Applying Geological Process Modeling to a turbidite system in the northern North Sea

Abstract

In recent years, several mathematical methods, especially those based on geostatistics, have been used in reservoir characterization. The reliability of the static models derived from these techniques depends on available seismic data, well interpretation, and outcrop analogues. Although geostatistical methods have been efficiently applied in many cases, they have limitations in integrating the data of various disciplines into a consistent depositional model. A relative new approach, named geological process modeling (GPM), or stratigraphic forward modeling (SFM) can help geologists to verify their concepts and build reliable geological models. This technique, which involves the time-reconstruction of geological configurations, applies numerical simulation to reflect the interaction between several physical processes including erosion, sediment transport and deposition, wave action, tectonic movement, compaction, and carbonate growth (Tetzlaff and Harbaugh, 1989). In this thesis, a turbidite reservoir will be analyzed and regenerated with GPM. The study case is an Early Cretaceous turbiditic reservoir on the Måløy Slope, northern North Sea. No scientific work has been published for the data set provided for this thesis. This study tests different conceptional depositional models thru making use of the predictive power of GPM. The final model that is selected for reservoir modelling is based on parameter values lying within the range of published analogue data and is supported by the measured data of the study field.