Detrital K-feldspar^(40)Ar/^(39)Ar Ages:Source Constraints of the Lower Miocene Sandstones in the Pearl River Mouth Basin,South China Sea

The South China Sea began to outspread in the Oligocene. A great quantity of terraneous detritus was deposited in the northern continental shelf of the sea, mostly in Pearl River Mouth Basin, which constituted the main paleo-Pearl River Delta. The delta developed for a long geological time and formed a superimposed area. Almost all the oil and gas fields of detrital rock reservoir distribute in this delta. Thirty-three oil sandstone core samples in the Zhujiang Formation, lower Miocene （23-16 Ma）, were collected from nine wells. The illite samples with detrital K feldspar （Kfs） separated from these sandstone cores in four sub-structural belts were analysed by the high-precision 40Ar/39Ar laser stepwise heating technique. All 33 illite 40Ar/39Ar data consistently yielded gradually rising age spectra at the low-temperature steps until reaching age plateaus at mid-high temperature steps. The youngest ages corresponding to the beginning steps were interpreted as the hydrocarbon accumulation ages and the plateau ages in mid-high temperature steps as the contributions of the detrital feldspar representing the ages of the granitic parent rocks in the provenances. The ages of the detrital feldspar from the Zhujiang Formation in the four sub-structural belts were different： （1） the late Cretaceous ages in the Lufeng 13 fault structural belt; （2） the late Cretaceous and early Cretaceous-Jurassic ages in the Huizhou 21 buried hill-fault belt; （3） the Jurassic and Triassic ages in the Xijiang 24 buried hill-fault belt; and （4） the early Cretaceous - late Jurassic ages in the Panyu 4 oil area. These detrital feldspar 4~Ar/39Ar ages become younger and younger from west to east, corresponding to the age distribution of the granites in the adjacent Guangdong Province, Southern China.

Upper Paleozoic coal measures and unconventional natural gas systems of the Ordos Basin,China

Upper Paleozoic coal measures in the Ordos Basin consist of dark mudstone and coal beds and are important source rocks for gas generation. Gas accumulations include coal-bed methane （CBM）, tight gas and conventional gas in different structural areas. CBM accumulations are mainly distributed in the marginal area of the Ordos Basin, and are estimated at 3.5 × 1012 m3. Tight gas accumulations exist in the middle part of the Yishan Slope area, previously regarded as the basin-centered gas system and now considered as stratigraphic lithologic gas reservoirs. This paper reviews the characteristics of tight gas accumulations： poor physical properties （porosity 〈 8%, permeability 〈 0.85 × 10 3 μm2）, abnormal pressure and the absence of well-defined gas water contacts. CBM is a self-generation and self- reservoir, while gas derived from coal measures migrates only for a short distance to accumulate in a tight reservoir and is termed near-generation and near-reservoir. Both CBM and tight gas systems require source rocks with a strong gas generation ability that extends together over wide area. However, the producing area of the two systems may be significantly different.

Effect of petroleum chemical fraction and residual oil content in saline lacustrine organic-rich shale: A case study from the Paleogene Dongpu Depression of North China

Halite and gypsum minerals in saline shale make the retention mechanism and chemical fractionation of residual oil unique. The Dongpu Depression in North China is a typically saline lacustrine basin with developing halite and gypsum. The effect of gypsum minerals on residual oil content and chemical fractionation remains unclear. In this study, shale samples with different gypsum contents were used in organic geochemical experiments, showing that the high total organic matter (TOC) content and type II kerogen leads to a high residual oil content, as shown by high values of volatile hydrocarbon (S1) and extractable organic matter (EOM). XRD and FE-SEM result indicate that the existence of gypsum in saline shale contributes to an enhanced pore space and a higher residual oil content in comparison to non-gypsum shale. Additionally, the increase in the gypsum mineral content leads to an increase in the saturated hydrocarbon percentage and a decrease in polar components percentage (resins and asphaltene). Furthermore, thermal simulation experiments on low-mature saline shale show that the percentage of saturated hydrocarbons in the residual oil is high and remains stable and that the storage space is mainly mesoporous (> 20 nm) in the oil expulsion stage. However, the saturated hydrocarbons percentage decreases rapidly, and oil exists in mesopores (> 20 nm and < 5 nm) in the gas expulsion stage. In general, gypsum is conducive to the development of pore space, the adsorption of hydrocarbons and the occurrence of saturated hydrocarbon, leading to large quantities of residual oil. The data in this paper should prove to be reliable for shale oil exploration in saline lacustrine basins.

