Origin of early overpressure in the Upper Devonian Catskill Delta Complex, western New York state

The Upper Devonian Rhinestreet black shale of the western New York state region of the Appalachian Basin has experienced multiple episodes of overpressure generation manifested by at least two sets of natural hydraulic fractures. These overpressure events were thermal in origin and induced by the generation of hydrocarbons during the Alleghanian orogeny close to or at the Rhinestreet's ～3.1 km maximum burial depth. Analysis of differential gravitational compaction strain of the organic‐rich shale around embedded carbonate concretions that formed within a metre or so of the seafloor indicates that the Rhinestreet shale was compacted ～58%. Compaction strain was recalculated to a palaeoporosity of 37.8%, in excess of that expected for burial >3 km. The palaeoporosity of the Rhinestreet shale suggests that porosity reduction caused by normal gravitational compaction of the low‐permeability carbonaceous sediment was arrested at some depth shy of its maximum burial depth by pore pressure in excess of hydrostatic. The depth at which the Rhinestreet shale became overpressured, the palaeo‐fluid retention depth, was estimated by use of published normal compaction curves and empirical porosity‐depth algorithms to fall between 850 and 1380 m. Early and relatively shallow overpressuring of the Rhinestreet shale likely originated by disequilibrium compaction induced by a marked increase in sedimentation rate in the latter half of the Famennian stage (Late Devonian) as the Catskill Delta Complex prograded westward across the Appalachian Basin in response to Acadian tectonics. The regional Upper Devonian stratigraphy of western New York state indicates that the onset of overpressure occurred at a depth of ～1100 m, well in advance of the Rhinestreet shale's entry into the oil window during the Alleghanian orogeny.     

沙埋对科尔沁沙地两种主要作物存活的影响及其光合生理响应

为了解沙埋对农作物存活、产量的影响及其光合生理响应特征,在内蒙古科尔沁沙地研究了玉米（Zea mays）和绿豆（Vigna radiata）在不同沙埋深度下第5、10、15天的净光合速率、气孔导度、蒸腾速率、水分利用效率的变化,并于作物生长末期对其存活率及产量进行了测定。结果表明：（1）玉米较绿豆具有较强的耐沙埋能力,埋深等于株高时绿豆全部死亡,玉米仍有12.5%的存活率;（2）埋深超过株高的25%后,玉米和绿豆的产量均显著下降,但玉米的下降幅度明显小于绿豆;（3）随着沙埋胁迫的加剧,两种植物的净光合速率下降,表明沙埋胁迫对植物的光合作用破坏很大。但相比于绿豆,玉米对于沙埋胁迫有着更好的光合适应机理,随着胁迫的时间增加,其净光合速率有所恢复。且可以通过降低蒸腾速率和提高水分利用效率来适应沙埋胁迫。     

沙埋对小麦(Triticum aestivum)生长的影响及其生理响应

为了解沙埋对小麦(Triticum aestivum)生长的影响及其生理响应,2010年在科尔沁沙地研究了不同沙埋深度下小麦的存活率、株高、地上地下生物量、籽实产量、丙二醛(MDA)含量、膜透性、保护酶(超氧化物歧化酶,SOD;过氧化物酶,POD;过氧化氢酶,CAT)活性和渗透调节物质含量变化。结果表明:随着沙埋深度的增加,小麦存活率、株高、地上地下生物量和籽实产量均显著下降,完全沙埋下第6天以后植株全部死亡。沙埋第6天,随着沙埋深度的增加,MDA含量、CAT活性、可溶性糖含量下降,POD活性变化不明显,但膜透性、SOD活性和脯氨酸含量显著增加。沙埋第12天,随着沙埋厚度增加,MDA含量和膜透性,SOD、POD和CAT活性,脯氨酸和可溶性糖含量均显著增加。沙埋导致小麦死亡率增加、株高及生物产量下降的主要原因不是水分胁迫,沙埋导致的光合面积降低、黑暗和无氧呼吸可能是其死亡和生长受到抑制的主要外部因素,而膜脂过氧化导致的膜透性增加可能是其死亡或生长受到抑制的主要生理机制。保护酶活性增强和渗透调节物质含量增加,对于减轻其细胞膜受损和防止细胞质渗漏起到了重要作用。     

