Geothermal effects of salt structures on marine sedimentary basins and implications for hydrocarbon thermal evolution

Liu, Shaowen; Yang, Xiaoqiu; Qiu, Nansheng; Yang, Shengli; Li, Xudong

doi:10.1360/n972017-00076

Cited by 10 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 15 publications

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“…(1) The average heat flow and unified geothermal gradient indicate that the Tarim Basin and Sichuan Basin belong to the 'cold' and 'warm' basin types, respectively. The differential variation of the unified geothermal (Liu et al, 2017). gradient with depth between the Tarim and Sichuan basins is probably related to the diverse distribution of the rock heat production rate and thermal conductivity of the strata.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Thermal refraction generated by the contrast in thermal conductivity between salt and sediment usually results in a higher temperature than background above the salt and a lower temperature than surroundings at the base of the salt (Corrigan and Sweat, 1995). Based on the numerical simulations, Liu et al (2017) considered that the Paleogene gypsum and salt layers in the Kuqa Depression generated a higher temperature in the overlying sediments with an increment of 10-20°C and a lower temperature below the salt layer with a decrement of 4-8°C compared to the surrounding layers at the same depth (Fig. 9c).…”

Section: Influence Aspect For Ultra-deep Geothermal Field Variationmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Differential Thermal Regimes of the Tarim and Sichuan Basins in China: Implications for Hydrocarbon Generation and Conservation

Chang

Qiu

et al. 2022

Acta Geologica Sinica (Eng)

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The ultra-deep strata below ~6,000 m in sedimentary basins have become the most important driver for hydrocarbon exploration and development in China, in the context of the increasing energy demand and the decrease in recovery for shallow oil and gas fields (Jin, 2011;Zou et al., 2018). In recent years, some giant oil and gas fields, such as the Shunbei oil field in the Tarim Basin and the Anyue gas field in the Sichuan Basin, were discovered (Wang et al., 2014;Zou et al., 2014;Jiao, 2018). It is noteworthy that the ultra-deep Cambrian and Ordovician reservoirs in the Tarim Basin still develop liquid hydrocarbon, while the ultra-deep Sinian and Cambrian reservoirs in the Sichuan Basin only retain gaseous hydrocarbon. Why are the oil and gas phases between these two basins for ultra-deep strata so different?The formation temperature plays an essential role in hydrocarbon generation and conservation in petroliferous basins. Therefore, it is necessary to clarify the thermal regimes of the Tarim and Sichuan basins in order to resolve the above question. Previous studies have done some work on the present-day geothermal field and thermal history of these two basins (

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Influence Aspect For Ultra-deep Geothermal Field Variationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Differential Thermal Regimes of the Tarim and Sichuan Basins in China: Implications for Hydrocarbon Generation and Conservation

Chang

Qiu

et al. 2022

Acta Geologica Sinica (Eng)

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“…The results demonstrate that the temperature of the upper layer of the salt body in the salt rock sedimentation area increases by 17-25°C and that a strong local geothermal gradient forms 25 . At the same time, the sedimentation of salt rocks can also suppress the thermal evolution of the pre-salt hydrocarbon source rocks 11,[26][27][28][29][30][31][32] .…”

Section: Impact Of Salt Rock On the Present Geothermal Eldsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In addition to serving as high-quality cap rocks for oil and gas reservoirs, salt rocks also have special thermophysical properties: high thermal conductivity and a low heat generation rate. Tests have indicated that the thermal conductivity of salt rocks can reach 6 W/(m•K), which is 2-3 times that of ordinary sedimentary rocks, and the heat generation rate can be as low as 0.01-0.23 µW/m 3 , only 1/20 to 1/30 of that of ordinary sedimentary rocks 11 . Heat from the pre-salt strata is conducted through the salt rock to the overlying strata, resulting in a hot blanket effect and causing higher earth temperatures on the overlying rocks or the anks of salt domes.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Present Geothermal Fields in the Santos Basin, Brazil

