Lower Ordovician Research Articles

Experimental modeling of CO2‐fluid‐rock interaction: The evolution of the composition and properties of host rocks in the Baltic Region

AbstractThe objective of this study was to determine the influence of the possible CO2 geological storage in the Baltic Region on the composition and properties of host rocks to support more reliable petrophysical and geophysical models of CO2 plume. The geochemical, mineralogical, and petrophysical evolution of reservoir sandstones of Cambrian Series 3 Deimena Formation and transitional clayey carbonate caprocks of Lower Ordovician Zebre Formation from two offshore structures in Latvia and Lithuania and two onshore structures in Latvia, induced by laboratory‐simulated CO2 geological storage, was studied for the first time in the Baltic Region. The geochemical, mineralogical, and petrophysical parameters were measured in 15 rock samples, before and after the alteration experiment. The diagenetic alterations of reservoir rocks were represented by carbonate cementation in the top of the onshore South Kandava structure, and quartz cementation and compaction, reducing the reservoir quality, in the deepest offshore E7 structure in Lithuania. The shallowest E6 structure offshore Latvia was least affected by diagenetic processes and had the best reservoir quality that was mainly preserved during the experiment. Carbonate cement was represented by calcite and ankerite in the transitional reservoir sandstones of very low initial permeability in the upper part of the South Kandava structure. Its dissolution caused a significant increase in the effective porosity and permeability of sandstones, a decrease in the weight of samples, bulk and matrix density, and P and S wave velocities, demonstrating short‐term dissolution processes. Only slight geochemical changes occurred during the experiment in offshore reservoir sandstones. Minor dissolution of carbonate and clay cements, feldspar and some accessory minerals, and possible minor precipitation of pore‐filling secondary minerals associated with slight variations in rock properties, demonstrating both short‐term and long‐term processes, were suggested. As a novelty, this research shows the relationship between diagenetic alterations of the Cambrian Series 3 Deimena Formation reservoir sandstones and their changes caused by the CO2 injection‐like experiment.

Middle to Late Ordovician graptolite and chitinozoan biostratigraphy of the Kandava-25 drill core in western Latvia

This paper presents integrated graptolite and chitinozoan biostratigraphical data for the upper Middle and lower Upper Ordovician of the Kandava-25 drill core in Latvia, a core that overwhelmingly contains the most diverse graptoloid fauna in the East Baltic carbonate-dominated sections. Graptolites are abundant in two intervals in the Kandava-25 core. The older strata (Stirnas and Furudal formations) contain the graptolites Pseudamplexograptusdistichus, Proclimacograptusangustatus, Archiclimacograptuscaelatus, Archiclimacograptus sebyensis, Archiclimacograptusosloensis n. sp., Dicaulograptushystrix, Haddingograptuseurystoma, Haddingograptus luperus, Haddingograptus maennili n. sp., Hustedograptusteretiusculus, Hustedograptus vikarbyensis, Gymnograptuslinnarssoni, Dicellograptusvagus, Dicellograptus intortus, Dicellograptus gurleyi, Dicranograptusirregularis and Nemagraptussubtilis. These species indicate that the lower interval belongs to the P. distichus and D. vagus zones, zones that correlate with the more widely recognizable Didymograptusmurchisoni (upper part) and H.teretiusculus zones. Thus, the lower interval is late Dariwillian (Lasnamägi and Uhaku regional stages) in age. A second graptolite-rich interval begins in the middle of the Dreimani Formation and contains Nemagraptusgracilis, Hustedograptusuplandicus, Orthograptuswhitfieldi, Orthograptus calcaratusincisus, Oepikograptusbekkeri, Dicellograptussextans, Dicellograptus salopiensis, Normalograptusrotundatus and Archiclimacograptusbalticus n. sp. This fauna is Sandbian (Kukruse and Haljala regional stages) in age. Chitinozoans are abundant and well preserved throughout the Kandava-25 core. Six chitinozoan biozones and five subzones can be recognized in the upper Middle and lower Upper Ordovician strata of the core. The co-occurrence of biostratigraphically important graptolites and chitinozoans in the Kandava-25 core provides direct tie-points for Ordovician graptolite and chitinozoan biozonations. http://zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:CC9E068C-E56C-4197-89B8-E30C067B69CB

