SPE 10009

SPE
Society of Petroleum Engineers

Sandstone Reservoirs

by Robert J. Weimer, Getty Professor, Colorado School of Mines and R. W. Tillman

Cities Service Co. '

ABSTRACT they can observe the conditions and processes by

which sediments accumulate today and use their obser-
The or1g1n and distribution of a sandstone vations to interpret the origin of ancient sediment.
reservoir for petroleum are controlled primarily by By using the areas of modern environments of deposi-
the processes by which the sand was deposited. Stud- tion as natural laBoratories, scientists seek to im-
ies of modern environments of deposition and associ- prove the quality of their work. A massive effort
ated Holocene deposits provide a basis for under- has been underway for the past 30 years by industry,
standing petroleum fields and predicting reservoir government and university scientists throughout the
distribution and behavior. world to investigate modern environments of deposi-
tion and to interpret the results of the processes
The Rocky Mountain province of the United States in Holocene sequences. Concepts have· evolved from
contains structural and stratigraphic traps from which these studies that hava revolutionized scientific
petroleum is produced from all types of sandstone thought aBout sedimentary rocks.
reservoirs ranging in age from Cambrian to the Eocene.
Three large typical stratigraphic traps, where reser- Genetic Unit Concept
voirs are of Cretaceous age, are described. The Cut
Bank field, Montana produces from alluvial point bar The results of these investigations clearly re-
sandstones; Patrick Draw field, Wyoming produces from affirm the time-honored concept that processes within
marine shoreline sandstones; and, Hartzog Draw field, the environment of deposition control the type and
Wyoming produces from marine shelf sandstones. distriBution of lithology and associated primary
porosity and permeabiJity. Therefore, newly depos-
INTRODUCTION ited stratigraphic units can be described as process-
controlled genetic units. Sediments with a common
The majority of petroleum reserves in the world genesis have similar lithologies because the physical,
is found in ancient sandstones which have porosity biologic and chemical processes within the environ-
and permeability. When sandstone contains petroleum ment are similar. For convenience, the phrase is
that can be extracted by known technology, it is re- shortened to genetic unit.
ferred to as a sandstone reservoir. Sandstone reser-
voirs are normally composed of stable minerals (e.g., The genetic unit is defined as a deposit re-
quartz, feldspar and rock fragments), accessory sulting primarily from the physical, chemical and bio-
minerals and pores saturated with fluids. To be clas- logical processes operating within the environment at
sified as sandstone, individual sand grains must be the time of sedimentation. The approach is to recog-
between 1/8 and 2 mm in diameter. The quantity of nize lithologic differences that can be. related to a
pore volume and the nature of the interconnections stratigraphic level at which a unique set of proc-
between pores may be related to the primary processes esses began to influence sedimentation and when they
under which the sandstone accumulated, or they may be stopped (e.g. the deposit associated with the point
related to secondary changes (diagenesis) that are bar of a meandering stream channel) . . The process-
post-depositional. controlled genetic unit is almost always a smaller
scale unit than a formation. The genetic unit may be
The origin and distribution of a reservoir rock equivalant to facies as used by some authors. The
are controlled primarily by the processes by which words may be combined as "genetic facies" or
the sand was deposited. Scientists concerned with "environmental facies".
the origin of sedimentary rocks are fortunate because

References and illustrations at end of paper.

