Pittsburg County Research Articles

<strong>First report of adult <em>Amblyomma longirostre</em> (Acari: Ixodidae) in Oklahoma</strong>

An adult female Amblyomma longirostre (Koch, 1844) was collected on a propane tank in Pittsburg County, Oklahoma, on 24 September 2005 and submitted to the Plant Disease and Insect Diagnostic Lab (PDIDL) at Oklahoma State University. This is the first recorded collection of a free-living adult female A. longirostre in the United States, although there are multiple reports of immature ticks on migrating birds from South and Central America.

Hartshorne coal rank applied to Arkoma Basin coalbed methane activity, Oklahoma, USA

Coal rank, generalized for all coal beds at or near the surface, in the eastern Oklahoma coalfield has been known since 1915. Near the surface (depths <305m, <1000ft), coal rank increases from high volatile bituminous to low volatile bituminous from west to east in the Arkoma Basin in Oklahoma. The rank of subsurface (depths >305m, >1000ft) coals in Arkoma Basin coalbed methane (CBM) prospects was previously unknown. A new Hartshorne coal (Middle Pennsylvanian) rank map is based on mean maximum vitrinite reflectance values of 0.76% to 2.41% Rmax from 70 coal samples from vertical depths of 0 (surface) to 1327m (4355ft). Hartshorne coal rank in the subsurface increases from high-volatile bituminous to semianthracite from west to east in the Arkoma Basin in Oklahoma. Bituminous rank boundaries changed considerably from earlier surface rank maps (primarily by increasing the area of medium volatile bituminous rank coal in the subsurface) and revealed a previously unknown semianthracite rank area. This discrepancy is significant because the rank of deep (>305m, >1000ft) coal resource assessments and CBM exploration projects have been based on shallow coal rank assignments.A total of 2635 Hartshorne (Hartshorne, Lower Hartshorne, and Upper Hartshorne) CBM wells have been completed in Oklahoma since 1988. Most (1610) wells are horizontal with lateral lengths ranging from 4 to 1498m (14 to 4914ft; an average of 669m [2195ft]). Coal in most Hartshorne CBM wells is medium volatile bituminous rank. Hartshorne coal is semianthracite rank in about 160 CBM wells in Le Flore County. The four Hartshorne CBM wells with the highest initial potential (IP) gas rates (48 to 65 thousand cubic meters per day, Mcmd; 1.7 to 2.3 million cubic feet per day, MMcfd) are medium volatile bituminous rank from horizontal wells in Haskell and Pittsburg counties. IP gas rates<28.3 Mcmd (<1 MMcfd) in low volatile bituminous and semianthracite rank Hartshorne horizontal CBM wells may be low due to complications in drilling into high rank coals with cleat spacing <1cm, to stimulation differences, or to gas migration into adjacent sandstone channels.

Three-Dimensional Seismic Interpretation from the Triangle Zone of the Frontal Ouachita Mountains and Arkoma Basin, Pittsburg County, Oklahoma

Analysis of 28.5 km 2 of three-dimensional (3-D) seismic reflection data from the triangle zone of the Ouachita fold-and-thrust belt and the foreland Arkoma basin reveals structural details not recognized previously in conventional two-dimensional (2-D) seismic data. The data indicate that the frontal Kiowa syncline in the Arkoma basin has been passively uplifted by blind thrusting at the Morrowan Wapanucka Limestone level, and that smaller wavelength folds are produced by thrusting at shallower levels in the Atoka Formation. Faulting at deeper levels in the Hunton and Arbuckle groups has been traditionally interpreted as normal, but our analysis of this data set indicates that, in this area, normal faults were reactivated during the Ouachita orogeny as reverse faults, and the changes in fault separation can be followed along strike. These faults show the same trend as the overlying thrusts and are normal or have minor inversion where the overlying thrusts have small displacement. These faults have been completely inverted where the overlying thrusts have more displacement, suggesting a genetic relation between the Wapanucka thrusts and the inversion of the Hunton and Arbuckle faults. Four reflections were chosen for analysis: one reflection in the lower Atoka Formation, two reflections repeated in the Wapanucka Limestone, and a fourth reflection in the Hunton Group. All of these surfaces exhibit the same geometry with the fold axes plunging to the southwest. Variations in bearing and plunge of fold axes in the Wapanucka Limestone can be directly correlated to changes in displacement and ramp height along strike. The similarity between surface geometries suggests that the last deformation took place at deeper levels in the Hunton and Arbuckle groups and folded the overlying thrusts. Reactivation of Atokan normal faults at deeper levels in the Arkoma basin and Ouachita subthrust play may be more widespread than previously recognized.