供水量及沙埋厚度对两种梭梭出苗的影响

 在自然条件下,研究了沙埋和单次供水对梭梭（Haloxylon ammodendron）、白梭梭（Haloxylon persicum）种子萌发和幼苗出土的影响。结果表明,在试验期内（30 d）,梭梭、白梭梭出苗率随沙埋厚度和供水量的增加出现先增加后减少的趋势;出苗速率（除无沙埋）也呈现出相同趋势;死亡率和死亡速率为减少的趋势。在供水量为20～40 mm时梭梭、白梭梭种子适宜出苗,适宜供水量接近当地冬季平均降雪量;沙埋厚度为 0.5～1.0 cm的条件下出苗率较高,反映了梭梭、白梭梭对沙区环境的生态适应。根据古尔班通古特沙漠气候特点与本次试验结果,梭梭与白梭梭的人工播种辅助恢复应在早春融雪之前进行。     

Distribution Characteristics of In Situ Stress Field and Vertical Development Unit Division of CBM in Western Guizhou,China

In situ stress is not only a vital indicator for selecting explorative regions of coalbed methane (CBM), but also a pivotal factor affecting CBM production. The present study explored whether in situ stress affected the development potential of CBM in western Guizhou, China. To this end, we collected injection/falloff well test data and gas content data from 70 coal seams in 28 wells. The study found that from top to bottom, strike slip fault stress fields (<?500 m), normal fault stress fields (500–1000 m) and strike slip fault stress fields (>?1000 m) were successively developed in western Guizhou. The distribution features of vertical permeability in western Guizhou are consistent with the stress fields' transformation location. The coal permeability in the western part in Guizhou presents a tendency of increase followed by decrease as a result of increased burial depth. The vertical development characteristics of coal seam gas content are controlled mainly by reservoir pressure, and the relationship between reservoir pressure and buried depth shows a linear increase. The CBM in western Guizhou is divided vertically into three development potential regions dependent on the characteristics of burial depth, permeability and gas content of coal seams. The most favorable vertical development potential region in western Guizhou is 500–1000 m. This region exhibits high gas content, high permeability and moderate burial depth, which are favorable for the production of CBM. These research results can provide basis for geological selection and engineering implementation of CBM in western Guizhou.

     

Elastic wave propagation in model sediments – II

Summary. A fluid-saturated cubic packing of like elastic spheres is taken to be in equilibrium under the effect of gravity and the effects of a superimposed low-frequency elastic wave are considered. In the first place, expressions for the wave velocity, dispersion and attenuation are derived for the dry packing. This dynamic theory leads to the result that, for very low frequencies, the wave velocity is proportional to the third root of the depth and not the sixth root as is obtained by using the effective elastostatic modulus of the packing. For the fluid-saturated packing, two waves, termed respectively the 'solid wave' and the 'fluid wave', are found to propagate. The 'solid wave' has the characteristics of a wave propagating within a dry packing whose parameters differ in a specified way from those of the original packing, whereas the 'fluid wave' has those of a wave within a homogeneous fluid with similarly modified parameters.     