Application of an odd/even predominance of n-alkanes in oil–source rock correlation: taking the lower Paleozoic strata of the Tarim Basin as an example

The composition and distribution of n-alkanes carbon numbers reflect the source of kerogenic organic matter, sedimentary environment, and maturity of the rocks. The comparison results of the n-alkanes GC (gas chromatography) chromatograms in the Tazhong Low Uplift show that the n-alkanes of the source rocks in Upper Ordovician display an odd carbon number predominance. At the same time, Cambrian–Lower Ordovician exhibit an even carbon number predominance. The correlation between oil and source rock illustrates that crude oils in the fields of well TZ10-12 and well TZ24 stem from the Upper Ordovician source rocks. The origins of the crude oils in the fields of well TZ161-162 and well TZ45 are Cambrian–Lower Ordovician. The strata corresponding to the crude oils with odd/even carbon number predominance match the oil–source rock correlation. Thus, the characteristics of odd/even carbon number predominance in n-alkane compounds are effective for oil–source rock correlation in the Tazhong Low Uplift, Tarim Basin.

Tectonic fracture and its significance in hydrocarbon migration and accumulation: a case study on middle and lower Ordovician in Tabei Uplift of Tarim Basin, NW China

Middle and lower Ordovician carbonate rock in the Tabei Uplift of the Tarim Basin forms important fractured reservoir beds. Core and log data indicate that tectonic fractures, as the main fractures in the Tabei Uplift, could be mainly classified into two types: oblique fractures and approximately vertical fractures. The fractures are mainly NNW‐trending and NNE‐trending, coincident with the large faults nearby. Fracture abundance was also controlled by lithology, and faults nearby played a significant role. Cores, thin sections and tests show that these carbonate rocks have as much as 2.5% fracture porosity and as much as 150 md fracture permeability. Based on the intersection of fractures in cores, together with fluid inclusion temperature data, and the timing of faulting from seismic profiles, tectonic fractures were considered to be mainly formed in three periods: the late Silurian when the first‐stage oblique fractures were formed, the late Permian when approximately vertical fractures were formed, and the late Tertiary when the second‐stage oblique fractures were formed. Lower Cambrian source rocks started to enter the stage of generous hydrocarbon generation and expulsion in the Silurian. Ordovician source rocks started to enter the stage of generous hydrocarbon generation and expulsion in the Permian and enter the over‐mature stage in the late Tertiary when light oil was generated. Timing of tectonic fractures formation and burial history analysis suggest that fractures formation might coincide with oil accumulation when fractures provided the pathway and storage space for the low permeability and low porosity reservoir beds caused by previous compaction and cementation. Considering the presence of a large amount of fracture‐developed dolomite in the deeper Ordovician Penglaiba Formation, the undrilled Penglaiba Formation should be paid more attention. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Lower and Middle Ordovician conodonts of Laurentian affinity from blocks of limestone in the Rosroe Formation, South Mayo Trough, western Ireland and their palaeogeographic implication