2 SANDSTONE RESERVOIRS SPE 10009

Environments of Deposition CUT BANK FIELD, GLACIER COUNTY, MONTANA

Geologists and petroleum engineers are inter- General Description

ested in predicting the thickness and areal extent
(trend) of a sandstone reservoir. Experience tells us The largest oil field producing from fluvial
that each reservoir has finite limits and that one can sandstones in the Rocky Mountain region of the United
explain these limits by reconstructing the environment States is the Cut Bank oil and gas field in north-
of deposition in which the sandstone accumulated. An western Montana (1, Fig. 2). Total production is 150
environment is a geomorphic unit in which physical, million bbls with a projected ultimate production to
biological and chemical processes operate to form a be more than 160 million bbls. Discovered in 1926,
deposit (genetic unit). If a particular geomorphic the field is a stratigraphic trap1 on the west flank
unit containing a sandstone reservoir is placed in an of a large closed structural dome (Fig. 5). Produc~
overall depositional model, a predictive method can tion is from a fine- to medium-grained conglomeratic
be established that is useful in the exploration for sandstone with the net pay averaging 18 ft in thick-
and the production of petroleum. ness in the oil-productive area. The field is
approximately 24 miles in length and varies in width
In general, sandstone containing primary porosity from 2 to 5 miles (49,000 productive acres). The
and permeability (good reservoir characteristics) was sandstone appears to be continuous throughout the
deposited where high energy currents operated in an field, but out of approximately 1,200 producing wells
environment of deposition. During movement of water, as many as 200 dry holes occur within the field
or air, as a current, clay and silt grains remained limits. These dry holes are due to local loss of
in suspension while sand grains were transported as porosity and permeability preventing commercial pro-
bed load. The winnowed sand accumulated as "clean" duction. The pay zone averages 15 percent porosity
sand with interconnected pore spaces. and permeability varies from 10 to 100 md; average
water saturation is 35 percent. Most wells were
Seven of the most common environments of deposi- drilled with cable tool rigs and completed open hole
tion, where sandstone reservoirs are deposited, are with the pipe set on top of the pay section. Average
illustrated in the depositional model (Fig. 1). depth is 2,900 ft; oil in place is estimated to be
These are: fluvial point bar (PB); deltaic distribu- 612 million bbls. Accumulative gas production is
tary channel (DC); lacustrine delta and shoreline (L); 265 Bd of gas.
desert eolian (E); marine shoreline and delta front
(S); marine shelf (SH); and, marine deep water (DW). Strata of upper Cretaceous age are exposed on
Each sandstone has its own unique set of internal the surface over the field. These strata have a
features and geometry that controls the nature of regional west dip and progressively younger for-
petroleum production. If one can observe in core or mations are exposed from east to west. The producing
outcrop the internal features of inorganic and organic sandstone in the Cut Bank field is the Cut Bank Sand-
sedimentary structures, textures, paleontology and stone at the base of the Kootenai Formation. The age
composition, the environment of deposition can be of the Cut Bank is uncertain but is probably Early
reconstructed and used as an aid in exploration. Cretaceous. The sandstone is a gray, salt and pepper
cross stratified sandstone, shaly and fine grained in
EXAMPLES OF ANCIENT SANDSTONE RESERVOIRS the upper part but becoming coarse grained and con-
glomeratic near the base. The sandstone contains
Structural and stratigraphic petroleum traps are varying amounts of black chert, either as grains or
present in the Rocky Mountain province of the United pebbles in the lower part. The sandstone rests on a
States in intermontane basins (Fig. 2) that formed scour surface under which as much as 60 feet of the
during the Laramide orogeny (Late Cretaceous through underlying marine Jurassic Swift Formation was
Eocene). During the Late Jurassic and for most of removed by erosion (Fig. 6). Underlying the Swift is
the Cretaceous the entire province was the site of the Rierdon and Sawtooth Formations of Jurassic age
one basin of deposition (Fig. 3). Most of the major which overly the Mississippian Madison Formation.
types of reservoir rocks shown on Fig. 1 can be ob-
served within this depositional basin which spanned Depositional Model
the North American continent from the Gulf of Mexico
to the Arctic Ocean (Fig. 3). The dominant source The pay sandstone shows texture and structure
of sediment to the basin was along the west margin that indicates low energy conditions accreting over
and lithologic facies was controlled by changes from high energy. The texture grades upward from con-
coastal plain to shoreline to marine shelf and the glomerate to fine-grain sand; the structures change
deeper water basin. Intertonguing of nonmarine upward from flat bedding and trough cross-strati-
strata on the west with marine strata in the center fication (sets are 6 in to 2 ft thick) to ripple
of the basin is the dominant pattern of sedimenta- laminated layers. The sand is capped by red, purple,
tion (Fig. 4). Thickness of the Cretaceous strata and green mudstones from which all organic matter has
varies from 2,000 to 20,000 ft. The stratigraphic been oxidized. No fossils other than wood fragments
level of the 3 important fields is shown on Fig. 4 have been reported from the sandstone. The lith-
by the letters A (Cut Bank), B, (Patrick Draw), and ologies are typical of a vertical section w:Hhin a
C, (Hartzog Draw). Each field is typical of a sand- point bar sandstone (genetic unit) associated with a
stone reservoir representing a particular environ- meandering stream channel (Fig. 7). Similar obser-
ment of deposition. vations for the lithology of the Cut Bank were
reported by other authors 1 ,2
SPE 10009 R. J. WEIMER AND R. W. TILLMAN 3

