Accepted Manuscript

Quantitative identification of diagenetic facies and controls on reservoir quality for

tight sandstones: A case study of the Triassic Chang 9 oil layer, Zhenjing area, Ordos
Basin

Yang Li, Xiangchun Chang, Wei Yin, Guangwei Wang, Jinliang Zhang, Bingbing Shi,
Jianhua Zhang, Lixin Mao
PII: S0264-8172(19)30026-1
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpetgeo.2019.01.025
Reference: JMPG 3694

To appear in: Marine and Petroleum Geology

Received Date: 20 April 2018

Revised Date: 9 December 2018
Accepted Date: 21 January 2019

Please cite this article as: Li, Y., Chang, X., Yin, W., Wang, G., Zhang, J., Shi, B., Zhang, J., Mao, L.,
Quantitative identification of diagenetic facies and controls on reservoir quality for tight sandstones: A
case study of the Triassic Chang 9 oil layer, Zhenjing area, Ordos Basin, Marine and Petroleum Geology
(2019), doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpetgeo.2019.01.025.

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Quantitative identification of diagenetic facies and controls on reservoir quality

for tight sandstones: A case study of the Triassic Chang 9 oil layer, Zhenjing area,

Ordos Basin

Yang Lia,c, Xiangchun Changa,b, *, Wei Yind ,Guangwei Wange , Jinliang Zhangc, Bingbing Shia ,

Jianhua Zhanga, Lixin Maoa

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a
College of Earth Science and Engineering, Shandong University of Science and Technology,

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Qingdao 266590, China;

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b
Laboratory for Marine Mineral Resources, Qingdao National Laboratory for Marine Science and

Technology, Qingdao 266590, China;

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Faculty of Geographical Science, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875, China
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d
Petroleum Exploration and Production Research Institute, SINOPEC, Beijing 100083, China
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e
School of Geoscience, China University of Petroleum, Qingdao 266580, China

* Corresponding author. E-mail address: xcchang@sina.com (X. Chang).

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Abstract:
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The identification of diagenetic facies is essential for prospecting hydrocarbon reserves and for
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hydrocarbon exploration in tight oil reservoirs. A comprehensive method for determining

quantitative index of reservoir diagenetic facies (RDI) using core analysis techniques, hierarchical
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cluster analyses (HCA), and grey correlation analyses (GCA) was proposed. The petrological

characteristics, physical properties, and pore structures of the Chang 9 tight oil sandstones are

analyzed based on thin-section analysis, X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy

(SEM), cathode luminescence (CL) and mercury injection capillary pressure (MICP) tests. The

properties of the Chang 9 sandstones were controlled by different forms of diagenesis: Compaction

and cementation of calcite have reduced or occluded the pore volume in the sandstones, but not all
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cementation is deleterious to reservoir quality. Chlorite cementation helped preserve relict primary

porosity and the direct dissolution of feldspars and unstable lithic fragments has resulted in

enhanced pore connectivity. Following petrographic observations and quantitative analysis, the

sandstones were divided into four diagenetic facies: calcite cementation facies, intense compaction

facies, porosity preserved by grain-coating chlorites facies, and dissolution facies. The intense

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compaction facies and calcite cementation facies are responsible for the evolution of low-quality

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reservoirs, while the reservoirs with porosity preserved by grain-coating chlorites facies and

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dissolution facies are of better porosity and permeability. The distribution of fractures improves

reservoir quality by enhancing the dissolution of unstable grains and providing convenient channels

and storage spaces for oil and gas migration.

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Keywords: Diagenetic facies; tight oil sandstones; reservoir quality; Zhenjing area; Ordos Basin.
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1. Introduction

In recent years, most energy firms in China have begun tight-oil exploration to meet growing
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energy demands (Zou et al., 2013; Schmitt et al., 2015). Tight sandstone reservoirs have a porosity
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smaller than 10% and an intrinsic permeability smaller than 0.1 mD. Recently, their large reserves
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have garnered significant interest (Zou et al., 2012). It is crucial to understand the factors affecting

reservoir quality, as indicated by the exploration practices in tight reservoirs. Reservoir quality is
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known to be controlled by depositional factors and diagenetic alteration, as well as active tectonism

(Zhang et al., 2008; Taylor et al., 2010; Bjørlykke, 2014; Lai et al., 2015; Wang et al., 2015; Li et al.,

2017a). Depositional factors such as mineral composition, grain size and grain sorting control the

initial porosity and permeability of the rocks and affect types and extent of diagenesis. The latter

commonly accentuates variations in initial porosity and permeability (Morad et al., 2010).

Additionally, tectonic movement controls the number and distribution of fractures, significantly
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influencing permeability and pore connectivity (Schmitt et al., 2015; Kassab et al., 2017).

The Chang 9 sandstones were deposited in a single depositional environment (Fu et al., 2012;

Zhao et al., 2012; Zhao et al., 2015); however, it exhibits significant differences in reservoir

properties. Thus, diagenetic alteration has controlled the evolution of reservoir porosity and

permeability. Diagenetic facies are products of sediments under the influence of diagenesis and

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tectonics in a specific depositional environment (Mou and Brenner, 1982; Zou et al., 2008; Meng et

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al., 2008; Lai et al., 2013; Wang et al., 2017b; Wang et al., 2017c). Therefore, the diagenetic facies

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reflect the type of diagenesis, diagenetic environment, and characteristics of diagenetic minerals.

As typical tight oil sandstones, the Upper Triassic Yanchang Formation in the Ordos Basin

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has gained extensive attention due to its potential for petroleum production (Lai et al., 2016; Cui et
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al., 2017; Wang et al., 2017a; Wang et al., 2017e). Those studies analysed the controlling factors
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and formation mechanism of the tight oil sandstone reservoir in the Chang 6–Chang 8 oil layers.

However, little research has been conducted on the controls of reservoir quality in the Chang 9 oil
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layer, which make up an important tight oil reservoir. Therefore, the present study on reservoir
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evaluation and prediction for the Chang 9 sandstones has focused on identifying diagenetic facies
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and the impact of diagenesis on reservoir quality.

