Fracture and mechanical stratigraphy for Mississippian-Pennsylvanian age carbonates, Ozark Dome, NW Arkansas

Abstract:

Identifying natural fracture patterns in an area gives a detailed look into the local tectonic history. Comparing those fractures to the mechanical properties of the rocks provides key insights into predicting fractures in the subsurface. The Ozark Dome is an ideal study area for fracture research due to multiple fracturing events resulting from the multi-stage deformation Ouachita Orogeny during the late Paleozoic.

This study used field observations of lithology and fracture attributes over ~10 outcrops in the Mississppian-Pennsylvanian (360-298 ma) carbonate sequence of the Ozark Plateau. Outcrops were chosen having excellent lithological exposure up the sequence from the Boone to Atoka formations and with 3D representations of the fracture patterns. In all, the area investigated covered nearly 60 square miles.

Fracture attributes collected included fracture intensity, length, and abutting relationships; and rock hardness data collected from a Schmidt Hammer. Data was analyzed using programs such as Stereonet and MOVE structural software that generated rose diagrams, structural cross sections, and products.

Initial results indicate 4 main fracture orientations that resulted from at least 3 discrete phases of deformation during the Miss-Penn. Initial results also indicate that the present-day mechanical stratigraphy is not the same one that existed during the deformation phases. Work done at the Tiger Blvd. outcrops showed at least 2 distinct mechanical units. Fractures observed at the outcrop did not respect mechanical bed boundaries, and showed no relationship to the differences in mechanical properties observed.

This study will aid in the interpretation of fractures in regards to mechanical stratigraphy, which allows for a better understanding of subsurface fracture prediction in carbonate sequences worldwide. Finally, the fracture work here will also help in elucidating the tectonic history of the field area during the Mississippian and Pennsylvanian.