Department of Petroleum Engineering & Earth Sciences

School of Engineering (SOE), UPES

(B. Tech APE-UP-IV sem)
PEGS 2002: Sedimentary and Petroleum Geology

Assignment -2
Assignment Date: 22/04/2020 CO: (CO5) Marks: 50
No Topic

Select your own basin and Explain in following lines-

a) Describe the six important elements of Petroleum System Characterization
of any petroliferous basin of the world (you can paste open sources maps
in your discerptions).

b) Role of Sedimentology, Sequence stratigraphy and Seismic stratigraphy in

Q1 Petroleum System Analysis (PSA) and Hydrocarbon Exploration.

c) Prepare a Risk matrix diagram and calculate the CoS of a prospect

situated in your basin and explain the probabilities of all the elements in
detail (you can assign the probabilities based on your understanding of
part a and b of this question).

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Assessment will be prepared on A4 size page (Hand written only).

2. Use labelled diagram/ sketches/ open source or published figures prints in description.
Provide proper reference of figures at the base.

REFERENCE: Class Lecture presentations, Class notes,

Books: Principles of sequence stratigraphy by Octavian

• Elements of Petroleum Geology by Richard C. Selley
• Petroleum Geoscience by KnutBjørlykke
• Geology of Petroleum: A. I. Levorse n,

GROUP ASSIGNMENT:

• Assignment can be completed in a group of two students only.

• Duplication of similar contents by two groups will not accepted and assigned ZERO marks.

Students name: Utkarsh Mishra Yashasvi Dua Faculty name

Roll no: R870218180 R870218194 Dr. A K. Patidar
Sap ID: 500067805 500067420

Batch No: B4 B4
Q1. a) Describe the six important elements of Petroleum System
Characterization of any petroliferous basin of the world.

We have chosen a very famous ocean basin i.e. Gulf of Mexico to know about the
petroleum system elements that makes this petroliferous basin most extensive.
The Gulf of Mexico is a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, largely surrounded by
the North American continent. It is limited on the northeast, north and northwest
by the Gulf Coast of the United States, on the southwest and south by Mexico, and
on the southeast by Cuba (Fig 1). In this, first we will give a brief introduction of
basin, then about petroleum system.

Fig 1: Geographical map of Gulf of Mexico Basin

About Gulf of Mexico Sedimentary Basin
The Gulf of Mexico basin is a world class repository of hydrocarbons, and has
produced significant lignite and sedimentary uranium. It has been actively
explored for nearly 100 years, creating a 3-D well and reflection seismic data base
of unique abundance, extent, and diversity. Hydrocarbon exploration and
development moved off-shore in mid-century, and has progressed to the slope,
and now onto the abyssal plain. The Gulf of Mexico is a small ocean basin lying
between the North American plate and the Yucatan block. Following initiation in
the Middle Jurassic, sea-floor spreading continued approximately 25 Million year.
Spreading was asymmetric, creating a broad area of attenuated transitional
continental crust beneath the northern basin. Initially, widespread, thick salt
deposits accumulated across much of the basin; mobilization of this salt by
subsequent sedimentary loading has created a complex suite of gravity tectonic
structures. Most salt is now allochthonous, forming extensive stocks and
canopies. By the end of the Mesozoic, thermal subsidence had created a deep
basin floor, flanked by continental shelves. The resultant basin accommodates a
succession of Late Jurassic through Holocene strata that is as much as 20 km thick.
Sediment supply from the North American continent has filled almost one-half of
the basin since its formation, primarily by offlap of the northern & north-western
margins.

Fig 2: Geological feature map of Gulf of Mexico

 Fig 3: Merged map of Gulf of Mexico

Depositional History
Depositional history can be generalized in seven phases:

(1) Middle-Late Jurassic evaporite and carbonate deposition in a broad, shallow,

restricted to open marine basin.
(2) Latest Jurassic-Early Cretaceous sand-rich clastic progradation from the
northern margins.
(3) Late-Early Cretaceous development of a rimmed carbonate shelf.
(4) Late Cretaceous mixed clastic and carbonate aggradation of the continental
margins.
(5) Resurgent Paleogene clastic progradation and filling centered in the NW basin.
(6) Miocene progradation and basin filling centered in the central and NE Gulf.
(7) Late Neogene climatically and eustatically influenced progradation along the
central Gulf margin. In contrast to the broad, progradational sediment wedge
of the northern Gulf, the Florida margin is a primarily aggradational carbonate
platform.

