The equilibrium coefficient Kp and petroleum exploration: Design of the new generation of petroleum exploration instrument

The main reason why the application of nuclear technology in petroleum expl oration has not yet been accepted by most exploration workers is that they are not clear about the homologous distribution features of oil and gas fie lds and radioactive radiation. The authors hold that the disequilibrium of uranium, radium and radon as a natural radioactive series is the basic feat ure in the use of this technology in petroleum exploration. The invention G amma-ray Spectral Measurement of the Equilibium Coefficient Kp and Its Embo diment of the senior author now can readily solve that problem and replace the impedient measure of normalization of uranium and potassium to thorium that had to be proposed before. Application of this impedient measure has s ome limitations. In areas where the surface is covered by beach or river sa nds, thorium minerals such as monazite may be concentrated by placering. Th is could result in local thorium highs that would yield local uranium and p otassium lows after normalization to thorium, and these would constitute fa lse anomalies. This paper elucidates the relation between the equilibrium coefficient Kp a nd petroleum exploration and points out that immediately over petroleum the radioactive equilibrium is biased with uranium, while at peripheries of th e petroleum reservoir the equilibrium is biased with radium; therefore, the true uranium content immediately over petroleum is not lower but higher, a nd by constrast the uranium content at peripheries of the petroleum reservo ir is not higher but lower. This paper further introduces the main technica l requirements for the instrument used in petroleum exploration with nuclea r technology and the design basis and work procedure of the petroleum-field effective equilibrium coefficient ground detector and finally introduces t he applicability of the detector in petroleum exploration through the distr ibution features of the equilibrium coefficient Kp of five types of trap-ty pe petroleum deposits.