Emerging New Paradigms in the Paradox Salt Basin, Utah and Colorado

Giles, Katherine A.; Langford, Richard P.; Hearon, Thomas E.; Brunner, Benjamin; Rowan, Mark G.; Lawton, Timothy L.; Deatrick, Kyle; Escosa, Frederic O.; Foster, Ann; Heness, Elizabeth A.; Lerer, Kevin; Mast, Allison; McFarland, Joshua Coleman; Shock, Austin L.

doi:10.1130/abs/2016am-285695

Cited by 4 publications

(7 citation statements)

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“…These units may record brief episodes of relatively minor shoulder-collapse due to dissolution and/or salt expulsion (cf. Giles et al, 2018). The width of the salt shoulders varied along-strike (Figs.…”

Section: Diapir and Minibasin Evolutionmentioning

confidence: 95%

“…Although the third option seems more likely, our current knowledge and limited published data on salt shoulders (cf. Giles et al, 2018) do now afford a distinction between these three processes.…”

Section: Salt Shouldersmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…10). It varies in shape and dimension along-strike, passing northwards into a smaller diapir containing a 1.5 km wide salt shoulder (sensu Giles et al 2018) half-way up its western flank (Fig. 11), and ultimately into a salt roller (sensu Vendeville and Jackson, 1992a) at its northern end (Fig.…”

Section: Overall Geometrymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Salt shoulders are zones of abrupt diapir narrowing due to differential salt-rise from the diapir margin to its centre as a function of salt supply, dissolution and roof thickness (Giles et al, 2018). We recognise salt shoulders in our study-area, with the related stratal architecture and transition patterns between non-shoulder and shoulder-related strata being characterized by: i) a switch from tabular CHS to tapered CHS, ii) a marked increase in the width of folding and thinning of tapered CHSs, and iii) rollovers within which strata dip in towards and thicken into the hinges of near-diapir flank synclines.…”

Section: Salt Shouldersmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…iii) shoulder collapse due to dissolution (Giles et al, 2018). Although the third option seems more likely, our current knowledge and limited published data on salt shoulders (cf.…”

Section: Salt Shouldersmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Four-dimensional Variability of Composite Halokinetic Sequences

Pichel¹,

Jackson²

2019

Preprint

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The architecture of salt diapir-flank strata (i.e. halokinetic sequences) is controlled by the interplay between volumetric diapiric flux and sediment accumulation rate. Halokinetic sequences consist of unconformity-bounded packages of thinned and folded strata formed by drape-folding around passive diapirs. These sequences are described by two end-members: (i) hooks, which are characterized by narrow zones of folding (<200 m) and high-angle truncations (>70°); and (ii) wedges, which are typified by broad zones of folding (300-1000 m) and low-angle truncations (<30°). Hooks and wedges stack to form tabular and tapered composite halokinetic sequences (CHS), respectively. CHSs were first and most thoroughly described from outcrop-based studies that, although able to capture their high-resolution facies variations, are limited in describing their 4D variability. This study integrates 3D seismic data from the SE Precaspian Basin, onshore Kazakhstan and structural restorations to examine variations in CHS architecture through time and space along diapirs with variable plan-form and cross-sectional geometries. The diapirs consist of curvilinear walls that vary from upright to inclined in cross-section, may flare-upward and locally display well-developed salt shoulders and/or laterally transition into salt rollers. CHS architecture is highly variable in both time and space, even along a single diapir or minibasin. A single CHS can transition along a salt wall and/or minibasin from tabular to tapered geometries. They can also be downturned and exhibit rollover geometries with thickening towards the diapir above salt shoulders. These variations can be linked to changes in the diapir morphology. Inclined walls present a greater proportion of tapered CHSs implying an overall greater ratio between sediment accumulation and salt-rise relatively to vertical walls. In terms of vertical stacking, CHS can present a typical zonation with lower tapered, intermediate tabular and upper tapered CHSs, but also unique patterns where the lower sequences are tabular and transition upward to tapered CHS. The study demonstrates that CHSs are more variable than previously thought, indicating a complex interplay between volumetric salt rise, diapir-flank geometry, sediment accumulation and roof dimensions. Ultimately, this improves our understanding of diapir-flank deformation and potential minibasin reservoir distribution.