2. Geological setting
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The large intracontinental Ordos Basin is usually subdivided into six first-order tectonic

structural units: the Yimeng uplift, Weibei uplift, Jinxi fault-fold belt, Yishan slope, Tianhuan

depression and Western thrust belt (Ji et al., 2010; Lai et al., 2016; Wang et al., 2017a). The

Zhenjing area, approximately of 2510 km2, is located in the southern Tianhuan depression (Fig. 1a)

(Li et al., 2017b). The present structural framework was mainly developed during the Early Triassic,

when the Paleotethys Plate moved northward and collided with the Eurasian Plate (Li et al., 2011).
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Since the Cenozoic, the Himalayan tectonic movements led to the uplift of western margin of Ordos

Basin and contributed the formation of the fault depression belts around it (He, 2002; Liu et al.,

2006; Li and Li, 2008). Palaeozoic, Mesozoic and Cenozoic strata are widely distributed throughout

the basin, but Silurian, Devonian, Lower Carboniferous and Upper Cretaceous strata are notably

absent (Fig. 2a).

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The main depositional environment of the Chang 9 sandstones was identified as a deltaic front

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depositional system, and the depositional microfacies mainly included a subaqueous distributary

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channel and interdistributary bay (Fig. 3) (Fu et al., 2012; Zhao et al., 2015). The provenance of

Chang 9 sandstones is mainly from the Qilian tectonic belt and the Qinling tectonic belt in the

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southwest of the Ordos Basin (Fig. 3) (Zhao et al., 2012; Niu et al., 2012).
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The Upper Triassic Yanchang Formation, deposited from the Carnian stage to the Norian stage,
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is subdivided into 10 intervals from bottom to top (Chang 10 to Chang 1) (Fig. 2b). Five third-order

transgressive-regressive cycles were determined in the Yanchang Formation: Chang10, Chang

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9-Lower Chang 8, Upper Chang 8-Chang 7, Chang 6-Chang 3 and Chang 2-Chang 1 (Zhou et al.,
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2016; Wang et al., 2017a). All the intervals consist of sandstones, mudstones and shales, among
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which the Chang 7 oil layer is composed predominantly of oil shales and black mudstones; the other

intervals are composed of sandstones and mudstones (Fig. 2b). Therefore, the Chang 7 oil layer,
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serves as the source rocks and seals for the Chang 9 and Chang 8 oil reservoirs. The Chang 9 oil

layer has been identified as an important exploration target, and important progress has been made

in exploration in recent years (Fu, et al., 2012).

3. Samples and methods

3.1. Samples preparation and data collection

All samples used in this study were taken from conventional cores from the Chang 9
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sandstones within the study area. The samples were selected at the depths of 1781-2172 m from

different cored wells in Zhenjing area, in order to clarify the mineral compositions and diagenetic

types and identify diagenetic facies accurately. A total of 203 thin sections for the Chang 9 interval

from 13 wells were selected. All thin sections were half-stained with Alizarin Red S for

distinguishing calcite, were examined to determine the compositions of the Chang 9 sandstones. Of

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these, 80 thin sections were impregnated with blue epoxy to determine the pore types in sandstones.

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The microscope used for thin section analysis is an Axio Scope A1 pol, manufactured by Carl Zeiss

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AG. Sixty photomicrographs of 20 thin sections from four wells were selected for grain size

analysis. Porosity and permeability data were collected from the SINOPEC Petroleum Exploration

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and Production Research Institute, Beijing. The samples selected for porosity and permeability
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testing were cylinders with a diameter of 2.5 cm and a length of 5 cm, and all the cylinders were
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drilled along the horizontal direction of the cores.

3.2. Experimental methods and conditions

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The compositions of the Chang 9 sandstones were determined by point counts of at least 200
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grains per thin section. Grain sizes were measured from the photomicrographs of thin sections using
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Image-Pro Plus software (Media Cybernetics), with the manual function, and each of the

photomicrographs had at least 160 grains.

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XRD was performed on 43 samples to identify clay mineral types and the content of different

cements with a D/max-1200 X-ray polycrystalline diffractometer.

Porosity was measured on a JS100007 helium porosimeter and permeability was measured on

an A-10133 gas permeameter using standard industry methods. Both the helium porosimeter and

gas permeameter were manufactured by Micromeritics Instrument (Shanghai) LTD.

SEM was employed to identify authigenic clay minerals, pores and microfractures. Freshly
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broken rock fragments for each of the samples were gold coated and identified using a

ThermoFisher Quanta 2000 SEM combined with an EDAX energy dispersive spectrometer (EDS).

An acceleration voltage of 20 kV and a work distances (WD) range from 7.1 mm to 12.6 mm were

the operating conditions.

Cathode luminescence (CL) analyses identified different cement generations, which helped to

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determine the paragenetic sequence. Selected polished thin sections were observed with a

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Technosyn cold cathode luminoscope.

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The mercury injection capillary pressure (MICP) test was performed on 20 samples from three

wells to confirm pore-throat size, distribution and connectivity, which represent the complexity and

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heterogeneity of the pore-throat structure. The device used was a Pore Sizer 9320 mercury
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porosimetry manufactured by Micromeritics Instrument (Shanghai) LTD.
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4. Results

4.1 Detrital composition and rock fabric

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The sand grains in the Chang 9 sandstones are subangular, moderately to well-sorted. The
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dominant framework grain is lithic fragments (range 17–49 vol%, average 38 vol%). The amounts
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of feldspars (range 25–47 vol%, average 32 vol%) and quartz (range 20–39 vol%, average 31 vol%)

are smaller (Table 1). Therefore, the Chang 9 sandstones can be classified as feldspathic litharenites
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and lithic arkose with an average composition of Q30.1F31.9R38 (Fig. 4a). The lithic grains primarily

consist of volcanic rock fragments (average 30.3%) and metamorphic rock fragments (average

7.6%), as well as a small amount of sedimentary rock fragments, with contents commonly less than

3% (Fig. 4b). Grain size analysis showed that the average grain diameter in the Chang 9 sandstones

ranged from 0.08 mm to 0.92 mm, with an average of 0.23 mm. The Chang 9 sandstones were

categorized as very fine- to coarse-grained (Fig. 5); only one sample was categorized as coarse silt
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with an average diameter of 0.04 mm. Grain contacts were predominantly linear contacts due to the

relatively low compositional maturity.

