Welcome to
JMS Geological Consultants LTD.
A Little About Us
JMS Geological Consultants Ltd. was incorporated August 17, 2000 following ~14 years of industry experience with Core Laboratories. We believe in the values of quality, integrity, honesty and the treatment of each person with dignity and respect.
JMS Geological Consultants Ltd. specialize in thin section petrography (TS), x-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and mercury injection capillary pressure (MICP). Analyses evaluate the reservoir quality and fluid-rock sensitivity of conventional (e.g. Cardium & Ellerslie), oil sands (e.g. McMurray, Wabiskaw & Grand Rapids) and non-conventional (e.g. Montney & Duvernay) formations mainly within the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin.
Experience includes over 750 petrographic studies during the 30+ years of industry experience. Clients range from small independent firms to large international oil and gas companies. Experience also includes the delineation of the Lower Cretaceous/Jurassic boundary in areas of complex geology where the integration of thin section petrography with palynology, sedimentology, regional geology and log signature is required to determine the stratigraphy.
JMS Geological understands the value of long-term costumer relationships and the value of continuing to adapt to new technology. We utilize modern polarizing microscope equipment for digital capture of thin section plane light, cross-polarized light and fluorescence images. X-ray diffraction uses “state of the art” Rigaku Miniflex II X-ray diffractometer with Jade software. Scanning electron microscopy digital imaging includes an attached elemental analyzer which is capable of mapping.
JMS Geological has a good working relationship with a number of local oil services companies including Calgary Rock and Materials Services, Stratum Reservoir (formerly Weatherford Laboratories), and Core Laboratories. The petrophysical data (where available) is integrated into the reservoir quality/fluid-rock sensitivity report.
Services
Thin Section
Core and/or drill cutting samples are impregnated with either Orasol blue dyed epoxy or Rhodamine B fluorescent pink dyed epoxy. Samples are grinded to a standard 30 micron thickness for conventional samples and "thinned" to 22 micron thickness for unconventional samples (e.g. mudrocks). Thin section slides are often stained for carbonate (Alizarin Red S and potassium ferricyanide) and feldspar (sodium cobaltintrite) minerals. Thin section description determines mineralogy (grains, cements and matrix), grain size, shape, sorting, pore types, controls on reservoir quality and the potential adverse reaction between introduced fluid and the rock matrix (i.e. fluid-rock sensitivity).
X-Ray Diffraction
Samples are analyzed using “state of the art” Rigaku Miniflex II X-ray diffractometer with Jade software. Bulk fraction and Clay fraction data tables are summarized and integrated with the thin section description to evaluate the semi-quantitative mineralogy. XRD is the best tool to determine the weight percent of clay species (e.g. smectite) and non-clay species (e.g. quartz) which are critical when evaluating potential fluid-rock sensitivity concerns.
Scanning Electron Microscopy
The SEM analysis is the best tool to image the “fine” components (mainly clay species) in the rock matrix. Low to high magnification images (typically ~50x up to ~3000x, magnification) of “virgin” core or drill cutting material illustrate the location of clay species within the pore network. The morphology of clay species complements X-ray diffraction to help determine the origin of clays (i.e. diagenetic versus detrital origin). Non-clay “fines” such as bitumen, organic material, amorphous cements (e.g. silica) and carbonates are readily identified by their crystal morphology and/or their elemental composition determined by an attached elemental analyzer (i.e. energy dispersive spectrometry or EDS spectra). Representative images are described and integrated with thin section and X-ray diffraction results to better understand the controls on reservoir quality and the fluid-rock sensitivity concerns.
Backscattter SEM Porosity
Core and/or drill cutting samples are prepared similar to the thin section description slides with the exception of samples grinded to ~100 micron thickness, polished and platinum coated to obtain images under the scanning electron microscope. At least four images/per sample are captured at ~100x, ~500x and ~1000x magnification (i.e. 200 um, 50 um and 20um scale) to show rock texture and the porosity distribution. Image analysis software calculates both total and effective porosity based upon pixel sizing calibrated to mercury injection capillary pressure testing (i.e. ~1 micron size cutoff between non-effective and effective porosity).
Mercury Injection Capillary Pressure
The analysis summarizes the pore throat size distribution including the proportion of micropores (<1 micron in diameter), mesopores (1-3 microns in diameter) and macropores (>3 micron in diameter) as well as the median pore throat diameter. The various rock types or lithofacies often show a drastically different pore throat size distribution which has a major control on reservoir quality. Cap pressure data plots are integrated with available thin section and/or scanning electron microscopy images to show the relationship between the lithofacies and the pore throat size distribution.