Zuo

Wang

Lan

et al. 2023

Preprint

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The Santos Basin, located in the southeastern waters of Brazil, is a passive continental margin basin with the most abundant deepwater petroleum resources in the world discovered to date. However, few studies have been conducted on the present geothermal fields of the Santos Basin, which severely restricts the oil and gas resource evaluation of the basin. This study first utilizes 35 temperature data from 16 post-salt drilling wells and 370 temperature data from 31 pre-salt drilling wells to calculate the post-salt and pre-salt geothermal gradients and terrestrial heat flows in the Santos Basin. Then, the basin simulation software BasinMod 1D is used to quantitatively evaluate the impacts of salt rock sedimentation on the present geothermal fields and the maturity of pre-salt hydrocarbon source rocks. The results demonstrate that the present post-salt geothermal gradient in the Santos Basin is 2.20–3.97 ℃/100m, with an average value of 2.99 ℃/100m, and the post-salt terrestrial heat flow is 54.00-97.32 mW/m2, with an average value of 73.36 mW/m2, while the present pre-salt geothermal gradient is 2.21–2.95 ℃/100m, with an average value of 2.53 ℃/100m, and the pre-salt terrestrial heat flow is 61.85–82.59 mW/m2, with an average value of 70.69 mW/m2. These values are characteristic of a low-temperature geothermal fields in a zone with a stable structure. The sedimentation of the salt rock causes a decrease in the temperature of the pre-salt strata, which inhibits pre-salt hydrocarbon source rock maturity, with an inhibition rate of up to 1.32%. The inhibition degree decreases with increasing salt rock thickness. At the same time, the salt rock thickness is positively correlated with the present surface heat flow. The unique distribution of the salt rock and related salt structures lead to present terrestrial heat flow differences among different structural units in the basin. This study is of great significance for evaluating and exploring the pre-salt oil and gas resources in the Santos Basin.

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“…The Sichuan Basin has deposits of sedimentary rocks that are up to 10,000 m thick and can be dated to early as Sinian (Guo et al, 1996;Liu et al, 2006), with diverse rock types and depositional systems. The Sinian-Middle Triassic strata are marine facies, which are dominated by carbonate rocks such as limestone and dolomite but also contain mudstone and sandstone.…”

Section: Geological Settingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Thermal Lithospheric Thickness of the Sichuan Basin and its Geological Implications

Zhu

Qiu

CHEN

et al. 2022

Acta Geologica Sinica (Eng)

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Thermal lithospheric thickness is an important parameter in studying the tectonic-thermal evolution of basins and plate dynamics. Based on the measured geothermal data and thermophysical properties of the rocks, the thermal lithospheric thickness of the Sichuan Basin was calculated according to the principles of heat conduction in the crust and lithospheric mantle. The calculation results revealed that the thickness of the thermal lithosphere in the Sichuan Basin is 140-190 km and is unevenly distributed. The thickness of the thermal lithosphere in central Sichuan and southwestern Sichuan is less than 160 km, while that in the western Sichuan depression and eastern Sichuan is larger (~180 km). The distribution of the thermal lithospheric thickness in the basin has a good correlation with the geological units and the thickness of the sedimentary layers. The thickness of the thermal lithosphere in the depression area, which has thick sedimentary layers and the fault-fold zone with shallow crustal deformation and thickening, are larger than that in the basement uplifted area, which has thin sedimentary layers. The calculated thermal lithospheric thickness is in good agreement with the geophysical data and reflects the stable conduction temperature field in the Sichuan Basin. The present thermal regime and thermal lithospheric thickness of the Sichuan Basin indicate that flexural thickening of the lithosphere occurred in the eastern Sichuan fault-fold belt and the Longmen Mountain-Western Sichuan depression foreland basin system, while asthenospheric uplift occurred in the central Sichuan region, which were the result of the expansion of the Xuefeng orogeny from the east and the compression of the Tibetan Plateau from the west.

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Geothermal effects of salt structures on marine sedimentary basins and implications for hydrocarbon thermal evolution

Cited by 10 publications

References 15 publications

Differential Thermal Regimes of the Tarim and Sichuan Basins in China: Implications for Hydrocarbon Generation and Conservation

Differential Thermal Regimes of the Tarim and Sichuan Basins in China: Implications for Hydrocarbon Generation and Conservation

Present Geothermal Fields in the Santos Basin, Brazil

Thermal Lithospheric Thickness of the Sichuan Basin and its Geological Implications

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