Diagenetic Fluid and Its Impact on Sandstone Reservoirs in the Southern Boxing Sag, Dongying Depression, Bohai Bay Basin, China

Diagenesis typically exerts a crucial impact on the formation of high-quality sandstone reservoirs in the Eocene Shahejie Formation, Dongying Depression. To better understand the formation process of petrophysical properties, this research conducts petrographic and geochemical analyses to investigate the nature of diagenetic fluids. Petrographic observations suggest that the dominant cements are carbonate, authigenic quartz, and clay minerals, accompanied with the dissolution of feldspar and calcite. The homogenization temperature of aqueous inclusions in quartz overgrowth usually exceeds 90°C corresponding to the maturity of organic matter. Quartz overgrowths contain higher amounts of CaO and Al2O3 than detrital quartz. This indicates that the siliceous fluid mainly originates from the dissolution of feldspar. Moreover, the conversion of clay minerals also provides trace amounts of silica into pore water during the burial process. Carbonate cements consist of early-stage calcite as well as late-stage Fe-calcite and ankerite. Calcite with relatively higher MnO proportions shows yellow luminescence and dissolution signs. Fe-calcite and ankerite cements have a higher homogenization temperature than that of quartz overgrowth and mainly concentrate in FeO and MgO as well as contain a small amount of Na+, K+, and Sr2+. The rare earth element (REE) pattern of bulk mudstone and carbonate cements as well as C–O isotopic evidences indicate that the diagenetic fluids of carbonate cementation are primarily controlled by the adjacent mudstone, whereas mineral dissolution and altered clay minerals in sandstone provide additional cations for the local reprecipitation of late-stage carbonate. Therefore, diagenetic fluids within sandstone reservoirs are typically subject to alkaline–acid–alkaline conditions and are influenced by internal sources in a closed system. Compaction significantly reduces the pore space of sandstone reservoirs in the Boxing Sag. Carbonate cementation further increases the complexity of pore structure and obeys the principle of mass balance.

Wireline logs vs drilling events: Which one to believe in implying subsurface pressure?

As generally known, subsurface pressure can be implied using both wireline logs and drilling events. However, there may be a case where wireline logs and drilling events do not indicate the same subsurface pressure. Data from four vertical wells located in the South Sumatra Basin, Indonesia, were analyzed as a case study. Two wells, Wells A and D, encountered high overpressured zones, confirmed by drilling events and wireline logs data. The two others, Wells B and C, only encountered low overpressured zones, inferred by the relatively low mudweight used during the drilling. However, the wireline logs of Wells B and C show a reversal as Wells A and D. There are two hypotheses to explain the condition in Wells B and C. First, the wireline logs reversal is due to shallow carbonate cementation. Second, Wells B and C were drilled in an unintentional underbalanced condition. The method used includes XRD, SEM, and titration analysis. The results show that the first hypothesis is false, while the second is true. It may be due to some missing information related to drilling events in the final well report of Wells B and C.

Non-lithifying microbial ecosystem dissolves peritidal lime sand

Microbialites accrete where environmental conditions and microbial metabolisms promote lithification, commonly through carbonate cementation. On Little Ambergris Cay, Turks and Caicos Islands, microbial mats occur widely in peritidal environments above ooid sand but do not become lithified or preserved. Sediment cores and porewater geochemistry indicated that aerobic respiration and sulfide oxidation inhibit lithification and dissolve calcium carbonate sand despite widespread aragonite precipitation from platform surface waters. Here, we report that in tidally pumped environments, microbial metabolisms can negate the effects of taphonomically-favorable seawater chemistry on carbonate mineral saturation and microbialite development.

The genesis model of carbonate cementation in the tight oil reservoir: A case of Chang 6 oil layers of the Upper Triassic Yanchang Formation in the western Jiyuan area, Ordos Basin, China

Carbonate cementation is one of the significant tightness factors in Chang 6 reservoir of the western Jiyuan (WJY) area. Based on the observation of core and thin sections, connecting-well profile analysis as well as carbon and oxygen isotope analysis, it is found that ferrocalcite is the main carbonate cements in the Chang 6 reservoir of the WJY area. The single sand body controls the development of carbonate cements macroscopically. Both carbonate cements and calcite veins hold similar diagenetic conditions: the dissolution of plagioclase is the main calcium source and the de-acidification of organic acids is the main carbon source. The diagenetic stage is identified as the mesogenetic A stage. The sedimentary environment is of low salinity. Accordingly, the development model of carbonate cementation in Chang 6 reservoir is summarized into three types: “eggshell pattern,” “cutting pattern,” and “favorable reservoir pattern.” The development degree of carbonate cementation affects the physical properties of reservoir.