The effect of hydrocarbons on quartz cementation: diagenesis in the Upper Jurassic sandstones of the Miller Field, North Sea, revisited

Variable quartz cementation and porosity distribution in the Upper Jurassic Brae Formation deep-water sandstone reservoir of the Miller Field (UK, North Sea) is mainly controlled by the amount of coatings on the quartz grains. Oil was possibly present in the pore space for the last 40 Ma, but had no significant effect on preserving porosity in the oil leg relative to the water leg. Samples with anomalously high porosities, which commonly occur in the shallowest sandstone intervals, are microquartz coated, and it is a misinterpretation to explain these high porosities as due to hydrocarbons inhibiting quartz cementation. Porosity preservation due to microquartz coating is quite common in Upper Jurassic sandstones in the North Sea. Kinetic modelling of quartz cementation with the Exemplar program correctly predicts observed quartz cement volumes in the Brae Formation outside the microquartz-coated zones, when high quality petrographic data, including abundance of clay coatings, are provided as input. Significant overprediction of quartz cement volumes occurs only for samples where scanning electron microscope analysis shows microquartz coatings to be present. Failure to recognize grain coating as one of the major parameters controlling quartz cementation may lead to incorrect geological models of reservoir quality and selection of inappropriate exploration or production strategies.