Multiscale Fracture Analysis in a Reservoir-Scale Carbonate Platform Exposure (Sorrento Peninsula, Italy): Implications for Fluid Flow

We derive the discrete fracture network (DFN) of a Lower Cretaceous carbonate platform succession exposed at Mt. Faito (Southern Apennines), which represents a good outcrop analogue of the coeval productive units of the buried Apulian Platform in the Basilicata oilfields. A stochastic distribution o...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Geofluids 2018-01, Vol.2018 (2018), p.1-10
Main Authors: Mazzoli, S., Iannace, A., Tavani, S., Vinci, F., Corradetti, A., Massaro, L., Parente, M.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Basins
Carbonates
Computational fluid dynamics
Cretaceous
Distribution
Ecological succession
Exposure
Fieldwork
Fluid flow
Fracture mechanics
Fractures
Geology
Joints (timber)
Mathematical models
Modelling
Multiscale analysis
Oil and gas fields
Oil field equipment
Oil fields
Oil reservoirs
Outcrops
Permeability
Platforms (geology)
Porosity
Surveying
Surveys
Three dimensional models
Unmanned aerial vehicles
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Summary:We derive the discrete fracture network (DFN) of a Lower Cretaceous carbonate platform succession exposed at Mt. Faito (Southern Apennines), which represents a good outcrop analogue of the coeval productive units of the buried Apulian Platform in the Basilicata oilfields. A stochastic distribution of joints has been derived by sampling at two different scales of observation. At the outcrop scale, we measured fracture attributes by means of scan lines. At a larger scale, we extracted fracture attributes from a 3D model. This multiscale survey showed the occurrence of an arresting bed for through-going fractures, which is characterized by a low relative permeability, determining a vertical compartmentalization. The DFN model, obtained by integrating fieldwork and numerical modelling by means of the 3D-Move® software, shows a well-defined relationship of permeability and fracture porosity with the relative connectivity of the fracture network. The latter is influenced by the length and aperture and to a lesser extent by the fracture intensity. The permeability distribution obtained for our outcrop analogue can be used to inform modelling of the Basilicata oilfield reservoirs, although the different burial history between the exposed Apennine Platform and the buried Apulian Platform must be taken into account.
ISSN:1468-8115
1468-8123
DOI:10.1155/2018/7526425