Because of its widespread nature, the Cut Bank East in the Cretaceous and 20 East in the Tertiary.
Sandstone is interpreted as a complex of point bar The cross section (Fig. 8) shows the structural and
sandstones within several meander belts of a broad stratigraphic position of the petroleum accumulations.
alluvial valley. The valley is thought to have been Only the Table Rock field is a closed structural
at least 50 miles in width and probably hundreds of trap; Patrick Draw, Desert Springs and West Desert
miles in length (Fig. 5) with flow direction to the Springs fields are stratigraphic traps. The updip
northeast. seal in each stratigraphic trap is the change from
porous and permeable shoreline sandstone to imper-
The Cut Bank field is at the updip eastern margin meable shale and siltstone of coastal plain environ-
of the valley where fluvial sandstones rest on a scour ments. The top seal is marine impermeable Lewis shale
surface cut into the marine Jurassic shale 3 . The up- which may also be the source of oil. Gas may be
dip seal is provided by the impermeable marine shale either biogenic or from coal in the nonmarine portion
(Fig. 6); the top seal is impermeable mudstones of the of the Almond. Each shoreline bar complex contains
flood plain environment. Oil and gas accumulated in water in low stru~tural positions which defines the
the point bar sandstones and dry holes within the downdip limit of production.
field are believed to be in impermeable abandoned
channel fill or channel margin flood plain deposits. Cretaceous exploration in the area started by
drilling in 1955 on the Table Rock anticline, and
Because of the lack of'reliable geological data Almond production was established where shoreline
from cable tool well logs, the width of the alluvial bar 1 crossed the closed structure. Later drilling
valleys and dimensions of individual point bar sand- found the stratigraphic traps to the north and west
stones cannot be determined accurately. Based on the at Desert Springs, Patrick Draw and West Desert
distribution of dry holes, each individual point bar Springs. Production is at depths from 3,500 to
is estimated to be from one to three miles across and 6,500 feet.
the width of each meander belt would be similar. Be-
cause of a stable tectonic setting, younger meander The Patrick Draw field, discovered in 1959, is
belts probably cannibalized older ones and, therefore, one of the most significant oil fields in the Mesa-
an accurate reconstruction of individual systems is verde Group. The Wasatch Formation (Eocene) is ex-
not possible from available data. posed at the surface. Approximately 56 million bbls
of oil and 11 Bcf of gas have been produced over 22
Geologic History of Accumulation years. An estimated 200 to 250 million bbls are in
place in the reservoir. A typical electric-log from
The geologic history of the deposition of the the field of the UA-5 and UA-6 sandstone is shown in
Cut Bank Sandstone is related to the following se- Fig. 9. Reservoir characteristics are summarized in
quence of events. During early Cretaceous a world- Table 1 5 ,6
wide drop in sea level caused the incisement of drain-
age into Jurassic shales on the northwest flank of the Lithology and Distribution of Productive Sandstones
Kevin-Sunburst dome. With a rise in sea level during
the early Cretaceous the alluvial deposits filled the Two different sandstones produce petroleum in
valley and the Cut Bank Sandstone was deposited as a the upper 60 ft of the Almond (Figs. 9 and 10). The
series of coalescing meander belts containing numerous lower sandstone, called the UA-6, is near the middle
point bar sandstones. Abandoned channel fill makes up of the interval and is oil-productive both in the
approximately 15 percent of the area within the Cut West Desert Springs field (T. 20 N., R. 99 W.) and
Bank field. Nonmarine deposits of the Kootenai For- in the northern part of the Patrick Draw field
mation, 500 to 650 ft thick, overlie the Cut Bank (Fig. 8). The sandstone is gray, very fine- to fine-
Sandstone. Overlying marine sandstones and shales of grained .. calcareous, and ranges from a wedge-edge to
the Colorado ~ormation were deposited during an over- more than 25 ft thick. The average thickness of the
all marine transgression in the late Cretaceous. The productive sandstones is about 12 ft. Because of the
Cut Bank Sandstone was buried by several thousand feet erratic distribution of production, the fine grain
of Cretaceous beds prior to the uplift of the Kevin- size, and the close association above and below with
Sunburst dome in the early Tertiary. Oil and gas coal beds and lagoonal shale, the UA-6 sandstone is
believed to have been generated in the marine Ellis interpreted as having been deposited as tidal creek
Shale then migrated to the updip pinchout of the Cut channels and tidal flats west of a shoreline sand
Bank Sandstone where it was trapped at the edge of trend (Fig. 11).
the alluvial valley.
A second sandstone, the UA-S, is the main oil-
PATRICK DRAW FIELD, SWEETWATER COUNTY, WYOMING productive sandstone at Patrick Draw. This sandstone
occurs near the top of the Almond and is overlain by
General Description the marine Lewis Shale (Fig. 9), by oyster-bearing
coquina layers, or by 5-10 ft of carbonaceous shale
Gas accumulations in ancient shoreline sand- and impermeable sandstone. The UA-5 sandstone (bar
stones of the Mesaverde Group are well known in the 2, Fig. 8) is quartzose, gray, fine- to medium-
Cretaceous rocks of the Rocky Mountain area. One grained, calcareous, and contains abundant dark gray
area along the western part of the Wamsutter arch of to black chert grains and minor amounts of feldspar.
south-central Wyoming contains gas and oil in 2 main The mineral percentages in the sandstone are: quartz
shoreline sandstones of the Almond Formation (upper 64; chert 32; feldspar (mostly plagioclase) 4; and
Mesaverde Group) where they cross a broad structural trace amounts of biotite, muscovite, chlorite, and
arch 4 (Fig. 8). Magnitude of dip on the arch is 4 0 zircon. Cement is dominantly silica, but carbonate
4 SANDSTONE RESERVOIRS SPE 10009

