Exxonmobil Upstream Research Company

Exxonmobil Technology and Engineering Company

General Electric Company

Exxonmobil Research Upstream

Matthias Imhof

Pavel Dimitrov

Martin J Terrell

Matthew S Casey

Kelly E Wrobel

Tao Sun

Dominique Gillard

Ganglin Chen

Antonio R C Paiva

Kaveh Ghayour

Stefan Hussenoeder

Ethan J Nowak

Colin J Lyttle

Krishnan Kumaran

Jens Rittscher

Ali Can

John Patrick Kaufhold

Hao Bin Huang

Leslie A Wahrmund

Enru Liu

Ross Whitaker

Peng Xu

Gianni Matteucci

Erhan Bas

Weina Ge

Sha Miao

Mary Ellen Meurer

John E Mayhew

Guo-Shi Li

Amit Kushwaha

Laurie D Gibson

J Clayton Bell

Shankar Sastry

Antonio Rafael Da Costa Paiva

John S Lien

Fred W Schroeder

Dominique G Gillard

Method and systems are provided for building a structural model of the subsurface. The method may comprise obtaining discretized data that includes surfaces, polylines, points, or combinations thereof. The surfaces in the discretized data are segmented by other surfaces to form a number of segments. Each of the segments are fit to an implicit function. The implicit function for each of the segments is thresholded to create a number of implicit surfaces. The implicit surfaces are intersected to create a number of model surfaces. The structural model is then constructed from the model surfaces.

Constructing structural models of the subsurface

Geologic modeling methods and systems disclosed herein employ fault face parameterization to constrain and improve the transformation of a faulted physical space geologic model into an unfaulted depositional space geologic model. An illustrative embodiment includes: associating a seismic image with each face of at least one fault in a subsurface region; determining a correspondence map between the seismic images for said at least one fault; parameterizing the faces using the correspondence map to match parameter value assignments for corresponding portions of the faces; creating a displacement map that draws together matching parameter values to align the corresponding portions of the faces; applying the displacement map to the geologic model to create a design space model; modifying the design space model; applying the displacement map in reverse to the modified design space model to obtain a modified geologic model; and outputting the modified geologic model.

Geologic modeling methods and systems having constrained restoration of depositional space

Accordingly, there are disclosed herein geologic modeling methods and systems employing reference-based inversion of seismic image volumes. An illustrative method embodiment includes: (a) obtaining a measured seismic image volume; (b) determining a reference seismic image volume based on a reference model; (c) deriving a synthesized seismic image volume from a geologic model; (d) detecting at least one geologic model region where the synthesized seismic image volume and the measured seismic image volume are mismatched; (e) finding a reference model region where the reference seismic image volume best matches the measured seismic image volume; (f) replacing content of the at least one geologic model region with content of the reference model region to obtain an improved geologic model; and (g) outputting the improved geologic model.

Methods and systems for reference-based inversion of seismic image volumes

A method for examining uncertainty and risk associated with the development of a hydrocarbon resource by rapidly generating and analyzing variations of reservoir models realized from scenarios. The method and system may include instantiating realizations for objects based on the selected parameter ranges; and combining instantiated realizations of the objects into a reservoir model.

Method and system for analyzing the uncertainty of subsurface model

A method and system are described for creating a subsurface model. In this method, a watertight framework may be adjusted to lessen the ill-formed mesh elements. The method collapses mesh elements and/or eliminates nodes enhance the watertight framework and subsequent subsurface model. The resulting subsurface model may be used in reservoir simulations and hydrocarbon operations.

Method and system for enhancing meshes for a subsurface model

A method and system are described for creating a subsurface model. In this method, discontinuous functions are interpolated in a subsurface model. The method extrapolates specified values over discontinuous manifolds by embedding the manifold in a higher-dimensional space that amplifies distances across discontinuities and thus eliminates special consideration to prevent extrapolation across discontinuities. The resulting subsurface model may be used in reservoir simulations and hydrocarbon operations.

Method and system for interpolating discontinuous functions in a subsurface model

A method to select a representative subset of a plurality of horizon surfaces or surface patches from geophysical subsurface imaging data, including: defining a score function on one or more horizon surfaces or surface patches; calculating, by a computer, the score for each of the plurality of horizon surfaces or surface patches with regard to other horizon surfaces or surface patches and whether the other horizon surfaces or surface patches have been selected or not for inclusion or exclusion in the subset of the plurality of horizon surfaces; selecting, by a computer, one or more of the plurality of horizon surfaces or surface patches to be included in the subset of the plurality of horizon surfaces or surface patches or excluded from the subset of the plurality of horizon surfaces or surface patches based on their respective scores; iteratively repeating the selecting and calculating steps until a stopping condition is reached and the subset of the plurality of horizon surfaces or surface patches is determined; and performing interpretation on the subset of the plurality of horizon surfaces or surfaces patches.

