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Dolomitization of the Middle Ordovician Ma55 Sub-member of the Majiagou Formation and implications for hydrocarbon exploration in the northern Ordos Basin, NW China

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Abstract

The Middle Ordovician Majiagou Formation in the northern Ordos Basin consists of a sequence of subtidal and peritidal carbonates that are extensively dolomitized. The diagenetic evolution of the Ma55 Sub-member was investigated to determine the factors controlling reservoir quality in the northern Ordos Basin. Dolomite in the Ma55 Sub-member is classified into three main types on the basis of crystal size: dolomicrite (D1), micritic–silty and fine silty dolomite (D2), and silty (and coarser) dolomite (D3). The Dolomite D1 was produced by dolomitization in a low-salinity diagenetic environment and transformed by near-surface freshwater leaching during shallow burial. The Dolomite D2 developed as a result of post-penecontemporaneous seepage–reflux dolomitization and was affected by later burial dolomitization. The Dolomite D3 was produced during burial dolomitization. Although the original porosity of the Dolomite D1 was low, freshwater diagenesis increased the porosity significantly. As a result of the transformation of montmorillonite to illite, there was a deficiency in the Mg2+ necessary for Dolomite D2 formation, resulting in the nonuniform dolomitization of this type of dolomite. The intercrystalline pores of the Dolomite D2 are mostly filled with montmorillonite and illite, reducing its porosity and permeability and consequently making the Dolomite D2 a poor reservoir. The Dolomite D3 has a higher porosity and contains various types of dissolution and intercrystalline pores, generating a higher permeability. This dolomite is a potential reservoir in the study area and a possible target for oil and gas exploration. Overall, the results of the study suggest that the quality of a potential dolomite reservoir is strongly controlled by the diagenetic history of the host carbonates.

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Acknowledgements

The authors thank Changqing Oilfield Company provided the funding for this paper. The authors also thank Springer Nature Author Services for editing the language. Sincere thanks also go to the three anonymous reviewers for their critical and constructive comments in the previous version that im- proved the manuscript significantly, and to Editor-in-Chief Dr. James W. LaMoreaux for his patience in handling this paper.

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  1. College of Energy Engineering, Xi’an University of Science and Technology, Xi’an, 710054, China

    Hua Liu

  2. Key Laboratory of Western Mine Exploitation and Hazard Prevention, Ministry of Education, Xi’an, 710054, China

    Hua Liu

  3. Southwest Petroleum University, Chengdu, 610500, China

    Pingzhou Shi, Hongming Tang & Zhenyu Wang

  4. Key Laboratory of Nuclear Resource and Environment (Ministry of Education), East China University of Technology, Nanchang, 330013, China

    Ting Shang

  5. Changqing Oilfield Company, Petrol-China, Xi’an, 710021, China

    Zhongjun Zhao, Longlong Li & Kaixuan Liu

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Liu, H., Shi, P., Tang, H. et al. Dolomitization of the Middle Ordovician Ma55 Sub-member of the Majiagou Formation and implications for hydrocarbon exploration in the northern Ordos Basin, NW China. Carbonates Evaporites 36, 14 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13146-020-00671-9

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