Archives: Glossary Terms

Cementing is the process of pumping a slurry of Portland cement and water (and often chemical additives) into the annular space between the steel casing…

A Blowout Preventer (BOP) is a large, specialized valve or assembly of valves installed at the top of a wellbore during drilling and completions operations.…

Simulation in the context of exploration and geology refers to the use of computer models to recreate and predict the behavior of subsurface geological systems…

In the context of oil and gas exploration and geology, modeling refers to the creation of a simplified, mathematical, or visual representation of subsurface geological…

Geostatistics is a branch of applied statistics that focuses on the analysis, modeling, and prediction of spatially correlated data. In the oil and gas industry,…

Reservoir Characterization is the integrated, multidisciplinary process of building a quantitative, three-dimensional model of a subsurface petroleum reservoir. It combines geology, geophysics, petrophysics, and reservoir…

Formation Evaluation is the comprehensive process of analyzing subsurface rock formations to determine their potential to contain and produce hydrocarbons (oil and natural gas). It…

A Drill Stem Test (DST) is a temporary completion of a wellbore interval during drilling operations to evaluate the reservoir’s potential to produce hydrocarbons. It…

Cuttings are the small fragments of rock, sediment, and formation material that are generated by the drill bit during the drilling of a wellbore. As…

A mud log is a continuous, depth-synchronized record of geological, geochemical, and drilling parameters compiled in real-time during the drilling of a wellbore. It is…

Well correlation is a fundamental interpretive technique in petroleum geology and exploration that involves the comparison of stratigraphic and lithologic data from multiple wells to…

Tomography is a geophysical imaging technique that reconstructs a detailed, three-dimensional representation of subsurface rock properties by analyzing how transmitted energy (such as seismic waves,…