Logging identification and evaluation of vertical zonation of buried hill in Cambrian dolomite reservoir: A study of Yingmai-Yaha buried hill structural belt, northern Tarim basin

Abstract

Buried hill reservoir is indispensable part of karst reservoirs in northern Tarim basin, China, which is resulted from the long-term exposure of Cambrian carbonate rock due to meteoric freshwater. Four types of zones could be divided in the buried hill of Upper Cambrian Xiaqiulitage Formation in Yingmai-Yaha structure, including surface karst zone, vertical vadose zone, horizontal underflow zone and deep slow flow zone from up to bottom. Firstly, the conventional and image log response characteristics of different types of vertical karst zonation were summarized through cores, thin section and well log-calibration. The surface karst zone is close to the weathering crust, showing breccia and residual characteristics, and is recognized as bright spots appearances on the image logs. Due to the vertical movement of atmospheric fresh water, a large number of high-angle fractures and dissolution caves are developed in the vertical vadose zone, and the vertical vadose zones are characterized by high-angle sine curve appearances on the image logs. The horizontal under flow zone has a horizontally connected caves or vugs due to the horizontal movement of groundwater, and the image logs are recognized as dark bands. The conventional logs also show the decrease of resistivity and the increase of gamma ray (GR). The deep slow flow zone is less affected by karstification, and there are fewer dissolution caves and fractures, but there is also a certain weak dissolution and may contain small vugs. The image logs show isolated dark spots. The Vertical zonation of buried hill can be divided using well logs by calibrating cores, and thin sections. Finally, the core analysis, and the oil test data are used to determine the zoning of the high-quality reservoir. The results show that the four zones of the buried hills have obvious well log response characteristics. The karst zoning can be well divided by the image logs and conventional well logs when calibrated with cores. The data of core analysis and oil testing show that although the reservoir quality in the horizontal underflow zone is the best, the study area is a bottom-water reservoir, and the reservoirs in the horizontal underflow zone are mainly water-producing. On the contrary, in the vertical vadose zone, a large number of high-angle fractures communicated with small pores, which not only improved the quality of the reservoir, but also the oil test data proves that the reservoir is mainly producing oil and gas. Therefore, compared with the horizontal underflow zone and deep slow flow zone, the vertical vadose zone is favorable to the enrichment and preservation of oil and gas. The research results will provide important insights in the hydrocarbon exploration and exploitation in dolostone reservoirs of Tarim Basin.