Documentation of the new MP Facies

Algorithm in Petrel 2009.1

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Contents
1 Introduction ...........................................................................................................3
2 Theory of Multipoint Statistics .................................................................................4
3 The Process Steps ..................................................................................................5
3.1 The Workflow in MP Facies Modeling .................................................................5
3.2 Creating a Training Image ................................................................................6
3.3 Training Image Catalogue ............................................................................... 10
3.4 Make MP Facies Pattern .................................................................................. 11
3.4.1 General Comments ................................................................................... 11
3.4.2 The Individual Tabs .................................................................................. 12
3.4.3 The Multigrid and Subgrid Concept ............................................................ 13
3.4.4 Relationship between Multigrid, Search Mask and Training Image ............... 15
3.5 What is going on in the Background ................................................................ 16
3.6 The Output of the Make MP Facies Pattern Process .......................................... 19
3.7 MP Facies Simulation ...................................................................................... 19
3.7.1 General Introduction................................................................................. 19
3.7.2 The Individual Tabs .................................................................................. 20
4 Common Pitfalls ................................................................................................... 26
4.1 In the Training Image .................................................................................... 26
4.1.1 The Size of the Training Image ................................................................. 26
4.1.2 The parameters of the Geobodies .............................................................. 27
4.2 When Creating the Pattern.............................................................................. 28
4.3 In the Setting for the Simulation ..................................................................... 29
5 A Practical Example .............................................................................................. 30
6 Conclusions and Recommendations ....................................................................... 37
Table of figures: ........................................................ Error! Bookmark not defined.

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1 Introduction

The new MP Facies Modeling (Multipoint Facies) algorithm is a pixel-based algorithm to

create facies models which can look like object models.

Traditional geostatistics like Kriging or Stochastic Simulation techniques are working on

the basis of point-to-point (2 point) correlation in space and/or time. The fundamental
tool to describe this relationship between two points is the (semi)variogram. In case of
sufficient well data in all directions the variogram explains the spatial structure
adequately for static modeling. When it comes to questions of connectivity especially
related to a sparse dataset the traditional geostatistical approach via variogram analysis
has some limitations. In figure 1 is to be seen that two different realizations can have
approximately the same underlying variogram as input but when it comes to
connectivity the result is significantly different. Classical 2 point statistics has problems
to explain connectivity if it is not supported by a large number of hard data (wells). This
might be the case in a very mature field but in the exploration stage almost never.
Figure 1: Comparison of 2 point and multipoint geostatistics

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The principal idea of Multi Point Statistics (MPS) is the description of the spatial
correlation from one-to-multiple points at the same time. In opposition to the two-point
statistics the variogram will be replaced by a training image (2D or 3D) and the pattern
out if it. This training image describes the geological facies in relative position to
each other. The pattern (or tree) stores the neighbourhood probabilities. The last will
be the main input into the modeling adequate to the variogram model.

Petrel introduces Multi Point Statistics with its MP Facies algorithm in the 2009.1
release. This is an implementation that was originally produced by Schlumberger
research in Boston. It is faithful to the SNESIM algorithm introduced by Stanford
University.

It should be noted that multi point algorithms can be considered as an advanced

modeling tool at this point. It is not a push button solution and the user should expect
that some experimentation will be needed to produce results that they require. Some
hints and suggestions to get users started are contained within this note. They are not
supposed to be exhaustive. Users may find that other approaches give better results for
them. Petrel development will attempt to learn about best practises in MP Facies
modeling, both from internal work and from correspondence with clients, to move this
algorithm forward in future releases.

2 Theory of Multipoint Statistics

Multipoint statistics is a relatively young discipline. Due to the challenging tasks

geoscientists are facing these days, the call for algorithms describing more complex
geological features more accurately became louder in the early 90’s. Especially the
connectivity of facies models is a critical issue when it comes to dynamic models.

The principal approach of the MP Facies modeling algorithm is not different from the
two-point algorithms: to find a local conditional probability distribution function at any
location by a given description of the spatial variability. The main tool to achieve this is
the training image.

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Figure 2: Simple 4 facies training image

As to be seen in figure 2 above at a specific point (cell) the algorithm is looking at the
relationship of this cell to a set of other cells and creates conditional probabilities like:

A channel cell is surrounded by 60% channel cells close to the origin, 30% levee cells
and 10% splay cells. Additionally the geometrical relationship between the different
facies will be explained. In this way the training image works in a multi-point way like
the variogram works in a two-point way. If the user chooses the multigrid option, then
the geometrical relationship is evaluated at several scales, one for each of the
multigrids. Note, that usage of only one multigrid leads to a very slow performance of
the algorithm and is not recommended.

The complete approach via the multigrid concept is explained in chapter 3.4.3.

3 The Process Steps

3.1 The Workflow in MP Facies Modeling

When modeling facies by MP Facies Modeling the workflow is a three step procedure:

1. Preparing a Training Image
Not a separate process in the diagram

2. Creating a MP Facies Pattern
“Make multi point facies pattern“
3. Running the MPFacies Simulation
“Multi point facies simulation”

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The first part – creating a training image should be done in a separate 3D grid1. A
training image can be an existing model, an image or hand made by paintbrush. It
should explain the facies relationship and not the complete geology in great detail. In
particular, it should generally try to take any reservoir specific information as trends in
facies proportions either vertically or horizontally into account. Its job is simply to
understand the facies shape and dimensions and the interfacies relationships. Reservoir
specific information is introduced in the ‘Running MP Facies simulation’ stage.