4.2 Porosity and permeability

The porosities of the Chang 9 sandstones in the study area range from 3.2% to 18.5%, with an

average of 12.5%. The measured permeability ranges from 0.001 mD to 78.3 mD, with an average

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of 6.2 mD. A total of 62.81% of the samples have porosities less than 15%, and the proportion of

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samples with permeability less than 1 mD is 57.93% (Fig. 6), which indicates the tight nature of the

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Chang 9 sandstones. The plot of porosity versus permeability of the Chang 9 sandstones in the

study area shows that porosity is positively correlated with permeability on the whole. However, the

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porosity and permeability of the reservoirs exhibited two distinct correlations, which can be defined
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as high-quality reservoirs with larger slope and low-quality reservoirs with smaller slopes (Fig. 7).
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4.3 Characteristics of pores and fractures

Pore types and pore throats are the main controlling parameters of fluid movement
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(Aliakbardoust and Rahimpour-Bona, 2013; Lai et al., 2017, 2018). Three distinct pore types with
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different shapes and scales were distinguished in the Chang 9 sandstones: residual primary
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intergranular pores (Fig. 8a), intragranular secondary pores from dissolution (Figs. 8b–8d), and

micropores (Fig. 8e). The term “micropore” in tight sandstones is applied to pore sizes less than 10
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µm. Accordingly, the term “micropore throats” is applied to pore-throat sizes less than 1 µm

(Nelson, 2009), which can be calculated from SEM photographs and MICP test. The pores of the

Chang 9 sandstones range in diameter from 10 to 330 µm (average 85 µm). Intergranular pores

account for 79.6% of the total; intragranular pores account for 14.8%; and the rest are micropores

and microfractures.

Fractures are significant migration pathways in reservoirs and contribute greatly to fluid flow
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by increasing pore connectivity (Lai et al., 2017). SEM photographs, thin sections and core

observations show broadly distributed microfractures (Figs. 8f–8g) and macrofractures (Fig. 8h).

Core observation also show that abundant dissolution pores occur parallel to fractures (Fig. 8h).

The characteristics of pore throats were confirmed by MICP (Nooruddin et al., 2014; Torabi

et al., 2013) as shown in Table 2 and Figure 9. Two types of sample were distinguished: Type I

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samples have relatively higher displacement pressures (5.61–19.94 MPa; average 10.90 MPa) and a

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smaller median pore-throat radius (0.01–0.02 µm; average 0.016 µm), with low porosity (4.0%–

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9.6%; average 6.92%) and permeability (0.04–0.08 mD; average 0.06 mD); Type II samples have

moderate displacement pressures (0.43–3.86 MPa; average 1.34 MPa) and a median pore-throat

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radius (0.03–0.24 µm; average 0.06 µm), with higher porosity (7.61%–6.4%; average 14.48%) and
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permeability (0.16–19.2 mD; average 4.46 mD). The sorting coefficient of pore-throat (Sp) and
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skewness (Sk) for Type I and Type II samples, which reflects the properties of pore-throat structures

(Li et al., 2017a; Dou et al., 2016), are also provided in Table 2. The Sp and Sk were determined
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from Eq. (1) and (2).

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S = ∑ ( − ) / (1)
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= ∑( − ) ∆ (2)

where fi is the mercury saturation difference; ri is the pore-throat radius corresponding to the
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cumulative mercury saturation of i% on the normal probability curve; SHg-max is the maximum

mercury intrusion saturation;ΔSi is the corresponding mercury intrusion saturation of ri.

4.4 Diagenesis

4.4.1 Compaction

Compaction mainly plays an important role in eodiagenesis (Zhang et al., 2008; Umar et al.,

2011), and it can be subdivided into mechanical and chemical compaction. Mechanical compaction
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is generally considered to be the results of increasing effective stress from the overburden during

burial (Bjørlykke, 2014). Evidence for mechanical compaction such as linear contacts between

grains and deformed ductile grains (e.g., mica) are widely seen in the Chang 9 sandstones (Fig. 10a).

Evidence of chemical compaction is commonly present in the form of a pressure solution that

formed concave-convex and sutured contacts between detrital grains (Wang et al., 2017a; Bjorkum,

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1996). Concave-convex contacts and even sutured contacts can be seen in the Chang 9 sandstones,

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indicating the existence of chemical compaction in the study area (Fig. 10b).

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4.4.2 Cementation

Three major types of cementation are distinguished in the Chang 9 sandstones: calcite

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cementation, authigenic quartz cementation, and chlorite cementation. Calcite, which was observed
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in most of the thin sections and had varying distributions and contents, is a volumetrically
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significant diagenetic constituent in the Zhenjing area (Li et al., 2017b). In some samples, calcite

cements are distributed between grains in veins with a high content (15 % to 25%) and occupied
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high intergranular volume (Fig. 10c). While in other samples, calcite cements are distributed
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sporadically and fill the intergranular pores; some calcites cover the chlorite coatings directly (Fig.
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10d).

Grain-coating chlorites are the most common clay minerals in the study area, with a relatively
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high content (up to 11.2%). Authigenic chlorites mainly occur as grain-coatings or as randomly

oriented platelets perpendicular to and rimming grains (Fig. 10e and f). Authigenic quartz is

extremely heterogeneous with low content in the study area. Most of the quartz overgrowths are

found at the boundaries of grains near secondary pores, indicating that feldspar dissolution is an

origin for authigenic quartz. Meanwhile, the SiO2 produced by chemical compaction can also be an

origin of quartz overgrowths (Li et al., 2017b).

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4.4.3 Dissolution

Dissolution of soluble clastic particles, which is responsible for secondary pores, is widely

observed in the Chang 9 sandstones. Thin-section observation showed that the dissolved minerals

are mainly feldspars and rock fragments, and dissolved cements are rare. Feldspars mainly dissolve

along cleavage planes and fracture surfaces, leaving behind secondary intragranular pores (Fig. 8b).

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5. Discussion

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5.1 Diagenetic sequence

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Once deposited, sediment compaction begins to increase as the overburden pressure increases.

Thus, the impact of compaction on reservoir porosity begins at the eodiagenesis stage and continues

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to the mesodiagenesis stage at depths more than 2 km and temperatures higher than 70 ℃(Morad et
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al., 2000).
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The calcites with a high content most likely cemented prior to or during mechanical

compaction, as evident from the absence of quartz overgrowths and chlorites rims (Wang et al.,
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2017a); While the calcites cover the chlorite coatings directly, which implies a later origin and
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formation after the precipitation of authigenic chlorite. In addition, the coexistence of dull orange
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(referring to early diagenetic carbonate cements) and bright orange (referring to late diagenetic

carbonate cements) cathode luminescence in one sample can also provide evidence of two phases of
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calcite cementation (Fig. 10g) (Lai et al., 2016).

