Rock Physics: Seismic Reflections of Rock Properties

by Dr. Jack Dvorkin

Duration: Two days

Intended Audience: Intermediate and Advanced levels

Prerequisites (Knowledge/Experience/Education Required): Participants should at least have a B.Sc. in geophysics/geology with knowledge of principles of reflection, seismic prospecting, geology, and basic physics (elasticity and fluid flow).

Summary:
Participants will learn the uses of rock physics in interpreting the elastic properties of earth, as sensed by seismic radiation, for lithology, fluid, and porosity determination. Presented are the basics of rock physics as well as applications of rock physics at various scales - from core to seismic. Real-time demos and exercises are given using Matlab-based applets.

Course Outline:

Basics of Rock Physics

  • Purpose of rock physics
  • Practical use of rock physics transforms in reservoir property mapping and synthetic seismic generation
  • Definitions and methods of rock physics
  • Elasticity
  • Static and dynamic moduli
  • Effect of pore fluid of rock's seismic properties
  • Fluid substitution
  • Importance of Vp/Vs and Poisson's ratio
  • Effects of frequency and saturation scales on rock's seismic properties

Applications of Rock Physics

  • Elastic properties of reservoir fluids
  • Velocity-porosity-mineralogy-texture
  • Effects of porosity, lithology, and texture on the elastic properties of sediments
  • Effects of diagenesis and grain sorting
  • Cementation
  • Rock physics models in high-porosity soft sediment
  • Rock physics of consolidated rock
  • Rock physics diagnostics and derivation of rock physics transforms from well log and core data

Special Topics

  • Attenuation
  • Scales of observations and experiments
  • Gas Hydrates

Instructor Biography:
Dr. Jack Dvorkin