aforneU Uninetattg Sltbtarg 3ttraca, ^tw ^aih BOUGHT WITH THE INCOME OF THE SAGE ENDOWMENT FUND THE GIFT OF HENRY W. SAGE 1891 Cornell University Library TN 870.J69 Principles of oil and gas production 3 1924 004 639 898 Cornell University Library The original of this book is in the Cornell University Library. There are no known copyright restrictions in the United States on the use of the text. http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924004639898 PRINCIPLES OF OIL AND GAS PRODUCTION BY ^.CSWELL H. JOHNSON Professor of Oil and Gas Produclion, University of Pittsburg AND L. G. HUNTLEY Lecturer on Foreign Oil and Gas Fields, University of Pittsburg FIRST EDITION SECOND THOUSAND NEW YORK JOHN WILEY & SONS, Inc. London: CHAPMAN & HALL, Limited 1916 COPTBIGHT, 1916, BT ROSWELL H. JOHNSON AND L. G. HUNTLEY Stanbope ]press F. H. GILSON COMPANY BOSTON, U.S.A. PREFACE In preparing this work the authors' aim has been to fill the need for a general treatise on the production of oil and gas, since the books on the subject are too brief, out-of-date, inapplicable to American condi- tions or treat only a small part of the field. We are fully conscious that conditions differ widely, the world over, in the productive oil and gas fields. We have, therefore, limited ourselves to a discussion of the subject with reference chiefly to American conditions. Yet to treat in a well-balanced way all the multifarious subjects that might be included under the head of Oil and Gas Production would exceed the space we have allowed ourselves. Indeed, it is doubtful if any author in such a broad field can write a well-balanced book, since one aspect or another is sure to claim his especial attention. We have tried to treat more fully the newer, less developed topics and less fully those that have a literature, citations to which are given. For a fuller treatment of the chemistry and origin of petroleum the reader is referred to Bacon and Hamor's"The American Petroleum Industry." For the drilling of wells, we have Paine and Stroud's "Oil Production Methods." To some the drilling of wells may seem the very heart of oil and gas production, but it is in fact merely an operation used also by the miner and the prospector for water, and is not worthy of the disproportionate attention it has received, as compared with that given to the very vital need of developing better methods of locating and extracting. Since certain chapters will doubtless be read by those who may not read the whole book, we have permitted ourselves some repetition, in order that each chapter may offer more adequate treatment of its subject. The reader will soon discover that this book represents a reaction from the undue emphasis on the attitude of the beds, as seen in the general literature of oil geology, to a fuller consideration of the shape and texture of the reservoir itself. We feel that the time is past when the sole requirement of an oil geologist is his ability to recognize and map folds. ROSWELL H. JOHNSON. L. G. HUNTLEY. Univbbsity op Pittsbtjrg. Dec. 21, 1915. CONTENTS Page Prbpacb iii List of Illustrations xi Chapter I. Varieties of Oil and Gas 1 Oil 1 Gravity 3 Heating value 5 Internal combustion engine 9 Gasoline content 10 Natural gas 12 Chapter II. The Origin op Oil and Gas 18 Cosmic 18 Inorganic 18 Organic, plant 18 Organic, animal 20 Bacterial formation 21 Dynamo-chemical origin 22 Relation of the quality of oil to deformation 23 Chapter III. Distribution of the Oil and Gas 26 Stratigraphic distribution of gas 28 Historical significance 29 Chapter IV. Reservoirs of Oil and Gas 31 Nature of the reservoir 31 Porosity 32 Enclosing beds of the reservoir 40 Termination of the reservoir 41 Chapter V. Accumulation op Oil and Gas 44 Methods of segregation 48 Application of vertical separation to folds 50 Chapter VI. Pressure in Oil and Gas Reservoirs 52 Additive factors 52 Resistance to the relief of pressure 52 Chapter VII. Origin op the Shape of the Reservoir 57 v . VI CONTENTS Paob Chapter VIII. Classification of the Attitude of Geologic Surfaces. 