Effects of stress on the two-dimensional permeability tensor of natural fracture networks

The effects of stress on the 2-D permeability tensor of natural fracture networks were studied using a numerical method (Universal Distinct Element Code). On the basis of three natural fracture networks sampled around Dounreay, Scotland, numerical modelling was carried out to examine the fluid flow in relation to the variations in burial depth, differential stress and loading direction. It was demonstrated that the permeability of all the networks decreased with depth due to the closure of aperture. The permeability approached the minimum value at some depth below which little further variation occurred. Also, differential stress had a significant effect on both the magnitude and direction of permeability. The permeability generally decreased with increasing major horizontal stress for a fixed minor horizontal stress, but the various networks considered showed different behaviours. A factor, termed the average deviation angle of maximum permeability ( A _m), was defined to describe quantitatively the deviation degree of the direction of the major permeability component from the applied major stress direction. For networks whose behaviour is controlled by set(s) of systematic fractures, A _m is significantly greater than zero, whereas those comprised of non-systematic fractures have A _m close to zero. In general, fractured rock masses, especially those with one or more sets of systematic fractures, cannot be treated as equivalent porous media. Specification of the geometry of the network is a necessary, but not sufficient, condition for models of fluid flow. Knowledge of the in situ stress, and the deformation it induces, is necessary to predict the behaviour of the rock mass.     

Effects of sand burial on survival and growth of Artemisia halodendron and its physiological response

There is a great deal of literature on the effects of sand burial upon the survival and growth of desert plants, but the physiological adaption mechanisms of desert plants to sand burial have as yet ra...     

沙埋对河西走廊4种旱生植物种子萌发和幼苗生长的影响

测定了驼蹄瓣(Zygophyllum fabago)、骆驼蒿(Peganum nigellastrum)、唐古特白刺(Nitraria tangutorum)和黒果枸杞(Lycium ruthenicum)等4种旱生植物种子重量、形状、萌发及活性,试验了沙埋深度(0、1、2、3、4、5 cm)对种子萌发、幼苗出土和生长的影响。结果表明:4种植物的种子扩散时为中度休眠;种子活性与重量、形状之间为显著负相关关系(p<0.05);种子初次萌发率与重量之间为不显著负相关关系;大而不规则种子有较低的活性,小种子扩散时有较高萌发率。随沙埋深度的增加,4种植物种子出苗率下降,首次出苗时间推迟,茎高、绝对株高和根长呈现先上升后下降的趋势,地下和地上生物量比值呈先上升后下降或随埋深增加而下降。幼苗出土和生长的最佳沙埋深度是:驼蹄瓣1~3 cm,骆驼蒿0~1 cm,唐古特白刺0~2 cm,黑果枸杞1~2 cm。在植被恢复过程中应考虑破除种子休眠的方法以及浅层沙埋等条件,以提高出苗率、增大幼苗定植率。     

Three-dimensional gravity inversion for Moho depth at rifted continental margins incorporating a lithosphere thermal gravity anomaly correction

This paper describes a method for determining Moho depth, lithosphere thinning factor (γ= 1 − 1/β) and the location of the ocean–continent transition at rifted continental margins using 3-D gravity inversion which includes a correction for the large negative lithosphere thermal gravity anomaly within continental margin lithosphere. The lateral density changes caused by the elevated geotherm in thinned continental margin and adjacent ocean basin lithosphere produce a significant lithosphere thermal gravity anomaly which may be in excess of −100 mGal, and for which a correction must be made in order to determine Moho depth accurately from gravity inversion. We describe a method of iteratively calculating the lithosphere thermal gravity anomaly using a lithosphere thermal model to give the present-day temperature field from which we calculate the lithosphere thermal density and gravity anomalies. For continental margin lithosphere, the lithosphere thermal perturbation is calculated from the lithosphere thinning factor (γ= 1 − 1/β) obtained from crustal thinning determined by gravity inversion and breakup age for thermal re-equilibration time. For oceanic lithosphere, the lithosphere thermal model used to predict the lithosphere thermal gravity anomaly may be conditioned using ocean isochrons from plate reconstruction models to provide the age and location of oceanic lithosphere. A correction is made for crustal melt addition due to decompression melting during continental breakup and seafloor spreading. We investigate the sensitivity of the lithosphere thermal gravity anomaly and the predicted Moho depth from gravity inversion at continental rifted margins to the methods used to calculate and condition the lithosphere thermal model using both synthetic models and examples from the North Atlantic.     

