Definition of a fault permeability predictor from outcrop studies of a faulted turbidite sequence, Taranaki, New Zealand
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Published:January 01, 2007
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CiteCitation
C. Childs, J. J. Walsh, T. Manzocchi, J. Strand, A. Nicol, M. Tomasso, M. P. J. Schöpfer, A. C. Aplin, 2007. "Definition of a fault permeability predictor from outcrop studies of a faulted turbidite sequence, Taranaki, New Zealand", Structurally Complex Reservoirs, S. J. Jolley, D. Barr, J. J. Walsh, R. J. Knipe
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Abstract
Post-depositional normal faults within the turbidite sequence of the Late Miocene Mount Messenger Formation of the Taranaki Basin, New Zealand are characterized by granulation and cataclasis of sands and by the smearing of clay beds. Clay smears maintain continuity for high ratios of fault throw to clay source bed thickness (c. 8), but are highly variable in thickness, and gaps occur at any point between the clay source bed cut-offs at higher ratios. Although cataclastic fault rock permeabilities may be appreciably lower (c. two orders of magnitude) than host rock sandstone permeabilities, the occurrence of...
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Structurally Complex Reservoirs

Structurally complex reservoirs form a distinct class of reservoir in which fault arrays and fracture networks, in particular, exert an overriding control on petroleum trapping and production behaviour. With modern exploration and production portfolios now commonly held in geologically complex settings, there is an increasing technical challenge to find new prospects and to extract remaining hydrocarbons from these reservoirs. This volume reviews our current understanding and ability to model the complex distribution and behaviour of fault and fracture networks, highlighting their fluid compartmentalizing effects and storage-transmissivity characteristics, and outlining approaches for predicting the dynamic fluid flow and geomechanical behaviour of these reservoirs. This collection of 25 papers provides an overview of recent progress and outstanding issues in the areas of (i) structural complexity and fault geometry, (ii) detection and prediction of faults and fractures, (iii) compartmentalizing effects of fault systems and complex siliciclastic reservoirs and (iv) critical controls affecting fractured reservoirs.