Recent Work at 34PA341 in the Brushy-Peaceable Watershed

In October 1993, Historic Preservation Associates (HPA) conducted Phase II assessments at several sites in SCS Impoundments 26 and 29 in the Brushy-Peaceable watershed, Pittsburg County, Oklahoma. Timothy C. Klinger acted as principal investigator; field director was Don R. Dickson. Most sites had been seriously disturbed by rodent activity and recent erosion. 34PS341, however, was located on a high terrace of Gardner Creek, did not seem to be as disturbed, and appeared to possibly represent a single Caddoan occupation. In April 1994, the HPA team excavated an additional 14 1x1 m units in the northeastern part of the site, an area that had yielded several culturally and functionally diagnostic artifacts in three 1x1 m units excavated in October. Three features were exposed during this work, as well as additional diagnostic artifacts. Feature 1 was a concentration of sandstone rock which did not seem fire-cracked. Feature 2 was a pit (storage?) which had been dug into sterile subsoil. Although pit the contents were waterscreened. nothing was found in the matrix that would suggest the pit use. Feature 3, only partially excavated at this time because most of it lay outside the 14-unit area (the team was excavating the last unit at that time), was a pit containing a substantial hearth in its upper margins. Charcoal from this hearth produced a 13C adjusted age of 1180 ± 70 B.P. (Beta-72083). This date indicated probable site use during the Terminal Late Woodland; a Haskell point recovered in Level 1 suggested Late Caddoan times.

Structural/Stratigraphic Reconstruction of Frontal Choctaw"Triangle Zone Within Oklahoma Atoka Trend: Early Controls (Prethrusting) on Deposition of Deep-Water Clastic Reservoirs"

A structural and stratigraphic study in S.W. Oklahoma, encompassing approximately 30 townships in Atoka, Coal and Pittsburg counties, was completed, using several hundred wells, surface geologic maps and more than 400 miles of 1980's vintage seismic data. Tsopach maps were made of six Atokan sands, covering various areas, all within a deep water fan setting. Structural balancing was carried out on numerous geologic cross sections of six miles or less, for log correlation of the various reservoirs and structural details within the frontal "Choctaw" triangle zone. Two regional cross sections were made based on 12 and 16 miles, respectively, of recent high fold CDP seismic lines, with a minimum of one well per mile control, dipmeter data and surface geology. These cross-sections were reconstructed by line balancing, to illustrate the amount of thrusting in the section and the pre-Penn normal faulting that subtly control the Atoka sands depositional framework. The thickest and most channelized sands are found downthrown to these earlier faults, with this past relationship now obscured by post-Atokan thrusting. * Previously...Sr. Geophysicist-Arkla Exploration, Shreveport, La. ++Previously...Arkla Exploration, Shreveport, La.

Three-Dimensional Geometry and Kinematics of the Gale-Buckeye Thrust System, Ouachita Fold and Thrust Belt, Latimer and Pittsburg Counties, Oklahoma

The Gale-Buckeye thrust system consists of a series of blind thrusts and associated folds near the boundary between the Ouachita fold and thrust belt and the Arkoma basin in Oklahoma. A dense grid of high-resolution seismic reflection data, augmented by data from exploration and production wells, provides a unique opportunity to analyze the three-dimensional geometry and kinematics of these structures in detail. Results from our interpretation provide new insight into the extent, style, and sequence of thrusts within the Gale-Buckeye thrust system, and contrast with previous models for the region. Specifically, we recognize two previously unmapped transverse structures in the Gale-Buckeye thrust system: a sharp, left-stepping zone of oblique ramps, and a tear fault within the Gale thrust sheet. These transverse structures are spatially coincident with similar structural trends in lower Paleozoic strata beneath the thrust system as well as outcropping structural trends on the surface. This interpretation extends thrusts in the Gale-Buckeye system to minimum strike lengths of 7-9 mi (11-15 km) and fault length-to-displacement ratios of about 10:1. Furthermore, interpreted structural relationships suggest that the Gale and Buckeye thrusts formed in a backward-stepping manner, a new interpretation for faults in this system. Measurement of differential transport angles from our interpretations of the Gale-Buckeye thrust system indicates that along-strike displacement variations of the Gale and Buckeye thrusts are consistent with thrusts from other nonmetamorphic fold and thrust belts. Using the differential transport model, we infer that the tear fault in the Gale thrust sheet indicates a region that became segmented to accommodate excessive along-strike differences in displacement. In addition, we use the model to explain errors in previous interpretations of the Gale-Buckeye thrust system that resulted in the drilling of dry holes. Integrating realistic differential transport angles with our interpretations for extent, style, and sequence of thrusting provides new strategies for hydrocarbon exploration hroughout the region.