A model for underpressure development in a glacial valley,an example from Adventdalen,Svalbard

The underpressure observed in the glacial valley Adventdalen at Svalbard is studied numerically with a basin model and analytically with a compartment model. The pressure equation used in the basin model, which accounts for underpressure generation, is derived from mass conservation of pore fluid and solid, in addition to constitutive equations. The compartment model is derived as a similar pressure equation, which is based on a simplified representation of the basin geometry. It is used to derive analytical expressions for the underpressure (overpressure) from a series of unloading (loading) intervals. The compartment model gives a characteristic time for underpressure generation of each interval, which tells when the pressure state is transient or stationary. The transient pressure is linear in time for short‐time spans compared to the characteristic time, and then it is proportional to the weight removed from the surface. We compare different contributions to the underpressure generation and find that porosity rebound from unloading is more important than the decompression of the pore fluid during unloading and the thermal contraction of the pore fluid during cooling of the subsurface. Our modelling shows that the unloading from the last deglaciation can explain the present day underpressure. The basin model simulates the subsurface pressure resulting from erosion and unloading in addition to the fluid flow driven by the topography. Basin modelling indicates that the mountains surrounding the valley are more important for the topographic‐driven flow in the aquifer than the recharging in the neighbour valley. The compartment model turns out to be useful to estimate the orders of magnitude for system properties like seal and aquifer permeabilities and decompaction coefficients, despite its geometric simplicity. We estimate that the DeGeerdalen aquifer cannot have a permeability that is higher than 1 · 10^?18 m², as otherwise, the fluid flow in the aquifer becomes dominated by topographic‐driven flow. The upper value for the seal permeability is estimated to be 1 · 10^?20 m², as higher values preclude the generation and preservation of underpressure. The porosity rebound is estimated to be <0.1% during the last deglaciation using a decompaction coefficient α_r = 1 · 10^?9 Pa^?1.     

Fluid flow in sedimentary basins: model of pore water flow in a vertical fracture

Open fractures provide high-permeability pathways for fluid flow in sedimentary basins. The potential for flow along permeable or open fractures and faults depends on the continuity of flow all the way to the surface except in the case of convective flow. Upward flowing fluid cools and may cause cementation due to the prograde solubility of quartz, but in the case of carbonates such flow may cause dissolution. The rate and duration of these processes depend on the mechanisms for sustaining fluid flow into the fracture, the geometries of fracture and sedimentary beds intersected, permeability, pressure and temperature gradients. Heat loss to the adjacent sediments causes sloping isotherms which can induce non-Rayleigh convection. To analyse these problems we have used a simple model in which a single fracture acts as a pathway for vertically moving fluid and there is no fluid transport across the walls of the fracture except near its inlet and outlet. Four mechanisms for fluid flow into the lower part of the fracture are considered: decompression of pore water; compaction of intersected overpressared sediments; focusing of compaction water derived from sediments beneath the fracture; and finally focusing of pore water moving through an aquifer. Water derived from the basement is not considered here. We find that sustained flow is unlikely to have velocities much higher than 1–100 m/yr, and the flow is laminar. The temperature of the fluid expelled at the top of the fracture increases by less than 1% and the vertical temperature gradient in the fracture remains close to the geothermal gradient. Where hot water is introduced from basement fractures (hydrothermal water) during tectonic deformation, much higher velocities may be sustained in the overlying sediments, but here also this depends on the permeability near the surface. Most of the cooling of water with (ore) mineral precipitation will then occur near the surface. In most cases, pore water decompression and sediment compaction will yield only very limited pore water flux with no significant potential for cementation or heating of the sediments adjacent to the fracture. Focusing of compaction water from sediments beneath the fracture or from an intersected aquifer can yield fluxes high enough to cement an open fracture significantly but the flow must be sustained for a very long time. For velocities of 1–100 m/yr, it takes typically 0.3–30 Myr to cement a fracture by 50%. The highest velocities may be obtained when a fracture extends all the way to the surface or sea floor. When a fracture does not reach the sediment surface, the flow velocity is reduced by the displacement of water in the sediments near the top of the fracture. The flow into the fracture from the sediments may often be rate limiting rather than the flow on the fracture. Sedimentary rocks only a few metres from the fracture will receive a much lower flux than the fracture. The fracture will therefore close due to cementation before significant amounts of silica can be introduced into adjacent sandstones. The isotherm slope in the adjacent sediments will in most cases be less than 10–20°. Non-Rayleigh convection velocities in the sediments adjacent to the fracture are too small to cause any significant diagenetic reactions such as quartz cementation. These quantifications of fluid flow in fractures in sedimentary basins are important in terms of constraining models for diagenesis, heat transport and formation of ore minerals in a compaction-driven system.     

