Elastic anisotropy of clay in shales

PreviousNext No AccessSEG Technical Program Expanded Abstracts 2019Elastic anisotropy of clay in shalesAuthors: Colin M. SayersLennert D. den BoerColin M. SayersSchlumbergerSearch for more papers by this author and Lennert D. den BoerSchlumbergerSearch for more papers by this authorhttps://doi.org/10.1190/segam2019-3198626.1 SectionsAboutPDF/ePub ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinked InRedditEmail AbstractWe model the clay matrix in shales as anisotropic clay platelets embedded in a softer interparticle medium consisting of clay-bound water and interparticle contacts. Properties of the inter-platelet region are governed by its effective bulk and shear moduli, and the clay platelets by their elastic stiffness tensor, volume fraction, and aspect ratio. The elastic stiffness tensors of clay minerals are taken from published quantum mechanical calculations. Clay matrix anisotropy varies with the properties of the inter-platelet medium and the assumed properties of the clay platelets. Although clay matrix model parameters are drawn from uniform distributions, resulting distributions of elastic stiffnesses and anisotropy parameters are lognormal in aspect, such that the distributions of their logarithms are approximately Gaussian. Statistics of the distributions and correlations between stiffnesses or anisotropy parameters allow identification of the most probable stiffnesses for rock physics calculations. Despite random sampling, well-defined relations emerge, consistent with similar reported shale relations.Presentation Date: Monday, September 16, 2019Session Start Time: 1:50 PMPresentation Start Time: 3:30 PMLocation: 305Presentation Type: OralKeywords: rock physics, anisotropy, unconventional, mudrocks, shalePermalink: https://doi.org/10.1190/segam2019-3198626.1FiguresReferencesRelatedDetails SEG Technical Program Expanded Abstracts 2019ISSN (print):1052-3812 ISSN (online):1949-4645Copyright: 2019 Pages: 5407 publication data© 2019 Published in electronic format with permission by the Society of Exploration GeophysicistsPublisher:Society of Exploration Geophysicists HistoryPublished Online: 10 Aug 2019 CITATION INFORMATION Colin M. Sayers and Lennert D. den Boer, (2019), "Elastic anisotropy of clay in shales," SEG Technical Program Expanded Abstracts : 3528-3532. https://doi.org/10.1190/segam2019-3198626.1 Plain-Language Summary Keywordsrock physicsanisotropyunconventionalmudrocksshalePDF DownloadLoading ...