When the training image is ready the MP facies pattern will be created. The MP Facies
pattern is simply a data structure which represents the information available in the
training image in a form that is useful for the simulation stage. It is analogous to the
variogram in the classical two-point statistics case. It does however depend on some
parameters, and so the user is asked for a search size. The pattern is organised
according to the search criteria and sub- and multigrid organization. The pattern is
simply a data structure (sometimes known as the ‘tree’ in MPS literature). It is not
amenable to be investigated by the user.

In practise, one of the most time consuming and experimental stages for the user is
trying to choose appropriate search criteria which produce good results in the final
simulation. There is no fixed rule for this at this point although some suggestions are
possible and are suggested later in this note.

The last step will be running the MP facies simulation like the user would run SIS or
Indicator Kriging. Necessary input is the MP facies pattern and a 3D grid in the model
the user wants to populate. Like in classical statistics the user has to define the target
distribution (fractions for the individual facies). By scaling and rotating it is possible to
adjust the facies relationship from the training image to the final model. There is an
option to use soft data like probabilities via seismic attributes and/or additional hard
data (geobodies) for conditional simulation to compliment the well information.

3.2 Creating a Training Image

As mentioned above the training image is an equivalent of the variogram in the two-
point statistics. Consequently the modeller has to take at least as much care in the

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It is possible to work with training images in the same grid but the recommendation is to work on a separate grid

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design of a training image as in the exploitation of the variogram. This is the basis for a
successful facies modeling by MP facies.

The principle purpose of the training image is to show the relative position of the facies
to each other. It is not the goal to describe the subsurface in great detail. Like in Neural
Networks the risk of overtraining exists. It is for simple geological situations absolutely
enough to know the number of facies and their characteristics, e.g. for a Channel-Levee
association in a shaly background a training image shown below is sufficient enough.

Although it is possible to work on exactly the same grid with the training image it is
recommended to work on a separate 3D grid. If the user wants to use the training
images in different projects it is possible to exchange them via the Reference Project
Tool (RPT). A simple rectangular model is generally good enough.
Figure 3: Difference between training image and property grid

Another issue is the size of the training image grid. It does not have to be as big as the
grid where the final results will be produced (model grid). It is rather recommended,
from efficiency and memory purposes at least, to have the training image grid smaller
than the model grid and later work with the scaling options. The relationship of the
facies will be measured in IJK and not in XYZ. The user has always to remember this.
Having smaller training grids leads to faster computing time. The critical issue is the
ratio between the training grid and the model grid. For the moment no tool exists to
calculate this.

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There are several sources for a training image:

• Hand drawn images

• Existing object or any other type of models
• Seismic attributes
• Aerial images
• Outcrop analogues

Probably the easiest way is to create a training image is done by Object Modeling plus
hand drawn by the paintbrush under Facies Modeling.

When preparing a training image it is not necessary to explain every single detail which
the user doesn’t know. It is more important to show principal characteristics; e.g. a 3
facies system (shale, channel and levee) and how it interacts. If it is just a sinusoidal
fluvial system within a shaly background (see image below) it is sufficient to work with
Object Modeling only.
Figure 4: Typical training images

Like most geostatistical algorithms, MP Facies will produce stationary results. That is,
the realizations will have the same broad characteristics from one region to the next.
Real reservoirs are not usually stationary. This is handled in MP Facies models in one of
3 ways. If the characteristics change quite dramatically, e.g. the proportion of a facies
changes from 30% to 80% for several layers, then it may be necessary to use the
Region concept of MP Facies (see below). That is, the field is split into several regions
and a different training image (and hence pattern) is used for each. The reason for this
is that patterns are copies of a picture, and the picture of a 30% sand facies against a
shale background is very different to that of an 80% sand facies.

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For smaller variations, it may be possible to control the change in facies proportions
using a soft probability trend, often derived from seismic data, in a way that is
analogous to that used in classical modeling algorithms such as SIS or object modeling.

Finally, for minor changes in the thickness of facies or to make local orientation changes
of the facies, it is possible to use scaling and rotation properties (see the section on
running MP Facies).

As mentioned before, it is recommended that the training image be stationary as we

are only trying to capture the facies geometry at this stage of the modeling (Note, some
experts do use non stationary training images, but without experience this can lead to
poor results.

The example below shows the region concept. In the left picture 5 geographical regions
exists but only 4 different geological situations. For the regions in the northeast and
southwest the same training image was used. On the right hand side a similar situation
is explained by 3 regions.

Figure 5: Region concept examples

The question if the training image should be (pseudo) 2D or 3D must be answered in

favour of 3D. Technically it works with a 3D property from a regular grid. 2D surfaces
must be converted into 3D properties which are not changing from layer to layer.

Another point is the size of the training image. The image must be large enough to
capture the sorts of heterogeneity that we need to model. Larger images produce
better results, but the user to needs to be aware that large training images lead to
large patterns (so increase memory requirements) and to longer CPU times. Part of the
art of MP Facies modeling is getting the tradeoff correct.

