An Interactive 5-Day Training Course
Trap & Seal Analysis
What Traps and Holds the Column
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Duration
5 Days
Price
$ 3,500
Starting From
30 Aug 2027
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Trap & Seal Analysis
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Trap & Seal Analysis - GG-TRAP-PEA27
| Code | Date | Time | Duration | Location | Currency | Early Bird Fee Per Person |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GG-TRAP-PEA27 | 30 Aug - 03 Sep 2027 | 10 AM CST | 4 Hours Per Day |
Online |
USD |
3500 |
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Trap & Seal Analysis
This training covers trap and seal analysis across all trap types. It works through trap classification and geometry, closure definition and spill, top seal capacity and continuity, fault seal assessment, lateral and bottom seals, column height prediction, seal bypass and breach mechanisms, evidence for palaeo-columns and leakage, and the risking of trap and seal in exploration and in storage applications.
Description
The trap and seal pair determines whether an accumulation exists and how large it is. A structure with a perfect reservoir and abundant charge holds nothing without a seal, and a seal with limited capacity holds a column shorter than the structural closure, which is why many discoveries are smaller than the mapped structure suggested. Trap and seal are also the elements most often assessed qualitatively when they could be quantified, and seal failure is a leading cause of exploration disappointment.
This training develops both systematically. Trap types are established first, covering structural, stratigraphic, diagenetic, hydrodynamic and combination traps, with their geometry, their recognition and the specific risks of each. Closure definition follows, covering mapping, spill point determination, the effect of depth uncertainty on closure and the identification of the limiting spill or leak point. Top seal is then developed in detail: capillary entry pressure, pore throat measurement, the conversion to retainable column height, lithology and compaction controls, thickness and continuity requirements, and fracture susceptibility. Fault seal follows, covering juxtaposition analysis, fault rock prediction and across-fault pressure evidence. Lateral and bottom seals are then addressed, which matter particularly in stratigraphic and hydrodynamic traps. Column height prediction is developed as the integration of these. Seal bypass and breach mechanisms follow, including fracturing, fault reactivation, pipes and chimneys. The training closes with evidence for palaeo-columns and with trap and seal risking.
Column height is predictable and it is rarely predicted. The height a seal can retain follows from its capillary entry pressure, the density difference between the hydrocarbon and the formation water, and the interfacial tension, all of which are measurable or estimable. Comparing the resulting column against the structural closure shows whether the trap is structure limited or seal limited. A structure with two hundred metres of closure and a seal capable of holding sixty metres is a sixty metre accumulation, and knowing that before drilling changes the volume estimate materially.
Gas and oil are not sealed equally. The buoyancy pressure for a given column depends on the density contrast with water, and gas is far less dense than oil, so a gas column exerts substantially more pressure on the seal than an oil column of the same height. A seal that holds a long oil column may hold only a short gas column, which means a prospect's seal risk depends on what it is being charged with. In basins where both are possible, the seal assessment has to be done for the expected fluid.
Seal bypass systems defeat seals that are otherwise adequate. A seal with excellent capillary properties is irrelevant if faults cut through it, if hydraulic fracturing has occurred where overpressure exceeded the fracture gradient, or if a pipe or chimney provides a vertical conduit. These features are often visible on seismic as gas chimneys, amplitude dimming, pockmarks at the seabed or vertical disturbance zones, and their presence over a prospect is direct evidence against seal integrity regardless of the rock properties.
Finally, evidence of what a trap once held is available and is underused. Residual hydrocarbon saturations above a present-day contact indicate a palaeo-column that has since drained. Tilted contacts indicate either hydrodynamic flow or post-accumulation tectonic movement. Fluid inclusions in cements record the presence of hydrocarbons at the time the cement formed. Each of these says something about whether the trap has held through its history, which is a different question from whether it could hold today.
By the end of this training, participants will be able to:
- Classify trap types and assess the specific risks of each
- Define closure and determine spill and leak points
- Measure and interpret capillary entry pressure data
- Calculate retainable column height for a given seal and fluid
- Assess seal thickness, continuity and lithological variability
- Evaluate fault seal through juxtaposition and fault rock analysis
- Assess lateral and bottom seals in stratigraphic and hydrodynamic traps
- Identify seal bypass systems and breach mechanisms
- Interpret evidence for palaeo-columns and past leakage
- Risk trap and seal quantitatively in exploration and storage applications
The training works on mapped traps with capillary pressure, pressure and well data. Participants calculate retainable column heights from measured seal properties and compare them against observed columns and against structural closure, identifying structure limited and seal limited cases. Fault seal analysis is carried out on faulted traps and calibrated against across-fault pressure data. Seismic data is examined for seal bypass evidence. Dry holes attributed to seal failure are reviewed for what the pre-drill data showed.
