Exploring the potential of drill cuttings for reservoir characterization: A case study from the Volga-Ural basin, Russia

The research objectives are to assess the possibility of using drill cutting analysis to obtain information about the mineralogical and geochemical properties of the reservoir rocks. Drill cutting samples were collected from a vertical well that penetrated the Domanik sediments (Semiluksk Formation) in one of the oil fields in the Volga-Ural petroleum province. Thin sections from drill cuttings were examined using an optical polarizing microscope (Axio Imager A2). X-ray diffraction (XRD) analyses were performed using a Brucker D2 Phaser X-ray powder diffractometer. Thermophysical properties were studied using an STA 449 F3 Jupiter instrument. The pyrolytic studies were performed using the Rock-Eval method. Visual inspection showed that the studied sediments are alternations of carbonates and siliceous-carbonate rocks. Thin section examinations revealed that the carbonates are mainly limestone (mudstone and wackestone) and are characterized by a dense texture and up to 30 % organic residues. The siliceous-carbonate rocks are dominated by siliceous mudstones and are characterized by dark colours, layered structure, and an enrichment in organic matter. XRD analyses showed that the carbonate rocks are mainly composed of calcite, dolomite, quartz, feldspar, and mica, which are minor components. The siliceous-carbonate rocks are dominated by quartz, followed by calcite, although they also contain feldspars, mica, dolomite, and pyrite as impurities. According to the simultaneous thermal analysis, the average total hydrocarbon in the carbonate and siliceous-carbonate rocks is 13.6 % (for the core samples) and 11.5 % (for the drill cutting samples). The content of heavy hydrocarbons in the rocks is higher than the content of light hydrocarbons, indicating the immature nature of organic matter. Kerogen is found sporadically in siliceous-carbonate rocks. According to the pyrolytic studies, average S1 is 4.4 mg/g and average S2 is 19.8 mg/g (for the core samples); average S1 is 2.1 mg/g and average S2 is 17.8 mg/g (for the drill cutting samples), which indicated that the studied sediments have very good to excellent generation potential. The average T_max of 425.7 °C (for the drill cutting samples) and 427.9 °C (for the core samples) indicate immature organic matter that generated only heavy oils. Comparing the results of the analysed drill cutting samples with the results of the analysed core analysis from the same reservoir interval in the neighbouring wells showed a good correlation, which proves that this technique is a valid tool that provides an alternative, cost-effective method to determine the rock's characteristics from drill cuttings.