Understanding Oil and Gas Shows in the Search for Hydrocarbons
By John Dolson, 2016. Springer-Verlag. GmbH & Co. Heidelberg, Germany
In the earth sciences, most learned papers and books published focus on a specific geographic area (e.g. the Grand Canyon) or a topic (petrology of feldspar minerals). Such scholarly works are excellent but rarely is a comprehensive book published on a holistic topic like Understanding Oil and Gas Shows in the Search for Hydrocarbons, authored by John Dolson.
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In the earth sciences, most learned papers and books published focus on a specific geographic area (e.g. the Grand Canyon) or a topic (petrology of feldspar minerals). Such scholarly works are excellent but rarely is a comprehensive book published on a holistic topic like Understanding Oil and Gas Shows in the Search for Hydrocarbons, authored by John Dolson.
He does an outstanding job introducing terminology and technique in his conversational style that establishes well a rapport with the reader. It becomes an easy reference guide for earth scientists who have practiced their “art” for many years as well as the industry newcomer. His very personal writing style shows what is truly important assessing shows and seals. He wants you to be a better explorationist or petrophysicist or engineer and he is willing to share his experience and that of others in a book that invites repeated consultation.
The structure of each of nine chapters is consistent and well done. They begin with an abstract and chapter organization. Next is the text, which is well referenced and illustrated. Each ends with a summary section. The figure captions are very complete. Case studies in each chapter reinforce the topics covered.
Chapter 5, for example, discusses quantification of seals and saturation using capillary pressure, show assessment, and Winland R35 plots. Examples from North America, Egypt, India, and Russia on which the author has personally worked, shares data that were both useful or incomplete. And if the reader is not familiar with a topic such as Winland estimation of pore throat radii, just turn to the appropriate Appendix that includes the requisite Excel spreadsheet template to use! How can you estimate seal capacity from logs, geochemical data, gas curves? You can find it in this compendium.
Having worked on many of the plays and fields cited in this publication, I applaud the author for the completeness of his case studies. From mudlog shows to fluid inclusion shows, the book is a map on how to improve the search for hydrocarbons. The content of this book will be invaluable to our industry for years to come. The author has done us a great service.