Type of Submission
Poster
Keywords
Photomicrograph, Marcellus shale, well-cuttings, mudlog, shale, sandstone, siltstone, limestone
Abstract
Often times, when an oil or gas well is drilled in an area with limited geophysical and mud logs, the geologist or mudlogger describing the drill cuttings may wonder about the veracity of their work. Such an uncertainty may initiate a decrease in the rate of the mudlogging process, or in determining how far drilling has advanced in relation to the target zone. If a descriptive guide containing photomicrographs was available early in the development of a new gas field, mudloggers would be more certain in their analysis of the cuttings. In order to test this idea, a descriptive guide was created to help with the identification of drill cuttings from a natural gas well drilled in Sullivan Co., PA, located in the Marcellus Shale play of northeast Pennsylvania. The well was sampled every 30’ starting at a depth of 600’ and ranging to 8,500’ below the surface. Basic lithologic types encountered during drilling and mudlogging included sandstone, siltstone, limestone and shale. Representative samples of each significant lithology were analyzed for this study. The created guide utilizes photomicrographs taken with a Motic 2300 camera mounted on a Motic polarizing microscope. Helicon Focus software was used for focus stacking. The photomicrographs have been matched with data and descriptions from the on-site mudlogs which list both formation tops and the lithological sequences. Printed color hardcopies and DVD versions of the guide will be distributed to the operator who provided the cuttings for the study. A request will be made that the operator provides feedback regarding the usefulness of the guide.
Faculty Sponsor or Advisor’s Name
Dr. Rice
Campus Venue
Stevens Student Center
Location
Cedarville, OH
Start Date
4-16-2014 11:00 AM
End Date
4-16-2014 2:00 PM
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.
Photomicrograph Analysis of Marcellus Well-Cuttings from Northeast Pennsylvania
Cedarville, OH
Often times, when an oil or gas well is drilled in an area with limited geophysical and mud logs, the geologist or mudlogger describing the drill cuttings may wonder about the veracity of their work. Such an uncertainty may initiate a decrease in the rate of the mudlogging process, or in determining how far drilling has advanced in relation to the target zone. If a descriptive guide containing photomicrographs was available early in the development of a new gas field, mudloggers would be more certain in their analysis of the cuttings. In order to test this idea, a descriptive guide was created to help with the identification of drill cuttings from a natural gas well drilled in Sullivan Co., PA, located in the Marcellus Shale play of northeast Pennsylvania. The well was sampled every 30’ starting at a depth of 600’ and ranging to 8,500’ below the surface. Basic lithologic types encountered during drilling and mudlogging included sandstone, siltstone, limestone and shale. Representative samples of each significant lithology were analyzed for this study. The created guide utilizes photomicrographs taken with a Motic 2300 camera mounted on a Motic polarizing microscope. Helicon Focus software was used for focus stacking. The photomicrographs have been matched with data and descriptions from the on-site mudlogs which list both formation tops and the lithological sequences. Printed color hardcopies and DVD versions of the guide will be distributed to the operator who provided the cuttings for the study. A request will be made that the operator provides feedback regarding the usefulness of the guide.
