Sedimentary structures of Gercus Formation in NE Iraq was little studied in the last decades. In this study the identified sedimentary structures display alternative graded and fining upward cycles, load and flute casts, submarine channels, sand and clay balls and pillow structures, convolute and slump beddings, of marine turbidity origin. The foreland part of Tethys basin characterized by deep marine Tanjero and Kolosh Formations followed by the Gercus formation with conformable relationships. The Eocene aged Flysch comprises predominantly litharenitic sandstones and interbedded mudstones, both of turbiditic affinities and most likely derived from a NE Arabian Plate source. The sediments provide excellent examples of distal fan sands associated with turbidites and related sedimentary structures. The overall sedimentological characteristics of the examined section indicate that the sandstones were deposited in larger channel complexes that fed a mud-dominated slope. The more proximal sediments have a proportion of pebble conglomerates, shale-clast conglomerates and thick-bedded structureless pebbly sandstones, deposited by high-density turbidity currents, debris flows and slumping. Otherwise, more distal or more uniform sand-rich source are dominated by thick-bedded and amalgamated structureless sandstones. The massive sands are thought to originate from the gradual aggradation of sediment beneath steady flows.
In this paper, new sedimentological evidences prove for the first time that the Gercus Formation was deposited in gravity-flow regime in marine environment. This is supported with identified glauconite index mineral in some sandstone beds.
Synthesis of sedimentologic, paleocurrent, and organic geochemistry data of the Lower Permian Ga’ara Formation from the Western Desert, western Iraq, shows good hydrocarbon potentiality and deposition by high sinuosity and mixed-load channels, likely by a meandering river system. The Ga’ara Formation includes kaolinitic mudstone beds of various colors and channelized quartzitic sandstone beds. Based on the lithofacies identification, five lithofacies associations have been recognized: channel-floor, point-bar, abandoned channel plug, crevasse splay, and interchannel flood basin. In addition, the paleocurrent analysis and sandstone percentage map indicate a variation of the paleoflow spatially and temporally with a general di
... Show MoreThe environmental impact was illustrated by rockslide and erosion on the Duhok Dam and its reservoir. The evaluation of the geotechnical characteristics of the Gercus Formation was conducted. The research plan was divided into three phases, field, laboratory, and office works. The fieldwork included studying all the geological phenomena of the region related to the environmental impact. The laboratory work focused on studying the geotechnical properties of the various rock samples taken from the Gercus Formation. Rocklab program was used to define the geotechnical properties of a rock mass. The results indicated the weak resistance of the Gercus Formation rocks to weathering and erosion processes, as well as their weak resistance to slid
... Show MoreIn this paper, we attempt to predict the depositional environments with associated lithofacies of the main reservoir of the late Cretaceous Mishrif carbonate Formation, depending on the analysis of the created seismic isopach map by integrating seismic and well data. The isopach map was created from a 3D-seismic reflection survey carried out at the Dujaila oil field in southeastern Iraq, which is of an area of 602.26 Km2, and integrated with the data of the two explored wells. Based on the interpretation of the seismic isopach map, the diagram of the 3D-depositional environment model of Mishrif Formation was constructed. It showed three distinguished depositional environments, which were graduated from a back reef lithofacies of a shallo
... Show MoreUpper Cretaceous Oceanic Red Beds (CORBs) are pelagic sediment deposits that deposited in the Upper Cretaceous basin, with widespread in part of the world as well as in Iraq. This research investigates the deposition of cyclic marl and marly limestone CORBs of six selected sections at the active southern margin of the Tethys during the Late Campanian - Maastrichtian with petrography, microfacies, and depositional environment.
The measurement of carbonate content (CaCO3 %) in the rocks, 180 samples of all the geological sections were studied twice for each sample and the average readings were taken.
This examination proved the following major oxides wt. % concentrations domination SiO2, CaO, Al2 O3 and Fe2O3 with average values of 3
Deposition environment and diagenesis processes are very important factors which affect and control the reservoir properties. The carbonate Mishrif Formation has been selected as a carbonate reservoir in selected wells from southeastern Iraq to understand the influence of the Deposition environment and diagenesis processes on the carbonate reservoir. A core examination of thin sections, shows that Mishrif Formation comprises of six depositional environments, these are: deep marine, lagoon, rudist biostrome, back shoal, and shallow open marine. These environments have effect by many diagenetic processes, including dolomitization, dissolution, micritization, cementation, recrystallization and Stylolite, some of these processes
... Show MoreFive subsurface sections covering the entire length of the Jeribe Limestone Formation (Early Middle Miocene) were studied from four oilfields in northern Iraq. It is hoped to unravel this formation microfacies ; depositional environment; diagenetic attributes and their parental processes; and the relationship between these processes and the observed porosity patterns. The microfacies were found to include mudstone, wackestone, packstone, and grainstone, which have been deposited respectively in open platform, restricted platform, and edge platform which represent the lagoonal environment, while the deposits of the lower parts of the Jeribe formation especially in well Hamrin- 2 reflect a deeper fore slope environment. By using the lithofac
... Show MoreThe Shiranish Formation is cropped out in several areas in northern Iraq. A stratigraphic and facies study was conducted within the Duhok region to determine the sedimentary environment. Three microfacies, reflecting the various subenvironments within different shelf parts of the deep sea, have been identified within the Shiranish Formation. Four depositional environments are identified: slope, the toe of slope, deep shelf, and deep-sea or cratonic deep basin. The Shiranish Formation in the Duhok region, Northern Iraq, was deposited in an open shelf carbonate platform. The Shiranish Formation sequence is divided into six third-order cycles in the study area. These asymmetrical cycles reflect an imbalance between the relative level of the
... Show MoreVolcaniclastic rocks of Al Muqdadiya Formation (Pliocene) in Injana area, southern Hemrin anticline, NE of Iraq, were studied ( petrographically, physically, mineralogically and geochemically , as well as the engineering properties) to assess the suitability of volcaniclastic rocks to use them in industry as refractories. The results show that the physical and engineering properties change with the temperature change. The bulk density and the specific gravity increase by increasing temperature while the apparent porosity, water sorption and the linear shrinkage decrease. On the other hand the compressive strength increase by increasing temperature. The volcaniclastics have very low thermal conductivi
... Show MoreVolcaniclastic rocks of Al Muqdadiya Formation (Pliocene) in Injana area, southern Hemrin anticline, NE of Iraq, were studied ( petrographically, physically, mineralogically and geochemically , as well as the engineering properties) to assess the suitability of volcaniclastic rocks to use them in industry as refractories. The results show that the physical and engineering properties change with the temperature change. The bulk density and the specific gravity increase by increasing temperature while the apparent porosity, water sorption and the linear shrinkage decrease. On the other hand the compressive strength increase by increasing temperature. The volcaniclastics have very low thermal conductivity.
The petrography, mineralogy and