Distribution of Upper Paleozoic Coal Seams in the Southeastern Ordos Basin

Yunwen Guan, Qijun Guo, Renhai Pu, Xiaoping Gao, Shuo Chen and Tianyu Ji
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Yunwen Guan: State Key Laboratory of Continental Dynamics, Northwest University, Xi’an 710069, China
Qijun Guo: Sinopec Petroleum Exploration and Production Research Institute, Beijing 100083, China
Renhai Pu: State Key Laboratory of Continental Dynamics, Northwest University, Xi’an 710069, China
Xiaoping Gao: Yanchang Petroleum Group Exploration Company, Yan’an 716000, China
Shuo Chen: State Key Laboratory of Continental Dynamics, Northwest University, Xi’an 710069, China
Tianyu Ji: Research Institute of Petroleum Exploration and Development, Petrochina, Beijing 100083, China

Energies, 2022, vol. 15, issue 14, 1-15

Abstract: The Ordos Basin contains abundant coal resources in the Upper Paleozoic strata. They are shallowly buried or exposed in the periphery of the basin, forming recoverable coal mines and coalbed methane resources. For the deeply buried coal seams of the basin, however, due to complex changes and difficult mining, less attention was paid before. In recent years, with the exploitation of tight gas related to coal source rocks, a large amount of drilling and seismic data has been accumulated in the southeastern Ordos Basin, which makes it possible to study the distribution change and factors controlling Upper Paleozoic coal seams. Delineation of deep coal development and distribution is an important basis for coal, coalbed methane and related tight gas resources in the Upper Paleozoic. We use core, logging and seismic data to analyze the coal geophysics, thickness variation, paleotopography and sedimentary facies in the southeastern Ordos Basin. The lower part of the Shanxi Formation (Fm.) and the upper part of the Taiyuan Fm. in the southeastern part of the basin are characterized by low natural gamma ray, low density, high resistivity and high sonic logging values. As the coal velocity is very low and alternates with the high-velocity Taiyuan Fm. and Ordovician limestones, the two sets of coals below and above the Taiyuan limestones form an extremely strong-amplitude reflection in the seismic profile. The two sets of coals are cumulatively 1–10 m thick, averaging 2.4 m, and 4 m is the maximum induvial thickness. The individual coal seams thicker than 2 m cover an area of approximately 2500 km 2 , and the burial depths of the coal seam range from 2500 to 3000 m. The thick coal seams of the Taiyuan Fm. are mainly distributed proximally in the Ordovician paleokarst depression, while the Ordovician paleokarst depression without incised origin was deposited by distal coeval limestone rocks. There is a complementary relationship between the coal seams and the thickened zone of distributary channel sandstone in the Shanxi Fm.

Keywords: coal distribution; coal logging response; coal seismic response; pleogeomorphy; sedimentary facies; Ordos Basin (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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