The Petroleum System Elements are:

1) Source Rock
2) Migration
3) Reservoir
4) Seal
5) Trap

Source Rocks
Many petroleum basins depend mainly on one or two principal source rock
intervals to generate most of their contained hydrocarbons. The Gulf of Mexico
has multiple, thick, source rock intervals, including Lower Cretaceous marl,
lower Upper Cretaceous marl and mudstone, and lower Tertiary mudstone
& Upper Jurassic limestone(Fig 5) and marlstone(Fig 4). Collectively, these
source rocks are distributed in most of the basin's area. Source rock formed
during the Tithonian period is reported as the major source of oil and produces
oil of moderate to high sulfur content (Refer to Table 1).

Importantly, the bulk of the source rocks lies within the lower portion of the basin
fill. The widespread accumulation of organic-rich sediment various stratigraphic
levels reflects the beneficial interplay of basin detachment and restricted
circulation, tropical paleoclimate, development of a deep, often stratified and/or
sediment-starved marine basin center, and high supply of terrestrial organic
matter.

Fig 4 : Marlstone Fig 5 : Limestone

Migration
The long depositional history and large size of the Gulf Of Mexico has brought
about in a great diversity of regional burial histories. Mesozoic source rocks of the
landward basin margin were covered by younger Cretaceous and relatively thin
early Cenozoic sediments. Here, petroleum generation takes place slowly in
response to burial duration. Basin ward, beneath the modern coastal plain and
shelf, rapid burial of source rocks led to petroleum generation in the early to
middle Cenozoic. Beneath the late Cenozoic outer shelf and continental slope
depocenters, deep burial brought source rocks into oil and gas kitchens only
within the last few million years. The overall pattern of basin ward advancing
deposition illustrated in the regional dip cross section created successive waves
of maturation of source rocks. The result was multiple petroleum systems whose
peak generation times spanned the 65 million years of the Cenozoic and continue
today.

It has been long to recognize that the principal source rocks of the Gulf Of Mexico
lie far beneath from the center of mass of hydrocarbon reservoir. Large-scale
upward migration of thousands of meters is generally required, particularly in the
Cenozoic reservoirs that contain a large amount of oil and gas. Structures formed
by the long history of gravity tectonics acting on the over pressured mudstone
and salt bed have played a crucial role. Most known fields and discoveries in the
offshore Gulf of Mexico require cross-stratal migration to move hydrocarbons
from known, deep source intervals to young Tertiary reservoirs. The two most
likely mechanisms for creating cross-stratal conduits are salt movement and
faulting. Faults & salt bodies created pathways that extend through source rocks
many kilometers into overlying Cenozoic sediments. The long history of formation
and reactivation of these growth structures provided conduits that were ready
and available when pulses of peak generation provided a charge of movable
hydrocarbons.

Reservoir
The long history of deposition in the Gulf, with numerous rock types ranging from
limestone, dolomite, highly cemented sandstone and mudstone to
unconsolidated sand and mud, and depositional environments from carbonate
platforms and reefs to deep-marine submarine fans have provided a multiplicity
of potential reservoirs. Petroleum has been found and produced from every
major stratigraphic unit from the Jurassic Norphlet age Aeolian siltstones and
Smackover age shallow-water limestones directly above the Louann to
Pleistocene turbidite sands of the modern continental slope. Porosity types varies
from simple intergranular to secondary leached pores in deeply buried, highly
cemented sandstones. Jurassic and Cretaceous carbonate reservoirs commonly
show fracture porosity. As conventional reservoirs have been exploited onshore,
the effort has successfully shifted to unconventional reservoirs, including
fractured chalk, tight sand, and shale. Here, source rock and reservoir rock can be
intimately mixed.

