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GE3244 Fundamentals of Petroleum Geoscience

Tutorial/Lab 2 SEDIMENTS & SEDIMENTARY ROCKS
hardness, bring some water to test for porosity)

(Bring something made of steel like a small penknife to test

1. SAMPLE A Beach deposit

Examine the sample of loose detrital sand from the beach near the East Coast Seafood Centre, Singapore.
What minerals can you identify? Use colour, hardness (harder or softer than the flat side of a penknife or finger nail)
What rock fragments can you identify? Ask! What is the size range of the grains? What is the size of the largest grain?
Estimate the average grain size. Is it well sorted? What is the shape of the grains? Very round, angular with sharp edges, or in between
i.e. sub-rounded? Detrital material can be classified by grain size as gravel, sand, silt or clay: see Classification Table. What is this
sample?
Classification of siliciclastic sediment according to grain size.

2. SAMPLE B Conglomerate
Examine the very course grained (> 2mm) rock from Kent Ridge, NUS Chinese Library. What minerals can you identify? Use colour,
hardness eteAsk! Test with a drop of dilute HCl acid. What rock fragments can you identify? What is the size range of the grains?
What is the size of the largest grain? Make a rough sketch of what you can see and label accordingly. Include a scale bar.
Estimate the average grain size. Is the rock well sorted? What is the shape of the grains? Very round, angular with sharp edges, or in
between i.e. sub-rounded. What is the name for this rock? What is the difference between SAMPLE A & B? Drip some water on the
specimen. Comment on the porosity and permeability. Would it make a good source, seal or reservoir rock?
3. SAMPLE C Sandstone
Examine the medium grained (< 2mm > 1/16 mm) rock. What minerals can you identify? Use colour, hardness eteAsk! Test with a
drop of dilute HCl acid. What rock fragments can you identify? What is the size range of the grains? What is the size of the largest
grain? Estimate the average grain size. Is the rock well sorted? What is the shape of the grains? Very round, angular with sharp edges,
or in between i.e sub-rounded? What is the name for this rock? Use the grain size classification system given at the end. Drip some
water on the rock. Comment on the porosity and permeability. Would it make a good source, seal or reservoir rock?
4. SAMPLE D Beach deposit
Examine the loose detrital shell material (i.e. bioclasts) collected from the beach near the East Coast Seafood Centre, Singapore.
Test with a drop of dilute HCl acid. Does it fizz? If so why? What shell types can you identify? Bivalves, gastropods, oysters, cockles
eteAsk! Why are there big tough oysters and tiny delicate bivalves mixed together? How hard are the shell fragments? Harder
than the flat side of a penknife? What is the size range of the shells and fragments. What proportion are whole? What proportion are
broken? What proportion are broken and unrecognizable? What is the shape of the bioclasts? Very round, angular with sharp edges, or
in between i.e sub-rounded? Are they well sorted?

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5. SAMPLE E Limestone
Examine the polished bioclastic limestone sample from China. What shell types can you identify? Bivalves, gastropods, oysters,
cockles eteAsk! How hard are the shell fragments? Harder than the flat side of a penknife? Test with a drop of dilute HCl acid.
What is the size range of the shells? What proportion are whole? What proportion are broken? What proportion are broken and
unrecognizable? Make a rough sketch of what you can see and label accordingly. Include a scale.
Are the bioclasts well sorted? What mineral is holding the bioclasts together. What is the proportion of bioclast to matrix? Use the
Dunham Classification to classify this limestone (see packstone on chart). Comment on the porosity and permeability. Would it make a
good source, seal or reservoir rock?
Dunhams Field Classification of Limestone

6. SAMPLE F Coral debris

Examine the coral material collected from Pasir Ris Park beach. Branching and colonial types can be seen. See how porous/permeable
the material is. Note the added porosity caused by boring worms. Bui1d-ups of coral reef and coral reef debris can become reservoirs.
Under anoxic conditions they can be petroleum sources. Where are the coral reefs in Singapore? Sketch some coral. Include a scale
bar.
7. SAMPLE G Limestone
Examine limestone sample G. What shell types can you identify? Bivalves, gastropods, oysters, cockles eteAsk! How hard are
the shell fragments? Harder than the flat side of a penknife? Test with a drop of dilute HCl acid.
What is the size range of the shells? What proportion are whole? What proportion are broken? What proportion are broken and
unrecognizable? Make a rough sketch of what you can see and label accordingly. Include a scale.
Are the bioclasts well sorted? What mineral is holding the bioclast together. What is the proportion of bioclast to matrix? Use the
Dunham Classification to classify this limestone (see grainstone on chart). Comment on the porosity and permeability. Would it make
a good source, seal or reservoir rock?
8. SAMPLE H Mudstone
Examine the fine grained white material from the Jurong Formation, Kent Ridge, nr Chinese Library, NUS.
What minerals can you identify? Use colour, hardness eteAsk! Test with dilute HCl acid. Estimate the average grain size. Is the rock
well sorted? What is the shape of the grains? If you dare, dab a very small portion on the end of your tongue!!! Does it feel smooth or
gritty? What is the name for this rock? Use the grain size classification system. Comment on the porosity and permeability. Would it
make a good source, seal or reservoir rock?
9. SAMPLE I Black Shale
What minerals can you identify? Use colour, hardness eteAsk. Test with dilute HCl acid.? Estimate the average grain size. Is the
rock well sorted? Does the rock split along close spaced flat planes? What is the technical term for this ability for close spaced
splitting? What process causes this splitability? What is the name for this rock? Use the grain size classification system. Comment on
the porosity and permeability. Would it make a good source rock? What is required to make this a shale gas play?
10. Ten Minute CA TEST: Classify the rock specimen and discuss its properties in terms of source, burial, maturation,
migration, reservoir and seal. Worth 5% of the module.