The Middle Ordovician Rosroe Formation consists of some 1350 m of coarse, mainly siliciclastic to volcaniclastic sedimentary rocks, deposited in a submarine fan environment, and is restricted to the southern limb of the South Mayo Trough, western Ireland. Discrete allochthonous blocks, reaching 5 m in size, are present in the formation at several localities. Conodonts recovered from these blocks, collected from two separate locations, are of late Early and mid Mid Ordovician age. The conodonts have high conodont‐alteration indices (CAI 5) indicative of temperatures as high as 300o to max. 480 °C; some found in the Lough Nafooey area have abnormally high indices (CAI 6), which correspond to temperatures of about 360o to max. 550 °C. The oldest fauna is dominated by Periodon aff. aculeatus and characterized by Oepikodus evae typical of the Oepikodus evae Zone (Floian Stage; Stage Slices Fl2–3, Lower Ordovician). The younger conodont assemblage, characterized by Periodon macrodentatus associated with Oistodella pulchra, is referred to the P. macrodentatus conodont Biozone (lower Darriwilian; Stage Slices Dw1–2). The Rosroe conodont assemblages are of Laurentian affinity; comparable faunas are well known from several locations along the east to south‐eastern platform margin of Laurentia and the Notre Dame subzone of central Newfoundland, Canada. The faunal composition from the limestone blocks suggests a shelf edge to slope (or fringing carbonate) setting. The faunal assemblages are coeval with, respectively, the Tourmakeady Formation (Floian–Dapingian) and Srah Formation (Darriwilian) in the Tourmakeady Volcanic Group in the eastern part of the South Mayo Trough and probably are derived from the same or similar laterally equivalent short‐lived carbonate successions that accumulated at offshore ‘peri‐Laurentian’ islands, close to and along the Laurentian margin. During collapse of the carbonate system in the late Mid Ordovician, the blocks were transported down a steep slope and into deep‐water by debris flows, mixing with other rock types now found in the coarse polymict clastics of the Rosroe Formation. The faunas fill the stratigraphical ‘gap’ between the Lower Ordovician Lough Nafooey Volcanic Group and the upper Middle Ordovician Rosroe Formation in the South Mayo Trough and represent a brief interval conducive to carbonate accumulation in an otherwise siliciclastic‐ and volcaniclastic‐dominated sedimentary environment. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Lower Ordovician (Arenig) shallow-marine trace fossils of the Pochico Formation, southern Spain: palaeoenvironmental and palaeogeographic implications at the Gondwanan and peri-Gondwanan realm

Nineteen ichnospecies belonging to thirteen ichnogenera (Archaeonassa, Catenichnus,Cochlichnus, Cruziana, Didymaulichnus, ?Diplichnites, Gordia, Lingulichnus, Lockeia, cf.Monocraterion, Planolites, Ptychoplasma, and Rusophycus) occur in the Pochico Formation(Arenig) in the Aldeaquemada section, Sierra Morena, southern Spain, just above the ArmoricanQuartzite. They belong to the archetypal Cruziana ichnofacies, indicating a lower shoreface-upperoffshore zone. The low degree of sediment reworking may be due to a high rate of sedimentation.The trace fossil assemblage, rich in large Cruziana, is typical of the Armorican Quartzite thatdeveloped on the margins of Gondwana and peri-Gondwanan microcontinents. The distribution ofichnofauna during the Early Ordovician was partly palaeogeographically controlled, althoughichnological data from the literature point to paths of migration between Gondwana, Baltica andLaurentia. Differences between the ichnofauna of Gondwana and Baltica could be conditioned byfacies (clastics in Gondwana and carbonates in Baltica) causing a taphonomic filter, becauseCruziana requires diversified clastic deposits for preservation. The ichnofauna would also beinfluenced by trophic group amensalism between filter feeding and deposit feeding fauna, theformer prevailing in Baltica and the latter in Gondwana.

Stratigraphic trends in detrital zircon geochronology of upper Neoproterozoic and Cambrian strata, Osgood Mountains, Nevada, and elsewhere in the Cordilleran miogeocline: Evidence for early Cambrian uplift of the Transcontinental Arch

U-Pb detrital zircon geochronology provides insight into the provenance of the upper Neoproterozoic–lower Cambrian Osgood Mountain Quartzite and the upper Cambrian–lower Ordovician Preble Formation in the Osgood Mountains of northern Nevada (USA). We analyzed 535 detrital zircon grains from six samples of quartz arenite by laser ablation–multicollector–inductively coupled plasma–mass spectrometry. The detrital zircon age data of these Neoproterozoic–lower Paleozoic passive margin units record a provenance change within the Osgood Mountain Quartzite. Comparison of these data with the work of others reveals that this change in provenance occurred in correlative strata throughout an east-west transect of the Great Basin. From latest Neoproterozoic through earliest Cambrian time, most grains were shed from the 1.0–1.2 Ga Grenville orogen. After that time, drainage patterns changed and most grains were derived from the 1.6–1.8 Ga Yavapai and Mazatzal provinces; very few grains from the Grenville orogen were found in the younger strata. We suggest that this shift records the uplift, in early Cambrian time, of the Transcontinental Arch. Our data also support our interpretation that the Osgood Mountain Quartzite and the Preble Formation are correlative to other contemporaneous passive margin strata in western Laurentia.

