WorkShops

Short Course 1: Describing and Understanding Shale/Mudstone Facies

One-day workshop.

Delivered by: Dr. Juergen Schieber, Indiana University, USA

Why Do Shales and Mudstones Matter?

Mud is everywhere. Much of the Earth is covered by it, on land as well as under the sea. It influences what crops we can grow, how stable our landscapes are, the navigability of our rivers, how much effort we have to expend to keep open harbors and canals, as well as the habitability of shelf seas and the deep oceans for benthic life (shellfish, crabs, etc.) and associated fish crops. Mud is the main substrate for the microbial biomass of Earth, and as such is intricately woven in with biogeochemical cycles that exert control on the composition of atmosphere and ocean. Mud is important. When buried mud becomes mudstone, a fine-grained sedimentary rock composed dominantly of clay-sized (< 4 μm) and silt-sized (4 – 62.5 μm) particles that constitutes 2/3 of the sedimentary rock record and contains the lion’s share of recorded geologic time. For petroleum systems, mudstones are essential as source rocks and seals, and more recently also as unconventional hydrocarbon reservoirs.

Who Should Attend

Geologists that are interested to learn more about mudstones and shales, on how they form, and how one can work with them efficiently. Participants should have a working knowledge of sedimentary rocks, sedimentology, and stratigraphy, but no specialized knowledge about shales and mudstones is required.

Objectives

By the end of the course participants should arrive at

• A basic understanding of sedimentary settings & processes that deposit fine grained sediments

• Be able to Identify common physical sedimentary structures

• Be able to Identify visible diagenetic features

• Be able to Identify bioturbation features of various subtlety

• Know how to describe & name fine grained rocks via hand specimen derived properties

Content

An introduction to the heterogeneous nature of shales and mudstones and guidance on how to work effectively with these complex lithologies. Expose the participants to a descriptive and interpretative methodology that benefits from 40 years of experience researching these rocks.

The course is a combination of lectures that explain fundamental concepts, and hands-on exercises on a collection polished shale slabs, and a drill core. Theory and practice are brought together for a deeper learning experience. Lectures and exercises alternate to allow time for reflection, and to illustrate lecture introduced concepts with actual rocks.

Price: 100 €

Minimum participants: 10

Maximum number of participants: 30

Short Course 2: Contourites and Mixed Sedimentary Systems

One-day workshop.

Delivered by:

Dr. F. Javier Hernández-Molina; Dr. Sara Rodrigues; Dr. Wouter de Weger; Dr. Debora Duarte; Dr. Aleksei Portnov; Watcharaphong Phothadee (Andalusian Earth Sciences Institute, IACT, Spanish Research Council, CSIC, Spain)
Dr. Estefanía Llave Barranco (Instituto Geológico y Minero de España, IGME, CSIC, Spain)
Dr. Andreas Laake (slb AaTC, Germany)
Dr. Elda Miramontes (MARUM and Faculty of Geosciences, University of Bremen, Germany)

Why Do Contourites and Mixed Sedimentary Systems Matter?

Along-slope bottom currents and associated oceanographic processes can trigger both large- and small-scale deep-water processes, which interact with other hemipelagic and gravitational processes, leading to the formation of Contourites and Mixed Depositional Systems, depending of the relative contribution of each type of process. The recent surge in examples on the deep-marine sedimentation, described in either academic or industry research, has undoubtedly contributed to a better understanding of these systems. As new models emerge, interest in Contourites and Mixed Depositional Systems continuous to grow, focusing in their origins, deposits, evolution and connection to deep-sea ecosystems, geological hazards, and even their economic potential. However, key aspects of their nature and evolution over time remain unclear.

This 1-day course organised by “The Drifters” research group, aims to summarise the fundamental (confirmed or proposed) concepts regarding Contourites and Mixed Depositional Systems. We offer examples from modern oceans and ancient records, from 2D and 3D seismic data to the sedimentary facies scale. These examples highlighting the role of bottom currents in shaping the sea-floor and controlling the stacking patterns of deep-water sedimentary successions. Additionally, we will explore the potential role of coarser-grained sedimentary systems in facilitating sub-seafloor fluid and gas migration and accumulation. New perspectives in marine sedimentation and their integration in current models (e.g., source to sink) will also be discussed with implications for both academia and industry.