The pattern of Cenozoic continental margin progradation due to the high rate of
sediment supply placed a succession of reservoir systems one on top of the other.
In contrast to many basins, storage space for sediment on the basin margins was
quickly filled by fast sediment supply through multiple rivers. Coastlines
prograded to and over the shelf edge much of the time, transporting sand directly
to the upper slope and into the deep basin. Sandy submarine fans were overlain
and covered by continental slope turbidites. Slope sands were commonly trapped
and ponded within intra-slope basins and troughs made by salt evacuation and
extensional faulting. In turn, delta and shore-zone sand bodies prograded across
the shelf and over the continental slope succession. Many of these depositional
systems, such as coastal barrier bars and submarine fans bars form naturally
isolated reservoir systems which can retain hydrocarbons efficiently and Post-
depositional and Syn-depositional structural deformation further disrupted sand-
body continuity, enhancing retention potential.

The high rates of sediment supply and fast subsidence resulted in vertically
stacked sand bodies with depositional patterns repeated multiple times over
kilometer-thick successions. Multi-story reservoir systems are a characteristic
feature of the Gulf of Mexico Cenozoic petroleum fields. The thick, repetitious
sand successions contribute to the immense availability of pore volume. Thus,
Gulf reservoirs are commonly under-filled. The widespread development of
overpressure further increases the productivity of many reservoirs.

Seals
The GOM is a mud-dominated basin that also has impermeable layers of salt
which act as a perfect seal. Salt has negligible permeability which makes it act as
ideal seal. The Green Canyon area of the GOM located along the Northern GOM
continental slope, the Sigsbee Escarpment behave as seal for trapped
hydrocarbon. The Sigsbee Escarpment constitutes of highly consolidated low
permeability sediment and was originated by the upward movement of salt. Salt,
however, can compromise seal ability through its upward movement and it
penetrating and shifting shale sediments acting as a seal as seen in the Auger
basin of the GOM.

Traps
The complex structural and depositional architectures combine to make a
diverse array of trap types. A shortlist of significant trap types includes:
• basement structural highs
• primary salt domes and turtle anticlines
• growth faults and roll-over anticlines
• complex faults
• folds and discontinuities associated with salt canopies
• basin-floor fold and thrust belts
• sub-unconformity truncations
• facies changes
• terminations against salt
Like reservoir successions, structural features of the Gulf show an extraordinary
vertical extent. The interaction between syn-depositional deformation and
deposition, increases vertical stacking of reservoirs in the trapping structures. In
general, the Gulf Of Mexico may be thought of as a high-impedance basin.
Pathways up and out of the exceptionally thick, structurally compartmentalized
basin fill are bound with delays, dead ends, and detours.
Fig: Cross section map of Oil deposits
 Summary of the Basin
Source Rock:

• Marlstone
• Limestone
• Mudstone

Migration:

• Vertical Migration
• Cross-strata Migration

Seal:

• Impermeable layer of salt

• Sigsbee Escarpment

Trap:

• basement structural highs

• primary salt domes and turtle anticlines
• growth faults and roll-over anticlines
• complex faults
• folds and discontinuities associated with salt canopies
• basin-floor fold and thrust belts
• sub-unconformity truncations
• facies changes
• terminations against salt

Reservoir:

• Sandstone Reservoir
• Limestone Reservoir
Q1. b) Role of Sedimentology, Sequence stratigraphy and Seismic
stratigraphy in Petroleum System Analysis (PSA) and
Hydrocarbon Exploration.

The Gulf of Mexico is a unique basin on the globe. It is located in the low, mid-
latitudes and extends over multiple climatic zones. It includes regions where huge
volumes of terrigenous sediments are delivered and others where terrigenous
sediments are generally absent. The nature and distribution of sediments in the
shallow Gulf margin have been controlled largely by the rise and fall of sea level
during the waxing and waning of Quaternary glaciers. During that time, the
shoreline migrated across virtually the entire continental margin, as we know it
today. This has also had an influence on the sediments in the deep Gulf, from the
continental slope to the abyssal plain.

