Fault characteristics and control on hydrocarbon accumulation of middle-shallow layers in the slope zone of Mahu sag, Junggar Basin, NW China

Abstract

The development, evolution and formation mechanism of faults and their control on the migration and accumulation of Mesozoic oil and gas in the middle-shallow layers of the slope zone of Mahu sag were studied by the interpretation of seismic and drilling data. Two types of faults, normal and strike-slip, are developed in the middle-shallow layers of the slope zone of the Mahu sag and they are mostly active in the Yanshanian period. They are divided into four grade faults: The grade I strike-slip faults with NWW to near EW direction are related to the left-lateral transpressive fault zones in the northwest of Junggar Basin since the end of the Triassic. The grade II faults with NE to NNE direction are the normal faults located at the junction of the fault zone and the slope zone, and their formation is related to the extension at the top of the nose-like structures in the fault zone. The grade III faults, which are also the normal faults, are the result of the extension at the top of the lower uplifts in the slope zone and differential compaction. The grade IV faults with NE direction are normal faults, which may be related to the extension environment at the tip of the lower uplifts. Faults not only are the channel for the vertical migration of oil and gas, but also control the oil-gas accumulation. There are two types of oil-gas reservoirs in the middle-shallow layers of slope zone of Mahu sag: fault block reservoirs and fault-lithologic reservoirs. They have large traps and promising exploration potential. Key words: Junggar Basin, slope zone of Mahu sag, middle-shallow layers, fault, genetic mechanism, nose-like structure, lower uplift, hydrocarbon accumulation