Successful Application of Carbon/Oxygen Logging to Coalbed Exploration

Summary Two primary objectives of TRW's involvement as integrating contractor for the U.S. DOE's Methane Recovery from Coalbeds Project (MRCP) are (1) to demonstrate that this unconventional methane resource can be characterized and (2) to select target sites with the greatest production potential. It was contemplated that the wireline carbon/oxygen (C/O) logging tool could help the project's activities meet these objectives. A study using the C/O tool was initiated in the Arkoma basin at the Barringer Well 1–11 located in the Kiowa syncline, Pittsburg County, OK. Several nearby wells are producing methane commercially from strata that are associated with these coalbeds. The C/O log has shown that the various coalbeds in the Barringer well can be delineated. C/O ratio measurements have proved a valuable means of determining the presence of coal behind casing. Results from the Barringer well study indicate that this tool can identify and locate coal behind casing for possible recompletion and production of associated coalbed methane. Comparative data based on previous logging programs for the uncased Barringer Well 1–11 and laboratory studies on the coal are presented. Introduction The Arkoma basin contains extensive bituminous coal reserves. Accurate coalbed correlation and coalbed thickness are essential prerequisites to the determination of coal resources and reserves, especially those beds that are particularly gassy. The coals in the basin are generally considered moderately to highly gassy (appx. 200 to greater than 500 cu ft/ton). A range in coalbed methane contents is to be established for each bed and is used in conjunction with the verified coalbed reserves to provide an estimate of the volume of methane in place. Mustang Production Co. of Oklahoma City completed a successful coalbed characterization field test using the C/O tool during Jan. 1980. The cased test well. Barringer 1–11, is located in the Kiowa syncline (west central part of the Arkoma basin), Pittsburg County, OK (Fig. 1). This well penetrates about 18 possible coalbeds of Desmoinesian age (Pennsylvanian) over a 4.635-ft interval (Table 1). Several offset wells are producing methane commercially from strata associated with coalbeds in the Kiowa syncline. The objectives of this field test were to demonstrate that coalbeds can be (1) identified and located behind casing, (2) distinguished from gas-producing zones. and (3) shown to contain gas. Examples of the C/O tool response to coal are presented. Discussion of the field test includes a description of completed MRCP activities in the Arkoma basin, the resulting MRCP well test data, the C/O log field test configuration, and the test description. Comparison of the C/O results were made with openhole log information. Results have shown that the C/O logging tool successfully delineated the various coalbeds in the Barringer well. Application of the C/O log includes:identification of coalbeds behind casing,differentiation of coalbeds from gas zones,location of thin coalbeds on the order of 1 ft thick, anddetermination of coal quality. C/O Tool Response to Coal The C/O log utilizes a high-energy pulsed neutron source that produces 14-MeV neutrons by the deuterium/tritium reaction. Under high-energy neutron irradiation, elements emit gamma rays with specific energy levels. JPT P. 421^

Application of Sedimentary Directional Features and Scalar Properties to Hydrocarbon Exploration

Ripple marks, cross-bedding, and groove casts are examples of directional features of sediments. Systematic downcurrent variations in grain size or mineral composition are examples of scalar properties. Although directional features normally are considered to be the tools of the surface geologist, these features also can be used by the subsurface geologist by means of the oriented core and the dipmeter. Recent literature abounds with reports of new types of scalar properties. Directional features and scalar properties of sediments are used to determine paleocurrent direction. The integration of paleocurrent data with environmental information yields a paleogeographic map, from which prediction of favorable areas for wildcat exploration and the exploitation of wildcat discoveries can be made. A directional features ^rarr paleocurrent direction + depositional environment = paleogeographic map study of the early Desmoinesian Hartshorne Formation in the Arkoma basin, Oklahoma, indicates that the productive Hartshorne Sandstone in the discovery gas well of the South Pine Hollow field of Pittsburg County, Oklahoma, is probably a deltaic distributary channel sandstone with a NE-SW alignment. This type of study could have been used to exploit the discovery well; the information needed to reach the same conclusion by subsurface geology was not available until some time after the initial discovery.

An Application of Directional Features and Scalar Properties of Sediments to Hydrocarbon Exploration: ABSTRACT

Ripple marks, cross-bedding, and groove casts are examples of directional features of sediments. Variations in grain size or mineral composition are examples of scalar properties. Although directional features normally are considered to be the domain of the surface geologist, by means of the oriented core and more recently the dipmeter, these features also can be used by the subsurface geologist. Recent literature abounds with reports of new types of scalar properties. Directional features and scalar properties of sediments are used to determine paleocurrent direction. The integration of paleocurrent data with environmental information yields a paleogeographic map. Prediction of favorable areas for wildcat exploration and the exploitation of wildcat discoveries can then be made from the paleogeographic map. The Desmoinesian-age Hartshorne Formation of eastern Oklahoma is a shallow but major gas producer within the Arkoma basin. A study in the nature of directional features ^rarr paleocurrent direction + depositional environment = paleogeographic map is presented. This study indicates that the probable nature of the productive Hartshorne sandstone in the discovery well of the South Pine Hollow field, Pittsburg County, Oklahoma, is a deltaic channel sandstone with a northeast-southwest alignment. This information could have been used to exploit the discovery well. End_of_Article - Last_Page 1689------------