The absence of chlorite rims along the early calcite cements and of any elongated or deformed

chlorite coatings from compaction, implies that chlorites cemented mainly after early calcite

cementation and intense mechanical compaction. The formation of authigenic chlorites in the study

area is most likely due to the alteration and dissolution of unstable volcanic rock fragments in the

sandstones with favourable water conditions (Morad et al., 2010; Wang et al., 2017a).
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Point count analysis (see Table 3 for the data) shows that the content of authigenic quartz has a

clear negative relationship with the content of chlorite cements (Fig. 11a), indicating that the growth

of authigenic quartz was inhibited by chlorite cementation and the quartz overgrowths, which

post-dated chlorite cementation. Therefore, a summary of the diagenetic sequence is shown in

Figure 12.

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5.2 Diagenetic controls on reservoir quality

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The dominance of linear and concave-convex contacts in the Chang 9 sandstones implies that

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compaction was a significant mechanism for porosity reduction (Dixon et al., 1989). In addition,

ductile minerals were squished between hard grains due to intense compaction, which may result in

lower porosity and permeability.

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The strongly inverse correlations between calcite content and both porosity and permeability
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(Fig. 13a and b) suggest that the calcite cements occlude most of the pores in the sandstones.

Therefore, calcite cementation is responsible for tight sandstones, yielding the lowest reservoir
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porosity and permeability.

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Previous studies have considered grain-coating chlorites to be a porosity-preserving constituent

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in sandstones; grain-coating chlorites also retard or inhibit the precipitation of quartz overgrowths

during burial (Ehrenberg, 1993; Bloch et al., 2002; Worden and Morad, 2003; Ajdukiewicz and
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Larese, 2012). However, it should be noted that as the chlorites contents increases, especially pore

filling chlorite aggregates, chlorite inevitably occupies some of the pore spaces and result in a slight

decrease in the porosity of the sandstones (Wang et al., 2017a). In the Chang 9 sandstones, the

chlorite content is proportional to porosity and permeability (Fig. 13c and d), indicating that the

chlorite coatings have indeed preserved the porosity.

Point counting of thin sections shows a positive relationship between the volume of secondary
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pores and authigenic quartz (Fig. 11b) and K-feldspar (Fig. 11c) content, suggesting that the

dissolution of K-feldspar is the main formation mechanism of secondary pores. The minor amount

of secondary intragranular pores (less than 2.5 %) and the positive relationship between the

authigenic quartz and K-feldspar content (Fig. 11d) also show that the dissolution in the Chang 9

sandstones may not have significantly improved porosity because the products of dissolution (e.g.,

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SiO2) cannot migrate over long distances and precipitated as aggregates and quartz overgrowths,

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near the secondary pores in tight sandstones (Giles and Boer, 1990; Bjørlykke and Jahern, 2012; Li

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et al., 2017b). However, it should be noted that the residual primary intergranular pore volume and

pore connectivity were enhanced by dissolution (Fig. 10h). Previous studies showed that the

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dissolution of feldspar is associated with acidic fluids in Zhenjing area (Zhong et al., 2013; Wang et
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al., 2017a; Li et al., 2017b), which required the maturation of organic matter in the Chang 7 source
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rocks. Therefore, the dissolution in the Chang 9 sandstones should have occurred during

mesogenesis (Worden and morad, 2000; Li et al., 2017b).

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5.3 Distribution of fractures improve reservoir quality

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The fractures, induced by active tectonism, not only contribute to the dissolution of unstable
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grains and further expand primary pores, but they also provide a convenient channel, and storage

space, for oil and gas migration (Lai et al., 2017). Thin sections show that the samples containing
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microfractures contribute greatly to the connectivity of the sandstones. Macroscopically, most of the

dissolution pores are distributed at the end of fractures in the core (Fig. 8h), indicating that the

fractures provided a channel for fluid flow and space for the occurrence of dissolution.

According to the results of MICP, samples of well H42 with abundant fractures mainly belong

to the Type II with steeper slope of the capillary curves and higher value of Sp (Figs. 7g–7h and

Table 2), indicating poor sorting (Chilingar et al., 1972). Generally, poorly sorted samples have
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more pore throats with large radius in tight sandstones (Wang et al., 2008; Dou et al., 2016), which

indicates a stronger seepage ability. Therefore, sandstones that have a significant number of

fractures are considered to be high quality reservoirs.

5.4 Quantitative identification of diagenetic facies

Thirteen parameters were selected to identify the types of diagenetic facies in the Chang 9

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sandstones quantitatively, as representing the characteristics of the tight oil reservoir (Table 4). Four

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types of diagenetic facies were identified by combining hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA) with

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grey correlation analyses (GCA). The flow chart of the method is shown in Figure 14.

5.4.1 HCA analyses to determine the appropriate parameters and types of diagenetic facies

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An increasing number of studies have recently applied HCA to geological problems (Alizadeh
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et al., 2012; Szabó et al., 2013; Pu et al., 2013; Kang et al., 2015; Beirami et al., 2017; Wang et al.,
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2017d), all of which have indicated that the method has considerable application to reservoir

evaluation. HCA is used to classify the objects in a system into categories or clusters based on their
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nearness or similarity (Vega et al., 1998; Chow et al., 2016). Hierarchical multilevel “cluster trees”
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are defined such that clusters at one level are joined to clusters at a higher level (Sfidari et al., 2014),
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allowing the most appropriate level to be applied according to research needs. Among HCA

analysis, R-cluster analysis is used in situations where the number of variables is large and strongly
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correlated. The purpose is to cluster variables with similar properties into the same class and find

representative variables from these, thus reducing the number of variables to achieve the effect of

dimensionality reduction. And the objects of Q-cluster analysis are the samples. Q-cluster brings

together samples with similar characteristics and separates samples with large differences.

Therefore, the types of different diagenetic facies can be determined.

