Dr. D.M.D. James, former head of Geological Research at Koninklijke/Shell Exploration and Production, Rijswijk, The Netherlands, describes this volume as follows: This advanced text treats the transformation of sediment into rock, a fundamental process which directly determines the storage and transmissibility properties of reservoirs and seals in hydrocarbon and groundwater systems and in strata-bound mineralization. Attention is paid to diagenetic data from classical petrography and geochemistry and the statistical techniques required to establish its significance and assist in its interpretation. Historically under-used methodologies such as mass balance calculations and the study of modern aquifer systems for understanding rock properties below ancient unconformities are also emphasised. New ground is broken by discussing physico-chemical processes and controls against a background of geological and hydrological evolution of sedimentary basins. Throughout, the emphasis is on the quantitative description and evaluation of the time-variant parameters controlling heat, fluid and mass transport in porous rock, and upon their integration using mathematics. A full mathematical background is provided and all the basic equations are rigorously derived. This book will prove essential for postgraduate academics and industrial professionals whose work involves predicting rock properties for basin evaluation, and is expected to stimulate new diagenetic research.

This book is both a review and a look to the future, highlighting challenges for better predicting quantitatively the impact of diagenesis on reservoir rocks. Classical diagenesis studies make use of a wide range of descriptive analytical techniques to explain specific, relatively time-framed fluid-rock interaction processes, and deduce their impacts on reservoir rocks. Future operational workflows will consist of constructing a conceptual diagenesis model, quantifying the related diagenetic phases, and modelling the diagenetic processes. Innovative approaches are emerging for applied quantitative diagenesis, providing numerical data that can be used by reservoir engineers as entry (input) data, and for validating results of numerical simulations. Geometry-based, geostatistical and geochemical modelling do not necessarily mimic natural processes, they rather provide reasonable solutions to specific problems.

Diagenesis affects all sediments after their deposition andincludes a fundamental suite of physical, chemical and biologicalprocesses that control the texture, mineralogy and fluid-flowproperties of sedimentary rocks. Understanding the processes andproducts of diagenesis is thus a critical component in the analysisof the evolution of sedimentary basins, and has practicalimplications for subsurface porosity destruction, preservation andgeneration. This in turn is of great relevance to the petroleum andwater industries, as well as to the location and nature of someeconomic mineral deposits. Combines key papers in sandstone diagenesis published inSedimentology over the last 30 years. Records the development of diagenesis from the description ofgrain shapes through provenance, petrography and analyticalgeochemistry to predictive models of diagenetic process. Provides definitions and explanations of the terms and conceptsused in diagenesis. If you are a member of the International Association ofSedimentologists, for purchasing details, please see:http://www.iasnet.org/publications/details.asp?code=RP4

This textbook outlines the physical, chemical, and biologic properties of the major sedimentary rocks, as revealed by petrographic microscopy, geochemical techniques, and field study. It covers the mineralogy, chemistry, textures, and sedimentary structures that characterise sedimentary rocks, and relates these features to the depositional origin of the rocks and their subsequent alteration by diagenetic processes during burial. In addition to detailed sections on siliciclastic and carbonate rocks, it also discusses evaporites, cherts, iron-rich sedimentary rocks, phosphorites, and carbonaceous sedimentary rocks such as oil shales. This second edition maintains the comprehensive treatment of sedimentary petrography and petrology provided in the first edition, and has been updated with new concepts and cutting-edge techniques like cathodoluminescence imaging of sedimentary rocks and backscattered electron microscopy. It is ideal for advanced undergraduate and graduate courses in sedimentary petrology, and is a key reference for researchers and professional petroleum geoscientists.

Basin Analysis is an advanced undergraduate and postgraduate text aimed at understanding sedimentary basins as geodynamic entities. The rationale of the book is that knowledge of the basic principles of the thermo-mechanical behaviour of the lithosphere, the dynamics of the mantle, and the functioning of sediment routing systems provides a sound background for studying sedimentary basins, and is a pre-requisite for the exploitation of resources contained in their sedimentary rocks. The third edition incorporates new developments in the burgeoning field of basin analysis while retaining the successful structure and overall philosophy of the first two editions. The text is divided into 4 parts that establish the geodynamical environment for sedimentary basins and the physical state of the lithosphere, followed by a coverage of the mechanics of basin formation, an integrated analysis of the controls on the basin-fill and its burial and thermal history, and concludes with an application of basin analysis principles in petroleum play assessment, including a discussion of unconventional hydrocarbon plays. The text is richly supplemented by Appendices providing mathematical derivations of a wide range of processes affecting the formation of basins and their sedimentary fills. Many of these Appendices include practical exercises that give the reader hands-on experience of quantitative solutions to important basin analysis processes. Now in full colour and a larger format, this third edition is a comprehensive update and expansion of the previous editions, and represents a rigorous yet accessible guide to problem solving in this most integrative of geoscientific disciplines. Additional resources for this book can be found at: www.wiley.com/go/allen/basinanalysis.

The present volume is an intellectual agglomeration covering a variety of topics in diagenesis. It starts with the diagenesis of marine pore waters and soft-sediment deformations, followed by two chapters on sandstones - one on climatic influence in terrestrial sandstone diagenesis and the other on the deep-sea volcaniclastic sandstones. Diagenesis of carbonates is treated next, with one chapter on compactional diagenesis and another devoted to a case study (Aymestry Limestone Beds, UK). There are two chapters on the origin and migration of oil: (a) maturation of organic matter, and (b) relation of diagenesis to mineralization and hydrocarbon reservoir development, followed by a chapter on sedimentary ore genesis - banded iron-formation. In conclusion there are two chapters on paleosols. This book will be of interest to geologists, geochemists and petroleum engineers.

Knowledge of the presence of abnormally-high pressure zones (AHFP) prior to drilling into them can prevent considerable economic losses and, possibly, save human lives. The various origins (undercompaction, tectonics, etc.) of AHFPs are discussed, followed by the description of predictive techniques in clastic, carbonate and salt-bearing formations. In addition to the well-logging predictive techniques, the authors discuss smectite-illite transformation and the chemistry of interstitial solutions. Other topics covered include (a) abnormally low formation pressures and subsidence, and (b) mathematical modelling. Loss of potential production may result if AHFPs are not properly identified and evaluated. Many hydrocarbon-bearing formations with AHFPs are erroneously "condemned".This book is of interest to engineers and geologists involved in the (a) evaluation, (b) drilling in, (c) completing, and (d) producing from hydrocarbon reservoirs with AHFPs.