and use sensitive instruments to record the
echoes from deep underground.
The pattern of the echoes can show the shape of rock formations and
possibly reveal a likely hiding place of heavy oil.
Push the plunger to set off a blast and see if you can determine where heavy oil might be
hiding. |
See the background article, click here
| Exhibit 11 |
Bells & Whistles Interactive |
Conditions for "making" heavy oil
I like it at least 50°C. Where I live under Lloydminster, it's
cooooold - only 21°C.
If I could move closer to the center of the Earth, it would be warmer
and that would help me grow up faster into a healthy crude oil.
Use the instruments below to see how moving me deeper, makes me warmer, and speeds up my
oil formation. Otherwise, I'll be down here another 100 million years! |
For background article, click here
The requisite formulas is:
Tf = Ts + (D x G)
where: Tf = formation temperature [0Celsius]
Ts = average annual "surface" temperature [approximately 11 0Celsius
for the Lloydminster region] Note: the term "surface" actually refers to a
depth of about 3 meters where the soil temperature remains constant and is not effected by
seasonal variations above.
G = geothermal gradient [1.8 0 Celsius/100 meters]
D = depth [meters]
This corresponds to observed data in the field that records oil temperature at 70°F from
a well at 1,900 feet depth.)
2. For pressure: As the background article explains, pressure is more a
factor in oil migration than in oil production. However, reported pressures in the field
are approximately 575 psi or 40.4 kg/cm2 at the depth of 580 meters.
Well Bore Logs
A "log" is a detailed record of the geological formations and
fluid reservoirs through which a well bore descends
There are two main types of logs: resistivity logs and porosity logs.
Resistivity logs use the resistance to the flow of electricity to supply
clues as to the material below. Mineralized water is necessary to conduct
electricity. Neither dry rock, nor oil and gas, conduct electricity.
Porosity logs measure underground porosity by recording such things as
the speed at which neutrons or gamma rays slow down, or that sonic waves travel, as they
pass through the formation.
Shown here are two representative logs which display these measurements
as wavy lines across various columns, all correlated with the depth at which the
measurements are taken. Experienced interpreters can use these findings to recognize
various types of rock or the presence of water, gas, or even heavy oil. |
Background article for well bore logs - click
here
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