In this study, R-cluster analysis was first used to eliminate the parameters with a close
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relationship. The parameters were divided into nine groups based on the results of R-cluster

analysis (Fig. 15): (i) thin-section secondary porosity (Psp) and porosity (P); (ii) chlorite content

(Ccl); (iii) grain-sorting coefficient (Sg) and sorting coefficient of pore throats (Sp); (iv) composition

maturity (Q/(F+R)) and efficiency of mercury withdrawal (We); (v) ductile mineral content (Cd); (vi)

median radius of grains (rg) and median pore-throat radius (r50); (vii) displacement pressure (Pd);

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(viii) calcite content (Cc); (ix) permeability (K). Among these parameters, both Psp and P are direct

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indicators of reservoir quality. However, Psp can directly reflects the effects of dissolution on

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reservoir quality, while P is the result of multiple factors. Therefore, it is reasonable to choose Psp as

a variable for identification of diagenetic facies. The parameters Cc and Ccl were chosen to reflect

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the cementation intensity. The parameters Sg and Sp reflect the sorting of samples and rg and r50
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reflect the particle size of samples. It is reasonable to choose Sg and r50 to reflect the sorting of
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grains and size of pore-throat of samples. The parameter Q/(F+R) was selected to show the

characteristics of detrital composition of samples and Pd was selected to show the characteristics of
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pore systems. Meanwhile, ductile mineral content (Cd) was selected to reflect the impact of
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compaction on reservoir porosity and permeability.

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The Q-clusters indicates four types of diagenetic facies can be determined in the Chang 9

sandstones in the Zhenjing area (Fig. 16). Based on the values of controlling parameters, which are
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evidence of the impact of the different diagenetic processes on porosity and permeability, the

definition and interpretation of these four diagenetic facies are as follows. Type A, calcite

cementation facies, has the lowest reservoir porosity and permeability and the highest content of

calcite cement (up to 16%, average 8.78%); Type B, intense compaction facies was determined by

its high ductile mineral content (up to 8%, average 3.36%) together with a poor sorting (highest

average value of Sg in Table 5); Type C, facies in which the porosity is preserved by grain-coating
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chlorites, has a high chlorite content (up to 5%, average 4%); most of the pores are intergranular

with chlorite rims; Finally, Type D, dissolution facies, has the highest permeability and thin section

secondary porosity (up to 2.4%, average 2.36 %) (Fig. 17).

5.4.2 Grey correlation analyses (GCA) to determine the quantitative index of reservoir diagenetic

facies (RDI)

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GCA is a method for quantitative description and comparison of the trend of a system.

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Considering combination of all evaluation parameters involved, the precision of evaluation can be

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enhanced by GCA. Thus, the application of GCA to determine the quantitative index of reservoir

diagenetic facies (RDI) is reasonable (Zhao et al., 2003; Tu et al., 2012; Lu et al., 2013; Shi et al.,

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2018).The RDI was determined based on the grey correlation coefficient (ξi,0) and grey correlation
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grades (ri,0) of different parameters. Both ξi,0 and ri,0 can reflect the degree of correlation between
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comparison sequence and reference sequence. Then, combined with the HCA results, the RDI

values of each sample were determined. Thus, the intervals of RDI of different types of diagenetic
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facies can be obtained.

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Permeability was selected as the base sequence because it is one of the parameters that directly
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reflect the quality of the reservoir, with the other eight parameters as subsequences. Normalization

is necessary to deal with each parameter because the dimensional magnitude differs in each
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AC

parameter. To ensure that the values of different parameters have an accurate correspondence value

(0 for the worst and 1 for the best), the normalization process was separated into the following two

cases.

Case 1: Parameters Q/(F+R), Ccl, Sg, r50 and Psp are proportional to reservoir permeability, that is:

X (i, j) − min X (i, j)

Y(i,j)=
max X (i, j) − min X (i, j) , (3)
(i = 0,1,2,...m; j = 1,2,...n)
 ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT
and

Case 2: Parameters Pd, Cd and Cct are inversely proportional to reservoir quality, that is:

max X (i, j ) − X (i, j )

Y(i , j )=
max X (i, j ) − min X (i, j ) , (4)
(i = 0,1, 2,...m; j = 1, 2,...n)

where Y(i, j) is the correspondence value; X(i, j) is the parameter value of the samples; max X(i, j) is

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the maximum value of the parameter for the samples; and min X(i, j) is the minimum value of the

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parameter for the samples.

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After determining the correspondence values, the grey correlation coefficient (ξi,0) was

determined from Eq. (3):

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∆ m in + ρ ∆ m ax (5)
ξ i ,0 = , i = 1, 2, ..., m
∆ i + ρ ∆ m ax
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∆i = Y (i，j ) − Y (1, j ) ,
∆ max = max(∆i ), ∆ min = min(∆i)
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where ρ ∈[0.1, 1] is the distinguishing coefficient; its role is to improve the significance of the
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difference between the grey correlation coefficients. In this study, the value ρ was selected as 0.5;
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The grey correlation grades (ri,0) are given by

n
1
r = ∑ξ . (6)
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i ,0
n t =1
i ,0

Weight set (ai) is defined by

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a = ri / ∑ ri ,0
i
t =1 . (7)
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Finally, the RDI is obtained from the weight set:

n
RDI = ∑ ai X i , (8)
i=1

where Xi is the selected parameter. In this study,

RDI = 0.120Psp+0.136Sg+0.101Cd+0.099Cc+0.160Ccl+0.173r50+0.119Q/(F+R)+0.093Pd

Correlation order: r50 > Ccl > Sg > Psp > Q/(F+R) > Cd > Cc > Pd. The correlation order shows the
 ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT
relative influence of other parameters on reservoir permeability. The RDI interval for each

diagenetic facies is shown in Table 5 and Figure 18.

5.5 Implications for reservoir evaluation

In recent years, the identification of diagenetic facies has attracted much more attention in

reservoir evaluation. This method for quantitatively identifying diagenetic facies has two

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advantages: Firstly, with the results of HCA, the number of types of diagenetic facies is clearer and

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the definition of diagenetic facies is more accurate with the data of different parameters. Secondly,

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once the RDI determined, the definition of diagenetic facies in a larger scale in the study area would

be simpler. In addition, the combination of HCA and GCA has been successfully applied to

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reservoir classification and evaluation (Shi et al., 2018). In the future, this method can be combined
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with logging data for reservoir evaluation, which will greatly reduce the workload of core analysis.
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6. Conclusions

The Chang 9 sandstones in the Zhenjing area are mainly subangular and moderately to
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well-sorted. The sandstones can be divided into lithic arkose and feldspathic litharenites. High- and
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low-quality reservoirs are defined based on two distinct correlation trends of porosity and
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permeability. Residual primary intergranular pores, intragranular secondary pores by dissolution,

and micropores can be defined in the study area, with residual primary intergranular pores
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predominating samples.