Who Should Attend

This course is especially designed for PhD and post-doc researchers, industry professionals, consultants, university faculty, government agency personnel and deepwater practitioners around the world seeking to understand the state-of-the-art for Contourites and Mixed Depositional Systems.

Objectives

By the end of the course participants should arrive at:

An understanding of Contourites and Mixed Depositional Systems and associated oceanographic and sedimentary processes
Be able to discriminates these systems from other deepwater sedimentary systems based on seismic, logging and sedimentary facies (cores and outcrops). Special attention will be placed on High-Resolution Seismic Attributes using new seismic processing techniques.
Be able to discriminate sandy contourites and reworked turbidites.
An understanding of the role of tectonic on Contourites and Mixed Depositional Systems
An understanding of the economic implications of Contourites and Mixed Depositional Systems

Content

An update about Contourites and Mixed Depositional Systems will be provided, including new concepts and methodologies. The course will be a combination of lectures covering the different aspects of Contourites and Mixed Depositional Systems. Some short practical exercises are planned to combine different methodologies for identifying contourite and mixed features using 2D and 3D seismic, logging and core data.

Price: 150 €

Minimum participants: 10

Maximum number of participants: 30

Short Course 3: Application of Subsurface Know How and Tools to Energy Transition

Sedimentology and store quality within the context of Carbon Capture and Sequestration (CCS)

One-day workshop

Delivered by: Marc Gil-Ortiz, Ph.D. (Universitat de Barcelona, Spain), and Conxita Taberner, Ph.D. (Independent, ex-Shell GSNL International, Den Haag, The Netherlands)

Why depositional architecture and reservoir quality matter for CCS?

The key constraints for CCS projects are: store volume, injectivity and containment. These three constraints relate to subsurface parameters. The course will focus on basin geometry, depositional architecture, reservoir/store quality and flow units, which determine store volume and injectivity. Baffles/barriers and seals (e.g. shales, clays, evaporites) will be discussed in the context of cap rock integrity and containment. The role of faults on containment, will not be specifically discussed in this short course.

Who should attend

This course is designed for those interested in acquiring a rapid overview and insights around store/reservoir architecture and properties supporting CCS feasibility. More specifically, the course will focus on the relevance of depositional geobodies and reservoir/store quality, both in carbonate and silicilastic formations, to support injection and storage of CO₂. The topics discussed are grounded on knowledge and experience acquired over the years on integrated subsurface studies applied to Oil & Gas and CCS. We have designed this course to provide an holistic view of sedimentary and reservoir quality requirements for CCS to be utilized by fully established academics, Ph.D. and Postdoctoral Researchers, as well as by industry staff, with different background expertise and experience.

Objectives

By the end of this course participants should arrive at:

Knowledge of key controls depicting a successful CCS project, from public and legislation requirements and acceptance to effective injection and containment of committed store volumes.
Awareness level on potential pros- and cons- of aquifer vs. depleted field storage: e.g. availability of subsurface information, sedimentary architecture, store units and baffles/barriers, depth and lateral continuity of flow units, presence of high permeability layers, number of wells already present in the targeted location (-s), reservoir/store properties, aquifer chemistry, potential reactions associated to CO₂ injection and impact on mineralogy and rock properties.
By using an hypothetical case example, the participants will assess and select from several locations in a sedimentary basin the potentially most favourable location(-s) for safe and liable CCS.

Content

The course will cover the following subsurface aspects: store in aquifers vs. abandoned oil and gas fields pros and cons, offshore vs. onshore locations, injectivity and role of store heterogeneity, high permeability streaks, mineralogy (reactions and mineral entrapment), reservoir/store characterization: cores, logs, rock properties and process-based rules applied to property prediction.

The course is structured in such a way that will include lectures summarizing the state of the art on the specific topics above mentioned, followed by group/individual exercises based on specific case examples.

Price: 125 Euro

Minimum number of participants: 10

Maximum number of participants: 30