**1. Introduction**

Initiatives for increasing hydrocarbon recovery from existing fields include the capability to quickly and accurately conduct reservoir simulations to evaluate different improved oil recovery scenarios. These numerical simulations require input parameters such as relative permeabilities, capillary pressures, and other rock and fluid porosity versus permeability trends. These parameters are typically derived from Special Core Analysis (SCAL) tests. Core analysis laboratories have traditionally provided SCAL through experiments conducted on core plugs. Depending on a number of variables, SCAL experiments can take a year or longer to complete and often are not carried out at reservoir conditions with live reservoir fluids. Digital Rock Physics (DRP) investigates and calculates the physical and fluid flow properties of porous rocks. In this approach, high-resolution images of the rock's pores and mineral grains are obtained and processed, and the rock properties are evaluated by numerical simulation at the pore scale.

Comparisons between the rock properties obtained by DRP studies and those obtained by other means (laboratory SCAL tests, wireline logs, well tests, etc.) are important to validate this new technology and use the results it provides with confidence. This article shares a comparative study of DRP and laboratory SCAL evaluations of carbonate reservoir cores.

This technology is a breakthrough for oil and gas companies that need large volumes of accurate results faster than the current SCAL labs can normally deliver. The oil and gas companies can use this information as input to numerical reservoir simulators, fracture design programs, analytic analysis of PTA, etc. which will improve reserve forecasts, rate forecasts, well placement and completion designs. It can also help with evaluating option for improved oil recovery with sensitivity analysis of various options considering the actual pore scale rock fabric of each reservoir zone. Significant investment savings can also be realized using good DRP derived data compared with the conventional laboratory SCAL tests.

© 2012 Kalam et al., licensee InTech. This is an open access chapter distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. © 2012 Kalam et al., licensee InTech. This is a paper distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
