Facies controlled porosity evolution of the Neoproterozoic Upper Bhander Sandstone of Western India

Abstract

Abstract The Upper Bhander Sandstone is dominantly composed of quartzarenites. The basal and top portions are sandstones, with the middle section comprising thinly bedded shales with interlayer silt and sandstone units. The sandstone units are composed of several varieties of quartz, feldspar, micas, rock fragments and heavy minerals. The Upper Bhander Sandstone was deposited in a transgressive phase and later modified by tidal processes and wave- and storm-dominated processes in a tide-influenced Barrier Beach Complex of the shallow marine environment. This study reveals that, during mechanical compaction, a rearrangement of grains took place and point and long contacts were formed. The early silica cementation and shallow burial resulted in high primary porosity. This phase was followed by chemical compaction and the replacement of silica cement by iron cement (Fe-cement) under the deep burial phase of these sandstones. Dissolution of Fe-cement and feldspars resulted in secondary porosity development. Quartz overgrowths are better developed on coarse- to medium-sized grains than on fine-sized grains. These observations suggest a progressive compaction, which initiated at the sediment–water interface and continued till deep burial diagenesis in a rapidly subsiding basin. The existing optical porosity of the Upper Bhander Sandstone is 4% and the minus cement porosity is 18%.