This project investigates the causes of anisotropy in sedimentary rocks through linked analyses of core and seismic data from one or more North Sea reservoirs. We are interested in the relative contributions to anisotropy from layering, fracture alignment and crystal alignment. Petrofabric analysis from electron back-scattered diffraction (EBSD), X-ray texture goniometry (XRTG) and complementary techniques are used to characterize the degree of anisotropy caused by the preferred alignment of minerals. Ultrasonic measurements are then used to measure velocity anisotropy as a function of confining pressure. Finally, a range of seismic processing techniques is used to estimate in-situ anisotropy. Valhall and Clair are two of the proposed fields, BP the controlling partner in each. This ITF project is being done in 3 work packages, one headed by Michael Kendall (Bristol University), another by Quentin Fisher (University of Leeds - RDR) and another by Steve Covey-Crump (University of Manchester).
