A team of NETL researchers conducted a high-tech examination of a 139-foot core sample taken from a Marcellus shale test well in western Monongalia County, West Virginia — research that could yield technologies and techniques to improve production efficiency and environmental performance throughout the Marcellus shale region.

A rock core is a cylindrical sample obtained by drilling with a hollow steel tube known as a core barrel. In the process of coring, the sample is pushed into the tube and brought to the surface where it is removed, inspected and analyzed, commonly in a laboratory employing various equipment and techniques based on the type of data sought.

The core sample that was the subject of the NETL research came from a new experimental well operated by the Marcellus shale Energy and Environmental Laboratory (MSEEL) — a research partnership funded by NETL that involves West Virginia University, Northeast Natural Energy and Ohio State University. The Marcellus shale experimental well that provided the core is one of six wells from current MSEEL field laboratory project efforts.

The proximity of the well, just six miles from NETL’s Morgantown site, afforded an unprecedented opportunity for the research team to examine the rock core.  

According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, the Marcellus shale play extends in the subsurface from New York State in the north to northeastern Kentucky and Tennessee in the south and presently is the most prolific natural gas-producing formation in the Appalachian basin. The formation footprint covers about 95,000 square miles with a prospective area of about 72,000 square miles.

Because the Marcellus shale has the potential to be a long-term major producer of gas and gas liquids, it is important to better understand and use best practices to identify and produce the resource economically and in an environmentally responsible manner. The MSEEL project was founded to pursue a better understanding of the Marcellus shale by using new approaches and technologies to optimize production and reduce environmental impacts.

NETL Research Engineer Dustin Crandall explained that the samples are representative of the Middle Devonian Marcellus Formation, which is well known for its organic-rich black shales.

“Our work is allowing us to characterize a rock core from the new well in Monongalia County to better understand the structure and variation of the Marcellus Formation,” he said. “The scans we are doing of this new core sample will provide detailed datasets not typically available from shales for analysis.”

He said NETL, using its collection of sophisticated scanning equipment, is performing rapid and non-destructive characterization of the MSEEL core to generate information that will be used by investigators from all over the region. For example:

• Computed tomography (CT) scanning is being used to capture structural variations and density. CT scanning uses computer-processed combinations of many X-ray measurements taken from different angles to produce cross-sectional images or virtual volumes of a scanned object, allowing the user to see inside the object without cutting.
• A multi-sensor core logger is used to measure physical properties at centimeter scale resolutions. A multi-sensor core logger is an automated system for measuring bulk density, natural gamma ray spectra, elemental concentrations (from x-ray fluorescence), magnetic susceptibility, and electrical resistivity.

Researchers will eventually have the capability to access the resulting datasets through NETL's Energy Data eXchange (EDX) online system.

NETL is a DOE national laboratory that produces technological solutions for America’s energy challenges. From developing creative innovations and efficient energy systems that make coal more competitive, to advancing technologies that enhance oil and natural gas extraction and transmission processes, NETL research is providing breakthroughs and discoveries that support domestic energy initiatives, stimulate a growing economy, and improve the health, safety and security of all Americans.