In this month's AAPG BULLETIN...

January 2009

Middle Atokan sediment gravity flows in the Red Oak field, Arkoma Basin, Oklahoma – A sedimentary analysis using electrical borehole images and wireline logs

Chunming Xu, Thomas P. Cronin, Thalbert E. McGinness, and Brad Steer

Multiwell borehole images and open-hole logs allow detailed analysis of structural and depositional processes in two turbidite systems. Facies, bedding features, and syndepositional deformation structures are used to correlate and map the Red Oak and Fanshawe units across the field.

Remote sensing detection of heavy oil through spectral enhancement techniques in the western slope zone of Songliao Basin, China

Guifang Zhang, Lejun Zou, Xiaohua Shen, Shanlong Lu, Changjiang Li, and Hanlin Chen

Landsat-7 enhanced thematic mapper plus images were spectrally enhanced to identify areas of hydrocarbon leakage on the western slope of the Songliao Basin, China. Field data and image analyses are consistent, indicating these remotely sensed data are feasible for detecting surficial anomalies resulting from subsurface hydrocarbon leakage.

Origin of overpressure and pore-pressure prediction in the Baram province, Brunei

Mark R. P. Tingay, Richard R. Hillis, Richard E. Swarbrick, Chris K. Morley, and Abdul Razak Damit

Overpressures in inner shelf deltaic sediments are transferred via faults from underlying prodelta shales. Sonic and density log data can be used to distinguish vertically transferred and disequilibrium-compaction overpressures, which require different pore-pressure prediction strategies.

Present-day stress and neotectonics of Brunei: implications for petroleum exploration and production

Mark R. P. Tingay, Richard R. Hillis, Chris K. Morley, Rosalind C. King, Richard E. Swarbrick, and Abdul Razak Damit

Variation in contemporary stress across the Baram Delta, Brunei reveals a delta system that is inverting and self-cannibalizing as the delta system rapidly progrades across the margin. Orientation of maximum horizontal stress rotates across the basin, with implications for fault reactivation and optimal directional drilling.

Quantitative seismic geomorphology of a quaternary leveed-channel system, offshore eastern Trinidad and Tobago, northeastern South America

Lesli J. Wood and Kristine L. Mize-Spansky

A study of a 200-ms interval of a deep-marine leveed-channel system immediately below the modern sea floor offshore Trinidad suggests that local structural features and sea-floor slopes exert more influence on channel morphology and occurrence than do eustatic sea level factors. This could aid in development of predictive models of reservoir distribution and channel-system morphology in similar settings around the world.

Physical properties of Cenozoic mudstones from the northern North Sea: Impact of clay mineralogy on compaction trends

Øyvind Marcussen, Brit I. Thyberg, Christer Peltonen, Jens Jahren, Knut Bjørlykke, and Jan Inge Faleide

Vertical and lateral variations in clay content of North Sea mudstones are examined and considered in terms of burial history and provenance. Smectite content affects compaction, with implications for overpressuring, seismic response, density, and basin modeling.

About the BULLETIN

First published in 1917 as the Bulletin of the Southwestern Association of Petroleum Geologists--AAPG’s predecessor organization--in order to disseminate scientific material from annual meetings of the S.A.P.G., the AAPG Bulletin changed its name one year later when S.A.P.G. became AAPG.

The AAPG Bulletin has been delivering quality research to the scientific world ever since. The first issue contained papers written by the best-known geologists of the day, and included papers on such topics as South America, Europe, and general geologic problems of structure and sedimentation.

While the 21st-century AAPG Bulletin has undergone some changes since 1917, enlarging to 8 ½ x 11” size to incorporate more material and being published digitally as well as in print, it continues to adhere to the primary purpose of the organization, which is to advance the science of geology especially as it relates to petroleum, natural gas, other subsurface fluids, and mineral resources.

Delivered digitally or in print monthly to each AAPG Member as a part of membership dues, the AAPG Bulletin is one of the most respected, peer-reviewed technical journals in existence, with recent issues containing papers focused on such topics as the Middle East, channel detection, China, permeability, subseismic fault prediction, the U.S., and Africa.