Processes and causes of Phanerozoic tectonic evolution of the western Tarim Basin,northwest China

This paper addresses the Phanerozoic tectonic evolution of the western Tarim Basin based on an integrated stratigraphic,structural and tectonic analysis.P-wave velocity data show that the basin has a stable and rigid basement.The western Tarim Basin experienced a complex tectonic evolutionary history,and this evolution can be divided into six stages:Neoproterozoic to Early Ordovician,Middle Ordovician to Middle Devonian,Late Devonian to Permian,Triassic,Jurassic to Cretaceous and Paleogene to Quaternary.The western Tarim Basin was a rift basin in the Neoproterozoic to Early Ordovician.From the Middle Ordovician to Middle Devonian,the basin consisted of a flexural depression in the south and a depression that changed from a rift depression to a flexural depression in the north during each period,i.e.,the Middle-Late Ordovician and the Silurian to Middle Devonian.During the Late Devonian to Permian,the basin was a depression basin early and then changed into a flexural basin late in each period,i.e.,the Late Devonian to Carboniferous and the Permian.In the Triassic,the basin was a foreland basin,and from the Jurassic to Cretaceous,it was a downwarped basin.After the Paleogene,the basin became a rejuvenated foreland basin.Based on two cross sections,we conclude that the extension and shortening in the profile reflect the tectonic evolution of the Tarim Basin.The Tarim Basin has become a composite and superimposed sedimentary basin because of its long-term and complicated tectonic evolutionary history,highly rigid and stable basement and large size.

Constraints on Characteristics and Distribution of Gas Hydrate and Free Gas Using Broad-Band Processing of Three-Dimensional Seismic Data

Gas hydrate drilling expeditions in the Pearl River Mouth Basin,South China Sea,have identified concentrated gas hydrates with variable thickness.Moreover,free gas and the coexistence of gas hydrate and free gas have been confirmed by logging,coring,and production tests in the foraminifera-rich silty sediments with complex bottom-simulating reflectors(BSRs).The broad-band processing is conducted on conventional three-dimensional(3D)seismic data to improve the image and detection accuracy of gas hydratebearing layers and delineate the saturation and thickness of gas hydrate-and free gas-bearing sediments.Several geophysical attributes extracted along the base of the gas hydrate stability zone are used to demonstrate the variable distribution and the controlling factors for the differential enrichment of gas hydrate.The inverted gas hydrate saturation at the production zone is over 40% with a thickness of 90 m,showing the interbedded distribution with different boundaries between gas hydrate-and free gas-bearing layers.However,the gas hydrate saturation value at the adjacent canyon is 70%,with 30-m-thick patches and linear features.The lithological and fault controls on gas hydrate and free gas distributions are demonstrated by tracing each gas hydrate-bearing layer.Moreover,the BSR depths based on broad-band reprocessed 3D seismic data not only exhibit variations due to small-scale topographic changes caused by seafloor sedimentation and erosion but also show the upward shift of BSR and the blocky distribution of the coexistence of gas hydrate and free gas in the Pearl River Mouth Basin.

Genetic pattern of belt-wide petroliferous phenomenon in the eastern Pearl River Mouth Basin and its practical application

The Pearl River Mouth Basin （PRMB） covers an area of approximately 20× 104 km2.However,oil-gas fields detected in this area thus far are highly concentrated and controlled predominantly by second-order structural belts,the seven largest of which aggregate proved oil reserves of 7.7× 108 m3,accounting for 86％ of the total discovered reserve in the basin.These second-order structures have one common phenomenon：oil is contained in all traps present in them.In other words,they are all belt-wide petroliferous reservoirs.Research has identified eight types of second-order structural belts under two categories in the eastern PRMB.Their petroliferous properties are subject to three typical constraints：petroliferous properties of subsags hosting these structural belts,locations of these belts in the petroleum system,and availability of traps prior to the hydrocarbon expulsion and migration.The formation and distribution of oil reservoirs in these belts are characterized by subsag-belt integration and ＂three-in-one＂.The former indicates that sags and the second-order structural belts within the supply range of the sags constitute the basic units of hydrocarbon accumulations and are therefore inseparable.The latter indicates that a belt-wide petroliferous second-order structural belt always contains three important elements：hydrocarbon richness,effective pathway and pre-existing traps.

