Methods to assess and predict gas reservoir producibility

该项目将着眼于开发改进的方法来评估和预测气藏的产能，并将着眼于常规和非常规储集岩。这项研究试图阐明气藏岩石的构造-运移关系。它将使用新的实验技术，如集成气体吸附和汞孔隙度测量，并结合计算机X射线断层扫描。它还将研究利用核磁共振方法，如核磁共振冷扩散法，它允许确定网络中不同大小的气孔对整体质量传输通量和空隙空间可访问性的影响。空隙中的流体具有凝固点和熔点降低，这取决于孔的大小。因此，由于小孔首先熔化，网络中越来越大的气孔可以逐步熔化，从而通过脉冲梯度核磁共振监测熔融部分中质量传输率的变化。此外，氙气的大小与甲烷相同，因此可以作为超极化氙气磁共振成像研究岩石中气体流动的模型。成像研究可以评估更大的长度尺度特征和空隙空间结构中的空间异质性对质量传输和可达性的贡献。超极化氙气核磁共振波谱也可以用来探测微孔网络结构。

This project will look at developing improved methods to assess and predict gas reservoir producibility, and will look at conventional and unconventional reservoir rocks. The study will attempt to elucidate the structure-transport relationship for gas reservoir rocks. It will use novel experimental techniques such as integrated gas sorption and mercury porosimetry combined with computerised X-ray tomography. It will also look at utilising NMR methods, such as NMR cryodiffusometry, which allows the influence of differently-sized pores in the network on overall mass transport fluxes and void space accessibility to be determined. The fluid in a void space has freezing and melting point depression that depends on pore size. Hence, since small pores melt first, the ever larger pores in the network can be progressively melted and the resulting change in the mass transport rates in the molten fraction monitored by pulsed-field gradient NMR. Further, xenon is the same size as methane and can thus be used as a model for it in hyperpolarised xenon magnetic resonance imaging studies of gas flows in rocks. Imaging studies allow the contributions from larger length-scale features, and spatial heterogeneity in void space structure, to mass transport and accessibility to be assessed. Hyperpolarised xenon NMR spectroscopy can also be used to probe micropore network structure.