Averaging effect on petrophysical algorithm results in an integrated flow model

This paper discusses the effect of averaging seismic attributes resulted from petrophysical algorithm, which is used in association with a traditional fluid flow simulator to form an Integrated Flow Model (IFM). Few attempts are known to have been made to evaluate an IFM called GEOFLO by comparison with experimental models. Arithmetic averaging has been used to get single value for calculated parameter in each grid that is used for comparison with experimentally measured average parameter, yet different averaging techniques were not discussed. Therefore, in this research, four different averaging techniques were used to investigate the effect of reducing many values into single representative value. The methods considered are; arithmetic, harmonic, geometric, and root-mean-square averaging techniques. Comparisons were made for compressional and shear wave velocities as well as velocities ratios using core samples of different lithology. Results show overlapped data from all averaging techniques used, which implies very little effect of the averaging process of the elastic wave velocities using the petrophysical algorithm. Therefore, any averaging technique can be used for a one dimensional reservoir divided into different grids, and that most likely it will yield average calculated value that would be comparable to the measured elastic wave velocity.