Simultaneous prestack inversion of variable-depth streamer seismic data

Variable-depth streamer seismic data are characterized by low and high frequencies and can be used to obtain high-quality and resolution images of complex subsurface structures. Taking advantage of the frequency range in the variable-depth streamer data, we propose the simultaneous inversion of prestack data from variable-offset stack gathers to obtain the P-wave impedance, S-wave impedance, and density. Next, we validate the method by using model and actual variable-depth streamer data from the Huizhou block. The results suggest that the broadband data recorded by variable-depth streamers improve the signal-to-noise ratio and quality of the inversion results and outperform the constant-depth streamer data in delineating the underground stratigraphy.

Well production optimization using streamline features-based objective function and Bayesian adaptive direct search algorithm

Well production optimization is a complex and time-consuming task in the oilfield development.The combination of reservoir numerical simulator with optimization algorithms is usually used to optimize well production.This method spends most of computing time in objective function evaluation by reservoir numerical simulator which limits its optimization efficiency.To improve optimization efficiency,a well production optimization method using streamline features-based objective function and Bayesian adaptive direct search optimization(BADS)algorithm is established.This new objective function,which represents the water flooding potential,is extracted from streamline features.It only needs to call the streamline simulator to run one time step,instead of calling the simulator to calculate the target value at the end of development,which greatly reduces the running time of the simulator.Then the well production optimization model is established and solved by the BADS algorithm.The feasibility of the new objective function and the efficiency of this optimization method are verified by three examples.Results demonstrate that the new objective function is positively correlated with the cumulative oil production.And the BADS algorithm is superior to other common algorithms in convergence speed,solution stability and optimization accuracy.Besides,this method can significantly accelerate the speed of well production optimization process compared with the objective function calculated by other conventional methods.It can provide a more effective basis for determining the optimal well production for actual oilfield development.

Structural Characteristics and its Significances on Hydrocarbon Accumulation in the Yunkai Low Uplift,Pearl River Mouth Basin

The Yunkai low uplift with low exploration degree is close to the Baiyun sag,and has hydrocarbon exploration potential in the deepwater area of the Pearl River Mouth Basin.Based on seismic and drilling data,balanced profiles and growth strata,this paper mainly discusses geological structures and formation processes of the Yunkai low uplift,and also analyzes the characteristics of fault system and their influence on hydrocarbon migration and accumulation.The EWtrending basement faults divide the Yunkai low uplift into two parts,i.e.the southern sector and the northern sector.The northern sector is a relatively wide and gentle uplift,while the southern sector is composed of two secondary half-grabens with faulting in the south and overlapping in the north.The Yunkai low uplift experienced three major formation stages,including the rapid uplifting stage during the deposition period of the Eocene Wenchang Formation,the slow uplifting stage during the deposition period of the Late Eocene-Middle Miocene Enping-Hanjiang formations,and the whole burial stage from the Middle Miocene to present.The extensional faults in the Yunkai low uplift and its adjacent areas strike mainly along the NW,NWW and near-EW directions.Also,the strikes of faults present a clockwise rotation from the deep to the shallow strata.According to effects of faults on hydrocarbon accumulation the faults in the Yunkai low uplift and its adjacent areas can be divided into trap-controlled faults and source-controlled faults.The trap-controlled faults control trap development and can effectively seal oil and gas.The source-controlled faults connect directly source rocks and reservoirs,which are highly active during the rifting stage and weakly active since the Miocene.This activity features of the source-controlled faults is beneficial to migration of the early crude oil from the Baiyun sag to the high part of the Yunkai low uplift,but is not good for migration of the late natural gas.In the Yunkai low uplift and its adjacent areas,the traps in the deep Zhuhai and Enping formations that are close to source rocks in the Baiyun sag should be the favorable exploration objectives.