Index of Fossiliferous Localities of the TŘenice Formation (Lower Ordovician of the Prague Basin, Czech Republic)

Abstract Twenty nine fossiliferous localities of the Třenice Formation are described. As we were able to find they represent all fossil sites ever been described from that basal unit of the Prague Basin. Based on critical evaluation of the previously published data fossil taxa from all relevant publications are summa-rized and historic names used for the localities are mentioned. Updated lists of fauna are compiled for each locality as well as for the formation as a whole.

Origin and quantitative source assessment of deep oils in the Tazhong Uplift, Tarim Basin

A large amount of deep oil has been discovered in the Tazhong Uplift, Tarim Basin whereas the oil source is still controversial. An integrated geochemical approach was utilized to unravel the characteristics, origin and alteration of the deep oils. This study showed that the Lower Cambrian oil from well ZS1C (▪1x) was featured by small or trace amounts of biomarkers, unusually high concentration of dibenzothiophenes (DBTs), high δ34S of DBTs and high δ13C value of n-alkanes. These suggest a close genetic relationship with the Cambrian source rocks and TSR alteration. On the contrary, the Middle Cambrian oils from well ZS1 (▪2a) were characterized by low δ13C of n-alkanes and relatively high δ34S of individual sulfur compounds and a general “V” shape of steranes, indicating a good genetic affinity with the Middle–Upper Ordovician source rocks. The middle Cambrian salt rock separating the oils was suggested to be one of the factors responsible for the differentiation. It was suggested that most of the deep oils in the Tazhong Uplift were mixed source based on biomarkers and carbon isotope, which contain TSR altered oil in varied degree. The percentage of the oils contributed by the Cambrian–Lower Ordovician was in the range of 19–100% (average 57%) controlled by several geological and geochemical events. Significant variations in the δ34S values for individual compounds in the oils were observed suggesting a combination of different extent of TSR and thermal maturation alterations. The unusually high DBTs concentrations in the Tazhong-4 oilfield suggested as a result of mixing with the ZS1C oil (▪1x) and Lower Ordovician oils based on δ34S values of DBT. This study will enhance our understanding of both deep and shallow oil sources in the Tazhong Uplift and clarify the formation mechanisms of the unusually high DBTs oils in the region.

The distribution characteristic and its significance of compound specific isotopic composition of aromatic hydrocarbon from marine source rock and oil in the Tarim Basin, western China

Aromatic hydrocarbons are generally main distillation of crude oil and organic extract of source rocks. Bicyclic and tricyclic aromatic hydrocarbons can be purified by two-step method of chromatography on alumina. Carbon isotopic composition of individual aromatic hydrocarbons is affected not only by thermal maturity, but also by organic matter input, depositional environment, and hydrocarbon generation process based on the GC-IRMS analysis of Upper Ordovician, Lower Ordovician, and Cambrian source rocks in different areas in the Tarim Basin, western China. The subgroups of aromatic hydrocarbons as well as individual aromatic compound, such as 1-MP, 9-MP, and 2,6-DMP from Cambrian-Lower Ordovician section show more depleted 13C distribution. The δ13C value difference between Cambrian-Lower Ordovician section and Upper Ordovician source rocks is up to 16.1‰ for subgroups and 14‰ for individual compounds. It can provide strong evidence for oil sourc correlation by combing the δ13C value and biomarker distribution of different oil and source rocks from different strata in the Tarim Basin. Most oils from Tazhong area have geochemical characteristics such as more negative δ13C9-MP value, poor gammacerane, and abundant homohopanes, which indicate that Upper Ordovician source rock is the main source rock. In contrast, oils from Tadong area and some oils from Tazhong area have geochemical characteristics such as high δ13C9-MP value, abundant gammacerane, and poor homohopanes, which suggest that the major contributor is Cambrian-Lower Ordovician source rock.

