The Influence of fold and fracture development on reservoir behavior of the Lisburne Group of northern Alaska

摘要

The Carboniferous Lisburne Group is a major carbonate reservoir unit in northern Alaska. The Lisburne is folded and thrust faulted where it is exposed throughout the Brooks Range, but is relatively undeformed in areas of current production in the subsurface of the North Slope. The objectives of this study were to develop a better understanding of four major aspects of the Lisburne: (1) The geometry and kinematics of folds and their truncation by thrust faults. (2) The influence of folding on fracture patterns. (3) The influence of deformation on fluid flow. (4) Lithostratigraphy and its influence on folding, faulting, fracturing, and reservoir characteristics. Symmetrical detachment folds characterize the Lisburne in the northeastern Brooks Range. In contrast, Lisburne in the main axis of the Brooks Range is deformed into imbricate thrust sheets with asymmetrical hangingwall anticlines and footwall synclines. The Continental Divide thrust front separates these different structural styles in the Lisburne and also marks the southern boundary of the northeastern Brooks Range. Field studies were conducted for this project during 1999 to 2001 in various locations in the northeastern Brooks Range and in the vicinity of Porcupine Lake, immediately south of the Continental Divide thrust front. Results are summarized below for the four main subject areas of the study.