Semi-Analytic Modelling of Subsidence

This paper presents a forward model for subsidence prediction caused by extraction of hydrocarbons. The model uses combinations of analytic solutions to the visco-elastic equations, which approximate the boundary conditions. There are only a few unknown parameters to be estimated, and, consequently, calculations are very fast. The semi-analytic model is applicable to a uniform and layer-cake stratigraphy, with visco-elastic parameters changing per layer, and an arbitrary depletion pattern. By its capabilities to handle a multi-layered visco-elastic subsurface, the semi-analytic model fills the gap between the analytic single-layered elastic models available to date and the more elaborate numerical, e.g. finite element, models.     

Detrital Zircon of 4100 Ma in Quartzite in Burang, Tibet

A detrital zircon aged 4.1 Ga is discovered by the SHRIMP U-Pb method in a quartzite in Burang County, western Tibet. This is presently the oldest single-grain detrital zircon in China. The Th-U ratios of the two testing points of the 〉4.0 Ga zircon are between 0.76 and 0.86, indicating their magmatic origin. This discovery has offered an important age for investigating the geological evolution of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.