(calcite or dolomite) and clay minerals (kaolinite) Because of the widespread occurrence and thickness of
alsq are present. The UA-5 sandstone ranges in thick- the channel sands, the shoreline is interpreted to be
ness from a wedge-edge to more than 30 ft (Fig. 10). within a meso tidal range (4 to S ft). The model on
Coquina layers of the oyster, Ostrea glabra, are Fig. 11 indicates the setting for the 2 different
found near the to~ of the sandstone in the middle part types of shoreline sandstone.
of Patrick Draw field. particularly in the area of
thin sandstone in the middle of the field. In the The reservoir characteristic for the UA-5 sand-
northern part of the field, thin laminae of shale and stone at Patrick Draw is shown by Table 1. A water
siltstone within the sandstone exhibit angles of flood has had poor success in the northern portion of
cross-lamination as much as 20 0 • The UA-5 sandstone the field where the sandstone was deposited mainly in
rests on a coal bed or associated gray laminated silt- tidal channel environment. Discontinuity in the lat-
stone and carbonaceous shale. Thickness variation eral porosity and permeability occurs between dif-
within the UA-5 interval results from addition of ferent tidal channels (genetic units).
sandstone both at the base and top of the unit. How-
ever, the top of the sandstone shows topographic HARTZOG DRAW FIELD, WYOMING
relief of only 5-10 ft in relation to marker beds in
the overlying Lewis Shale (Fig. 9). The relief at the General Description
base of the sandstone is of the same order of magni-
tude. The porous and permeable UA-5 sandstone zone A common sandstone reservoir for oil production
occurs over an area at least 20 mi long and 6 to S from Cretaceous strata in the Rocky MOuntain region
mi wide (Fig. 10). is lenticular marine sa~dstone bars encased in marine
shale. Hartzog Draw field (3, Fig. 2), discovered in
The UA-5 sandstone pinches out updip at the 1975, produces from the Shannon SandstoneS (Upper
western margin of Patrick Draw field into impermeable Cretaceous) and is typical of this type bar. MOdern
coal-bearing shale and siltstone and, in addition, the log suites and good core coverage are available for
interval may be cut out by an unconformity at the base field studies.
of the Lewis Shale 7 • To the north the oil-productive
sandstone grades laterally into impermeable shale, Hartzog Draw, located on the gently sloping east
but, in a nearly identical stratigraphic position and side of the Powder River basin, Wyoming (Fig. 12), is
in a higher structural position, a water-bearing sand- the largest of the several linear northwest-southeast-
stone is found. The trend and thickness variation of trending stratigraphically trapped oil fields in the
this sandstone and its relationship to the Patrick basin. Th,~ field is 1 to 4 mi wide and 22 mi long
Draw field are shown by the isopachs on Fig. 10. Al- with 2S,000 productive acres. The structure conforms
though a separate reservoir, the sandstone is corre- to a general southwest regional dip typical of that
lated with the UA-5 sandstone because of stratigraphic portion of the basin and has minimal to no influence
position, similar lithologic character, and what on production.
appears to be the record of a similar geologic event.
Based on available sparse well control, the size of An isopach map of the net sandstone thickness
this northern sandstone bar averages 4 mi in width shows a narrow linear character (Figs. 12 and 13).
and more than 10 mi in length. The gas-discovery well The average sandstone thickness is 25 ft but ranges
in West Desert Springs field was completed from this up to 65 ft in the central portion of the field.
sandstone; five additional wells in the field have Where thickest, the initial flow potentials were in
been completed with the producing area as shown on excess of 3,000 barrels of oil per day. No water
Fig. 10. The reservoir is interpreted as having a table is apparent in the field and no formation water
gas-water contact, although a narrow oil ring may be is produced. The reservoir drive mechanism is solu-
present which cannot be developed economically. tion gas.

