Petrophysics and sediment variability in a mixed alluvial to lacustrine carbonate system (Miocene, Madrid Basin, Central Spain)

John J.G. Reijmer*, Carlette N. Blok, Ammar El-Husseiny, Lucas M. Kleipool, Yanto C.K. Hogendorp, Ana María Alonso-Zarza

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to JournalArticleAcademicpeer-review

Abstract

This study evaluates variations in petrophysical properties within a mixed alluvial to lacustrine carbonate system (Miocene, Madrid Basin, Central Spain). The transition from alluvial environments to lake margins settings displays a shift from alluvial, siliciclastic red sandstones and mudstones to palustrine–lacustrine mudstones to packstones. Fluctuations in lake-water level enabled land plants to occupy the lake margins during periods of low lake levels. The palustrine carbonates include features like pseudo-microkarst, nodular and mottled limestones; the lacustrine deposits include enlarged root cavities, desiccation cracks and channel bodies. Scarce fresh water biota comprises charophytes, gastropods and ostracods. The sediments possess high natural, irregular varying, gamma-ray values at the alluvial–lacustrine transition, and low, but constant values at full lacustrine sites. Acoustic properties agree with lithological variations within individual facies. Porosity is the most important parameter influencing P-wave and S-wave velocities. The scatter in the velocity–porosity relationship links to the porosity type; macro-porosity or microporosity. The wide range of pore types and pore sizes results in a weak porosity to permeability relationship for the carbonate-dominated rocks with low permeability for microporous and high permeability for macro-porous carbonates. The sandstones (probably only inhibiting interparticle porosity), and to a lesser extent the sandy wackestones to packstones, show quite a strong relationship between porosity and permeability. Elastic properties of mixed alluvial–lacustrine deposits (this study) and marine deposits (literature data) overlap as variations in pore structures and porosity values are similar. Only 16% of the marine and lacustrine carbonate sediments display Equivalent Pore Aspect Ratio values above 0.2. In travertine deposits, 83% of the samples exceed Equivalent Pore Aspect Ratio values above 0.2, which highlights that travertine deposits are dominated by larger Equivalent Pore Aspect Ratios compared to lacustrine and marine carbonate deposits. Travertines display other rock frameworks with different pore types, pore distribution and amount of porosity.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)317-339
Number of pages23
JournalDEPOSITIONAL RECORD
Volume8
Issue number1
Early online date9 Jul 2021
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Feb 2022

Bibliographical note

Special Issue: Non-Marine Carbonates.

Funding Information:
We thank Bouk Lacet (Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Earth Sciences) for preparing the thin sections and producing the cylindrical plugs needed for the petrophysical analyses. Martine Hagen and Roel van Elsas (Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Earth Sciences) are thanked for their help in producing and assisting with measuring the TGA powders. We acknowledge Koos de Jong (Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Earth Sciences) for his help measuring the petrophysics, and Cas Nooitgedacht (Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Earth Sciences) for his assistance in the field. MSc student Dominic Bagho, and BSc students Coen Berntsen, Hester Dijkstra, Ward Koehler, Ali Mirrezai‐Roudaki, Romy van Veelen, Rosa Verheij, and Gabriel Yong (all at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Earth Sciences) are thanked for fieldwork support. We thank reviewer Hannes Claes (Aachen/Leuven) and two anonymous reviewers for their comments that helped to streamline the manuscript, editor Peter Swart for handling the manuscript, and Greta Mackenzie for editorial support. Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam sponsored the MSc‐thesis projects (CB and YH), the BSc‐fieldwork projects and all laboratory analysis. During the final preparation of the manuscript JR was supported by the King Fahd University of Petroleum & Minerals (KFUPM) – College of Petroleum Engineering & Geosciences (CPG) (Dhahran, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia). This paper is a contribution to project CGL2014‐54818 from the Spanish Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación to AMAZ.

Funding Information:
We thank Bouk Lacet (Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Earth Sciences) for preparing the thin sections and producing the cylindrical plugs needed for the petrophysical analyses. Martine Hagen and Roel van Elsas (Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Earth Sciences) are thanked for their help in producing and assisting with measuring the TGA powders. We acknowledge Koos de Jong (Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Earth Sciences) for his help measuring the petrophysics, and Cas Nooitgedacht (Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Earth Sciences) for his assistance in the field. MSc student Dominic Bagho, and BSc students Coen Berntsen, Hester Dijkstra, Ward Koehler, Ali Mirrezai-Roudaki, Romy van Veelen, Rosa Verheij, and Gabriel Yong (all at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Earth Sciences) are thanked for fieldwork support. We thank reviewer Hannes Claes (Aachen/Leuven) and two anonymous reviewers for their comments that helped to streamline the manuscript, editor Peter Swart for handling the manuscript, and Greta Mackenzie for editorial support. Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam sponsored the MSc-thesis projects (CB and YH), the BSc-fieldwork projects and all laboratory analysis. During the final preparation of the manuscript JR was supported by the King Fahd University of Petroleum & Minerals (KFUPM) ? College of Petroleum Engineering & Geosciences (CPG) (Dhahran, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia). This paper is a contribution to project CGL2014-54818 from the Spanish Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovaci?n to AMAZ.

Publisher Copyright:
© 2021 The Authors. The Depositional Record published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of International Association of Sedimentologists

Keywords

  • acoustic velocities
  • alluvial
  • lacustrine
  • Miocene
  • palustrine
  • petrophysics
  • Spain

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