Upper Strawn (Desmoinesian) carbonte and clastic depositional environments, southeastern King County, Texas
- Oryx Energy Co., Oklahoma City, OK (USA)
The Pennsylvanian upper Strawn Group of southeastern King County, Texas, provides a unique setting to study interactions between coeval carbonate and clastic deposition during the Desmoinesian. One of the most perplexing problems is the relationship of massive Pennsylvanian platform carbonates to shallow-water terrigenous clastic sediments. Within the study area, carbonate facies were deposited along the northern edge of the Knox-Baylor trough on the Spur platform, and terrigenous clastics were carried toward the Midland basin through the Knox-Baylor trough. Based on the analysis of subsurface cores, five carbonate lithofacies and four clastic lithofacies were recognized in southeastern King County, Texas. The distribution and geometry of these lithofacies are related to variations in the rate of subsidence in the Knox-Baylor trough, Pennsylvanian tectonics, deltaic progradation, avulsion, and compaction. The platform carbonates within the northern region of southeastern King County record environments within the carbonate platform complex, including middle platform, outer platform, algal mound, and platform margin. The quartzarenitic sandstones within the southern region of southeastern King County occur in a variety of complex depositional geometries, including distributary-bar fingers, lobate deltas, and offshore bars. Cores of these sandstones represent mainly the uppermost portion of the various sandstone bodies. The upper Strawn Group provides an attractive area for exploration geology. Both carbonates and clastics provide excellent reservoirs from a depth of approximately 5,000-6,000 ft. Total production within the area is over 100 million bbl of oil since the early 1940s. Multiple pay zones within a 600-ft interval also provide an added incentive for exploration. Areas within and around the Knox-Baylor trough deserve a detailed study due to these relatively shallow, unexplored, multiple pay zones.
- OSTI ID:
- 6989963
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-9003145-; CODEN: AABUD
- Journal Information:
- AAPG Bulletin (American Association of Petroleum Geologists); (USA), Vol. 74:2; Conference: American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG) southwest section meeting, Wichita Falls, TX (USA), 11-13 Mar 1990; ISSN 0149-1423
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
CARBONATE ROCKS
DEPOSITION
PETROLEUM DEPOSITS
EXPLORATION
SANDSTONES
TEXAS
CARBONIFEROUS PERIOD
DRILL CORES
GEOLOGIC STRUCTURES
LITHOLOGY
FEDERAL REGION VI
GEOLOGIC AGES
GEOLOGIC DEPOSITS
MINERAL RESOURCES
NORTH AMERICA
PALEOZOIC ERA
RESOURCES
ROCKS
SEDIMENTARY ROCKS
USA
020200* - Petroleum- Reserves
Geology
& Exploration