Depositional MOdel A net pay isopach map very closely follows the
distribution of the net sandstone thicknesses. The
Based on core identification of internal sedi- net pay section, as calculated from 17 cores, aver-
mentary structures, geometry based on reservoir con- ages 14 percent por03ity and permeability averages
tinuity and isopach trends, the UA-5 sandstone is about 12 md 9 • These data for a typical well are
interpreted as a shoreline sand deposit. In some shown on Fig. 14. Net pay thickness for the field as
cores the sandstone shows a coarsening upward texture a whole ranges from 1 to 62 ft and closely parallels
with burrowed sandstone near the base, overlain by the net sandstone thickness. Parameters calculated
trough cross-stratification in sets 1 to 3 ft thick, from logs (using a 2.71 grain density with a 9 per-
which is overlain by parallel laminated sandstones. cent density porosity cutoff) average 12.3 percent
These features are typical of a vertical profile effective porosity, 30 percent water saturation and
through a prograding barrier island shoreline deposit. 9 percent clay. The best porosities and permea-
Other cores, especially in the north end of the Pat- bilities are generally associated with thick net pay
rick Draw field, show fining-upward textures, lags of sandstones.
transported oyster shells at the base and within the
sandstone, trough cross-strata in sets 1 to 2 ft thick Oil in place is estimated to be 350 million
with laminae of clay or carbonaceous material within bbls, and with both primary and secondary recovery
the cross lamina. The Ophiomorpha trace fossil occurs methods the field is estimated to have an ultimate
within the sandstone indicating near normal marine recovery of more than 6S.5 million bbls. Oil is 36
water salinity. These features indicate that the API gravity with a paraffinic base. Depth to reser-
sand was deposited in a tidal channel environment. voir varies from 9,000 to 9,600 feet.
5 R. J. WEIMER AND R. W. TILLMAN SPE 10009

