Geologic controls on reservoir properties of low-permeability sandstone, Frontier Formation, Moxa Arch, southwest Wyoming. Topical report, April 1989-April 1992

Technical Report · Mon Jun 01 00:00:00 EDT 1992

OSTI ID:7103519

Dutton, S P; Scott, H; Laubach, S E

The report examines the influence of stratigraphy, diagenesis, natural fractures, and in situ stress on low-permeability, gas-bearing sandstone reservoirs of the Upper Cretaceous Frontier Formation along the Moxa Arch in the Green River Basin, southwestern Wyoming. The main stratigraphic controls on distribution and quality of Frontier reservoirs are sandstone continuity and detrital clay content. The Frontier was deposited in a fluvial-deltaic system, in which most reservoirs lie in marine upper shoreface and fluvial channel-fill sandstone facies. The major causes of porosity loss in Frontier sandstones during burial diagenesis were mechanical and chemical compaction and cementation by calcite, quartz, and authigenic clays. Despite extensive diagenetic modification, reservoir quality is best in facies that had the highest porosity and permeability at the time of deposition. Natural fractures are sparse in Frontier core, but outcrop studies show that fractures commonly are in discrete, irregularly spaced swarms separated by domains having few fractures. Natural fracture swarms are potential high-permeability 'sweet spots.' Stress-direction indicators give highly scattered estimates of maximum horizontal compression direction ranging from north to east or northeast. The scatter may reflect interference of natural fractures with measurements of stress directions, as well as spatially variable stress directions and low horizontal stress anisotropy.

• Research Organization: Texas Univ., Austin, TX (United States). Bureau of Economic Geology
• OSTI ID: 7103519
• Report Number(s): PB-92-213149/XAB; CNN: GRI-5082-211-0708
• Resource Relation: Other Information: See also PB91-194340 and PB91-222075. Prepared in cooperation with Wyoming Geological Survey, Laramie. Sponsored by Gas Research Inst., Chicago, IL
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

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03 NATURAL GAS
NATURAL GAS DEPOSITS
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DEPOSITION
DIAGENESIS
DISTRIBUTION
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GEOLOGIC HISTORY
GREEN RIVER FORMATION
MINERALOGY
POROSITY
RESERVOIR ENGINEERING
SANDSTONES
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DEVELOPED COUNTRIES
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FEDERAL REGION VIII
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030200* - Natural Gas- Reserves
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