Oilfield Terminology & Definitions.
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Exploration & Geology

Exploration and subsurface activities involve locating hydrocarbon deposits and evaluating the geological formations that contain them. Techniques such as seismic surveying, well logging, and reservoir modeling guide drilling decisions and optimize production.

  • Play
    25

    A play in petroleum exploration and geology is a conceptual framework that groups together a set of geologically related prospects, fields, or leads sharing a…

  • Prospect
    27

    A Prospect is a specific geographic area or geological feature that has been identified through exploration activities as having the potential to contain a commercially…

  • Reservoir Characterization
    29

    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…

  • Resistivity Log
    31

    The resistivity log is a fundamental well log used in petroleum exploration and geology to measure the electrical resistivity (or its reciprocal, conductivity) of subsurface…

  • Seismic Survey
    27

    A Seismic Survey is a geophysical method used to image the subsurface of the Earth by generating controlled acoustic energy and recording the reflected or…

  • Simulation
    32

    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…

  • Sonic Log
    18

    The Sonic Log, also known as an acoustic log or transit-time log, is a fundamental wireline logging measurement used in petroleum exploration and geology to…

  • Source Rock
    18

    A source rock is a sedimentary rock rich in organic matter that, under the right conditions of heat and pressure over geological time, generates petroleum…

  • Stratigraphic Trap
    49

    A stratigraphic trap is a type of hydrocarbon accumulation where the primary trapping mechanism results from changes in rock stratigraphy, such as variations in porosity,…

  • Stratigraphy
    21

    Stratigraphy is the branch of geology that studies rock layers (strata) and layering. It focuses on the description, correlation, and interpretation of stratified rocks, their…

  • Structural Trap
    20

    A structural trap is a type of geological formation that can contain accumulations of oil and natural gas. It is created by the deformation of…

  • Tomography
    26

    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,…