Generally speaking the training image should be as simple as possible. No one should
draw patterns which are too detailed and with too many facies (>8). 2 to 6 main facies

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are in most cases good enough. There is a risk of “overtraining”. It is not necessary to
explain uncertain facies architecture on an extremely detailed level.

3.3 Training Image Catalogue

This chapter was originally not planned as petrel 2009.1 will be delivered without a
training image catalogue (and never was intended to do). Nevertheless for practical
purposes the demo project will contain a set of images to start with. The purpose of
these is to give the users who are beginning to work with an impression what
dimensions a training image should have and how the facies population in the training
image should look like. At the end this will just be a recommendation and is not
claiming completeness or perfection.

One critical point is the size – as mentioned before. The training image should be large
enough to be able to see several reproductions of the sort of facies shapes and
interfacies interactions that the user wishes to reproduce. There is no simple rule for
the size, as it depends on the size of facies clusters, but in practice, experience shows
that the size in I and J direction should be between 50 and 200 cells. Like many other
statements in this paper this is based on practical experience of the author and can be
changed at anytime. The principal goal is always to explain facies neighbourhood
relationships. Too few cells work fast but can lead to isolated geobodies like channels
looking like “Spaghetti”. Too many cells lead consequently to more CPU time. For the
vertical direction, there should be enough layers to be able to see several reproductions
of facies ‘packages’. Often this means a minimum of 15 layers (better 20) should give
good results at the end. More than 50 layers on the other end are generally not
necessary unless the facies are very thick. The training catalogue is based on a model
with dimensions 81x81x17. This is rather a small image but was chosen to give quick
results.

Then the beginner might wonder if it is recommended working with a few big
geobodies or many small ones. The preference should be definitely given the last one to
follow the stationarity concept. For example many small channels are better than a few
big ones. But like in many others cases theory and practical tests are two sides of the
same medal. Single channels gave good results as well. But the user must be aware of
the fact that this channel should not be huge covering the entire model. When later
running the simulation the change in the fraction will be big and consequently the user
has to work with a high “Trust fraction strength” (which is a parameter that tries to
ensure that MPFacies converges to the correct facies proportions).

This leads to the next point - the relation in terms of fractions between the training
image and the model. Ideally it should be with 10% range for each facies. If someone

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would like to get 20% of a certain facies in the model the training image should contain
between 10% and 30% of exactly this facies. In the range the algorithm works well. If,
on the other hand, the user tries to generate a simulation of 80% for the facies while
the training image only has 20%, then the results will generally be poor. The answer is
to generate a training image with 80% of the facies. Again, the reason is that MP Facies
works by copying facies patterns and the pattern at 20% is very different to that at
80%.

Another point of view when creating a training image is repeatability. If for example the
facies to model is a channelized river it is necessary to repeat the sinuous cycle at least
two times. If the cycle is less than this the risk of having the “Spaghetti effect” is
higher.

In a separate model of the demo data are several training images available. The
selection is not complete and does not cover all possible scenarios. But as emphasized
in the beginning – this is not the intention. The selection covers some channel images,
lobes, crevasses and even some non-stationary examples. If some of them are useful
for the users – so much the better.

3.4 Make MP Facies Pattern

3.4.1 General Comments

When the training image(s) are prepared in the way described above the necessary
precondition running the MPS algorithm is done. This training image is the main input in
the “Make MP facies pattern” algorithm”. The result of this process is a tree of
dependencies of the facies in relation to each other. In this way it works like the
variogram modeling in classical geostatistics.

The user will find the process under “Property Modeling” in the process diagram
between “Scale up Well Logs” and “Facies Modeling”.

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3.4.2 The Individual Tabs

This process has only one tab:

Figure 6: Make multi-point facies pattern interface

Create new: Will create a new pattern with the given name

Overwrite existing: Overwrites an existing pattern

Training image: Here the prepared training image (chapter 3.1) will be
dropped in by the blue arrow

Search Mask: Can be ellipsoid or rectangular. The last one is bigger.

Ellipsoid is the recommended shape of search mask to use.

Search Radius: Search radius in voxels (cells) in IJK direction; comparable to

the search radius in classical geostatistics. It will be applied
on the training image. The result (number of cells) is shown
in the grey box below.

Number of Multigrids: Here the selection can be taken with how many multigrids
the user wants to work with (explanation follows later).
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Number of informed nodes on current subgrid: Defines how many nodes are defined
when working with the subgrid concept. It considers the
already defined nodes from the former subgrid as hard data
for simulation.

3.4.3 The Multigrid and Subgrid Concept

Working with multigrids and sub-grids helps to make the algorithm more efficient. The
principal goal of multigrids is to capture longer range structure in the modeling process.
If 3 multigrids are used, then every 4th point is simulated in the first phase. The training
image is also decimated so that the pattern used at the coarse grid sees only every 4th
point. As such, for the same size of search radius, we are able to ‘see’ objects which are
4 times larger.

