Gamma computed tomography performance for petrophysical characterization of sandstone rocks

Abstract

The gamma ray tomography techniques for industrial processes evaluation have been pointed out as the most promising in order to visualize the structure and the distribution of solids, liquids and gases inside multiphase systems, such as industrial columns or pipes, without interrupting the operation in pharmaceutical, biochemical, petrochemical and chemical industries. The reservoir rocks of fluids have, also, multiphase mixtures in their interior, since the fluids stored in the pore spaces within the reservoir rocks could be gas, oil, and water. However, no studies related to gamma tomography for analysis of oil reservoir rocks have been found in the literature. One type of rock of economic interest is the tar sand rock which has a great potential to act as reservoirs of oil, thus the knowledge of its petro-physical properties related to the filling of fluids in their pores; its structural properties, its internal geometry can contribute significantly to the exploration and recovery of the hydrocarbons of the rocks reservoirs, providing subsidies to the oil engineers in the recovery of hydrocarbons (oil) in their interior, having a significant economic relevance. In this work, the tar sand rock was characterized using the 3th generation gamma-ray industrial process tomography technique developed at IPEN /CNEN-SP. The internal arrangement, distribution of the pores, mineral composition, the fluid and mineral densities of the analysed rocks were evaluated. A high spatial resolution was obtained in the reconstructed image.