1887
Volume 29, Issue 3-4
  • ISSN: 0812-3985
  • E-ISSN: 1834-7533

Abstract

The Australian stress map project has compiled 357 quality ranked stress orientation analyses for the Australian Continent (including New Guinea). Of these, 206 provide reliable stress orientations, approximately doubling the number from the 1992 world stress map compilation. Most new data are from borehole breakouts. Regionally, maximum horizontal stress (@) is oriented northeast-southwest from New Guinea along most of the North West Shelf, rotating to 100°N in the Carnarvon Basin. An 010°N-020°N @ orientation is observed in the Amadeus and Bowen Basins. However, in the southern half of the continent a broad east-west @ trend is observed in the Yilgarn Block, Cooper-Eromanga Basins, and from a number of isolated indicators. In the Otway and Gippsland Basins @ is oriented 130°N. The rotation of stresses along the North West Shelf and from east-west in the Yilgarn Block to north-south in the Amadeus Basin can be explained in the context of the heterogeneous plate boundary forces acting along the convergent plate boundary to the north of Australia. However, plate boundary forces can not explain the rotation of @ from east-west in the Cooper-Eromanga Basins to approximately north-south in the Amadeus Basin, which may be linked to second order influences on the stress field.

The vertical stress (σ) gradient in the Bonaparte and Cooper-Eromanga Basins increases with depth, and is around 20 MPa/km at 1 000 m, attaining 23 MPa/km around 3 000 m. The Amadeus Basin displays an overburden gradient of 25 MPa/km that is little affected by depth. In situ measurements in hard rock terranes suggest a higher average overburden stress gradient of 27 MPa/km. Leak-off pressures suggest that the minimum horizontal stress (σ) is the least principal stress (60-70% of σ) in the Bonaparte and Cooper-Eromanga Basins. Hence in neither basin is the stress regime one associated with reverse faulting (where σ σ σ). Consideration of the frictional limits to faulting suggests that, if in a state of incipient faulting, the stress regime is approximately on the boundary between normal (σ σ σ) and strike-slip (σ σ σ) faulting environments in the Bonaparte Basin and strike-slip in the Cooper-Eromanga Basins. Applications of the stress data include assessing both natural and induced fluid flow directions in the subsurface. For example, hydraulic fractures induced for geothermal exploitation of hot-dry-rock in the Cooper-Eromanga Basins would tend to be vertical, and not, as previously suggested horizontal.

© 1998 ASEG
Loading

Article metrics loading...

/content/journals/10.1071/EG998420
1998-09-01
2026-01-14

  • From This Site

    /content/journals/10.1071/EG998420
    dcterms_title,dcterms_subject,pub_keyword
    -contentType:Journal -contentType:Contributor -contentType:Concept -contentType:Institution
    10
    5
Loading full text...

Full text loading...