The subgrid is really a way of filling in the cells for a particular multigrid level which
ensures that we have as regular a pattern of known (previously simulated) data as
possible. By having a regular pattern, the searching of the pattern for the appropriate
conditional distribution is very significantly speeded up leading to a more efficient
simulation. For this reason the subgrid functionality is applied by default in the
background and not visible for the user.

When creating a Multipoint pattern the coarsest grid will be populated first and the
finest grid last. In the coarsest grid every 2^ (m-1) cell will be addressed (blue cells in
figure 7). In the next coarsest grid these cells work as already informed nodes like cells
in Gaussian simulation. As the subgrid option is always turned on in the background the
cells which are sitting perfectly in the middle of the already informed cells will be
populated first (dark green), followed by the other ones in between (light green). This
is going on until all cells are addressed.

A simple example is shown in figure 7 below. The user decides to work with 4
multigrids. Consequently in the coarsest grid every 2^(4-1) = 8th cell will be populated
first (multigrid4). In multigrid3 every 2^(3-1) = 4th cell is simulated, but the centrally
placed cells first followed by all others. In multigrid2 every second cell is simulated until
finally every cell is done in the last step (multigrid1).

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Figure 7: Sub- and multigrid concept
multigrid4 multigrid3

multigrid2 multigrid1

simulated cells from the previous multigrid

first cells to be simulated in the new multigrid (subgrid concept)
cells simulated last in the new multigrid

How would this concept now look in a real case scenario? In figure 8 a training image
(stacked channels/levees) is shown in 4 multigrids. The size is 200 x 200 x 30 cells. The
first image (multigrid 1) shows a complete picture but it needs a big search radius in
the mask and consequently a large tree (and file). Multigrid 2 show still a good
representation of the facies association but needs a big search radius. In multigrid 3 the
facies are still visible and the search mask would not be too big. Multigrid 4 lost the
ability to recognize stacked channels. I would run very fast but give poor result.

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Figure 8: Different multigrids

3.4.4 Relationship between Multigrid, Search Mask and Training Image

The question is now if it is worth to work with a lot of multigrids like 10 and how does it
affect the search mask settings?

Here it becomes necessary to understand the relationship between all the settings.
When the user sets up a 10 by 10 by 3 cell search in the search mask and working with
3 multigrids the search covers on the coarsest level:

2^(3-1) * 10 * 2 = 80 cells (horizontal)

2^(3-1) * 3 * 2 = 24 layers (vertical)

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In the moment no way exists to determine optimal settings in the search mask like in
variogram modeling (range, sill, nugget etc.). However, the rule of thumb is that the
dimensions of the coarsest grid should be large enough to ‘see’ the facies and all the
interfacies relationships. So the user should determine the size of the facies packages to
be modeling in the I, J and K directions (L,M and N say) and then, if the number of
multigrids is k, they should use the formula

2^(m-1)*(Radius_in_I)*2 = L m ... number of multigrids

So, for example, if the facies package was size 80 in the I direction and there were 3
multigrids being used, then 2^(3-1) )*(Radius_in_I)*2 =80 gives a Radius_in_I of 10.
We work out the radius analogously for the J and K directions.

It is important not to make the search radius too large. If the training image has the
dimension 200 by 200 by 32 cells then the maximum search that can be used is
25*25*4. Although remembering from classical geostatistics that we should not go
beyond 2/3 of the length of the field might suggest that the effective maximum should
be a bit smaller.

Remember again that working with bigger search radii will improve the image slightly
but will produce very big files, and will run slower as well. The user should always have
this in mind.

3.5 What is going on in the Background

When the user has finished the settings and presses “Apply” waiting for the process to
be finished internally a so called pattern or tree will be established. According to the
settings for any possible geometrical constellation in every multigrid a pdf (prior density
function) will be calculated. Figure 7 shows an example how it works with just the
nearest (one cell) neighbourhood in case of an elliptic search mask.

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Figure 9: Example for search mask

0 1
0

0 1
0

0 1

0 1
0 1
0 1
0 1

In the figure 7 above the question is how probable is it to have sand (code 1) if the
neighbour above and to the right is sand as well. In the training image there are 7
events for this situation whereas 9 events show shale (code 0). The probability having
sand would be 7/16=0.44 or 44%. This will be written in the tree.

A possible argument now might be what would happen if the training image shows a
slightly bigger scale, i.e. if the sinuosity shows more than one cycle? It is quite likely
that the probability changes towards 50%. This example shows the users responsibility
to prepare very carefully the training image. Practical tests have shown that it is better
to “draw” minimum 2 sinusoidal cycles when working with fluvial or more general
channelized pattern.

To continue this example the tree for the 1 cell neighbourhood has to calculate the pdf
for all possible events shown in figure 8 below.

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Figure 10: All possible constellations for 1 cell ellipsoid search environment

? ? ? ?

? ? ? ? ? ?

? ? ? ?

Now it becomes obvious what happens when the search mask is not 2-dimensional with
elliptical search radius of 1 cell but 3-dimensional with a search mask of 17 x17 x 3
using 3 multigrids like mentioned in chapter 3.3.4. At this point a warning must be
given to work with extreme detailed training images on big grids and apply then a large
search radius. The CPU time will be correspondingly longer - and not only linear.

