Characterising fracture systems within upfaulted basement highs in the Hebridean Islands: an onshore analogue for the Clair Field
The Clair oil field lies offshore from western Shetland and is estimated to contain over 4 billion bbl. The basement here is composed of Lewisian gneiss that is overlain by Devonian-Carboniferous sandstones and conglomerates and a Cretaceous seal. Reservoir performance indicates that fractured basement rocks play a significant role in the resource development of the…
Read MoreCharacterising brittle reactivation in basement: an example from the Lewisian Gneiss Complex, NW Scotland
Afterslip on the L’Aquila earthquake (M6.3) surface rupture captured in 4D using a Terrestrial laser scanner (TLS)
Normal faulting earthquakes produce coseismic vertical motions that are expected to amplify during the days and weeks after the mainshock. The amplitude, wavelength and timescales associated with such postseismic deformation can help constrain the seismic cycle and reveal whether the isostatic response to an earthquake is driven by fluid and poro-elastic effects, visco-elastic creep in…
Read MoreQuantitative analysis and visualization of nonplanar fault surfaces using terrestrial laser scanning (LIDAR) – The Arkitsa fault, central Greece, as a case study
Quantifying the Structure of an Exhumed Seismogenic Fault Zone Using Terrestrial Laser-Scanning and Differential GPS
Fault zone structure over a wide range of scales strongly influences earthquake mechanics, including the sites of earthquake nucleation and arrest, co-seismic strength and slip distribution, and the amount of energy expended during frictional heating and creation of wall-rock damage. The importance of multi-scale fault heterogeneity necessitates an integrated approach to understanding fault zone structure.…
Read MoreOn Curvature and Fracturing in Some Periclinal Folds
The spatial heterogeneity of structures in high porosity sandstones: Variations and granularity effects in orientation data
Despite many studies on the scaling and geometrical properties of fracture systems, much less attention has been paid to analysing their spatial characteristics. At a well exposed section at George Gill, Appleby, we investigated the spatial heterogeneity in deformation band orientations in a high porosity sandstone using bootstrap, variogram and hierarchical analysis methods. At metre-scales…
Read MoreOutcrop Analogues of Fault Systems Showing Variations in Linkage, Segmentation and Compartmentalisation with Increasing Deformation
The progressive development of a fault zone, in response to ongoing deformation, can give rise to major changes in the potential of the fault to impede or enhance hydrocarbon flow. We show a number of detailed 3D outcrop models of extensional fault systems (captured using terrestrial Lidar) that illustrate typical effects of increasing deformation on…
Read MoreVirtual outcrop models of the Moab Fault to assess uncertainties in sub-surface fault seal prediction
The Moab Fault is a world-class example of a normal fault that cuts a layered sandstone-shale sequence of the Paradox Basin, southeastern Utah. The fault is segmented and is best exposed in a series of canyons that trend sub-perpendicular to the fault strike. Clean, high quality sandstones crop out in the footwall of the Moab…
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