The Use of Gravitational and Electrical Resistivity Techniques to Delineate the Big Barn Fault Located within the Gulf Coastal Plain, Montgomery County, Texas

摘要

The Gulf Coast of Texas has been a known hydrocarbon basin for many years with various structural trapping mechanisms such as anticlines, faults and salt domes. While most large salt domes have been extensively studied in the Gulf Coastal Plain, many smaller normal faults have not been studied in detail. This research study employs an integrated geophysical approach to mapping the Big Barn fault in Montgomery County, Texas. This fault is located on the Gulf Coastal Plain and is approximately 20 miles north of Houston, Texas. Within the past 20 years, extensive deformation and fractures within the vicinity of the fault have formed on Interstate Highway 45 and caused damage to nearby businesses and residences. In this study, gravitational methods, electrical resistivity surveys, and traditional mapping techniques were conducted to assess the cause of deformation and the extent of faulting. Two-dimensional inverted resistivity models were created and found to be very useful in determining the structures and stratigraphy of the study area.