Small-scale mantle flows and induced lithospheric stress near island arcs

Summary. This paper explores the middle ground between complex thermally-coupled viscous flow models and simple corner flow models of island arc environments. The calculation retains the density-driven nature of convection and relaxes the geometrical constraints of corner flow, yet still provides semianalytical solutions for velocity and stress. A novel aspect of the procedure is its allowance for a coupled elastic lithosphere on top of a Newtonian viscous mantle. Initially, simple box-like density drivers illustrate how vertical and horizontal forces are transmitted through the mantle and how the lithosphere responds by trench formation. The flexural strength of the lithosphere spatially broadens the surface topography and gravity anomalies relative to the functional form of the vertical flow stresses applied to the plate base. I find that drivers in the form of inclined subducting slabs cannot induce self-driven parallel flow; however, the necessary flow can be provided by supplying a basal drag of 1–5 MPa to the mantle from the oceanic lithosphere. These basal drag forces create regional lithospheric stress and they should be quantifiable through seismic observations of the neutral surface. The existence of a shallow elevated phase transition is suggested in two slab models of 300 km length where a maximum excess density of 0.2 g cm⁻³ was needed to generate an acceptable mantle flow. A North New Hebrides subduction model which satisfies flow requirements and reproduces general features of topography and gravity contains a high shear stress zone (75 MPa) around the upper slab surface to a depth of 150 km and a deviatoric tensional stress in the back arc to a depth of 70 km. The lithospheric stress state of this model suggests that slab detachment is possible through whole plate fracture.     

Effects of sand burial on growth and antioxidant enzyme activities of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) in northern China

Growth and physiological responses of wheat to sand burial were studied in Horqin Sandy Land, to determine the impact on productivity and survival as well as antioxidant enzymes responses. This study c...     

Overpressures and hydrocarbon generation in the Sable sub-basin, offshore Nova Scotia

One of several interconnected depocentres lying offshore eastern Canada, the Sable sub-basin preserves a thick sequence of Mesozoic-Cenozoic clastic sediments, significant gas accumulations and an extensive development of abnormal pressures. In order to understand the basin's hydrocarbon generation, migration and accumulation history it is necessary to quantify the interplay between its burial, thermal, and maturation history, and to determine the influence on these of the basin's excess pressure history. Simple, one-dimensional reconstructions of maturity and pore pressure histories are derived for exploration well and pseudo-well locations on a seismic line running from the basin's structural high to its depocentre. Calibrated, where possible, by reference to measured maturity, temperature and pressures, these models provide a basic dynamic framework within which it is possible to consider the generation history of the basin's source rocks. Late Jurassic to Early Cretaceous sediments underwent an initial rapid, rift-related subsidence. The thermal/maturation models suggest that source rocks lying within these intervals quickly matured and began generating gas and condensates. Similarly, this rapid burial was translated, through sediment compaction disequilibrium processes, into an early expression of abnormal pressures. The pore pressure/time reconstructions in the modelling assume that sediment compaction disequilibrium and gas generation are the principal causal mechanisms. Matching pore pressure reconstructions with present-day pressure-depth profiles is particularly sensitive to assumed seal permeability profiles. Although the seal permeabilities used as model input are based on actual measured permeabilities at the present day, this does not mean that the permeability-time curves derived through the model's decompaction assumptions accurately reflect seal permeability evolution.     

