Changes

* Pay versus nonpay

* Pay versus nonpay

* Expected fluid saturations

* Expected fluid saturations

* Seal capacity (thickness of hydrocarbon column a seal can hold before it leaks)

* Seal capacity (thickness of [[hydrocarbon column]] a seal can hold before it leaks)

* Depth of the reservoir [[fluid contacts]]

* Depth of the reservoir [[fluid contacts]]

* Thickness of the transition zone

* Thickness of the transition zone

[[File:charles-l-vavra-john-g-kaldi-robert-m-sneider_capillary-pressure_2.jpg|300px|thumb|{{figure_number|2}}The wetting phase rises above the original or free surface in the capillary tube experiment until adhesive and gravitational forces balance. Capillary pressure (P_c) is the difference in pressure measured across the interface in the capillary (''P''_c = ''P''_nw - ''P''_w). This pressure results from the contrast in pressure gradients caused by the different densities of the nonwetting (''ρ''_nw) and wetting (''ρ''_w) phases (right).]]

[[File:charles-l-vavra-john-g-kaldi-robert-m-sneider_capillary-pressure_2.jpg|300px|thumb|{{figure_number|2}}The wetting phase rises above the original or free surface in the capillary tube experiment until adhesive and gravitational forces balance. Capillary pressure (P_c) is the difference in pressure measured across the interface in the capillary (''P''_c = ''P''_nw - ''P''_w). This pressure results from the contrast in pressure gradients caused by the different densities of the nonwetting (''ρ''_nw) and wetting (''ρ''_w) phases (right).]]

If the end of a narrow capillary tube is placed in a wetting fluid, net adhesive forces draw the fluid into the tube ([[:File:charles-l-vavra-john-g-kaldi-robert-m-sneider_capillary-pressure_2.jpg||Figure 2]]). The wetting phase rises in the capillary above the original interface or ''free surface'' until adhesive and gravitational forces are balanced. Because the wetting and nonwetting fluids have different densities, they also have different pressure gradients ([[:File:charles-l-vavra-john-g-kaldi-robert-m-sneider_capillary-pressure_2.jpg|Figure 2]]). ''Capillary pressure'' (''P''_c) is defined as the difference in pressure across the meniscus in the capillary tube. Put another way, capillary pressure is the amount of extra pressure required to force the nonwetting phase to displace the wetting phase in the capillary. Capillary pressure can be calculated as follows:

If the end of a narrow capillary tube is placed in a wetting fluid, net adhesive forces draw the fluid into the tube ([[:File:charles-l-vavra-john-g-kaldi-robert-m-sneider_capillary-pressure_2.jpg|Figure 2]]). The wetting phase rises in the capillary above the original interface or ''free surface'' until adhesive and gravitational forces are balanced. Because the wetting and nonwetting fluids have different densities, they also have different pressure gradients ([[:File:charles-l-vavra-john-g-kaldi-robert-m-sneider_capillary-pressure_2.jpg|Figure 2]]). ''Capillary pressure'' (''P''_c) is defined as the difference in pressure across the meniscus in the capillary tube. Put another way, capillary pressure is the amount of extra pressure required to force the nonwetting phase to displace the wetting phase in the capillary. Capillary pressure can be calculated as follows:

:<math>P_\mathrm{c} = (\rho_\mathrm{w} - \rho_\mathrm{nw}) g h</math>, or

:<math>P_\mathrm{c} = (\rho_\mathrm{w} - \rho_\mathrm{nw}) g h</math>, or

These equations show that capillary pressure increases with greater height above the free surface and with smaller capillary size.

These equations show that capillary pressure increases with greater height above the free surface and with smaller capillary size.

The importance of capillary pressure in reservoir studies is that many reservoir rocks can be approximated by a bundle of capillaries, with formation water being the wetting phase and hydrocarbons the nonwetting phase. As hydrocarbons begin to migrate into a rock, displacing the pore water, the hydrocarbons first enter the pores with the largest pore throats (capillaries), leaving the wetting phase (water) in the pores with smaller throats or in small nooks and crannies (surface roughness). As the hydrocarbon column increases, the height above the surface where ''P''_c = 0, called the free surface or ''free water level'' (FWL), becomes greater and the capillary pressure increases, allowing hydrocarbons to enter pores with smaller and smaller throats. This process continues until one of several things occurs:

The importance of capillary pressure in reservoir studies is that many reservoir rocks can be approximated by a bundle of capillaries, with formation water being the wetting phase and hydrocarbons the nonwetting phase. As hydrocarbons begin to migrate into a rock, displacing the pore water, the hydrocarbons first enter the pores with the largest pore throats (capillaries), leaving the wetting phase (water) in the pores with smaller throats or in small nooks and crannies (surface roughness). As the hydrocarbon column increases, the height above the surface where ''P''_c = 0, called the free surface or ''[[free water level]]'' (FWL), becomes greater and the capillary pressure increases, allowing hydrocarbons to enter pores with smaller and smaller throats. This process continues until one of several things occurs:

# [[Petroleum generation|generation]] or migration ends,

# [[Petroleum generation|generation]] or migration ends,

# the trap reaches its spill point, or

# the trap reaches its spill point, or

| [[Crude oil]]–water || 0&deg; || 35

| [[Crude oil]]–water || 0&deg; || 35

|}

|}

''<small>* Contact angle is measured on a quartz plane during drainage</small>''

''<small>* Contact angle is measured on a [[quartz]] plane during drainage</small>''

{| class="wikitable"

{| class="wikitable"

[[Category:Laboratory methods]]

[[Category:Laboratory methods]]