Early Ordovician (Skullrockian) Trilobites of the Antiklinalbugt Formation, Northeast Greenland, and their Biostratigraphic Significance

The Antiklinalbugt Formation of northeast Greenland comprises peritidal to subtidal carbonate sediments, deposited in shallow shelf settings during an early Tremadocian transgressive-regressive megacycle. The succession of shales and microbial, muddy and grainy limestone, with minor dolostone at the base and top, terminates at the cryptic Fimbulfjeld disconformity. The formation has yielded trilobites collected on Ella Ø, Albert Heim Bjerge, and Kap Weber by C. Poulsen (1920s and 1930s), J. W. Cowie and P. J. Adams (1950s), and during recent field studies in 2000 and 2001. The fauna includes dimeropygids Tulepyge cowiei and T. tesella n. spp., hystricurids Millardicurus and Hystricurus, and several species of Symphysurina. Micragnostus chiushuensis (Kobayashi, 1931) is rare, as are Chasbellus sp., Clelandia sp., and Lunacrania?. The presence of several Symphysurina species places the Antiklinalbugt Formation within the Symphysurina Zone. Chasbellus indicates the upper (lower Ordovician) part of the Symphysurina Zone for the lower upper Antiklinalbugt Formation. Conodonts place the middle lower formation in the Cordylodus intermedius conodont Biozone, the lower upper part in the Cordylodus angulatus conodont Biozone and the uppermost part in the Rossodus manitouensis conodont Biozone. This combined fauna is characteristic of the upper Skullrockian Stage of the Ibexian Series, with the lower part of the Antiklinalbugt Formation lying within the uppermost Cambrian of North America, and the upper part within the lower Ordovician. The entire formation lies within the global Tremadocian Stage of the early Ordovician.

Early Ordovician (Skullrockian) Trilobites of the Antiklinalbugt Formation, Northeast Greenland, and their Biostratigraphic Significance

The Antiklinalbugt Formation of northeast Greenland comprises peritidal to subtidal carbonate sediments, deposited in shallow shelf settings during an early Tremadocian transgressive-regressive megacycle. The succession of shales and microbial, muddy and grainy limestone, with minor dolostone at the base and top, terminates at the cryptic Fimbulfjeld disconformity. The formation has yielded trilobites collected on Ella Ø, Albert Heim Bjerge, and Kap Weber by C. Poulsen (1920s and 1930s), J. W. Cowie and P. J. Adams (1950s), and during recent field studies in 2000 and 2001. The fauna includes dimeropygids Tulepyge cowiei and T. tesella n. spp., hystricurids Millardicurus and Hystricurus, and several species of Symphysurina. Micragnostus chiushuensis (Kobayashi, 1931) is rare, as are Chasbellus sp., Clelandia sp., and Lunacrania?. The presence of several Symphysurina species places the Antiklinalbugt Formation within the Symphysurina Zone. Chasbellus indicates the upper (lower Ordovician) part of the Symphysurina Zone for the lower upper Antiklinalbugt Formation. Conodonts place the middle lower formation in the Cordylodus intermedius conodont Biozone, the lower upper part in the Cordylodus angulatus conodont Biozone and the uppermost part in the Rossodus manitouensis conodont Biozone. This combined fauna is characteristic of the upper Skullrockian Stage of the Ibexian Series, with the lower part of the Antiklinalbugt Formation lying within the uppermost Cambrian of North America, and the upper part within the lower Ordovician. The entire formation lies within the global Tremadocian Stage of the early Ordovician.

The Application in Calculation of the Horizontal Wells’ True Thicknesses – An Example of Penglaiba Formation in the Northern Tarim Basin

Horizontal oil and gas drilling has become one of the most valuable technologies ever introduced in the unconventional drilling especially. Nevertheless, it is complex to calculate the horizontal wells’ true formation thicknesses in the dipping strata. Combined with the actual geological conditions and mathematical methods, a complete set of new formula was derived from the basic data of the strata dips, dip directions and individual layer data to calculate the true formation thicknesses, which could obtain the horizontal wells’ true thicknesses of Penglaiba Formation of Lower Ordovician in the northern Tarim Basin. And the calculation results were accurate. Calculated with this formula, the Penglaiba Formation’s true thickness was given, wells’ relative distributions were located, and the columnar section of Penglaiba Formation was spliced to discover the geological situation subsurface accurately. The columnar section of Penglaiba Formation in the northern Tarim Basin could provide a theoretical basis for reservoir prediction and the distributions in the low permeable beds. This is the key technical method to descript the palaeogeologic map.