Channel network morphology and sediment dynamics under alternating periglacial and temperate regimes: a numerical simulation study

The occurrence of permafrost in a highly permeable catchment has a profound effect on runoff generation. The presence of permafrost effectively makes the subsoil impermeable. Therefore, overland flow can be the dominant runoff-generating process during periglacial conditions. The absence of permafrost will promote subsurface drainage and, therefore, saturation excess overland flow can become the dominant runoff-generating process during temperate conditions. In this paper, we present a numerical modelling study in which the effect of alternating climate-related phases of permafrost and nonpermafrost on catchment hydrology and geomorphology is investigated. Special attention is given to the characteristics of the channel network being formed, and the sediment yield from these catchments. We find that channel networks expand under permafrost conditions and contract under nonpermafrost conditions. A change from permafrost to nonpermafrost conditions is characterised by a decrease in sediment yield, while a change towards permafrost conditions is marked by a peak in sediment yield. This peak is explained by the build-up of a reservoir of erodible sediment during the nonpermafrost phase. The driving force behind this reservoir build-up may be local base-level change due to tectonic uplift or eustacy. We present a number of experiments, which show the details of this process. The results are in line with existing reconstructions of climate and fluvial dynamics during the Pleistocene in Europe and offer a new explanation to these observations.     

Simulation of diagenesis and permeability variation in two-dimensional rock structure

A model is suggested to simulate the physical aspect of diagenesis in porous rocks. A bidisperse ballistic deposition model with relaxation of deposited grains is used to generate the porous structure. Sedimentation and erosion are allowed to restructure the pore space as a fluid flows through the rock. The effect of this restructuring of the pore space on permeability is studied. The Navier–Stokes equation is solved numerically by the finite difference method to determine the pressure and velocity distributions in the pore space. We find that though deposition is the dominant process in our model of diagenesis, reducing the porosity, the permeability may increase dramatically in some cases. These are when the erosion takes place at a single narrow constriction in the pore channel.     

Burial/exhumation histories for the Cooper–Eromanga Basins and implications for hydrocarbon exploration, Eastern Australia

The Cooper–Eromanga Basins of South Australia and Queensland are not at their maximum burial depth due to Late Cretaceous–Tertiary, and Late Triassic–Early Jurassic exhumation. Apparent exhumation (maximum burial depth–present burial depth) for the Cooper Basin has been quantified using the compaction methodology. The results show that exhumation of the Cooper Basin for the majority of the wells is greater than the exhumation of the Eromanga Basin. Using the compaction methodology, apparent exhumation of Early to Middle Triassic age Arrabury and Tinchoo Formatios has been quantified. Both units yield similar results and do not support that the Arrabury/Tinchoo boundary represents the Cooper–Eromanga boundary. Hence, the Cooper Basin is believed to have reached its maximum burial depth in Late Triassic times. Sonic log data are not available for the units overlying the Late Cretaceous Winton Formation; thus, it is not possible to date exhumation beyond the Late Cretaceous–Tertiary using the compaction methodology. Tertiary sequences as are preserved are relatively thin and separated by marked unconformities and weathered surfaces; hence, exhumation rather than sedimentation dominated the Tertiary, and in exhumed areas, maximum burial depth was attained in Late Cretaceous times. The burial/exhumation history of representative wells was synthesized using sediment decompaction and establishing porosity/depth relations for the Cooper–Eromanga units. Considering the relative significance of the major periods of exhumation in the Cooper/Eromanga Basins, three broad types of burial/exhumation histories can be distinguished. Maximum burial depth of the Cooper Basin sequence was attained before the deposition of the Eromanga Basin sequence, i.e. Late Triassic–Early Jurassic times; maximum burial depth of the Cooper and Eromanga Basin sequences attained in Late Cretaceous times; and Cooper and Eromanga Basin sequences are currently at maximum burial‐depth. Incorporation of exhumation into burial history has major implications for hydrocarbon exploration.     