Lithologies of Genetic Units (Facies) 3. Weimer, R. J.: "Jurassic-Cretaceous boundary,

Cut Bank area, Montana", 10th Ann. Field Conf.
Six genetic units (facies) associated with the Guidebook, Billings Geological Society, (1959),
productive sandstones are identified. The lithologies p. 84-89.
of these facies are summarized in Table 2. The
lateral and vertical associations are illustrated by 4. Weimer, R. J.: "Time-stratigraphic analysis and
a cross section through the field (Fig. 13, location petroleum accumulation, Patrick Draw field,
on Fig. 12). Two facies in Table 2, the central and Wyoming", Bull. Amer. Assoc. Petroleum Geolo-
planar laminated, are grouped together as the central gists, (1966), v. 50, p. 2150-2175.
bar facies on Fig. 13.
5. Burton, Guy: "Patrick Draw area, Sweetwater
Reservoir sandstones (marine bar central facies County, Wyoming", Wyoming Geological Associ-
and bar margin facies) range from 5 to 65 ft in thick- ation Guidebook, 16th Ann. Field Conf., (1961),
ness and develop within a 60- to 90-foot sequence of p. 276-279.
burrowed to bioturbated, rippled interbedded sand-
stone and shale (interbar and shelf siltstone facies), 6. Lawson, D. E., and Crowson, C. W.: "Geology
which in turn is completely enveloped in dark gray, of the Arch Unit and adjacent areas, Sweetwater
commonly silty shale (shelf silty shale facies). County, Wyoming", Wyoming Geological Association
Guidebook, 16th Ann. Field Conf., (1961),
Of five facies observed in cores, only one, the p. 280-299.
marine bar (central facies), is a consistently high
quality reservoir. Two others, the bar margin facies, 7. Van Horn, M. D.: "Stratigraphy of the Almond
a ripple to trough cross-bedded sandstone with abun- Formation, east-central flank of the Rock
dant shale an.d siderite clasts, and the interbar Springs Uplift, Sweetwater County, Wyoming: A
facies, a rippled interbedded sandstone and shale, Mesotidal-Shoreline Model for the Late Cre-
generally are marginal quality reservoirs. taceous", unpub. M.Sc. thesis (T 1955), Colo.
School of Mines, (1979), 150 p.
Depositional Model
8. Martinsen, R. S., and Tillman, R. W.: "Hartzog
The Cretaceous basin of deposition (Fig. 3) had Draw, New Giant Oil Field (abs.)", Bull. Amer.
depositional topography described as a shelf, slope Assoc. Petroleum Geologists, (1978), v. 62,
and basin lU (Fig. 15). Shannon Sandstone deposition p. 540 ..
apparently occurred below effective normal wave base
near the middle of the western shelf of the seaway, 9. Hunt, R. D., and Hearn, C. L.: "Reservoir
more than 100 kilometers from shore in water depths Management of the Hartzog Draw Field", paper
exceeding 60 ft. Recognition of mid- to outer-shelf SPE 10195 presented at SPE-AIME 56th Annual
foraminifera assemblages in shaley portions of the Fall Meeting, San Antonio, Texas, Oct. 5-7,
field substantiates the shallow marine environment of 1981.
deposition interpretation and an Early Campanian age
for the sediments at Hartzog Draw field (D. Dailey, 10. Asquith, D.O.: "Depositional topography and
personal communication). major marine environments, Late Cretaceous,
Wyoming", Bull. Amer. Assoc. Petroleum Geolo-
Storm-generated waves are visualized as trans- gists, (1970), v. 54, p. 1184-1224.
porting and winnowing sand and ultimately constructing
the narrow linear porous and permeable offshore bars
(Figs. 13 and 15). Sand transport from the shoreline
across the broad shelf may have been influenced by a
decrease in water depth because of a world wide sea
level change at approximately 81 million years ago.
When sea level again increased the sand was redis-
tributed into the present bar configuration (Fig. 15).
Porous and permeable sands related to energy levels
were stacked to give the facies distribution of reser-
voir rock in the Hartzog Draw field.

