Clastic Sedimentology for Exploration and Development

Course review:

This 5 day course covers the basics of clastic sedimentology at scales that are appropriate for both regional exploration and detailed reservoir characterisation. The main types of sedimentary basin are briefly reviewed in the context of crustal dynamics and plate tectonics and the production and transport of clastic material in different tectonic, topographic and climatic settings are described.

The course discusses processes of erosion, transport and deposition of sediments by water, wind and ice. Sedimentary fluid dynamics are related to sedimentary bed forms which, in turn, are related to the lamination and bedding styles that characterise most sandstone. These principles are applied to different depositional settings, focusing on the nature of sediment supply, the distribution of processes in space and time and the resultant organisation of depositional facies. Alluvial, deltaic, coastal, shallow-marine, slope, deep-marine and aeolian settings are all discussed in terms of processes, facies and facies organisation. Particular attention is given to the principles by which depositional settings are interpreted using both outcrop and sub-surface data and to the correlation methods that are appropriate in different settings. Facies organisation at a wide range of scales is reviewed in the context of syn-depositional tectonics, base-level changes and sequence stratigraphy.

Discussion of reservoir characterisation includes an appraisal of deterministic and stochastic approaches to modelling, the role of analogue data and constraints on sandbody connectivity. The course emphasises the practical interpretation of subsurface data for facies analysis and reservoir characterisation, with coursework designed to reinforce lectures and provide access to a variety of data types. Exercises involve interpretation of seismic, core and wireline log data, with examples drawn from different facies, ages and basinal settings.