奥陶纪棘皮动物骨骼地球化学特征指示古海水Mg/Ca比的可靠性分析

The Mg/Ca ratios of echinoderm skeletons in the Phanerozoic, composed of high-Magnesium calcite, are controlled by seawater Mg/Ca ratios, seawater temperature, and diagenetic modification. This study analyzed the geochemistry of crinoidal fragments in the Lower Ordovician of the Yangtze Platform with SEM, EDS, WDS and CL to assess reliability of echinoderm skeletal Mg/Ca ratio as a proxy for the composition of palaeoseawaters. Multiple lines of evidences suggest that the well-preserved crinoidal skeletons in the Lower Ordovician of South China remain still preserve their original Mg/Ca ratios even after diagenetic modification. The Early Ordovician seawater Mg/Ca ratios are calculated as 0.16-0.7, and 0.01-1.17, following the linear relationship and power function between echinoderm skeleton and seawater Mg/Ca ratios respectively. Compared with the long-term changes in sea-surface temperature, the Mg/Ca ratios of the Early Ordovician echinoderm skeletons are considered to reflect a long-term fluctuation of seawater Mg/Ca ratios instead of seawater temperature. Thus, well-preserved echinoderm skeletons in the Early Ordovician should be widely used as a proxy taxon for paleocean elemental chemistry reconstruction.

First record of Podichnus in orthide brachiopods from the Lower Ordovician (Tremadocian) of NW Argentina and its relation to the early use of an ethological strategy

Well preserved etchings from the pedicle attachment of brachiopods occur on orthide brachiopod shells from Lower Ordovician (Tremadocian) of NW Argentina. Under the name Podichnus conicus isp. n. this trace fossil is interpreted as a fixichnia produced by the attachment of brachiopod pedicles upon hard substrates. The trace is characterized by an irregular and asymmetrical cluster of circular pits. Each individual pit has a typical conical shape and presents the external mean diameter/length ratio close to 1. The occurrence of P. conicus isp. n. in the Tremadocian is the oldest record of this ichnogenus, and points to orthide brachiopods as Podichnus producers for the first time. The presence of this structure provides new information regarding colonization of biogenic hard substrates during the Early Ordovician and an adaptive strategy of its use by orthide brachiopods.

The trace fossil Arachnostega in the Ordovician of Estonia (Baltica)

In the Ordovician of Baltica, burrows assigned to the ichnogenus Arachnostega Bertling, 1992 occur in steinkerns of bivalves, cephalopods, gastropods and hyolithids. Arachnostega abundance decreased significantly during the Ordovician in Baltica. It was most abundant in the Darriwilian (17% of gastropod steinkerns), slightly less abundant in the Sandbian (11% of gastropod steinkerns) and least abundant in the Katian (3% of gastropod steinkerns). This change in Arachnostega abundance correlates well with the regional climatic change (from temperate to tropics) during this interval, along with resulting changes in sedimentary environment, geochemistry and biota. Arachnostega was substrate selective and preferred bivalves over gastropods. Arachnostega occurs only in the Middle and Upper Ordovician of Estonia and is absent in the Lower Ordovician. Olev Vinn. Department of Geology, University of Tartu, Ravila 14A, 50411 Tartu, Estonia; olev.vinn@ut.ee Mark A. Wilson. Department of Geology, The College of Wooster, Ohio, 44691 USA; mwilson@wooster.edu Michal Zaton. Department of Palaeontology & Stratigraphy, University of Silesia, Bedzinska 60, 41-200 Sosnowiec, Poland; mzaton@wnoz.us.edu.pl Ursula Toom. Institute of Geology, Tallinn University of Technology, Ehitajate tee 5, Tallinn; ursula.toom@ttu.ee

Accumulation Conditions of Paleozoic Shale Gas and its Resources in Northeast Chongqing Areas