The greatest terrigenous sediment supply is at the Mississippi Delta, next in

volume is the Texas coast where numerous rivers cross the coastal plain
regardless of the position of the shoreline. The northeast Gulf has also
experienced a significant amount of terrigenous sediment influx. Similar sediment
delivery along the coast of Mexico has occurred in the area south of Laguna Madre
and north of Campeche Bay, but the sediment is different because of the
extensive volcanic source rocks. There is virtually no sediment currently being
delivered, nor has there been in the past, from the Florida Peninsula and the
Yucatán Peninsula; both have been carbonate platforms throughout their
existence. There is a veneer of terrigenous sediment on the Florida mainland, but
the lack of well-developed drainage keeps it from being transported to the coast.

The deep Gulf environments are fairly similar to those of the world’s oceans. The
surface is rather flat with local relief of only a few meters. The sediments are a
combination of fine terrigenous sediments and biogenic sediments contributed
by various planktonic organisms. The terrigenous sediments are nearly all clay
minerals that have come from the northern provinces of the Gulf States. The
biogenic sediments are mostly foraminifera with some diatoms. The sediments
are delivered to their sites of accumulation differently. Much of the terrigenous
sediment comes to the abyssal plain via sediment gravity processes—especially
turbidity currents. A small portion of the terrigenous sediment and all of the
biogenic sediment settle through the water column.

The sediment on the continental slope typically is delivered in pulses or events by

sediment gravity phenomena. Much of this occurred during low sea-level stages
during the Quaternary. During these conditions, large streams that carried
sediment extended across what is now the continental shelf, but was then the
coastal plain. The mouths of these rivers were at, or near, the slope-shelf break
where sediment was discharged. Instead of developing deltas, as happens under
present conditions, the sediment was transported down the relatively steep slope
with some coming to rest on this surface and most making its way to the sediment
fans and the deep abyssal environment.

The continental shelf is presently composed of a combination of modern

sediments, delivered since sea level reached its present or near its present
position, and sediments that were deposited during sea-level low stands when
this surface was accumulating mostly fluvial sediments in channels or floodplain
deposits. Most of the inner shelf surface is now composed of modern sediments;
much of the outer half of the shelf is relict sediments deposited in depositional
environments different than those present.

Modern sediments delivered during present sea-level conditions currently

dominate coastal environments. There are also sediments in these environments
that are produced within the environment that they occupy as biogenic skeletal
material. Because of the development and concentration of the population
around modern coastal environments, these sediments tend to be polluted at
some level.

Calcium Carbonates
Many invertebrates have various types of skeletons of calcite, high-magnesium
calcite, and aragonite. These compounds are all various types of calcium
carbonate with some variation in crystallography and composition. They range
from single-celled organisms to large invertebrates, including coral colonies and
calcified green and red algae. In some of these organisms, such as gastropods
(snails), the entire intact skeleton is included in the sediment. In others, such as
echinoderms (starfish, sea urchins), the skeleton disarticulates and may become
dozens of individual pieces. Irrespective of size, the skeletal material can become
a significant part of the sediment. In some places, such as the Florida Keys, the
entire composition of the sediment may be skeletal carbonate. These carbonate
exoskeletons are typically broken by waves, currents, and even by other
organisms. Their abundance in sediment ranges from 0 to 100 %. The particle size
and the shape also range widely. Calcium carbonate is a type of chemical
sediment that is directly precipitated from seawater, in some cases with the aid
of photosynthesis. Calcium carbonate can be very fine grained and is often
referred to as lime mud. It is only common in Florida Bay. Ooids are sand-sized,
spherical grains of calcium carbonate that are precipitated in thin layers over a
nucleus. They are commonly limited to places where currents, typically tidally
generated, are present. Ooids occur in tidal passes in the Florida Keys and off the
east coast of the Yucatán Peninsula. Calcium carbonate sediment is mostly found
in shallow water, but there is also deep-water carbonate sediment (Figure 3.16).
Calcium carbonate sediment comprises primarily planktonic foraminifera (single-
celled animals) and sub microscopic algae called coccolithophores. These
sediments, often called calcareous ooze sediments, are common on the abyssal
plain of the Gulf. Such microscopic and sub microscopic skeletal particles can
form limestones in the ancient record and become major petroleum
producers.

