1. John H. Shaw and Andreas Plesch, Harvard University
New approaches to 3D structural restorations using mechanical constraints for improved petroleum trap and reservoir characterizations
John H. Shaw and Andreas Plesch, Harvard University
Restoration field calculated for detachment fold in Caspian Sea
We are investigating a fundamentally new approach of performing 3D (volumetric) structural restorations using finite element techniques, in order to develop better methods for characterizing complex petroleum traps and reservoirs. These new methods consider mechanical rock properties in calculating fully 3D restoration displacement and strain fields (right), and thus offer promise for better defining the geometry and evolution of petroleum traps, as well as constraining patterns of natural fractures and other strain properties in reservoirs that influence oil and gas production.
DEM model
Mesh
Restoration of forward models and comparisons of strain fields
To rigorously benchmark these new methods, we restore a series of mechanical forward models developed by the discrete element method (DEM). These DEM models generate complex structures comparable to natural systems. Restorations of these models demonstrate that restoration strains are localized in patterns similar to those of forward strains. These benchmarks give us the ability to improve the restoration approaches in ways that will best facilitate their application to natural structures, which will be the focus of the second year of our study.
Forward strain
Restoration strain