Advanced Technique for Reservoir Thermal Properties Determination and Pore Space Characterization

Abstract

New research complex including experimental and theoretical base is developed for simultaneous determination of thermal conductivity, thermal diffusivity and volumetric heat capacity of dense and highly porous and fractured rocks at normal and formation thermodynamical conditions. Experimental base includes (1) a set of non-destructive contactless high precision optical scanning instruments for determination of rock’s thermal properties accounting for anisotropy and inhomogeneity, (2) instruments for measurements of rock’s thermal properties at simultaneous influence of elevated temperature and porous pressure and two component overburden pressure, (3) instrument for fluid thermal conductivity measurements, (4) extended database on rock thermal properties and their correlations with reservoir and other physical properties established from numerous measurements on representative core collections. Theoretical base consists of new theoretical models of effective thermal properties that allow us (1) to predict rock’s thermal properties at normal and elevated temperatures and pressures from other petrophysical data, (2) to estimate reservoir properties, pore fracturing and pore space parameters from thermal physical experiments. The new technique presents qualitatively new possibilities for geothermal research and industrial goals.