Segmenting and Characterizing Petrological, Polarized Mineral Grain Thin-sections

This project developed by L. Hidding, under the supervision of C. Kehl & S. Frey, and in collaboration with J. Miocic. It is a collaboration project with the Geo-Energy group (at Rijksuniversiteit Groningen).

The ongoing gas depletion from the Groningen gas field led to pressure loss within the sandstones, which resulted in reservoir compaction, an associated surface subsidence and an increasing seismicity. In order to quantify the subsidence rate, and estimate local seismic event probabilities, a detailed rock property model of Groningen’s reservoir is needed. For inferring the rock properties, multi-spectral scans of core-sample rock thin sections are available to the Geo-Energy group at UG’s Energy and Sustainability research institute. The thin sections include tiny mineral grains (like sand grains) and filament material (akin to hard cement) between the grains. Some grains are separate from the filament via a surrounding thin-film coating. The type, shape and size of the grain, the presence-/absence of a coating film, and the filament area contribute to the target rock properties.