What is meant by Porosity ?

• It is defined as the ratio of void space, commonly

called pore volume, to bulk volume.
• Almost all hydrocarbon reservoirs are composed
Porosity (Ø) of sedimentary rocks in which porosity values vary
from 10 to 40% in sandstones and from 5 to 25%
in carbonates.
• Porosity is very important in Reservoir Engineering
to determine Reservoir storage capacity.
𝑽𝒑𝒐𝒓𝒆𝒔
• Ø = 𝑽𝒃𝒖𝒍𝒌
Pore
spaces Expressed in Percentage, Fraction or Porosity units
which are the same as percentage.
i.e. 100 porosity units (pu) = 100%.
Grains

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Factors affecting Porosity

1. Particles sphericity and angularity.

2. Sorting.
3. Packing.
4. Cementation.
5. Overburden stress.

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Particles shpericity and angularity Sorting
Ø is inversely proportional to sphericity and Ø is directly proportional to the sorting.
angularity.

Ø increase
Ø increase Ø increase
Packing Cementation
Ø is inversely proportional to the cementing
material

Ø increase

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 Overburden stress
Ø is inversely proportional to the overburden stress.

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Porosity classification:

Geological Classification:
1. Primary (Original) Porosity.
2. Secondary (Induced) Porosity.

Engineering Classification:
1. Absolute porosity.
2. Effective porosity.
3. Ineffective porosity.

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Primary Porosity • Primary porosity results from voids which
are left between mineral fragments and
grains at the time of their accumulation as
sediments.
• The porosity of the rock formed at time of
deposition.
i.e. Porosity between granular sandstone.

Well-sorted Rock

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 • It resulted from geological agents such as
Secondary porosity leaching, fracturing, and fissuring,
digenesis, dolomitization or bioactivity
which occur after lithification of
sediments.
• It is developed after deposition of the
rock.
i.e. fractures in limestone.

Fractured Rock

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Absolute porosity
The percentage of the entire pore
volume regardless of their
interconnection to the rock bulk volume.
𝐕𝒕𝒐𝒕𝒂𝒍 𝒑𝒐𝒓𝒆𝒔
Ø=
𝐕𝒃𝒖𝒍𝒌

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Effective porosity • The percentage of interconnected void
space with respect to the bulk volume.
• The effective porosity of a rock is
commonly 5 -10 % lower than its
absolute porosity.
𝐕 𝑰𝒏𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒏𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝒑𝒐𝒓𝒆𝒔
Ø=
𝐕𝒃𝒖𝒍𝒌

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Ineffective porosity The percentage of the completely
disconnected pores to the bulk volume.
𝐕 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒑𝒍𝒆𝒕𝒆𝒍𝒚 𝒅𝒊𝒔𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒏𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝒑𝒐𝒓𝒆𝒔
Ø=
𝐕𝒃𝒖𝒍𝒌
Ø𝒊𝒏𝒆𝒇𝒇𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒗𝒆 = Ø𝒕𝒐𝒕𝒂𝒍 − Ø𝒆𝒇𝒇𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒗𝒆

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 Sandstone porosity:
Four basic porosity types by Pitmann can be recognized in sandstones:
• Intergranular (Primary).
It is the primary pore space between rock grains.
• Microporosity.
Pore space that has a dimension less than 1 micron. In general, this includes not
only very small pores but also the porosity associated with surface roughness.
• Dissolution and fracture (Secondary).
Dissolution porosity is the pore space formed from dissolution of framework grains
and/or cements while Fracture porosity is the void space associated with natural
fractures.

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 Carbonate porosity:

Based on Choquette & Pray (1970):

Fabric Selective Not Fabric Selective Fabric Selective or Not

1. Interparticle porosity. 1. Vuggy porosity. 1. Breccia porosity.
2. Intraparticle porosity. 2. Fracture porosity. 2. Boring porosity.
3. Growth Framework porosity. 3. Channel porosity. 3. Burrow porosity.
4. Shelter porosity. 4. Cavern porosity. 4. Shrinkage porosity.
5. Fenestral porosity. 5. Styloltic porosity
6. Moldic porosity.
7. Inter-crystalline porosity.

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Interparticle porosity
It is the primary pore space between rock
grains.

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Intraparticle porosity • It consists of pore space that occurs within
rock grains.
• It is commonly formed by the decay of
organic material within carbonate skeletons.

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Growth framework
porosity
• It is created by skeletal growth of frame
building organisms such as corals.

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Shelter porosity • Shelter porosity is often found below
large plate-like grains which have acted
as umbrellas protecting the pore space
beneath from being filled with finer
material.
• Also called umbrella pores.

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 • Fenestral porosity consists generally of
Fenestral porosity small elongate to equant pores which are
typically 1–10 mm in diameter.
• These pores are often arranged in layers
within the sediment and are most
commonly encountered in algal mats
facies where they have been produced by
decaying organic matter or by desiccation.

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Moldic porosity
Moldic porosity is formed by the selective
dissolution of grains, particularly skeletal
material with a primary aragonitic
composition.

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Inter-crystalline
porosity
• This is a porosity between crystals.
• This is most commonly occurs in
replacive dolomites, evaprite deposits
and recrystallized limestone.

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 • Vugs are pores with diameter greater
Vuggy porosity than 1/16 mm
• They are roughly equant in shape the
term Pin point porosity is sometimes
used to microvuggy porosity especially in
dolomites.
• Most vugs represents the solutional
enlargement of intergranular or
intragranular crystalline pores.

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Fracture Porosity

It is commonly result from tectonic

deformation.

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Channel porosity
• Limestone are prone to dissolution in
undersaturated waters, and a common
product is a channel porosity.
• By definition a channel is an elongate pore
with a length of ten times its diameter.

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 Cavern porosity
Stylolitic porosity
It is larger than channel or vugs. While in many limestone stylolites
represents zones of very low or zero
porosity they can act both as porosity
and important conduits for fluid
migration.

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 Breccia porosity Boring porosity
It is a continuation of fracture porosity It is a porosity resulting from biological
where the fragments have their own activity.
interparticle porosity.

Burrow porosity Shrinkage porosity

It is a porosity resulting from biological It is a porosity resulting from biological
activity. desiccation.

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Other porosity terms:

• Dual porosity:
Naturally fractured reservoirs have two distinct porosities, one in the matrix and
one in the fractures.
• Vesicular porosity:
A type of porosity resulting from the presence of vesicles, or gas bubbles, in
igneous rock.

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 Activity Time

• The effective porosity is greater than the absolute porosity.

(True – False)
The answer is False.
• It is a kind of porosity that consists generally of small elongate to equant
pores which are typically 1–10 mm in diameter.
(Total porosity – Shelter porosity – Vuggy porosity – Fenestral porosity – None
of the previous)
The answer is Fenestral porosity.

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