Patent ID: 11867862
Assignee: SAUDI ARABIAN OIL COMPANY
Field: Measurement (Instruments)
Classification: CPC G  E | IPC E  G

Claim 0:
1. A method, comprising:
obtaining a measured present-day value of at least one parameter for each member of a set of unvalidated layers arranged in order of increasing present-day depth in a subterranean sedimentary region of interest;
selecting, using a computer processor, a member of the set of unvalidated layers as a first current layer;
determining, using the computer processor, an estimated archaic value of the at least one parameter of the first current layer based, at least in part, on the measured present-day value of the at least one parameter of the first current layer,
wherein determining the estimated archaic value comprises applying an iterative cycle of decompaction modeling followed by geomechanical modeling, wherein the geomechanical modeling comprises finite element modeling and wherein the geomechanical modeling comprises temperature and chemical changes;

predicting, using the computer processor, a predicted present-day value of the at least one parameter of the first current layer using forward geomechanical modeling, based, at least in part, on the estimated archaic value and the range of possible archaic values of the at least one parameter of the first current layer;
determining, using the computer processor, a validated archaic value of the at least one parameter of the first current layer based, at least in part, on a difference between the predicted present-day value and the measured present-day value of the at least one parameter of the first current layer;
adding, using the computer processor, the first current layer to a set of validated layers;
removing, using the computer processor, the first current layer from the set of unvalidated layers;
determining, by the computer processor, a presence of a hydrocarbon reservoir based, at least in part, on the validated archaic value of the at least one parameter,
determining, by the computer processor, a borehole trajectory through the subterranean region of interest based, at least in part, on the presence of the hydrocarbon reservoir; and
drilling the borehole-trajectory using a drilling system.