3-D Seismic Characterization of Paleokarst Collapse Features in the Arkoma Basin, Oklahoma

Abstract

We study the Pennsylvanian Wapanucka limestone and Ordovician Viola limestone to delineate paleokarst collapse sinkholes in the Arkoma basin, using post stack three-dimensional seismic and well data. The vertical distance between the top of these formations in the study area is about 610 meters, measured from well data. Time structure maps for these two formations show that paleokarst circular features were pronounced in the Viola, but have no structural relief in the Wapanucka. Observed circular features in the study area have diameters of 120 - 610 meters. After parameter testing, the variance attribute accentuated circular features in the Viola and, predominantly, in the Wapanucka where sinkholes were evident in the amplitude map. Amplitude extraction through the Viola limestone indicated that circular features have high amplitude values outside the sinkholes and low amplitudes within. However, the Wapanucka limestone amplitude map shows the opposite behavior. This implies that sinkholes are low acoustic impedance (AI) features in the Viola and high AI features in the Wapanucka. We note that some of these circular features observed in the Viola formation exhibit vertical collapse, which extend below and above the Viola formation reaching heights of about 600 meters but do not structurally extend into the Wapanucka. However, many sinkholes observed in the Wapanucka limestone are spatially coincident to sinkholes seen in the Viola limestone, possibly implying a common origin for both.

AAPG Datapages/Search and Discovery Article #90350 © 2019 AAPG Annual Convention and Exhibition, San Antonio, Texas, May 19-22, 2019