Continuum reconstruction of the pore scale microstructure for Fontainebleau sandstone

A stochastic geometrical modeling technique is used to reconstruct a laboratory scale Fontainebleau sandstone with a sidelength of 1.5 cm. The model reconstruction is based on crystallite properties and diagenetic parameters determined from two-dimensional images. The three-dimensional pore scale microstructure of the sandstone is represented by a list of quartz crystallites defined geometrically and placed in the continuum. This allows generation of synthetic μ-CT images of the rock model at arbitrary resolutions. Quantitative microstructure comparison based on Minkowski functionals, two-point correlation function and local porosity theory indicates that this modeling technique can provide more realistic and accurate models of sandstones than many existing techniques used currently. Synthetic μ-CT images at different resolutions from a laboratory scale model of Fontainebleau sandstone are made available to the scientific community for resolution dependent petrophysical analysis.