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U.S. Department of Energy
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Area balance and strain in an extensional fault system: Strategies for improved oil recovery in fractured chalk, Gilbertown Field, southwestern Alabama -- Year 2. Annual report, March 1997--March 1998

Technical Report ·
DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/296687· OSTI ID:296687
Gilbertown Field is the oldest oil field in Alabama and has produced oil from fractured chalk of the Cretaceous Selma Group and glauconitic sandstone of the Eutaw Formation. Nearly all of Gilbertown Field is still in primary recovery, although waterflooding has been attempted locally. The objective of this project is to analyze the geologic structure and burial history of Mesozoic and Tertiary strata in Gilbertown Field and adjacent areas in order to suggest ways in which oil recovery can be improved. Indeed, the decline of oil production to marginally economic levels in recent years has made this type of analysis timely and practical. Key technical advancements being sought include understanding the relationship of requisite strain to production in Gilbertown reservoirs, incorporation of synsedimentary growth factors into models of area balance, quantification of the relationship between requisite strain and bed curvature, determination of the timing of hydrocarbon generation, and identification of the avenues and mechanisms of fluid transport.
Research Organization:
Univ. of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Assistant Secretary for Fossil Energy, Washington, DC (United States)
DOE Contract Number:
AC22-94PC91008
OSTI ID:
296687
Report Number(s):
DOE/PC/91008--8; ON: DE98000533
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English