Petrophysical properties of igneous rocks in continental rift basins – a case study from the Mesozoic sequence of the Browse Basin, North West Shelf of Australia
Kosuke Tsutsui A B * , Simon Holford A , Mark Bunch A , Rosalind King A , Ken McClay A and Nick Schofield CA Discipline of Earth Sciences, University of Adelaide, SA 5005, Australia.
B INPEX Corporation, Tokyo, Japan.
C Department of Geology and Geophysics, University of Aberdeen, AB24 3UE, Scotland, UK.
The APPEA Journal 63 S280-S285 https://doi.org/10.1071/AJ22032
Accepted: 1 March 2023 Published: 11 May 2023
© 2023 The Author(s) (or their employer(s)). Published by CSIRO Publishing on behalf of APPEA.
Abstract
Capturing the ubiquitous distribution and properties of igneous rocks is necessary to succeed in hydrocarbon exploration, field development and underground gas storage when dealing with magma-rich rift margins. In recent years, numerous researches have revealed detailed morphologies of intrusive and extrusive rock units embedded within sedimentary basins owing to advances in 3D seismic data. Outcrop studies have also provided deeper understandings of their occurrence and geometries. However, there has been comparatively little focus on the rock physics of igneous bodies and their relationships to seismic expression. To bridge this gap between the outcrop and the seismic information, we undertook a well-log-based petrophysical study of igneous rocks using subsurface dataset from the Browse Basin located in the Australian North West Shelf. In this contribution, we describe a classification of volcanic facies (e.g. lava flows, volcaniclastics, intrusive sills) based on well log motifs and textures apparent in borehole image data. Statistics of the petrophysical properties of each volcanic facies are also analysed in order to examine their correlation to seismic patterns. Our study implies the importance of detailed characterisation of igneous petrophysical properties of igneous rock units where concentrated within a sedimentary basin, which will help reconcile interpretations of seismic data.
Keywords: Australian North West Shelf, Browse Basin, exploration, igneous rocks, petrophysics, rift basin, rock physics, seismic facies, volcanics.
Kosuke Tsutsui is a PhD student in the Discipline of Earth Sciences, University of Adelaide. He graduated with a BSc (2011) and MSc (2013) from Waseda University, Tokyo, Japan. His research interests are tectono-magmatism of rifted margins and seismic geomorphologies. Kosuke is a member of AAPG, ASEG, GSA and PESA. |
Simon Holford is the South Australian State Chair of Petroleum Geoscience in the Discipline of Earth Sciences, University of Adelaide. He graduated with a BSc-Hons from Keele University in 2001 and a PhD from the University of Birmingham in 2006. His research interests are passive margins, deformation, uplift, magmatic evolution of rifted margins, sedimentary basins, and continental interiors and their impact on hydrocarbon exploration. Simon is a member of the AAPG, AGU, GSA, GSL and PESA. |
Mark Bunch is a Senior Lecturer in the Discipline of Earth Sciences, University of Adelaide. He graduated with a BSc (Hons) from Durham University in 2000, before completing an MSc in 2001 then a PhD in 2006 at the University of Birmingham, UK. His research interests include the application of AI and machine learning to petroleum industry problems, formation evaluation and seismic geomorphology. Mark is a member of AAPG, ASEG and PESA. |
Rosalind C. King is an Associate Professor and Head of the Department of Earth Sciences, University of Adelaide. She graduated with a BSc-Hons (2001) and a PhD (2006) from the University of Liverpool. Her research interests include structural geology, deepwater fold-thrust belts, detachments, fault and fracture mechanics, fault-controlled permeability and petroleum geomechanics. |
Ken McClay is an Adjunct Professor of the Discipline of Earth Sciences, University of Adelaide. He graduated with an Honours degree in Economic Geology from the University of Adelaide in 1970, and following MSc and PhD degrees from Imperial College London, he spent 27 years as Professor of Structural Geology at Royal Holloway, before returning to Adelaide early in 2019. |
Nick Schofield is a Reader in Igneous and Petroleum Geology at the University of Aberdeen. He gained his undergraduate degree in Geology from the University of Edinburgh, before undertaking a PhD at the University of Birmingham investigating the emplacement of sill intrusions. Nick has worked and published extensively on intrusive and extrusive volcanism within sedimentary basins globally and works closely with the petroleum industry on igneous-related aspects of the subsurface. |
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