Fig 7: Weight percent carbonate throughout the Gulf of Mexico

Sediments found in Gulf of Mexico varies in grain size. There are 5 different types
of grains found in basin, i.e. Gravel, Sand, Silt, Mud, Clay.

Gravel
Gravel are not much carried into the Gulf of Mexico because by the time eroded
material makes its way down a long river, the size is reduced considerably. Some
beaches have gravel composed of shells, and in some places, such as on the
northwest coast of Cuba and parts of Mexico, gravel particles are eroded from
rocks close to the beach and are still large. Gravel may also be produced as storms
erode reefs. Gravel-sized particles in deep water are essentially all shell material.

Sand
Much of the terrigenous sediment present on the continental shelf of the
Gulf is sand.

Silt
Particles of this grain size are a minor component of most Gulf
environments except for river deltas. Silt is mostly quartz with minor
percentages of other nonlayered silicates.

Clay
Clay size actually means any sediment particle with a diameter smaller
than 4 μm. Clay are very small grains are easily transported by rivers and
currents in the Gulf.

Mud
Mud—the mixture of silt and clay—is widely distributed in Gulf sediments.
Because both silt and clay involve very small sediment particles that are
commonly not separated in analysis, this combination term, mud, is used.
Fig 8: Distribution of grain size
Fig 9: Stratigraphic column showing the Mesozoic source intervals
(arrows) for the offshore Gulf of Mexico. Note that source intervals coincide
with second-order transgressions in a sequence-stratigraphic framework

Seismic Stratigraphy
Seismic data provides only reflection image of subsurface conditions generated
by sound waves. Seismic stratigraphy techniques facilitate us for stratigraphic
interpretation of seismic reflectors. It is important because geological concepts
of stratigraphy can be applied on seismic data and hence, seismic stratigraphy
can be used as a predictive tool for petroleum system elements like reservoir,
seal and source rock. Seismic graphs help in to locate the fold, fault salt bed,
unconformities and many geological features on the subsurface. Seismic data
helps us to trace the path of salt movement and hydrocarbon movement. The
basic assumption behind seismic stratigraphy is that individual reflector can be
considered as timelines i.e. it is representing a very short time interval of similar
sedimentation conditions. This assumption signifies that seismic reflector can
have the different depositional environment and therefore it has information of
various lithofacies units. However, for seismic stratigraphic analysis, only
sedimentary reflections should be used.

Modern seismic data allow the entire inferred migration pathway to be imaged.
In cases where migration pathways extend to the seafloor, sea-bottom
hydrocarbon occurrences and surface slicks can be used to document active
migration.

Fig 10 shows that, to the east of the present-day Mississippi River Delta, source
intervals occur at depths between about 16,000 and 35,000 ft (4900–10,700 m)
and are generally visible on seismic sections because of only limited interference
by small, simple salt bodies above source levels.
In contrast, to the west, the source intervals commonly occur at depths between
30,000 and 45,000+ ft (9200–13,700+ m), and seismic visibility is hampered by
the presence of multi layered salt sills and/or salt welds with complex
geometries formed by sediment loading. Interpretation of hydrocarbon families
and source intervals in this more complex setting was guided by extending
westward the observations and methodologies developed in the east and north.
Most 2-D seismic surveys designed to image common reservoir intervals are
generally inadequate to only marginally adequate for imaging deeper source
intervals and migration pathways. These data are typically high (60–75) fold,
acquired with 4000–4500 m of cable, and recorded to 8 seconds (s). Dramatic
improvements in imaging the total hydrocarbon system are provided by a longer
cable (6000 m), 3-D versus 2-D acquisition, and longer recording times (15 s). To
date, 3-D data collected using a 6000-m cable have provided some of the best
resolution (Gross et al., 1995). We used more than 3500 mi2 (9100 km2) of 3-D
seismic data and 25,000 line-mile (40,250 line-km) of 2-D seismic data within the
area east of the Mississippi River Delta, including a 4-mi (6.4km) grid of 6000-m
cable data, recorded to 15 s. A similar amount of seismic data was interpreted
to the west of the Mississippi River Delta, on the Louisiana Shelf and Slope and
the Texas Slope.
 Fig 10: Regional seismic line from the eastern Gulf of Mexico that illustrates
limited disruption, by salt, of the shallow stratigraphic section