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3.6 The Output of the Make MP Facies Pattern Process

The result of the “Make MP Facies Pattern” process will be written at the bottom of the
Input tab and organized in folders. There are no data to visualize similar to the “Train
Estimation Model”. For the MP facies simulation this output will be the main input. In
this way it works like the variogram parameter in the classical geostatistics.

3.7 MP Facies Simulation

3.7.1 General Introduction

The third step in Multipoint facies modeling is to run the simulation. Here the user has
the opportunity to apply the MP facies pattern which was created in step two on a
model (grid) of any size. By this way it will be possible to apply patterns created in one
model to use in another model.

Besides this chance it is possible to condition the pattern to both hard (well) and soft
(probability) data. Like in other geostatistical algorithms one of the goals will be to
produce an output result following a target proportion. Scaling and Rotation will be
necessary to bridge the different sizes and orientations in the training image and the
final grid.

The algorithm results in an image which is pixel based but attempts to capture the sort
of geological continuity usually seen in object models. The general interest to produce
geologically looking results based on Data Analysis (here via a training image) can be
achieved.

In the process diagram the MP Facies Simulation will be placed under Facies Modeling
among all the other algorithms in the pull down menu.

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3.7.2 The Individual Tabs

Select Data:
Figure 11: Interface Select data

Region index property: Geometrical Property indicating regions with different

geological environments (stationarity); for every region a
different MPS pattern will be used – input optional.

Independent regions:
When using the region property the user has to decide if the
regions have geologic interaction or if the regions should be
handled independent from each other. If the user chooses to
not have independent regions, the results of simulating the
first regions become hard data for simulation of subsequent
regions. The order of simulation of the regions can be
changed using the blue arrows.

Use fraction from pattern: Resets the fractions for the individual facies to the numbers
from the pattern when the editing box (white) was used

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Trust fraction strength: A correction factor to achieve the target proportions; the
best option is if the fractions in the training image do not
differ much from the target fractions (recommended is less
than 10%); if so then this factor takes care of this. It can be
any continuous number between 0 and 1. A value of 0
means no correction; 1 means maximum correction to the
target proportions.

Pattern(s): An MP facies pattern (stored under the input tab) will be

placed here; if a region grid is used then as many patterns
as regions exist are necessary. Automatically the boxes for
the different facies will be filled with the fraction according
to the training image. Editing of the fractions is possible in
the white boxes. If the fractions are together more than
100% proportional rescaling will be applied.

Conditioning:
Figure 12: Interface Conditioning

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Additional hard data: Beyond upscaled cells the user has the chance to declare
geobodies (or pieces of geobodies) as hard data if the
seismic is clear enough to determine such deterministic
facies. In the figure below parts of a channel are declared as
hard data. A warning is given to the users not to overstretch
this new functionality because it affects the fractions. If
someone is thinking about adding 30 percent additional hard
data of only one facies the user introduces a big bias in the
fraction which needs to be balanced by a high “Trust fraction
strength factor”. An alternative way, which is sometimes
more successful at giving the desired results, is to control
the model is to generate a soft probability property with
values close to 1 for geobodies which should be respected
and values equal to the background for all other pixels.
Figure 13: Additional hard data - here parts of a channel

Soft probability influence: For every facies a soft probability property can be
determined. In the background the so called Tau model is
working. The concept of the Tau model controls the
influence of the soft probabilities relative to the influence of
the algorithm itself. In Petrel the user has 4 options: weak,
medium, strong and advanced. The first three stay for a
fixed influence ratio which becomes visible but greyed out in
the tau value boxes. Weak influence calls for a ratio 1:3 or
25% influence, medium for 1:1 (50%) and strong for 3:1
(75%). If the user selects advanced both boxes become
editable and the user has the choice for tau values up to 10
in both boxes. But it is recommended to keep one tau value
to 1 and change the other one to achieve a certain
percentage of soft data influence.

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Scaling
Figure 14: Interface Scaling

Scaling (IJK): For every direction in the IJK domain the user can adjust the
ratio between the facies in the training image and the output
property. If a channel in the training image is 3 cells wide in
J-direction and it should be 6 cells in the model the scaling
factor must be 2. It is recommended to keep the range with
[0.5, 3]. In particular low values of the scaling factor (below
.5) can lead to large amounts of memory being needed for
the simulation and is to be avoided. It would be better to
define a new region and use a different training image.

Rotation: The user can rotate the facies pattern. It is important to

know that the algorithm works in the IJK domain, i.e. if in
the training image with orientation of 0 degrees a channel
runs from south north and in the property grid with an
orientation of 135 degrees the channel should run Southeast
to Northwest then the rotation will be 0 as in the IJK domain
there is no change. The input can be constant or variable by
a 3D geometrical property.
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An example how the rotation is working is shown in figure 15 below. The channels in
the training image are going North – South or better said in J-direction. The output
model in J-direction goes around 125 degrees. A rotation of 30 degrees (clockwise) now
let the channels going around 155 degrees and not NNE when working with azimuths.

Figure 15: Rotation between a) training image b) Output model

Size of value bins:
Binning for scaling and rotation (orientation) when using a
3D property in the scaling tab. If e.g. a 3D rotation grid is
used and the values vary between 0 and 90 degrees then a
binning of 10 means 9 subsets (0 to 10, 10 to 20 etc.) are
created. The smaller the numbers the more classes are
created. The user must be aware that this leads to more
accuracy but to longer CPU time.

