USGS Core Research Center Overview of Collections New

USGS Core Research Center Overview of Collections, New Database and Web-Available Products Jeannine Honey U. S. Department of the Interior U. S. Geological Survey

§ § Established in 1974 Goal to Rescue Valuable Rock Cores and Cuttings Threatened with Disposal or Destruction and make them Available to Scientists and Educators from Government, Industry, and Academia 1500 Visitors Each Year Located in Building 810 on the Denver Federal Center

CRC Collections § Cores § “Archived” (Slabbed) § Unprocessed § Well Cuttings § Thin Sections § Core Photos § Analysis

Examination Rooms for Core and Cuttings

Warehouse: 80, 000 Square Feet

States Represented in Collection

Core Collection § § § 1. 7 Million Feet of Core from 9000 Wells in 35 States Most from Rocky Mountain Region Majority Drilled for Oil and Gas Exploration and Donated by Private Companies Collection Includes some Mining Cores Small Percentage Drilled by USGS for Special Scientific Purposes Annual Cost of Storage § § § About 0. 5 percent of the original cost of drilling 0. 05 percent of what it would cost to drill the cores today The USGS can store the cores for at least 200 years before reaching the original cost of drilling

§ “Archived” Cores § § § § Slabbed Re-boxed in Tray-Style Boxes Photographed Stored on Shelves Like Books in a Library Slabbing Provides Clean, Flat Surface that Reveals Details in the Rock About 50% of CRC Cores are “Archived” Unprocessed Cores § § Same Condition as Received May be Full Diameter, Thick Slab (Butt), Thin Slab, or Split All Sizes and Shapes of Boxes Stacked on Pallets

Archived Core Storage § § Storing the Archived Cores Like Books in a Library Allows Easy Access for One Box or Many The CRC Collection has 40, 000 Archive Boxes Containing over 400, 000 feet of Core from 4500 Different Wells

Electric Order Picker Used to Reach Boxes on High Shelves

Efficient Storage for Unprocessed Cores § Four-High Pallet Racks § Narrow Aisles § Side-Loading Forklift

Side-Loading Forklift

Cuttings Collection § § § 238 Million Feet of Drilling Represented by Over 52, 000 Wells from 28 States Most from Rocky Mountain Region 125, 000 Boxes Stored on 1, 785 Feet of Shelving 16 Feet High Most of Collection Came from a Single Donation Estimated Replacement Cost of Over $10 Billion New Drilling Methods are Not Producing Cuttings

Cuttings Storage § § Cuttings Stored in Paper Envelopes Marked with Depth Envelopes Kept in Cardboard Boxes Variety of Sizes and Shapes of Boxes 1, 785 Feet of Shelving 16 Feet High

Thin Section Collection § § § 18, 000+ Thin Sections from Sampling of the Core or Cuttings Collections Stored in Metal or Paper Holders Filed in Drawers Petrographic Microscope Available for Viewing and Photographing Thin Sections Scanned Images Available on Web

Analysis Files § § § Sampling of Core or Cuttings is Permitted Provided that Enough Material is Available Results of Analyses Must be Returned to the CRC Data is Available to All Data Files Have Been Scanned and are Available on the Web New Returned Data Should be Provided in Digital Form

2008 - 2009 CRC Database Converted to Oracle § Advantages of the New System Include: § Multiple Users can Simultaneously View and Update Data § Scanned Images are Included in Database and are Linked to the Record for the Well § Well Catalog on CRC Web Page Updated in Real Time § Customers can Download Scanned Images from CRC Web Page Legacy Card Catalog is Still Maintained

Digital Data Project and Transition to Web § Well Catalog § All Online and Updated in Real Time § Core Photos § 20% of Cores have Photos Online § Scans of Thin Sections § 95% Scanned and Online § Analysis § 99% Scanned and Online

Image Download: Benefits to Customers § § § Provides Preview so they can Determine if the Material Meets their Needs Can do Research Prior to Visit so on Arrival they Know what to Target to Maximize the Efficiency of their Visit Encourages use of Existing Data, Decreases Sampling of Material, Reduces Duplication of Effort – Preserves Collection

Web Catalog Customers can Click on a State to get a List of all the Cores or Cuttings in that State OR use Search Boxes to Select by State, Township, Range, and Section Resulting Well List can be Sorted by any Column or Combination of Columns

Web Core List (Excel Friendly)

More Information and Links to Images

Photos, Thin Sections, Data

USGS Core Research Center Contacts § Betty Adrian § badrian@usgs. gov § Jeannine Honey § jhoney@usgs. gov § John Rhoades § jfrhoades@usgs. gov § Web § http: //geology. cr. usgs. gov/crc/ § Phone § 303 202 -4851