APPLIED CONCEPTS OF STRUCTURAL GEOLOGY IN HYDROCARBON EXPLORATION GL-303 BY TARIQ MAJEED JASWALAPPLIED CONCEPTS OF STRUCTURAL GEOLOGY IN HYDROCARBON EXPLORATION GL-303 WRITTEN AND COMPILED BY TARIQ MAJEED JASWALTABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER - I STRUCTURE GEOLOGY CHAPTER - II FAULTS Descriptive terminology of faults The broad classification of faults Problems in classification The effect of faults on the outcrops of beds Practical examples of the effect of faulting The determination of the vertical throw of fault THRUST FAULTS Thrust fault geometry Sequence of thrust emplacement Interaction between successive thrusts Emergent thrusts and blind thrusts The basic step thrust Step thrust geometry Thin-skinned and thick-skinned thrust structures Step thrusts in petroleum exploration Superimposed step faults Ratio of strike length of a thrust to the amount of its slip Folded thrust faults and bedding plane faults Folding and thrusting - which comes first Major thrust and minor normal faults:The steep limb problem Formation of thrusts from folds Displacement transfer Duplex structures Foreland margins of thrust and fold beltsNORMAL FAULTS Listric normal faults Growth faults REVERSE FAULTS STRIKE SLIP FAULTS Wrench zones Flower structures and triangle zones CHAPTER - III FOLDS Introduction Description and classification Kinematics of folding Dynamics of folding Kink bend folds The computer program REFOLD Folds in foreland fold and thrust belts Detachment folds Fault bend folds Fault propagation folds The computer program FLTBND The computer program FLTPRP CHAPTER - IV GEOLOGICAL MAPS Topographic maps Simple land forms depicted by contours True and apparent dip and strike of beds of rock The effect of dip of a stratum on its outcrop Methods for the determination of the dip and strike.CHAPTER - V GEOLOGIC CROSS SECTIONS Balanced cross sections Fundamentals Choosing the line of section Assembling stratigraphic data Identifying structural families Depth to basement calculations Depth to detachment calculations Down plunge projection Balancing methods A. Sinuous - Bed Method B. Equal- Area Method C. Key - Bed Method Conservation of slip Other methods Evaluation CHAPTER - VI BLOCK DIAGRAM Forming the structure models 3D Structure model 1 3D Structure model 2 3D Structure model 3 3D Structure model 4 3D Structure model 5 3D Structure model 6STRUCTURE GEOLOGYon 2 $ STRUCTURE GEOLOGY 9S ( Structure Geology is the study of the ways in which rocks are arranged at 2 below the surface of the earth.) The geologists can generally see only how the ri are distributed at the surface, Tt is important for a geologist that the structure must be deciphered on many levels. The scale of the earth, the range of materials tl. compose its lithosphere and the penetrative influence of the forces acting within « all combine to create features that must be interpreted in the domain of the electron microscope, the hand -canyon.wall, the seismicprofile, the mountain { \ i and the orbiting satellite. Encompassing all this is the ter*h diastrophism (fron Greek "Diastrophe", meaning "distortion"), used to denote all movements in the cru: that are caused by the earth forces. Most simply said, modern structural geology looks at the specific effects f diastrophism-i.e., at the weys in which rock responds to stress.”’ It is theref's concerned mote with the effects of the earth stress (acting within the lithospher« than with its genesis, Even on the most local level, earth stress is rarely, if ever homogeneous. Normally, it involves a number of components acting and interacting in diverse ways. Consequently, the effect on rock is also complex and involves not jus ey buckling (folding) and breaking (faulting), but also slippage, fl: Q reerystallization, melting, hardening, dissolution, and other concurren:_) Processes Therefore, no structural analysis that remains on a single plane of scale is ever complete. This is especially true for petroleum geology, which, by neces is always concerned with gathering as much information as possible on the locaiio: setting, geometry, and petrophysical properties of prospective formations. Unlike facies analysis, the study of geologic structure can make only limited usof direct observations on processes occurring today. This is not because deformational events occur too slowly, but rather that they most often take place by tiny increments on massive scales. For example, despite the visual drama presented by mountain systems such as the Himalayas or Zagros, a major delta such as the Mississippi, Niger, or Ganges will disperse and distribute thousands of cubic kilometers of sédiment in the same span of time required for a fold or fault block to rise one meter. ‘The incremental buildup of deformation in rocks is a result of invisible forces: at any moment, only a sum effect-strain-can be observed. As a result, the actual mechanisms by which folding and faulting occur remain somewhat unclear even today. \ — el ( shvuctuwed u ,) At the same time, however, the origin eres of regivnal stress systems ec 7 , ECTONIC THEORY. In particular, the interactions that occur at plate boundariys-rifting, subduction, have been at least basically explained by *P! transform faulting, and collision-are now known to be responsible for the major portion of earth structure formed during Phanerozoic time-ie. during the span of geologic time in which hydrocarbons have principally been generated. A great deal of what goes on along plate margins takes place in deep submarine environments. Plate theory, therefore, has brought geophysics-especially marine seismic profiling-to bet the fore of modern-structural geologye$ eG» Itis, in fact, no exaggeration to say that current analyses of both offshore and onshore areas are strongly, at times entirely, contingent upon seismic information. In large part, seismic data have freed the explorationist from a traditional dependence on field and borehole data. Modern interpretations of structure, therefore, are necessarily interdisciplinary: the "GREAT BOUNDARY FAULT" that once separated geologist and geophysicist no longer exists.Together, PLATE THEORY and SEISMIC DATA have shown that certain x ” regional patterns of deformation, called STRUCTURAL STYLES, show consist»: relationships to specific plate settings. Identification and analysis of various structure styles in presently active regions of the world has greatly helped interpretation © older, “completed” terrains. This, in turn, has allowed for a significant degree «. prediction with respect to local geologic structure. The notion of structural style is one of the most potent concepts in modern geology: it basically serves as a method fo synthesizing into an interpretable whole what, for many regions, was often scattered, only partly integrated swarm of structural data. Geologists an‘! geophysicists have used it to compare directly the potential of regions throughout th. world, and therefore to identify prospect areas during the early stages of frontier wo: as well as in older, already well-drilled regions. (Um present estimate, over 80% of the world’s petroleum is produced from reservoirs influenced by deformatio1 2 Fo alarge extent, therefore, exploration in both frontier and well-drilled provinces continues to focus the greater part of its effort « the search for structural traps. ‘This manual is an introduction to the concepts, terminology, individual geologic structures, such as folds and faults and methods of contemporary structural geology and how these are applied to petroleum exploration. Mainly there are thre (G Yomssentations of the earth used by the structural geologists. ® ( 1. Geological Maps " @Q™ “ ae ® ” 9, Geological Cross-Sections 0) 3. Block diagramsWe present an overview of these and discuss the importance these can play as efficient tool in structurally complex areas. The emphasis is on structures that develop in foreland fold-and-thrust belts and compressional environment , where the concepts and methods originated. The main purpose is to discuss the methods of constructing the balanced cross sections that can be used in structural interpretation. ‘The accompanying exercises using both seismic reflection data and geological data follow the discussions throughout the manual so the participants will be able to gain considerable experience in methods of constructing and restoring cross sections. The final chapter discusses the block diagrams. ‘The exercises provide the opertunity to visualize the different structures in three dimensions.