The presence of fractures further improves reservoir quality by providing pathways for flowing

fluid, which can enhance the dissolution of unstable grains. Additionally, fractures provide storage

spaces and pathways for oil and gas migration.

Combining HCA and GCA, four diagenetic facies were quantitatively determined. Calcite

cementation facies (Type A) and intense compaction facies (Type B) are responsible for the
 ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT
formation of low-quality reservoirs, while porosity preserved by grain-coating chlorite facies (Type

C) and dissolution facies (Type D) are preferred targets for exploration, with high porosity and

permeability. Meanwhile, the application of HCA and GCA in reservoir evaluation can achieve

reasonable results and is worth popularizing.

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Acknowledgements

This study was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No.

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41772120), the Shandong Province Natural Science Fund for Distinguished Young Scholars (Grant

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No. JQ201311), the Shandong Postdoctoral Innovation Foundation (Grant No. 201601013) and the

SDUST Research Fund (Grant No. 2015TDJH10). We greatly appreciate Drs. Alex MacNeil

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(Associate Editor), Dr. Milovan Fustic, and an anonymous reviewer for their constructive
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comments and helpful suggestions, which substantially improved the quality of this manuscript.
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Figure Captions

Figure 1. (a) Simplified structure units and location map of the Zhenjing area in the southwest

Ordos Basin, China. (b) The distribution of sandstone and well locations in the Zhenjing

area during the deposition of the Chang 9 layer.

Figure 2. Stratigraphic column of the Ordos Basin and lithology section and depositional

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environment of the Upper Triassic Yanchang Formation in the Ordos Basin, Ch=Chang

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(Modified after Wang et al., 2017e)

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Figure 3. Paleo-geogrpaphy map showing the sedimentary microfacies and provenance direction of

Zhenjing area.

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Figure 4. (a) Ternary diagram illustrating the framework compositions of the Chang 9 sandstones in
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the Zhenjing area. Q=quartz; F=feldspar; RF=rock fragments. (b) Rock fragment ternary
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plot of the Chang 9 sandstones. VRF=volcanic rock fragments; MRF=metamorphic rock

fragments; SRF=sedimentary rock fragments.

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Figure 5. The frequency distribution histogram of the grain size in the Chang 9 sandstones. Very
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fine indicatsa grain sizes from 0.0625 to 0.125 mm; Fine indicates grain sizes from 0.125
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to 0.25 mm; Medium indicates grain sizes in 0.25 to 0.5 mm; Coarse indicates grain sizes

higher than 0.5 mm.

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Figure 6. The frequency distribution histogram of the Chang 9 reservoir property in the Zhenjing

area.

Figure 7. Plot of porosity versus permeability for the Chang 9 sandstones in the Zhenjing area.

Figure 8. Optical microscopy images, SEM photos and pictures showing the features of pores and

fractures in the Chang 9 sandstones. (a) Well H35, 1983.5 m, intergranular pores are

dominant in the field of vision. (b) Well H42, 1794.65m, intragranular pores by feldspar
 ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT
dissolution. (c) Well H35, 1977.9 m, intragranular pores by dissolution of rock fragment.

(d) Well H42, 1795 m, intragranular pores by intense dissolution with little remnants of

the graines. (e) Well H42, SEM image showing that the size of the pore throat is

approximately 2.5 µm. (f) Well Z21, SEM image showing morphology of microfractures.

(g) Well H42, 1795.1 m, microfractures were cemented by calcite in the field of vision.

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(h) Well H42, 1794.95-1795.15 m, core pictures showing the distribution of fractures

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contributing to dissolution.

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Figure 9. Morphology characteristics of mercury injection curves of samples in the Chang 9

sandstones.

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Figure 10. Microscopy and SEM images showing petrographic features of the Chang 9 sandstones
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in the Zhenjing area. (a) Well H35, 1979.78 m, ductile minerals were deformed by
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mechanical compaction and linear contacts of grains. (b) Well H42, 1803.2 m, Grain

contacts present dominated by linear and concave-convex types by mechanical

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compaction and chemical compaction. (c) Well H42, 1795.6 m, early stage calcite
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cements distributed in veins with high content. (d) Well H42, 1795.6 m, late stage calcite
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filling intergranular pores with chlorite rims in regular shapes. Yellow arrows indicate

chlorite coatings. (e) Well H35, 1980 m, Pore-lining chlorites preserve intergranular
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pores. (f) Well ZT1, authigenic chlorites are present as platelets and rosettes, covering

grains, and the development of quartz outgrowths were inhibited (g) Well H21, two

stages of calcite cement display a dull and bright orange cathode luminescence. (h)

Well H35, 1977.9 m, intergranular pores and connectivity of pores were enhanced by

dissolution.

Figure 11. Variations in content of authigenic quartz with content of chlorite cements (a), secondary
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pores (b); and variations in content of K-feldspar with secondary pores (c), content of

authigenic quartz (d).

Figure 12. Paragenetic sequence and types of diagenesis in the Chang 9 sandstones, Zhenjing area.

Figure 13. Variations in porosity and permeability with calcites (a and b) and chlorites (c and d)

content in the Chang 9 sandstones.

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Figure 14. The flow chart of quantitative identification of diagenetic facies.

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Figure 15.The dendrogram showing the result of parameter screening by R-cluster. Psp=thin section

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secondary porosity; P=porosity; Ccl=content of chlorites; Sg=sorting coefficient of grains;

Sp=sorting coefficient of pore throats. Q/(F+R)=composition maturity; We=efficiency of

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mercury withdrawal; Cd=content of ductile minerals; rg=median radius of grains.
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r50=medium pore-throat radius; Pd=displacement pressure; Cc=content of calcite cements;
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K=permeability.

Figure 16. The dendrogram showing the result of identification of diagenetic facies by Q-cluster.
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Figure 17. Scatter plots showing the correlation between porosity and controlling parameters of
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different diagenetic facies.

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Figure 18. The distribution of the quantitative index of reservoir diagenetic facies (RDI) with

different types of diagenetic facies.

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Table Captions

Table 1. Detrital composition of the samples in Chang 9 sandstones. Q=quartz; F=feldspar;

RF=rock fragments. VRF=volcanic rock fragments; MRF=metamorphic rock fragments;

SRF=sedimentary rock fragments.