Acoustic Prediction and Risk Evaluation of Shallow Gas in Deep-Water Areas

Shallow gas is a potential risk in deep-water drilling that must not be ignored,as it may cause major safety problems,such as well kicks and blowouts.Thus,the pre-drilling prediction of shallow gas is important.For this reason,this paper conducted deep-water shallow gas acoustic simulation experiments based on the characteristics of deep-water shallow soil properties and the theory of sound wave speed propagation.The results indicate that the propagation speed of sound waves in shallow gas increases with an in-crease in pressure and decreases with increasing porosity.Pressure and sound wave speed are basically functions of the power expo-nent.Combined with the theory of sound wave propagation in a saturated medium,this paper establishes a multivariate functional relationship between sound wave speed and formation pressure and porosity.The numerical simulation method is adopted to simulate shal-low gas eruptions under different pressure conditions.Shallow gas pressure coefficients that fall within the ranges of 1.0-1.1,1.1-1.2,and exceeding 1.2 are defined as low-,medium-,and high-risk,respectively,based on actual operations.This risk assessment me-thod has been successfully applied to more than 20 deep-water wells in the South China Sea,with a prediction accuracy of over 90%.

Numerical and experimental investigation on the depressurization capacity of a new type of depressure-dominated jet mill bit

Efficient cuttings transport and improving rate of penetration(ROP)are two major challenges in horizontal drilling and extended reach drilling.A type of jet mill bit(JMB)may provide an opportunity to catch the two birds with one stone:not only enhancing cuttings transport efficiency but also improving ROP by depressuring at the bottom hole.In this paper,the JMB is further improved and a new type of depressure-dominated JMB is presented;meanwhile,the depressurization capacity of the depressure-dominated JMB is investigated by numerical simulation and experiment.The numerical study shows that low flow-rate ratio helps to enhance the depressurization capacity of the depressure-dominated JMB;for both depressurization and bottom hole cleaning concern,the flow-rate ratio is suggested to be set at approximately 1:1.With all other parameter values being constant,lower dimensionless nozzle-to-throat-area ratio may result in higher depressurization capacity and better bottom hole cleaning,and the optimal dimensionless nozzle-to-throat-area ratio is at approximately0.15.Experiments also indicate that reducing the dimensionless flow-rate ratio may help to increase the depressurization capacity of the depressure-dominated JMB.This work provides drilling engineers with a promising tool to improve ROP.

Identification and Characteristics Analysis of Micro-Seismic Signals in the Haima Seep Area

INTRODUCTION.In recent years,with the steady development of offshore energy exploration technology,submarine gas seepage sites,and their products are gradually being identified and analyzed.The submarine cold seep is a seepage phenomenon in which hydrocarbon gases stored deep in the seafloor are transported to seawater by gushing or seepage under the action of tectonic compression(Roy et al.,2019;Tinivella and Giustiniani,2016).

The relationship between extension of lower crust and displacement of the shelf break

With deep sea petroleum explorations become more and more popular,some geological phenomena have emerged:extension of lower crust and upper crust is inhomogeneous;shelf break has been moved rapidly after crustal stretching.These geological phenomena are important to the continental margin evolution.To investigate the thinning of the whole crust and the contribution of the upper crust versus the lower crust to the crustal stretching since the Cenozoic,we calculated the stretching factors of the upper and the lower crust based on the 13 seismic lines in the Baiyun Sag from CNOOC.The results indicated that the whole crustal thickness decreases seaward while the whole crustal stretching factor increases from shelf to slope.Our calculations showed that the lower crustal stretching factor is higher than that of the upper crust in the Baiyun Sag.In the Cenozoic,deformation of the Baiyun Sag is controlled mainly by ductile shearing rather than brittle shearing.Based on the numerical modeling,we can conclude the initial crust in the Baiyun Sag is thermally attenuated.The stretching factor(β)of the lower crust increases from the north to the south of the continental margin,indicating two stretching centers:the Baiyun Sag and the Liwan Sag.The geometry of the shelf break and theβisoline trap have the similar trend in 23.8 and 13.8 Ma,both located in the intense deforming zone of the lower crust,and therefore we conclude the stretching and flowing of the lower crust cause the displacement of the shelf break before and after 23.8 Ma.