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Section: Diapir and Minibasin Evolutionmentioning

confidence: 95%

Section: Salt Shouldersmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Overall Geometrymentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Salt Shouldersmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…iii) shoulder collapse due to dissolution (Giles et al, 2018). Although the third option seems more likely, our current knowledge and limited published data on salt shoulders (cf.…”

Section: Salt Shouldersmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Four-dimensional Variability of Composite Halokinetic Sequences

Pichel¹,

Jackson²

2019

Preprint

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Compositional variation of the Zechstein Group in the Norwegian North sea: Implications for underground storage in salt caverns

2023

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Halite beds in the upper Permian Zechstein Group represent an opportunity for the future development of underground storage caverns. However, geological factors such as lithological heterogeneities, cap rock characteristics and depth can affect the sealing capacity and the integrity of the cavern or contaminate the stored fluid. The main objective of this paper is to evaluate these factors focusing on the compositional variation of the Zechstein Group in different salt structures in the Norwegian North Sea, and related opportunities and challenges for salt cavern storage. Based on deformation style, geometry, height and thickness of the salt structures, we have divided the Zechstein Group into four main categories: (1) thin beds, which can be either carbonate‐anhydrite or clastic dominated. Halite is absent and therefore there is no potential for the development of salt caverns. (2 and 3) bedded to weakly deformed evaporites and intermediate size salt structures, where thick halite beds of more than 300 m are present, but they are usually deeper than 2000 m. Lithological heterogeneities in the halite consist of a mix of competent and incompetent (K‐Mg salts) lithologies. (4) Tall diapirs, characterized by shallower structures (<2000 m), with large deformation and poor seismic image. Thin layers of incompetent K‐Mg salts are observed in these diapirs. The composition, thickness and deformation of the cap rock vary greatly in the area. Thick halite beds are recognized in most salt structures, suggesting an opportunity for underground storage. The challenges are related to the depth of the halite, amount and type of heterogeneities, characteristics of the cap rock and deformation in the different salt structures. These results also have implications for the distribution of reservoir and source rocks, and the evolution of the Northern Permian Basin.

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Sedimentologic, stratigraphic, and structural evolution of minibasins and a megaflap formed during passive salt diapirism: The Neoproterozoic Witchelina diapir, Willouran Ranges, South Australia

Dalton

Giles

Rowan

et al. 2020

Journal of Sedimentary Research

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This study documents the growth of a megaflap along the flank of a passive salt diapir as a result of the long-lived interaction between sedimentation and halokinetic deformation. Megaflaps are nearly vertical to overturned, deep minibasin stratal panels that extend multiple kilometers up steep flanks of salt diapirs or equivalent welds. Recent interest has been sparked by well penetrations of unidentified megaflaps that typically result in economic failure, but their formation is also fundamental to understanding the early history of salt basins. This study represents one of the first systematic characterizations of an exposed megaflap with regards to sub-seismic sedimentologic, stratigraphic, and structural details. The Witchelina diapir is an exposed Neoproterozoic primary passive salt diapir in the eastern Willouran Ranges of South Australia. Flanking minibasin strata of the Top Mount Sandstone, Willawalpa Formation, and Witchelina Quartzite, exposed as an oblique cross section, record the early history of passive diapirism in the Willouran Trough, including a halokinetically drape-folded megaflap. Witchelina diapir offers a unique opportunity to investigate sedimentologic responses to the initiation and evolution of passive salt movement. Using field mapping, stratigraphic sections, petrographic analyses, correlation diagrams, and a quantitative restoration, we document depositional facies, thickness trends, and stratal geometries to interpret depositional environments, sequence stratigraphy, and halokinetic evolution of the Witchelina diapir and flanking minibasins. Top Mount, Willawalpa, and Witchelina strata were deposited in barrier-bar-complex to tidal-flat environments, but temporal and spatial variations in sedimentation and stratigraphic patterns were strongly influenced from the earliest stages by the passively rising Witchelina diapir on both regional (basinwide) and local minibasin scales. The salt-margin geometry was depositionally modified by an early erosional sequence boundary that exposed the Witchelina diapir and formed a salt shoulder, above which strata that eventually became the megaflap were subsequently deposited. This shift in the diapir margin and progressive migration of the depocenter began halokinetic rotation of flanking minibasin strata into a megaflap geometry, documenting a new concept in the understanding of deposition and deformation during passive diapirism in salt basins.

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Emerging New Paradigms in the Paradox Salt Basin, Utah and Colorado

Cited by 4 publications

References 0 publications

Four-dimensional Variability of Composite Halokinetic Sequences

Four-dimensional Variability of Composite Halokinetic Sequences

Compositional variation of the Zechstein Group in the Norwegian North sea: Implications for underground storage in salt caverns

Sedimentologic, stratigraphic, and structural evolution of minibasins and a megaflap formed during passive salt diapirism: The Neoproterozoic Witchelina diapir, Willouran Ranges, South Australia

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