References

  1. Addis, M. A., 1997, Reservoir depletion and its effect on wellbore stability evaluation: Intenat. J. Rock Mech. & Min. Sci., 34, 3–4, Paper 4.
  2. Barton, C. A., Zoback, M. D. and Moos, D., 1995, Fluid flow along potentially active faults in crystalline rock: Geology, 23, 683–686.
  3. Bell, J.S., 1996, In situ stresses in sedimentary rocks (part 2): applications of stress measurements: Geoscience Canada, 23, 135–153.
  4. Breckels, I. M. and Van Eekelen, H. A. M., 1982, Relationship between horizontal stress and depth in sedimentary basins: J. Petr. Tech., 34, 2191–2198.
  5. Byerlee, J. D., 1978, Friction of rock: Pure Appl. Geophys., 116, 615–626.
  6. Caillet, G., Judge, N. C., Bramwell, N. P., Meciani, L., Green, M. and Adam, P., 1997, Overpressure and hydrocarbon trapping in the Chalk of the Norwegian Central Graben: Petr. Geosci., 3, 33–42.
  7. Castillo, D.A., Hillis, R.R., Asquith, K. and Fischer, M., 1998, State of stress in the Timor Sea area, based on deep wellbore observations and frictional failure criteria: application to fault-trap integrity, in Pircell, P.G. and Pircell, R.R., EdS., The Sedimentary Basins of Western Australia 2: Proceedings of the West Australian Basins Symposium, Perth, Western Australia.
  8. Coblentz, D. D., Sandiford, M., Richardson, R. M., Zhou, S. and Hillis, R. R., 1995, The origins of the intraplate stress field in continental Australia: Earth and Planet. Sci. Lett., 133, 299–309.
  9. Coblentz, D. D., Zhou, S., Hillis, R. R., Richardson, R. M. and Sandiford, M., 1998, Topography, plate boundary forces, and the Indo-Australian intraplate stress field: J. Geophys. Res., 103, 919–931.
  10. Denham, D., Alexander, L. G. and Worotnicki, G., 1979, Stresses in the Australian crust: evidence from earthquakes and in-situ stress measurements: BMR J. Austral. Geol. Geophys., 4, 289–295.
  11. Denham, D. and Windsor, C. R., 1991, The crustal stress pattern in the Australian Continent: Expl. Geophys., 22, 101–105.
  12. Dickinson, G., 1953, Geological aspects of abnormal reservoir pressures in Gulf Coast Louisiana: Am. Assn. Petr. Geol. Bull., 37, 410–423.
  13. Enever, J. R., Yassir, N., Willoughby, D. R. and Addis, M. A., 1996, Recent experience with extended leak-off tests for in-situ stress measurements in Australia: Austral. Petr. Prod. Expl. Assn. J., 36, 528–535.
  14. Engelder, T., 1993, Stress Regimes in the Lithosphere: Princeton University Press.
  15. Gaarenstroom, L., Tromp, R. A. J., De Jong, M. C. and Brandenburg, A. M., 1993, Overpressures in the Central North Sea: implications for trap integrity and drilling safety, in Parker, J. R., Ed., Petroleum Geology of Northwest Europe: Proceedings of the 4th Conference, Geol. Soc. London, 2, 1305–1313.
  16. Greenhalgh, S.A., Love, D., Malpas, K. and McDougall, R., 1994, South Australian earthquakes, 1980–92: Austral. J. Earth Sci., 41, 483-495.
  17. Hast, N., 1958, The measurement of rock pressure in mines: Sveriges Geologiska Undersokning, Series C Arsbok 52, No. 3.
  18. Heffer, K. and Fox, R., 1996, Geomechanics, faults and fluid flow, in Faulting, Fault Sealing and Fluid Flow in Hydrocarbon Reservoirs: Abstracts of the Conference, Leeds, UK, September 1996, 49–50.
  19. Hillis, R. R., Monte, S. A., Tan, C. P. and Willoughby, D. R., 1995, The contemporary stress field of the Otway Basin, South Australia: implications for hydrocarbon exploration and production: Austral. Petr. Expl. Assn. J., 35, 494–506.
  20. Hillis, R. R., Mildren, S. D., Pigram, C. J. and Willoughby, D. R., 1997, Rotation of horizontal stresses in the Australian North West Continental Shelf due to the collision of the Indo-Australian and Eurasian Plates: Tectonics, 16, 323–335.
  21. Hubbert, M. K. and Rubey, W. W., 1959, Role of fluid pressure in mechanics of overthrust faulting, I Mechanics of fluid filled porous solids and its application to overthrust faulting: Geol. Soc. Am. Bull., 70, 115–166.
  22. McCue, K., 1996, Australian Seismological Report 1994 - Earthquakes 15: AGSO Report 1996/019.
  23. Messent, B. E. J. and Yacopetti, C. M., 1997, The value of integrating borehole resistivity images with geological data: relevance to hydrocarbon exploration: Austral. Petr. Prod. Expl. Assn. J., 37, 301-314
  24. Moos, D. and Zoback, M. D., 1990, Utilization of observations of well bore failure to constrain the orientation and magnitude of crustal stresses: application to Continental, Deep Sea Drilling Project, and Ocean Drilling Program boreholes: J. Geophys. Res., 95, 9305–9325.
  25. Sibson, R. H., 1996, Structural permeability of fluid-driven fault-fracture meshes: J. Struct. Geol., 18, 1031–1042.
  26. Sibson, R. H., 1998, Conditions for rapid large-volume flow, in Arehart, G.B. and Hulston, J.R., Eds, Water-Rock Interaction: Proceedings of the 9th International Symposium— WRI-9, Taupo, New Zealand, March-April 1998, Balkema, Rotterdam, 35–38.
  27. Watts, N. L., 1987, Theoretical aspects of cap-rock and fault seals for single and two-phase hydrocarbon columns: Marine Petr. Geol., 4, 274–307.
  28. Wyborn, D. and Somerville, M., 1994, Prospective hot-dry-rock geothermal energy in Australia: AGSO Research Newsletter, 21, 1–2.
  29. Zhang, Y., Scheibner, E., Ord, A. and Hobbs, B. E., 1996, Numerical modelling of crustal stresses in the eastern Australian passive margin: Austral. J. Earth Sci., 43, 161–175.
  30. Zoback, M. D. and Healy, J. H., 1984, Friction, faulting and in situ stress: ann. geophys., 2, 689–698.
  31. Zoback, M. L., 1992, First-and second-order patterns of stress in the lithosphere: the world stress map project: J. Geophys. Res., 97, 11703–11728.
/content/journals/10.1071/EG998420
Loading
  • Article Type: Research Article
Keyword(s): Australia; in situ stress

Most Cited This Month Most Cited RSS feed

This is a required field
Please enter a valid email address
Approval was a Success
Invalid data
An Error Occurred
Approval was partially successful, following selected items could not be processed due to error