Method for selecting horizon surfaces

A system and methods for analyzing seismic data are provided herein. The method includes identifying, via a computing device, a representation of a seismic data set () and determining a number of feature descriptors corresponding to each of a number of aggregates within the representation (). The method also includes identifying a query relating to the representation and one or more vocabulary definitions relating to the query (), analyzing the representation to compute a likelihood that each of the aggregates satisfies the query (), and returning a result of the query ().

Analyzing seismic data

Method and system are described for modeling one or more geophysical properties of a subsurface volume. The method includes computing vector volumes to enhance subsurface modeling and update these vector volumes. The vectors are estimated () from the data, for example dip or azimuth, and then the vector volume may be updated by an optimization process (). Flattening the original data () may assist the vector estimation, and associating data traces and samples of traces with labels () may assist the flattening. The vector volume may then be used to extract horizons () and generate a stratigraphic model () to enhance the process of producing hydrocarbons ().

Method and system for geophysical modeling of subsurface volumes based on computed vectors

Method and system are described for modeling one or more geophysical properties of a subsurface volume (). The present disclosure provides method of modeling the subsurface comprising obtaining one or more subsurface volumes and performing at least two operations () on the subsurface volumes. A graph of operations is determined () based on each of the at least two operations in which the graph of operations includes a description of each of the at least two operations and a flow path for the each of the at least two operations (). The graph of operation is stored (). A specific operation within the graph of operations may then be identified (). An additional operation may be created and connected to the graph of operations at a node associated with the specific operation to provide an additional branch to the graph of operations ().

Method and system for geophysical modeling of subsurface volumes

A workflow is presented that facilitates defining geocontextual information as a set of rules for multiple seismic attributes. Modeling algorithms may be employed that facilitate analysis of multiple seismic attributes to find candidate regions that are most likely to satisfy the set of rules. These candidates may then be sorted based on how well they represent the geocontextual information.

Context based geo-seismic object identification

Method and system are described for generating a stratigraphic model of a subsurface volume. Measured geophysical data are converted into a vector volume () by assigning to each sample in each trace in the data volume a vector representing dip, azimuth or confidence. Then a labeled volume is generated from the vector volume by assigning a label to each sample in an initial trace (), then selecting a propagation pattern () and propagating the labels to other traces (). Horizons can be extracted () from the labeled volume, and utilized to enhance the process of producing hydrocarbons ().

Method and system for geophysical modeling of subsurface volumes based on label propagation

A fully automated method for correcting errors in one interpretation () of seismic data based on comparison to at least one other interpretation () of the same subsurface region. The errors may occur in any feature of the seismic data volume, for example a horizon, surface, fault, polyline, fault stick, or geo-body. In some embodiments of the invention, an error may be a hole in a horizon (), and the whole is patched by a piece of a horizon in another interpretation (). In an alternative embodiment of the invention, a single interpretation may be used to repair itself, for example by identifying similarly shaped, adjacent horizons (), and merging them ().

Automated interpretation error correction

Method for decomposing a complexly shaped object in a data set, such as a geobody () in a seismic data volume, into component objects more representative of the true connectivity state of the system represented by the data set. The geobody is decomposed using a basis set of eigenvectors () of a connectivity matrix () describing the state of connectivity between voxels in the geobody. Lineal subspaces of the geobody in eigenvector space are associated with likely component objects (), either by a human interpreter () cross plotting () two or more eigenvectors, or in an automated manner in which a computer algorithm () detects the lineal sub-spaces and the clusters within them.

Method for decomposing complex objects into simpler components

Method for automated and quantitative assessment of multiple direct hydrocarbon indicators ('DHI's') extracted from seismic data. DHI's are defined in a quantitative way (), making possible a method of geophysical prospecting based on quantification of DHI anomalies. Instead of working in a particular spatial region of seismic data pre-defined as a hydrocarbon opportunity, the present invention works on entire data volumes derived from the measured seismic data (), and identifies opportunities based on quantified DHI responses. In some embodiments, a series of algorithms utilizes the geophysical responses that cause DHI's to arise in seismic data to search entire data sets and identify hydrocarbon leads based on the presence of individual and/or combinations of DHI's ().

Growing community of inventors

Katy, TX, United States of America

Matthias Imhof