63 Acline 63 Homocline 64 Anticline 65 Sjrncline 65 Saddles 66 Chapter IX. Effect of the Different Attitudes upon Accumulation 67 Effect upon gravitational separation 67 Level axis anticline 69 Plunging axis anticline 69 Nose 69 Synclines 69 Homoclines 74 Chapter X. Locating Oil and Gas Wells 79 Locating a prospect 79 Following up a discovery 81 Method of strike 81 Method of dip 82 Method of streak 82 Method of inferred shore line 82 Method of proximity 84 Method of pressure decline 85 Method of chemical analysis 85 Geothermic method 87 Location of tests for deeper drilUng 87 The distance of wells apart 87 Offsetting 93 Chapter XL Oil and Gas Lands 95 Oil and gas leases 97 Royalty 106 Gas royalties 110 Errors in leases 110 Cooperation Ill Restricted leases Ill Public lands 112 Chapter XII. Drilling for Oil and Gas 114 " Standard" or cable drilling system 115 Rotary system 117 Combination system 119 Comparative costs and drilling time 120 Methods of casing 123 Keeping the log 125 How deep to drill 126 The fuel and power supply 127 Drilling contracts 129 CONTENTS VU Faois Chapteb XIII "Bhinging in a Well" 133 The value of having a previous conception of the formations to be entered 133 Precautions where great pressure is expected 133 Preparation 138 Judging the quality of the sand 140 Breaks and shells 141 Controlling water 141 Encroachment of salt water under high pressure 141 Decrease of production due to flooding by non-encroaching salt water 144 Decrease of production due to flooding by fresh water 144 Depth to which wells should be drilled 145 Shooting 146 Chapter XIV. The Management op Oil Wells 147 Method of recovery 147 Production from more than one sand in the same area 149 Frequency and rate of pumping 149 Recording the decline 152 PulUng and cleaning 153 Well measurements 156 Chapter XV. Completing the Extraction of the Oil 158 The use of vacuum 158 The introduction of water 158 Local depression of the water table 161 The introduction of air or gas 162 Widely disseminated oil 162 Chapter XVI. The Management op Gas Wells 164 Recording the decline of pressure with reference to volume produced. ... 164 Protection from "top water" 167 Casing-head gas 170 Drips, significance of variation with temperature and pressure 170 Value of records 170 Paying by calorific value 170 Chapter XVII. Condensation of Gasoline from Gas 173 Choice and location of plant 173 Royalties 176 Chapter XVIII. The Natural Gas Industry 177 Chapter XIX. Size and Scope op Oil and Gas Companies 196 Concentration 196 Its advantages 196 Integration 197 Disadvantages of concentration and integration 198 Vlll CONTENTS Page Chapter XX. Reports upon Oil and Gas Prospects or Properties 199 Geography 200 Geological horizon 200 The columnar section 201 The attitude of the observed strata 201 Plane-table 202 Aneroid 204 Chnometer 206 Convergence and attitude of the sand 207 Gas, oil and asphalt at the surface 209 Characteristics of the productive horizon 211 Comparison with neighboring properties 212 Costs 213 Marketing 213 Use of models 214 Chapter XXI. The Valuation op Oil Properties 217 Outlay 217 Income 224 The method of valuation 232 Chapter XXII. Oil and Gas Fields op North America 238 Mackenzie River 241 District of Patricia 242 Northwestern Plains 244 Canadian foot-hills 255 Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Quebec 258 Erie 259 Appalachian 264 Mid-Continent 268 South Mid-Continent 275 Gulf Cretaceous 277 Michigan 282 Lima-Indiana 286 Illinois 288 Gulf coast 290 Wyoming 294 Colorado foot-hills 311 Pecos 313 Rocky Mountain interior 314 Alaska 321 Coast range 325 California 326 VeraCruz-Tamaulipas 336 Tehuantepec 347 Chapter XXIII. Oil Market and the Future Supply 348 Relation between the prices of the several pools 348 Stored oil and its influence 350 Effect of international commerce 350 CONTENTS IX APPENDIX Page Output of the gas wells measured by the Pitot tube 353 MultipUers for pipe of diameters other than one inch 355 Change of bulk of natural gas with temperature 356 Baum6 scale and specific gravity equivalent 357 Change of Baum6 scale of gravity with temperature 358 Table of relation of dip to depth and thickness of beds 359 Relative heat unit and candle-power hour cost 360 . LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS F™- Pace 1 Percentages of naphtha content in'the crude oils of the United States, facing 2 2. Percentages of naphtha content in California crudes " 2 3. Percentages of naphtha content in Mid-Continent crudes " 2 4. Percentages of naphtha content in Gulf coast crudes " 2 5. Percentages of naphtha content in Illinois crudes " 2 6. Percentages of naphtha content in Appalachian crudes " 2 7. Gravities (Baum6) of the crude oils of the United States 4 8. Gravities of the crude oils of Mid-Continent fields 4 9. Gravities of the crude oils of Appalachian fields 4 10. Gravities of the crude oils of the Illinois fields 4 11. Gravities of the crude oils of the California fields 4 12. Diagram showing the increasing proportion of crude oil which is subjected to refining in spite of the large increase in the use of crude oil 6 13. Diagram showing the relative market prices of crude oils from different fields during the recent period of low prices with their respective gravities 11 14. Percentages of asphaltum residue in the crude oils of the United States 12 15. Percentages of paraffin wax in the crude oils of the United States 13 16.