Rock cores and cuttings are among the most valuable assets in subsurface evaluation, yet traditional workflows often analyse them destructively, discipline by discipline. Epslog changes that.
Epslog’s CoreDNA is a core digitalization solution that transforms physical rock cores into continuous, depth-aligned, AI-ready digital datasets through fast, non-destructive multi-sensor scanning.
Before any slabbing or plugging, CoreDNA delivers quantitative core data across geology, petrophysics, geomechanics, and sedimentology, giving every discipline a shared foundation for faster, more objective, AI-powered core analysis from the very start of the workflow.
Rock cores are the foundation of subsurface characterization and one of the most valuable assets in exploration and production. They contain critical information for understanding the reservoir, yet traditional workflows often reduce this value to sparse, destructive subsamples leaving much of the cores continuous information underused.
CoreDNA changes this approach by creating a continuous, multi-sensor digital twin of the core immediately after barrel opening and before irreversible operations such as slabbing or plugging.
Using a prepared MiniSlab surface and a suite of co-located sensors, CoreDNA captures imaging, geochemistry, 3D topography, grain size, geomechanical properties, and permeability indicators along the full core interval.
The resulting dataset is quality controlled, integrated into directly usable smart reports, and simplified into rock facies that make high-dimensional data easier to interpret. CoreDNA helps specialists select more representative plugs, upscale laboratory measurements, and build a more accurate foundation for subsurface characterization.
CoreDNA follows the same repeatable workflow on every project, whether the core is freshly cut or recovered from a legacy collection.
CoreDNA begins with the MiniSlab: a 3 cm-wide, precision-machined window prepared directly on the core. This fresh, levelled surface removes mud contamination, optimizes sensor-to-rock contact, and ensures robust, repeatable measurements from the start.
A co-located sensor array scans the prepared core, continuously capturing imaging, geochemical, geomechanical, petrophysical, and textural data along the full core interval, from centimetre to sub-millimetre scale.
As soon as acquisition ends, each sensor output is quality controlled and depth-collocated into one coherent dataset, allowing every discipline to read and compare its data with confidence.
The integrated CoreDNA dataset is formatted for machine learning and delivered as directly usable smart reports, typically within days of acquisition. Multi-sensor measurements are also integrated into rock facies, turning a high-dimensional dataset into an easy-to-read and understandable representation of the core.
Most core scanning happens on raw, irregular surfaces — which limits how reliable the data can be. CoreDNA starts a step earlier. The MiniSlab is a levelled surface, just 3 cm wide, machined along the core to micron precision before any sensor contact.
That prepared window optimises sensor-to-rock contact, producing measurements that are more reliable, more repeatable and easier to trust — while leaving the rest of the core intact for later slabbing, plugging and laboratory work. Integrated core preparation is built into every CoreDNA project as standard, and it is what sets Epslog apart from conventional core scanning.
CoreDNA combines several co-located measurements into one continuous, depth-matched dataset. The exact configuration is tailored to each project and discipline; a typical deployment includes:
Core photography down to 1.8 µm per pixel fine enough to resolve individual grains.
Laser scanning of the MiniSlab surface for precise geometry and texture.
Continuous elemental profiles for chemostratigraphy and mineralogical proxies.
Continuous grain-size distribution curves, accurate to the micron (via LithoLog).
Continuous strength and elastic profiles along the core interval.
Probe-based measurements for continuous permeability trends.
Every CoreDNA™ project is delivered as an integrated data package, cast into smart reports handed over online within days of acquisition. Typical deliverables include:
LithoLog is Epslog’s sedimentology software, built with expert sedimentologists. It applies a standardised digital grain-size card to ultra-high-resolution images, producing continuous grain-size curves accurate to the micron and reducing subjectivity in core description.
CoreDNA data is labelled and used to train deep-learning models that automate the identification of textures, structures and composition — accelerating lithofacies classification across disciplines, from sedimentology to geomechanics.
Proven first in oil & gas reservoir characterization, Epslog’s technology now supports the wider energy transition:
CoreDNA gives core specialists more complete, more objective data, earlier, and without sacrificing the core:
Since 2005, Epslog has digitalized core for operators on five continents, with teams in Liège, Paris and Perth. CoreDNA has been featured in industry literature, including First Break’s special issue on digitalization and machine learning (February 2025).
CoreDNA gives core specialists more complete, more objective data, earlier, and without sacrificing the core:
Core digitalization is the process of turning a physical rock core into continuous, quantitative digital data using multiple sensors capturing geology, petrophysics, geomechanics and sedimentology in a single, non-destructive pass.
No. CoreDNA™ is acquired at barrel opening, before slabbing or plugging, so the core stays intact for any later laboratory work.
Yes. CoreDNA™ works on both freshly cut cores and legacy collections, letting operators extract new value from existing material.
CoreDNA™ includes integrated core preparation the MiniSlab as a standard step, optimising sensor-to-rock contact for more reliable, repeatable measurements than scanning raw surfaces.
QC and integration begin as soon as acquisition ends, and smart reports are typically handed over online within days.
See CoreDNA™ on your core. Request a confidential technical demonstration and talk to an Epslog specialist about your project.