In order to carry out a more comprehensive discussion on shale gas accumulation conditions of Lower Cambrian Shuijingtuo Formation and Upper Ordovician Wufeng Formation-Lower Silurian Longmaxi Formation, the distribution, source rock conditions and reservoir conditions of these two shales are comprehensively analyzed, these two shales are both have the characteristics of high organic carbon content, high maturity, appropriate thickness and mainly typeⅠkerogen as source rocks, and interbedded with siltstone and/or fine sandstone, rich in quartz and other detrital components, easy to break and form the cracks, micro cracks as reservoirs, these characteristics provide a favorable material basis and reservoir space for shale gas accumulating. On this basis, the effective distribution areas of these two shales are further determined and shale gas resources are preliminary evaluated, eventually come to the results of shale gas resources of Lower Cambrian Shuijingtuo Formation and Upper Ordovician Wufeng Formation-Lower Silurian Longmaxi Formation respectively are 0.409×1012m3and 0.389×1012m3.

Conulariids and Sphenothallus (Cnidaria, Medusozoa) from the Tonggao Formation (Lower Ordovician, China)

Conulariids and Sphenothallus (Cnidaria, Medusozoa) from the Tonggao Formation (Lower Ordovician, China)

Characteristics and differential accumulation of oil/gas in Lower Paleozoic marine carbonate on northern slope of Tazhong Low Rise, Tarim Basin, NW China: a case study of Lower Ordovician Yingshan Formation

Marine carbonate reservoirs, as a focus of petroleum exploration and development all over the world, are involved with high exploration risk and prediction difficulty owing to high heterogeneity and diversity of reservoir beds. In the Tarim Basin, NW China, carbonate reservoirs with resources about 38 % of the whole basin in a large prospecting area are mainly distributed in the Cambrian and Ordovician in central (Tazhong) and northern (Tabei) Tarim. Recently on the northern slope, Tazhong Low Rise, Central Uplift, Tarim Basin, a breakthrough has been made in the karsted weathering crust of Lower Ordovician Yingshan Formation and reef-flat reservoir of Upper Ordovician Lianglitag Formation. As a new frontier of exploration, oil/gas distribution and controlling factors of carbonate reservoirs in the Yingshan Formation are not clearly understood. In this work, play elements of the Yingshan Formation, such as seal-reservoir bed assemblage, oil/gas properties, and faulting, were studied by core and slice observation and field investigation. High-quality reservoir beds of Yingshan Formation are quasi-layer distributed in the interstratal karst belt about 250 m below the unconformity. The reservoir beds of fracture–void and void are formed by faulting, associated fracturing, and karstification. The Yingshan Formation is a large-scale condensate gas reservoir with partly oil. Owing to different oil–gas infilling periods, isolated pools far from the faults are primarily oil in the Hercynian; oppositely, condensate gas reservoirs near the faults are intensely influenced by gas invasion during the Himalayan movement. Laterally, oil/gas distribution is controlled by stratal pinch-out and strike-slip faults. Vertically, cap rock of the third to fifth members of the Lianglitag Formation and Yingshan interior high resistivity layers are superimposed with Yingshan reservoir beds to form several seal-reservoir bed assemblages. Oil and gas are superimposed and affected by gas invasion with characteristics of oil in the upper horizon and gas in the lower horizon.

Preservation of the digestive structures in Harpides (Trilobita) from the Lower Ordovician of the Barrandian area (Czech Republic)

Remains of the digestive system are described in the holotype of the rare harpidid trilobite Harpides grimmi Barrande, 1852 collected from the Lower Ordovician Milina Formation of the Prague Basin. The intestine (post-stomach alimentary canal) starts just behind the glabellar poste- rior margin and extends through the narrow axial region in all nineteen thoracic segments of this exceptionally preserved specimen. The anterior-most part of the digestive system is masked by the in situ hypostome preserved under the missing glabella. Similarly, also the posterior-most part of the post-stomach alimentary canal is absent, as the pygidium is not preserved. This specimen constitutes the first example of preserved digestive structures in the family Harpididae. Earlier finds of digestive system in Ordovician trilobites are briefly assessed.