Figure11 illustrates several potential as well as some unlikely migration

pathways on the eastern Gulf of Mexico Slope. Notice how the salt stock on the
right part of the seismic line penetrates all potential source intervals and
provides a strong focus of hydrocarbons into the cross-stratal conduit. Several
seismic-amplitude anomalies shallower in the section appear to connect to this
pathway extending below the shallow salt. The large fault on the lower left part
of the seismic line also cuts the potential source intervals, but the dip of the
source on the downthrown side of the fault appears to provide less migration
focus into the cross-stratal conduit in this 2-D view. A somewhat smaller seismic-
amplitude anomaly connects to the conduit shallower in the section. Many other
shallow faults on this part of the line do not intersect the source intervals and
thus would have limited potential as effective migration conduits.

Figure 12 illustrates the interpreted migration pathway for a major discovery on

the Gulf of Mexico Slope. The interpreted collapsed salt stock is labeled “salt-
ascension zone” under the salt body. The collapsed salt stock appears to be the
main conduit connecting the uppermost Jurassic (Tithonian) source interval to
Miocene reservoirs.
 Fig 11: A seismic line showing the source intervals and several potential
hydrocarbon migration pathways

Fig 12: Example of a seismic line showing the interpreted cross-stratal

migration pathway to a large discovery in the southern Mississippi Canyon.
C) Prepare a Risk matrix diagram and calculate the CoS of
a prospect situated in your basin and explain the
probabilities of all the elements in detail.

Risk Matrix for Well 1

Source Rock 0.8

Migration 0.75

Reservoir 0.83

Seal Capacity 0.88

Trap 0.87

Chance of Success (COS) 38.12%

 COS of Source Rock

0.32
Source Quality

0.48
Source Presence

0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5

Source Presence Source Quality
Individual COS 0.48 0.32

COS of Migration

Preservation

Migration Pathway

Migration and timing

Generation History

0 0.05 0.1 0.15 0.2 0.25

Generation History Migration and timing Migration Pathway Preservation

Individual COS 0.2 0.15 0.17 0.23
 COS of Reservoir

Diagenesis 0.2

Porosity & Permeability 0.22

Reservoir Continuity 0.17

Reservoir Presence 0.24

0 0.05 0.1 0.15 0.2 0.25

Reservoir Presence Reservoir Continuity Porosity & Permeability Diagenesis

Individual COS 0.24 0.17 0.22 0.2

COS of Trap
Stratigraphic Column Height

Depth Variation

Velocity Variation

Data Control

Data Quality

0 0.02 0.04 0.06 0.08 0.1 0.12 0.14 0.16 0.18 0.2

Stratigraphic Column
Data Quality Data Control Velocity Variation Depth Variation
Height
Individual COS 0.19 0.18 0.16 0.15 0.19
 COS of Seal Capacity

Pore Pressure

Thickness of Sealing Facies

Seal Lithology

0 0.05 0.1 0.15 0.2 0.25 0.3 0.35

Seal Lithology Thickness of Sealing Facies Pore Pressure

Individual COS 0.32 0.3 0.26

COS= (0.8*0.75*0.83*0.87*0.88) =38.12%

COS = Chance Of Success
Risk= (1-COS) = 1-0.3812 = 0.6188 = 61.88%

Symbols
SR – Source Rock
M - Migration
R – Reservoir
T – Trap
S – Seal Capacity
 COS of Petroleum Elements

Source Rock
0.88
0.86
0.84
0.82
0.8
0.78
0.76
Seal 0.74 Migration
0.72
0.7
0.68

Trap Reservoir