Table 2. The results of mercury injection capillary pressure (MICP) tests. P=porosity;

K=permeability; Pd=displacement pressure; Pc=median pressure; r50=median pore-throat

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radius; Sp=sorting coefficient of pore throats; Sk=skewness of the samples; We=efficiency

of mercury withdrawal.

Table 3. Results of point counting for the content of chlorite, quartz overgrowth, K-feldspar and

secondary pores.

Table 4. Parameters data, which can reflect the features of reservoir quality. P=porosity;

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K=permeability; Sg=sorting coefficient of grains; Pd=displacement pressure; Cd=content

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of ductile minerals; Cc=content of calcite cements; Ccl=content of chlorites; Psp=thin

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section secondary porosity; Q/(F+R) =composition maturity; rg=median radius of grains.

r50=medium pore-throat radius; We=efficiency of mercury withdrawal; Sp=sorting

coefficient of pore throats.

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Table 5. The RDI interval and the mean value of the selected parameters for each diagenetic facies.
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Table 1
K-
Well Depth(m) Q(%) F(%) Plagioclase(%) R(%) VRF(%) MRF(%) SRF(%)
feldspar(%)
H42 1783 32 30 14 16 38 29 5 4
H42 1794 35 30 14 16 35 27 5 3
H42 1793 28 33 14 19 39 24 12 3
H42 1798 32 26 11 15 42 35 4 3

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H42 1799 34 29 12 17 37 27 9 1
H42 1799 35 33 13 20 32 26 5 1
H42 1794 36 32 14 18 32 26 4 2

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H42 1792 30 30 15 15 40 30 7 3
H55 2089 31 33 15 18 36 28 5 3

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H55 2090 28 29 14 15 43 31 8 4
H55 2092 29 32 14 18 39 29 7 3
H55 2098 26 30 12 18 44 30 12 2
H55 2099 32 30 14 16 38 27 9 2

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H55 2100 28 26 13 13 46 35 8 3
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H55 2101 30 32 15 17 38 29 7 2
H55 2102 22 30 12 18 48 38 8 2
H56 2095 30 28 12 16 42 29 10 3
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H56 2096 29 30 12 18 41 32 6 3
H56 2097 32 28 13 15 40 21 15 4
H56 2098 32 28 13 15 40 32 6 2
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H56 2099 24 28 13 15 48 36 9 3
H56 2100 29 30 10 20 41 32 8 1
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H56 2101 30 26 10 16 44 34 7 3
H56 2102 28 34 14 20 38 31 6 1
H56 2103 32 38 15 23 30 23 5 2
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H56 2104 30 27 12 15 43 36 5 2
H56 2105 30 28 12 16 42 31 10 1
H56 2106 28 32 14 18 40 33 5 2
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H56 2108 24 32 15 17 44 36 6 2
H56 2109 26 25 13 12 49 32 15 2
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H56 2110 36 28 12 16 36 24 8 4
H56 2111 26 32 15 17 42 34 6 2
H56 2112 24 35 16 19 41 33 5 3
H56 2113 20 32 15 17 48 35 10 3
H35 1983 32 32 14 18 36 27 5 4
H35 1981 37 42 18 24 21 / / /
H35 1980 39 44 20 24 17 / / /
H35 1978 34 45 20 25 21 / / /
H35 1981 34 47 16 31 19 / / /
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Table 2
Well Types Depth(m) P(%) K(mD) Pd(MPa) Pc(MPa) r50(um) Sp Sk We(%)
H56 2112.77 5.70 0.04 6.58 38.20 0.02 3.01 1.28 31.63
H56 2110.62 9.60 0.07 5.61 33.35 0.02 2.49 1.33 33.72
Type
H42 1792.45 6.30 0.08 15.04 73.79 0.01 4.34 1.27 20.80
Ⅰ
H42 1799.00 9.00 0.07 7.33 37.53 0.02 2.93 1.26 30.26

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H42 1790.99 4.00 0.04 19.94 101.69 0.01 5.10 1.40 12.02
H56 2108.72 14.90 19.20 0.43 18.91 0.04 3.54 1.49 40.45

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H56 2106.82 15.80 13.40 0.59 18.39 0.04 3.51 1.45 45.92
H56 2104.71 15.50 3.35 1.10 22.20 0.03 3.64 1.39 63.60

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H56 2102.69 13.70 0.99 1.14 22.03 0.03 3.42 1.41 45.51
H56 2100.67 15.30 2.59 0.91 17.46 0.04 3.40 1.42 52.19

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H56 2098.89 15.10 3.37 0.84 22.11 0.03 3.85 1.43 50.60
H56 2096.83 14.90 2.79 1.05 27.49 0.03 4.16 1.42 55.90
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H56 2094.70 16.00 0.40 1.80 20.55 0.04 3.33 1.39 42.94
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H55 2100.63 14.70 0.26 2.60 14.70 0.05 2.19 1.48 41.40
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H55 2098.84 15.70 0.24 2.52 12.05 0.06 1.86 1.56 39.54
H55 2091.64 7.60 0.16 1.14 15.19 0.05 2.49 1.54 32.75
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H55 2090.69 16.40 18.20 0.09 3.12 0.24 3.03 1.43 28.78
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H55 2089.40 15.00 0.58 1.53 26.15 0.03 3.81 1.41 42.66
H42 1781.92 12.50 1.17 0.45 6.46 0.11 2.19 1.31 39.20
H42 1795.10 14.10 0.24 3.86 19.72 0.04 2.21 1.42 36.29
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Table 3
Quartz Secondary
Well Depth(m) Chlorite(%) overgrowth K-feldspar pores
H35 1983.07 0.32 2.13 19 2.4
H35 1980.5 0.36 1.77 18 2.4
H35 1979.78 1.02 1.81 17 2.1
H35 1977.91 0.85 1.35 15 2

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H71 2521.82 1.76 1.44 18 2.1
H42 1794.21 2.00 0.81 10 1.3
H71 2613.21 2.43 1.39 17 1.6

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H44 2495.32 2.57 1.18 12 1.3
ZJ7 2315.36 2.51 0.86 10 0.5

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H12 2425.32 2.86 0.97 12 0.5
H55 2090.51 3.04 1.19 13 0.8
H56 2097.83 3.02 0.66 11 0.3