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Expert:
Figure 16: Interface Expert settings
Seed:
Patched simulation path:
Hierarchical drawing:
For repeatability of stochastic results a random number is
necessary
Instead of using a pure random path throughout the whole
model, the user can select random areas (defined by the
search mask radius) and populates the area before randomly
jumping to a next area. This generally leads to better
connectivity and as such is defaulted to on.
It is a method to improve facies proportion corrections.
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4 Common Pitfalls
4.1 In the Training Image

4.1.1 The Size of the Training Image

The training image is the first and maybe the most common source when it comes to
failure in Multi point facies modeling. Before modeling starts the user has to make a
quite sensitive decision about the size of the training image model and the size and
geometry of the geobodies.

A general recommendation to have the training image “as simple as possible” is both
right and useless in the same moment unless the parameters are quantified – at least
within a range. The size of the training image has effects on the quality of the result
and the calculation time.

One issue that can happen is related to the absolute size of the training image in terms
of cells. If the training image model is too small the geobodies will not be reproduced
in the right manner they can be isolated not showing any connectivity. Another problem
might be that some layers look good while other ones do not. This seems to be related
to the size of the training image grid. In absolute terms the cell size should not be less
than 50 in I and J and 15 in K direction. Especially the K direction seems to be sensitive.
Tests with 49x49x33 cells gave already reasonable results whereas 49x49x9 was
definitely too small.

A training image model can be too big as well. The problem here is the computation
time later in the simulation. Big training images require big search masks and produce
therefore a big pattern (tree). The quality of the results will be in most cases improved.
The user has to make a compromise between quality and computation time.
Nevertheless there is no need to go beyond 250x250x60 based on the experience made
to prepare this paper.

In chapter 5 an example is used with 81x81x17 cells.

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4.1.2 The parameters of the Geobodies

There might be several pitfalls when creating training images. Especially for users who
are new to the algorithm. Here are just a few examples which happened during the
preparation of this paper:

a) The geobodies are too big:

When creating the training image the size of the geobodies (channels, bars, splays etc.)
does matter. A general geobody going over many cells is too big to be recognized the
search mask later. Remember that it is the search mask size that governs what can be
seen. A careful selection of the number of multigrids and the search size together with
a large enough training image should remove many of the problems. However, it is
usually difficult to reproduce objects which are larger than the simulation grid, such as
channels without having some discontinuities. For most reservoir models this is not a
problem as it is often sufficient to have objects which are large with respect to interwell
spacing rather than ensuring that we get full connectivity across the whole model. A
similar case is when working with one big geobody.

b) The geobodies are too small:

Here the risk is the fraction for individual facies is too far away from the target and the
user has to use work with high fraction strength factor to achieve it. Additionally the
shape of the geobody can change a lot when working with rescaling.

c) Repeatability

This is especially true when working with channelized facies – both in lateral and
vertical directions. Horizontally the channel sinuosity must be repeated at least 2 times
otherwise the “Spaghetti effect” of channels is visible. The channels start and end
within the boundary of the model. In the vertical direction it can happen that some
layers look very good other ones quite poor. This problem is closely connected with the
minimum number of k-layers.

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 d) Non-stationarity

Geological phenomena are seldom as stationary as required by the algorithm. Very

often they are quite non-stationary. Tests have shown the ability of the algorithm to
handle non-stationarity but there is no guarantee for. A better solution for beginners
will be to work with stationary regions as mentioned in chapter 3.2.

e) Too great degree of detail

The temptation might be huge to create a training image in a way the user would like
to see the result. This is not the goal of a training image. The training image should
only explain relative neighbourhood relationships.

f) “Noisy” images

This problem is similar to the previous problem. The degree of detail can lead to
isolated pixels (cells) of certain facies. This can happen as well when working with the
default parameters for standard channel modeling. The lowest layer of a channel can
consist of not connected channel pixels. In the pattern (tree) this will be written as
probability for noisy channelized facies. To avoid it the user has to edit these cells
individually.

4.2 When Creating the Pattern

The probably biggest trap in this step of the workflow is the number of multigrids used
for pattern creation. As in the chapter before there are tendencies to go too far in both
directions. For beginners it is a strong recommendation to use 3 multigrids all the time.
After checking the algorithm this choice seems to be a quite robust and good default.

The one end (working with only one multigrid) consequently calls for big search mask
having a long computation time at the end. The other end might be to work with a big
training image and then considering more than 3 multigrids. Here the risk is to lose
connectivity in the geobodies if wanted. Channels for example can be piecewise
interrupted.

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Another sensitive point can be the number of informed nodes from the current subgrid.
It means practically the number of hard data from the subgrid level before to
“condition” the actual level. To work with a big number helps when the user works with
complex training images (>100) but it might not be necessary when working with
simple images. As a rule of thumb 10% of the cells covered in the search mask should
give reasonable results.

