--> Abstract: Fold-Fault Geometries in Hydrocarbon Basins, by S. Mitra; #91012 (1992).

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ABSTRACT: Fold-Fault Geometries in Hydrocarbon Basins

MITRA, SHANKAR, ARCO Exploration and Production Technology, Plano, TX

Balanced structural models based on kinematic relationships between folds and faults provide a useful tool for interpreting complex structures in hydrocarbon basins. These models were originally developed for compressional structures, but have also been applied, more recently, to extensional and inversion structures. Three main types of fault-related folds are recognized: fault-bend folds, fault-propagation folds, and detachment folds. More complex structures such as duplexes are formed by superposition of multiple fault-related folds. Balanced models of these structures have been successfully applied to predict the geometry, size, and location of complex subsurface structures in areas of poor data quality. However, these idealized models should not be applied as "rigid templates" in he interpretation process for the following reasons: (1) the quantitative relationships between fold and fault geometries are highly sensitive to variations in penetrative strain within rocks, so that natural structures commonly exhibit significant departures from idealized models; (2) many structures form by a combination of two or more processes, so that the application of simple kinematic models results in inaccurate solutions; and (3) most datasets can be satisfactorily explained by more than one balanced model, so that multiple interpretations need to be compared before converging to a final solution. The models are best utilized for developing multiple interpretations for any given dataset, for testing them for kinematic consistency, and for iterating among them to arrive at the be t-fit structural solution.

 

AAPG Search and Discovery Article #91012©1992 AAPG Annual Meeting, Calgary, Alberta, Canada, June 22-25, 1992 (2009)