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dc.contributor.advisorSonnenberg, Stephen A.
dc.contributor.authorKernan, Henry E.
dc.date.accessioned2007-01-03T06:33:16Z
dc.date.accessioned2022-02-09T09:04:10Z
dc.date.available2015-05-01T04:18:44Z
dc.date.available2022-02-09T09:04:10Z
dc.date.issued2014
dc.date.submitted2014
dc.identifierT 7565
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/11124/482
dc.description2014 Fall.
dc.descriptionIncludes illustrations (some color), color maps.
dc.descriptionIncludes bibliographical references (pages 105-106).
dc.description.abstractThe Vaca Muerta Formation is a fine-grained marine lithostratigraphic unit that was deposited during the Late Jurassic and Early Cretaceous in the Neuquén Basin of Argentina. Accommodation space was generated by back-arc subsidence of the crust as the Pacific Plate subducted beneath the South American Plate during and after the break-up of the Gondwana supercontinent. The Vaca Muerta was recognized and named in early stratigraphic studies of the basin in the 1930s. The production of hydrocarbons in the basin led to subsequent detailed studies of the formation, primarily as an important source rock. Currently, however, the mineralogy, thickness, organic content, and maturity of the Vaca Muerta have highlighted it as a prospective resource play, comparable to plays in the United States such as the Eagle Ford. This study integrated well log, cuttings, and seismic data in the Loma La Lata area of the basin. Electrofacies were generated using well log data, with five electrofacies defined. Cuttings were analyzed for elemental composition, mineralogical makeup, and source rock characteristics. Cuttings at the base of the section proved to be good source rock and enriched in trace metals, with declining quantities up-hole. Seismic data was interpreted to highlight three major clinoform surfaces, one progradational and two aggradational. Electrofacies were related to both the results from cuttings and seismic reflector patterns. A relationship exists between the well-log values, source rock characteristics, mineralogy, and seismic patterns. Facies can be shown to vary along seismic reflectors between wells. The methodology and results presented here could help in high-grading current and future data for exploring and exploiting the Vaca Muerta Formation.
dc.format.mediumborn digital
dc.format.mediummasters theses
dc.languageEnglish
dc.language.isoeng
dc.publisherColorado School of Mines. Arthur Lakes Library
dc.relation.ispartof2014 - Mines Theses & Dissertations
dc.rightsCopyright of the original work is retained by the author.
dc.subjectunconventional
dc.subjectsource rock
dc.subjectNeuquen Basin
dc.subjectVaca Muerta
dc.subjectelectrofacies
dc.subject.lcshGeology -- Argentina
dc.subject.lcshHydrocarbons -- Argentina
dc.subject.lcshFacies (Geology) -- Argentina
dc.subject.lcshMineralogy -- Argentina
dc.subject.lcshX-ray spectroscopy
dc.subject.lcshPetroleum -- Prospecting -- Argentina
dc.titleElectrofacies, elemental composition, and source rock characteristics along seismic reflectors of the Vaca Muerta Formation in the Loma La Lata area, Neuquen Basin, Argentina
dc.typeText
dc.contributor.committeememberHumphrey, John D.
dc.contributor.committeememberFrench, Marsha
dcterms.embargo.terms2015-05-01
dcterms.embargo.expires2015-05-01
thesis.degree.nameMaster of Science (M.S.)
thesis.degree.levelMasters
thesis.degree.disciplineGeology and Geological Engineering
thesis.degree.grantorColorado School of Mines
dc.rights.access1-year embargo


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