4.3 In the Setting for the Simulation

In Select Data

The fractions are coming from the training image and should be “close” to the expected
fractions of the model. A 10 % difference is acceptable and will give reasonable results.
The further away a user goes from this 10% recommendation the more difficult it will
be to achieve the target fraction even if the “Trust fraction strength” factor is set to
one. It is better to have the training image fractions closer to the output model.

In Conditioning

When working with additional hard data it is tempting to paint the geobodies
completely as the user wants to see them as final output. There are two main risks to
doing this: First it changes the fractions for specific facies and here the same is working
as in the section before. And second the additional hard data are starting points for the
simulation and if the user has a big search mask the geobodies are growing in size
beyond the users expectations. A better approach will be to use hard data only where
the user is almost 100% sure to have them. For example it is enough to use a channel
only piecewise as shown in figure 13 explaining the center line.

As mentioned before, another possibility is to use soft conditioning instead, with a high
probability where the deterministic data is to be found and using a background
probability for all other cells. It is also possible with this technique to prevent the
geobody from growing too large by imposing a zero probability of having the facies in
the cells adjoining the geobody. (This can be done for example by smoothing the
geobodies using geometric modeling, then setting a property which is 1 when the actual
geobodies are, 0 in the extended parts of the geobody from the smoothed property and
background probability for the rest).

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Using soft data the user has to check the absolute number of the probabilities of the
facies of interest. If the wanted facies (channel) has probabilities less than the
background facies it is very unlikely to get the channels in place.

In Scaling

In the former sections it was emphasized to work with fractions in the training image
close to the fractions in the final model. The same is working (at least for beginners)
with the scaling. It is better to make the geobodies in the training image as thick as
later expected in the model and work with a scaling factor of one. If (for example) the
geobodies in the final model in average 6 cells wide (whatever the dimension of a cell
is) is recommended to have the average width in the training image 6 cells as well.
Stretching or squeezing can cause unwanted effects.

The biggest mistake a user can do here is to put in an azimuth for the rotation. In the
2009.1 version of Petrel the algorithm will work with a rotation angle relative to the
facies of the training image and the user has to be aware of that maybe uncomfortable
way of setting.

5 A Practical Example

For better understanding of the algorithm a simple example will illustrate the use of the
MP Facies algorithm. A demo data project contains 6 wells with facies interpretation.
The structural grid is subdivided into 2 zones and has 111 x 140 x 60 cells. The
orientation of the grid is NW – SE. Every cell is 100m x 100m big. Zone A contains a
Channel/Levee association within a shaly environment. Zone B contains additionally
lobes. The principal goal is to model this facies association by the multipoint statistics
approach.

The project is named MPS_Demo_ForTraining.

Step 1: Creating two training images

For the two different zones two different training images are necessary. As discussed in
chapter 3.4 a minimum of two cycles is good enough two explain the sinuosity of the
fluvial channels. For zone B the lobes will be introduced additionally.

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Figure 17: The training images for the two zones

Theoretically it is possible to work with a training image in exactly the dimensions as

the property grid. But here the trainings image will be 81 x 81 x 17. Later it might be
necessary to work with the scaling functionality.

The two images in figure 9 above show the training images for Zone A and Zone B. The
image for zone A was produced by Object modeling and shows several braided
channels. The image for parts of zone B was hand drawn and shows one simple lobe at
the end of a channel. This training image is against all theory of stationarity and
repeatability. Nevertheless it will be used to show that a practitioner has some times to
find unconventional solutions. By preparing the training image it is necessary to review
the images layer by layer to make sure no noisy layers occur.

Step2: Make MP facies pattern

The training images are stored in the folder called Training Images 81x81x17.

Under Property Modeling the user will find the dialog for the pattern creation. When
working with 3 multigrids and considering the classical variogram rule of thumb
(chapter 3.3.4) a search mask of 7 x 10 x 2 would be already good enough to start with
for zone A. If this shows at the end poor connectivity it might be necessary to increase
these numbers. For parts of zone B where the lobes are present the second image will
be applied. As it is highly non-stationary a bigger search mask will be used – here
8x25x2.

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To produce this pattern took around 5-8 seconds (Dell M6300). As mentioned before
there is no visual result out of this to analyze. The resulting patterns are named
Pattern_ZoneA and Pattern_ZoneB and stored in the input folder.

The individual steps are:

1. Open the dialog “Make MP facies pattern” under Property Modeling

2. Set the parameters like in the picture below (7x10x2)
3. Press Apply!
4. Do the same for zone B with a search mask of 8x25x2

Figure 18: Input for the pattern creation

Step3: Run MP Facies Simulation

The two pattern produced in the step before will be used in the simulation as the main
input. In this example a facies property will be upscaled and renamed in MPFacies. The
upscaled cells are hard data. No soft data conditioning will be done for the first model
and the fraction strength will be 0.5 which means both the geometry and the channels,
levees and lobes should be preserved and the fractions (particularly) will be honored.

When running the simulation it is necessary to know the relationship between the grids
and the facies orientation. As the real grid is oriented NW – SE whereas the training
images are N – S oriented it is necessary to consider rotation. But more important is the
orientation in the IJK domain. In the training image the channels are going N-S and

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also J-direction. The expected direction in real coordinates is NW-SE. But the grid
orientation is NW-SE as well which means in J-direction. Therefore the rotation between
the channels in the training image and in the real model is 0 degrees (both times in j-
direction). This important feature the user has to have in mind when setting the
rotation angle.