Organisations sending participants to this training will:
- Predict column heights rather than assuming structural fill
- Reduce dry holes from unidentified seal failure
- Improve volume estimates in seal limited traps
- Identify seal bypass risk before drilling
- Apply quantitative seal methods consistently
- Support containment assessment for storage projects
Participants will:
- Quantify seal capacity and predict column height
- Assess fault seal with calibrated methods
- Identify seal bypass and breach evidence
- Interpret palaeo-column and leakage evidence
- Risk trap and seal defensibly
- Build capability in a leading cause of exploration failure
- Exploration geoscientists evaluating prospects
- Structural geologists working on fault seal
- Petrophysicists working on saturation and capillary data
- Geoscientists assessing containment for carbon storage
- Prospect evaluation and portfolio staff
- Reservoir geologists assessing compartmentalisation
- Technical staff reviewing trap and seal assessments
Module 1 - Trap Types and Geometry
- Trap classification schemes
- Four way dip closed structures
- Three way fault dependent closures
- Tilted fault block and rollover traps
- Compressional and inversion traps
- Depositional pinch-out traps
- Onlap and truncation traps
- Channel, valley and build-up traps
- Diagenetic and permeability barrier traps
- Hydrodynamic traps and tilted contacts
- Combination traps and their evaluation
- Trap type and its characteristic risks
Module 2 - Closure and Spill
- Closure definition and mapping
- Structural spill point determination
- Depth uncertainty and closure sensitivity
- Probability of closure failure
- Multiple culminations and segments
- Fault dependency and its risk
- Fill to spill and differential entrapment
- Leak point against spill point
- Identifying the limiting point on a trap
- Closure area and column relationships
- Gross rock volume from closure
Module 3 - Top Seal Capacity
- Capillary seal mechanism
- Pore throat size and entry pressure
- Mercury injection capillary pressure measurement
- Converting laboratory data to reservoir conditions
- Interfacial tension and contact angle
- Hydrocarbon water density difference
- Retainable column height calculation
- Gas against oil column capacity
- Lithology control on seal capacity
- Compaction and burial effects
- Sampling seals and data availability
- Analogue seal capacity data
Module 4 - Seal Thickness, Continuity and Integrity
- Seal thickness requirements
- Thin seals and their adequacy
- Lateral continuity assessment
- Lithological variability within a seal
- Silt and sand stringers in seals
- Seal mapping from seismic and wells
- Erosional removal of seal
- Seal ductility and brittleness
- Fracture susceptibility of seals
- Overpressure and hydraulic fracturing of seals
- Seal integrity through geological time
- Seal quality variation within a sequence
Module 5 - Fault Seal
- Juxtaposition analysis and Allan diagrams
- Reservoir against reservoir windows
- Fault rock types and their formation
- Clay smear and cataclasis
- Shale gouge ratio and related algorithms
- Converting fault rock to seal capacity
- Calibration against known fields
- Across-fault pressure difference analysis
- Static and dynamic fault sealing
- Fault reactivation and seal breach
- Critically stressed faults and leakage
- Risking fault dependent traps
Module 6 - Lateral and Bottom Seals
- Lateral seal requirements in stratigraphic traps
- Facies change as a lateral seal
- Diagenetic lateral seals
- Demonstrating lateral seal presence
- Bottom seal and its necessity
- Hydrodynamic trapping mechanisms
- Tilted contacts and their causes
- Water flow and its effect on trapping
- Pressure data evidence for lateral seal
- Stratigraphic trap risking
- Combination trap seal assessment
Module 7 - Seal Bypass and Breach
- Seal bypass system types
- Faults as bypass conduits
- Hydraulic fracturing of seals
- Pipes, chimneys and blowout structures
- Mud volcanoes and their significance
- Gas chimney seismic expression
- Amplitude dimming and vertical disturbance
- Seabed pockmarks and seepage
- Salt and shale diapir related bypass
- Intrusive and volcanic bypass
- Assessing bypass evidence over a prospect
- Bypass in carbon storage containment assessment
Module 8 - Palaeo-Columns, Evidence and Risking
- Residual saturation evidence
- Palaeo-contact identification
- Fluid inclusion evidence for past charge
- Diagenetic evidence of hydrocarbon presence
- Tilted and tilted palaeo-contacts
- Evidence from shows and their interpretation
- Seepage as evidence of leakage
- Distinguishing never charged from leaked
- Trap and seal risk assignment
- Separating trap risk from seal risk
- Documenting the trap and seal case
- Case studies of seal controlled outcomes
Upon successful completion of this training course, delegates will be awarded an official Certificate of Completion issued by the Petroleum Engineers Association (PEA), an ISO 9001:2015 certified training organization. The certificate carries 10 Credits and formally records the total learning hours completed.
Each certificate is signed by the Course Facilitator and the CEO of the Petroleum Engineers Association, and serves as verifiable proof of professional training that delegates can present to employers and professional bodies worldwide.
Frequently Asked Questions
All course bookings made through PEA are strictly non-refundable. By registering for a course, you acknowledge and accept that all fees are payable in full and are not subject to refund under any circumstances, including changes in personal or professional commitments or partial attendance.
PEA reserves the right to make reasonable adjustments to course content, trainers, or schedules where necessary, without entitling delegates to a refund. Comprehensive details of each course — including objectives, target audience, and content — are clearly outlined before enrolment, and it is the responsibility of the delegate to ensure the course's suitability prior to booking.
For any inquiries related to cancellations or bookings, please contact our support team, who will be happy to assist you.