Effects of Fe3+ on Dissolution Dynamics of Carbonate Rocks in a Shallow Burial Reservoir

Dissolution of carbonates in acidic fluids, which has attracted much research attention in recent years, is of great significance for the formation of high-quality reservoirs. The dissolution stage under low temperature and low pressure in shallow burial is one of the most important processes of reservoir dissolution and transformation. However, the dissolution dynamics of carbonate rocks in shallow burial and their formation have been controversial for a long time, and there are still disputes in the dissolution processes about how associated minerals and accessory minerals (e.g., pyrite) in carbonate reservoirs influence the formation of secondary pores. Additional metal ions in acidic fluids can change fluid properties and dissolution processes, and consequently affect reservoir quality. However, there are few laboratory studies done on the effect of associated minerals on the dissolution dynamics of carbonates. To clarify the specific impact of Fe-bearing associated minerals and Fe³⁺ on the dissolution of carbonates in shallow burial reservoirs, six samples of typical carbonate rocks in the Zigui area of Hubei Province, China were studied. The dissolution kinetics of carbonates in dilute hydrochloric acid and sulfuric acid solutions containing metal ions (Fe³⁺/Ca²⁺/Mn²⁺) at ambient temperature and pressure (T?=?25 °C, P?=?1 atm) were studied, by laboratory dissolution experiments combined with numerical simulations using PHREEQC. The results show that the Fe³⁺ is of great significance on the dissolution of carbonate rocks, while the influences of Ca²⁺ and Mn²⁺ are relatively weak. The dissolutions degrees of micritic limestone (ZG-L25), dolomitic limestone (ZG-L7) and dolomite (ZG-D9) were better than the other carbonates under the influence of metal ions (Fe³⁺/Ca²⁺/Mn²⁺) in acid solutions. Therefore, the dolomite reservoir of the Cambrian Qinjiamiao Formation, the dolomitic limestone reservoir of the Tianheban Formation and the limestone reservoir of the Triassic Daye Formation in the Zigui area are potential high-quality reservoirs. The carbonate reservoirs associated with Fe-bearing minerals were easier to dissolve and formed secondary pores under shallow burial. This process is beneficial to the formation of high-quality reservoirs. Moreover, the addition of Fe³⁺ into hydrochloric acid solution may be conducive to improving the reservoirs acidizing effect. Furthermore, the results gave innovative results from multiple perspectives of geo-material science and computational geosciences, which may provide new avenues for in-depth study of carbonate dissolution in shallow burial based on water–rock reaction, chemical dissolution, computational simulation, and geological background.

     

Forward modelling of porosity and pore pressure evolution in sedimentary basins

The gravitational compaction of sediments is an important process in forward basin modelling. This paper presents a mathematical model for the one-dimensional compaction of an accreting layer of argillaceous sediments. Realistic constitutive laws for the clay compressibility and the clay permeability, based on soil mechanics tests, were incorporated into the model. The governing equations were put in dimensionless form and the extent of abnormal pore fluid pressure development was found to depend on the sedimentation parameter, a dimensionless group representing the ratio of the sediment hydraulic conductivity to the sediment accumulation rate. The effects of clay compressibility were studied and highly colloidal clays such as montmorillonite developed higher overpressures than less compressible materials. The results also showed that overpressuring developed in shales for cases in which the clay permeability did not go to zero in the limit of zero porosity. Linear models based on simplifying assumptions inappropriate for sedimentary basins were found to give significantly different estimates for the conditions leading to overpressuring. Using reasonable parameters, the model adequately reproduced porosity and pore pressure profiles measured in the sand-shale sequences of the South Caspian Sea.