Natural fractures have long been suspected as a factor in production from shale reservoirs
because gas and oil production commonly exceeds the rates expected from low-porosity …

Fracture pattern development has been a challenging area of research in the Earth sciences
for more than 100 years. Much has been learned about the spatial and temporal complexity …

Microfractures are small, high-aspect-ratio cracks in rock that result from application of
differential stresses. Although the term has been used to refer to larger features in the …

Calcite is a common mineral precipitated within upper crustal fault zones and associated
fractures, forming veins, mineral cements and fault coatings. It has the potential to be dated …

Using examples of regional opening-mode fractures in sandstones from the Cambrian
Flathead Formation, Wyoming, we show that quartz deposits preferentially fill fractures up to …

The porosity and permeability of sandstone and carbonate reservoirs (known as reservoir
quality) are essential inputs for successful oil and gas resource exploration and exploitation …

Mechanical stratigraphy encompasses the mechanical properties, thicknesses, and interface
properties of rock units. Although mechanical stratigraphy often relates directly to …

Spatial arrangement is a fundamental characteristic of fracture arrays. The pattern of fault
and opening-mode fracture positions in space defines structural heterogeneity and …

Quartz in mudstones of the Mowry Shale (Cretaceous, Rocky Mountain region) takes several
forms: extrabasinal detrital silt (some with transported overgrowths), replacement of skeletal …

Using image logs from horizontal wells in the asymmetric East Painter Reservoir anticline in
Wyoming, scanlines and petrographic observations from nearby outcrops, and methods that …