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H71 2511.23 3.33 1.00 12 0.5
H1057 2432.56 3.50 1.18 14 0.6
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H44 2612.32 3.56 0.84 11 0.7
H44 2645.32 3.40 0.55 8 0.3
H42 1791.58 3.87 0.54 7 0.4
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H55 2091.52 3.91 0.92 12 0.8

H56 2105.98 4.20 0.84 13 0.9
H56 2094.88 4.68 0.51 12 0.7
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Table 4
P K Pd Cd Cc Ccl Psp Rg r50 We
ID well Depth(m) Sg Q/(F+R) Sp
(%) (mD) (MPa) (%) (%) (%) (%) (um) (um) (%)
1 H42 1791.53 13.5 0.3 2.1 3.9 2 2 4 1.5 0.35 252 0.03 43.00 2.05
2 H42 1792.59 9.8 0.1 2.4 15.0 5 2 1 0.5 0.29 345 0.04 45.92 3.51
3 H42 1781.37 9.2 0.3 3.3 0.4 3 9 1 0.5 0.40 299 0.04 45.00 3.37
4 H42 1793.68 8.4 0.1 2.2 4.0 2 1 1 0.4 0.49 235 0.03 51.00 4.11

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5 H42 1798.85 8.2 0.1 2.3 7.3 2 8 1 0.4 0.36 400 0.05 30.00 3.00
6 H42 1799.47 7.9 0.1 2.5 7.3 3 11 1 0.4 0.32 404 0.04 42.94 3.33

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7 H42 1797.83 6.5 0.1 2.5 6.0 2 9 1 0.3 0.42 395 0.02 25.00 3.00
8 H42 1794.21 3.9 0.0 3.7 19.9 1 4 2 0.3 0.43 167 0.03 43.22 3.68
9 H42 1783.40 3.2 0.0 4.0 2.0 8 16 1 2.1 0.40 125 0.03 46.00 4.00

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10 H55 2090.48 16.7 11.4 2.3 0.1 3 2 3 2.4 0.48 90 0.02 45.51 3.42
11 H55 2091.51 15.7 20.9 2.7 1.1 2 2 4 2.3 0.40 189 0.03 63.60 3.64
12 H55 2098.40 15.7 0.2 1.6 1.5 1 2 4 2.4 0.54 124 0.04 40.45 3.54

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13 H55 2100.91 15.1 0.3 1.8 2.6 2 2 4 2 0.59 324 0.04 18.00 3.00
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14 H55 2089.40 15.0 0.6 1.8 1.5 1 1 4 2 0.37 399 0.02 30.26 2.93
15 H55 2097.87 14.2 0.1 1.9 2.5 4 1 3 1.5 0.49 125 0.05 41.40 2.19
16 H55 2099.87 12.8 0.1 2.2 0.8 2 2 5 1.5 0.41 315 0.06 26.00 3.23
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17 H55 2101.88 9.7 0.1 2.3 2.0 2 11 1 1 0.32 289 0.04 36.29 2.21
18 H56 2105.98 17.5 78.3 1.5 0.6 3 1 4 2.4 0.45 178 0.03 50.60 3.85
H56 2107.96
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19 16.2 43.0 2.4 0.3 1 2 2 2.3 0.42 189 0.02 31.63 3.01
20 H56 2108.87 16.2 42.8 1.6 0.4 2 2 4 2.4 0.44 265 0.05 32.75 2.49
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21 H56 2094.70 16.0 0.4 2.5 1.8 3 1 5 2.1 0.56 172 0.04 40.00 3.35
22 H56 2095.68 15.9 0.8 2.5 2.0 4 2 4 2.3 0.55 276 0.03 37.45 2.68
23 H56 2099.84 15.8 5.0 2.8 0.5 2 1 2 2 0.48 104 0.03 50.00 4.20
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24 H56 2097.83 15.7 4.2 2.9 1.3 1 3 3 2.1 0.56 80 0.24 28.78 3.03
25 H56 2100.89 15.1 2.8 2.7 0.9 1 1 2 2.4 0.25 312 0.03 55.90 4.16
26 H56 2098.89 15.1 3.4 2.7 0.8 1 3 1 2 0.42 300 0.11 39.20 2.19
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27 H56 2103.84 14.9 4.2 2.8 1.0 2 2 2 1.5 0.39 312 0.04 52.19 3.40
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28 H56 2096.83 14.9 2.8 2.8 1.1 3 5 2 1.5 0.48 305 0.02 33.72 2.49
29 H56 2101.82 14.0 0.2 3.1 1.0 5 4 2 2.1 0.42 256 0.06 39.54 1.86
30 H56 2111.94 13.8 0.3 2.0 3.0 5 1 1 2.2 0.38 363 0.03 46.00 4.50
31 H56 2102.69 13.7 1.0 3.2 1.1 1 2 2 2.1 0.32 396 0.01 12.02 5.10
32 H56 2104.92 13.4 0.8 3.3 1.1 4 3 1 2.2 0.48 302 0.02 44.00 3.12
33 H56 2110.90 12.9 0.2 2.2 5.6 5 6 1 2 0.44 209 0.03 42.66 3.81
34 H56 2109.89 11.9 0.3 3.4 0.2 2 4 2 2.1 0.46 237 0.01 20.80 4.34
35 H56 2112.92 4.0 0.0 3.5 6.6 3 12 1 0.8 0.48 188 0.02 45.00 4.00
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Table 5
Cd r50 Pd
Types P(%) K（mD）
） Sg Cc（%）
） Ccl（%）
） Psp（%）
） Q/(F+R) RDI
（%）
） (um) (Mpa)
Type A 7.51 0.1 2.74 2.55 7.44 1.11 0.51 0.39 0.03 7.61 0.19-0.36
Type B 13.23 1.75 2.91 3.36 4 1.58 2.01 0.41 0.03 1.525 0.37-0.47
Type C 14.8 0.77 2.14 2.2 1.77 4 1.93 0.49 0.03 1.98 0.47-0.57
Type D 16.46 39.28 2.1 2.2 1.8 3.4 2.36 0.44 0.16 0.5 0.58-0.79

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Highlights

(1) A comprehensive method to identify diagenetic facies quantitatively was

provided.

(2) The Chang 9 tight oil sandstones were divided into four diagenetic facies.

(3) The widely developed grain-coating chlorites contributed to the preservation of

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porosity.

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(4) The distribution of fractures improved reservoir quality in the Chang 9 sandstones.

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