Figure 19: Orientation of training image and property grid

No scaling was applied for the moment but when playing around with this grid the user
can and should change it to see the effect and the sensitivity of these parameters. For
zone B a rotation of 180 degrees will be applied as the lobes in the training image were
produced in +J direction and should now be in –J direction.

The steps to perform the simulation are:

1. Make “Exercise Model” active

2. Scale up a facies log and rename it to MPFacies (if not already done)
3. Open the Facies Modeling dialog and select the MP Facies as property to model
4. Select MP Facies Modeling as algorithm
5. Unlock Zone A and drop in the pattern called “Pattern_ZoneA” by the blue arrow
6. Repeat the same for zone B accordingly.
7. Press Apply

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Figure 20: Input settings for MP facies simulation

The result in figure 21 shows the zone A. Going through the model layer by layer can
give the impression of interrupted Channels. But when making the geometrical property
“Connected Volume” the connectivity becomes obvious. Connectivity within a layer can
now be achieved by increasing the pattern to e.g. 10x15x3.
Figure 21: Results from MP facies simulation

The exercise is now repeated with soft data conditioning (seismic probabilities) for zone
A and different regions and scaling in zone B. There might be a conflict in the
probabilities and the fractions in the training image. Therefore the Trust fraction
strength is set to a high number (0.9). At this point it is necessary to repeat that the
responsibility for the input data remains on the user’s side. No algorithm can correct
poor input data. Therefore quality check is still a high priority.

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To get quickly probabilities from seismic the neural net functionality will be used. Input
will be an existing and resampled Acoustic Impedance property (AI). For zone B a
discrete region property is necessary to specially model the lobes in a certain area.

The specific inputs for the zones are shown below:

Figure 22: Soft Data Input for Zone A

Zone A needs probabilities between 0 and 1 for all facies. The user can work with
individual probabilities and the remaining ones will be rescaled and normalized. To
avoid this procedure it is better to produce probabilities for all facies. In the demo an
unsupervised train estimation model with 3 facies probabilities as output were used to
guide the facies distribution in zone A. Figure 22 shows the input settings. A good
understanding of the Tau model is necessary to change the influence of the seismic
probabilities. If the user is not sure about the default setting should be used.

The results are shown in figure 23:

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Figure 23: Results zone A: AI versus Facies

For zone B the region property will be used for lobes. Additionally a scaling will be
applied to to change the size of the geobodies from the training image.
Figure 24: Region and Scaling Settings for zone B

To show the effect of connecting geobodies over the region boundaries a rotation of
135 degrees will be used. In figure 25 the results are shown.

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Figure 25:: Regions and Interconnectivity in Zone B

6 Conclusions and Recommendations

With the new MP Facies Modeling module the gap between pixel based and object
based algorithms is closed. The algorithm is pixel based but produces a result which
looks more like an object model
model. Altogether it is a 3 step procedure

1. Creating a training image

2. Build a MPS pattern (variogram equivalent)
3. Running the simulation

Under use of soft and hard data more steering is possible. As the algorithm is stochastic
an infinite number of possible realizations are possible.

Necessary pre-conditions
conditions for running MP Facies Modeling are good property modeling
skills in general and good fundamental understanding of the classical 2 2-point
geostatistics via variogram approach in special. For the beginning it is rather a tool for
experienced
ed modelers with strong geostatistics background. When the module is getting
more and more mature including a catalogue of working training images i the whole
community of geomodelers will benefit from.

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Table of Figures:

Figure 1: Comparison of 2 point and multipoint geostatistics .......................................3

Figure 2: Simple 4 facies training image .....................................................................5
Figure 3: Difference between training image and property grid ....................................7
Figure 4: Typical training images ...............................................................................8
Figure 5: Region concept examples ............................................................................9
Figure 6: Make multi-point facies pattern interface .................................................... 12
Figure 7: Sub- and multigrid concept........................................................................ 14
Figure 8: Different multigrids ................................................................................... 15
Figure 9: Example for search mask .......................................................................... 17
Figure 10: All possible constellations for 1 cell ellipsoid search environment ............... 18
Figure 11: Interface Select data ............................................................................... 20
Figure 12: Interface Conditioning ............................................................................. 21
Figure 13: Additional hard data - here parts of a channel .......................................... 22
Figure 14: Interface Scaling ..................................................................................... 23
Figure 15: Rotation between a) training image b) Output model ...................... 24
Figure 16: Interface Expert settings ......................................................................... 25
Figure 17: The training images for the two zones...................................................... 31
Figure 18: Input for the pattern creation .................................................................. 32
Figure 19: Orientation of training image and property grid ........................................ 33
Figure 20: Input settings for MP facies simulation ..................................................... 34
Figure 21: Results from MP facies simulation ............................................................ 34
Figure 22: Soft Data Input for Zone A ...................................................................... 35
Figure 23: Results zone A: AI versus Facies .............................................................. 36
Figure 24: Region and Scaling Settings for zone B..................................................... 36
Figure 25: Regions and Interconnectivity in Zone B ................................................... 37

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