REFERENCES

1. Blixt, J. E.: "Cut Bank Oil and Gas Field,

Glacier County, Montana", Sp. Pub. Amer. Assoc.
Petroleum Geologists, Stratigraphic Type Oil
Fields, A. I. Levorsen, ed., (1942), p. 327-381.

2. Shelton, J. W.: "Stratigraphic models and

general criteria for recognition of alluvial,
barrier-bar and turbidity-current sand deposits",
Bull. Amer. Assoc. Petroleum Geologists (1967),
v. 51, p. 2441-2461.
 TABLE 1 - Reservoir characteristics, Patrick Draw Field

Average porosity ....... . . .19.76%

Average permeability .... . .35.92 md.
Average water saturation .. .30-50%
Residual oil saturation ... .12-20%
Formation volume factor .. .1. 263
API gravity of oil. ...... . .410
Amount of gas in solution .. . . 540-1 ,200 cu.
ft.jstock-tank bbl.
Average reservoir temperature. ... 121°F.
Original reservoir pressure . .... . . . 1,790 PSIG at
+2,000-ft. datum
Original stock-tank oil in place. .845 bbls.jac.-ft.
Estimated primary-recovery factor .. .20%
Approximate average pay thickness. .20 ft.
(Gas-solution drive reservoir)

TABLE 2 - Summary of Hartzog Draw Field Facies Characteristics

MAP. I NE BAR
~AR I NE BAR (PLANAR LAMI NA TED) BAR MARG I N I NTERRAR BURROWED SHELF SHELF SILTY
(CENTRAL FACIFS) FAC I ES FACIES FAC I ES SIL TSTONE FACIES SHALE FACIES

Litho 1 o~y Fi ne-medi urn grai ned Fi ne-grai ned quartz- Fine-medium 1nterbedded Shal y, sandy )i lty Shal e;
quartzose sandstone, ose <;ancistone. grai ned sand- very fi ne- silt stone, very fi ne-
rooderately glauco- stone. sha 1e gra; !"led slightly grained, thi n
n; ti c; 1oca 1 5; de- and siderite s i 1ty sand- glauconitic. (1/3" ) s i 1ty
rite clasts. rip-up clasts stone and sandstone
and 1enses. si 1ty sha let 1enses.
very 91 auco- sl ightly
nHie. gl duconit; c.

Sedi mentary Predomi nant ly hi gh Mostly srrh-horizontal Mostly high Predomi nant 1y Few physical Current ripples
Structures angl e trough and plane-parallel 1 am- anqle trollghs, ril1f11e-forrn strtlctures sub-horizontal
planar-tangent i al i nated sandstone. some current heddi ng Srrr- preserved. laminae.
cross heddi ng. 0.5'+ thick 1am; na- ripples, face. Cur-
Trough set s common- set s. M;nor shale and shale clasts rent ripples.
ly horizontally sandstone ripples. commonly show
truncated. preferred
orientations.

Rurrov/i ng Sparse Sparse Sra rse Modprate to ~ore than 75% Low to moderate
locally high r.lIrrowed.
rercent
hurrowed.

Reservo; r Excellent, major Limited? Good Limi ted None None

Potential reservoir facies
 Fig. 1 - Stratigraphic model with
environments of deposition of
sandstone reservoirs.

Fig. 2 -Index map of structural basins,

Rocky Mountain region.

