Cotton Valley/ Bossier of the East Texas Area: Digital Sequence Stratigraphy Recreates the Depositional History

R. A. Williams, M. Robinson, R. M. Mitchum, and E. G. Fernandez

The construction of a digital database of a 30 county area, encompassing most of the East Texas basin allows a unique perspective of the Cotton Valley/Bossier depositional history to be created. The depositional history is visualized by establishing a detailed sequence stratigraphic interpretation. Multiple well cross sections illustrate depositional features and sequence boundaries. By projecting the correlation framework across a section grid, then mapping the major sand bodies, a three dimensional view of the major depositional features can be created.

The history of Cotton Valley/Bossier sandstone deposition will be illustrated with a series of maps, which step through time. The maps will have the inferred depositional feature superimposed. Accompanying the maps will be cross sections which illustrate the log character of the formation being deposited. Maps will include maximum flooding events as well as low stand prograding features.

The availability of digital well logs and software programs has expedited the consolidation and interpretation of a large data set over a large area. Display techniques allow many iterations, in both structural and stratigraphic perspectives.

AAPG Search and Discovery Article #90901©2001 GCAGS, Annual Meeting, Shreveport, Louisiana