'000'.' .
~
Fig. 3 - Index map showing
outline of Cretaceous basin of
deposition.
A

LEGEND

"-","-"
MARINE

• SANDSTONE
. .\
D
~'-'"1
SHALE 6 LIMESTONE
SCALES OF SECTION -1wYei:-' -; .
. ! I
f 7
21000 FEET
5 50MILES
A"~ .~B~B
--'l~·-·
NONMARINE

IZ:2J
l~o°;J
SH.,55.COAL

. i CONGL.ass.
UTAH1 ,
'~'-'I"-' ••••••• STAGE BOUNDARIES

miles
SCALE OF INDEX

Fig. 4 - Diagrammatic restored section of Cretaceous strata with

position of Sandstones: Cut Bank (A); Almond (B) and Shannon (C).

Fig. 5 - Regional structure contour

map on top of Mississippian with
alluvial valley of Cut Bank Sandstone.
UNION OIL UNION OIL NORTHERN ORONANCE
20-35-5 18-34-4 30-34-3
c' o

ki.'~·- COL~~ADO
I, -j .
.

{l_
. KOOTENAI

MADISON GRP

Fig. 6 - Electric log section across

margin of alluv'i al valley.
Fig. 7 - Point bar model for Cut Bank
Sandstone.

,,
,,
,:
I
:,,
\
\\
\
\
\
,,
\
o'L-_...LI6 _ _12-'-I_---"18 Mil ..
\\.
N

r .. , )

WYOMING r . ' ';

.-- UTAH r-cOLORAi50----------------~

WEST EAST
POINT OF ROCKS TABLE ROCI<
2ON-IOIW
SE r9N-98W
I I
B

Fig. 8 - Structure contour map (in ft) on

top of Almond Formation and structural
section across Patrick Draw area.
 FOREST OIL #1l-2 ARCH 51
SENW SEC. 11-19N-99w, SWEETWATER CO., WYO.

SP R

Fig. 9 - Typical electric log, Patrick

Draw field with numbers for producing
sandstones.
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GGuif Leon C.Q G. Arch Unit 39 ArchUni'P

Secg·TI9N-R~8W
!eo IB-'I"I9N-R Q9W Sec16-1;'I9N·R99W Sec13-Tl9N-R99W
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.--'---=L'-"'E'-¥-....,IS"--_________ LMa rker Benton i te

Fig. 10 - Isopach map of UA-5 sandstone with stratigraphic sections. Contour

interval, 10 ft.
 OPEN MARINE

fTZ1
I....!.!...J
T,ans'UonZ ...... Shaliow N""I,C
S""dsI""" Dopooiled B.I"",9Io0.. laclO

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r FS
BRACKISH TO MARINE
Fo, •• he,. Buc~ Sa ..... IMe

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TC T,daICh.nn .. IS.nd~Ion.
TC R T,daIC, •• kSandsion.

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DOMINANTLY FRESH
DF,eshW.I.,Me.. hICooU

~Ba"'.rISlandsan'hlone
x x'
MEANDER OF TIDAL BARRIER ISLAND OR SPIT

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Fig. 11 - Map and section showing depositional

environments of shoreline zone.

R75W

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o 2 4 Mi. R75W
II ,. I I'i ill I I
01 5 Km.

Fig. 12 - Hartzog Draw field, net

isopach map, Shannon Sandstone,
contour interval, 10 ft. Structure
contours ( - 3800) on top of marker
bentonite.
 Fig. 13 - Stratigraphic section with
facies (location on Fig. 12).

CITIES SERVICE OIL COMPANY

HELDT DRAW FEDERAL AB-1A
HARTZOG DRAW FIELD, WYOMING
K = PERMEABILITY md 0.1 1.0
iii = POROSITY % 0.1 1.0
%OIL = OIL
SATURATION

Fig. 14 - Plot of porosity, permeability

and oil saturation in typical well.

Fig. 15 - Depositional model for

Shannon Sandstone at Hartzog Draw
field.