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1 Bureau of Economic Geology, John A. and Catherine G. Jackson School of Geosciences, University of Texas at Austin, 10100 Bureau Road, Building 130, Austin, Texas 78713-8924; bob.loucks{at}beg.utexas.edu
2 Bureau of Economic Geology, John A. and Catherine G. Jackson School of Geosciences, University of Texas at Austin, 10100 Bureau Road, Building 130, Austin, Texas 78713-8924
Robert Loucks is a senior research scientist at the Bureau of Economic Geology. He received his B.A. degree from the State University of New York at Binghamton in 1967 and his Ph.D. from the University of Texas at Austin in 1976. His general research interests include carbonate and siliciclastic sequence stratigraphy, depositional systems, diagenesis, and reservoir characterization. His present research is focused on shale-gas systems.
Stephen Ruppel has studied the stratigraphy of Paleozoic carbonate successions for nearly 30 years. He holds a Ph.D. from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, and is currently a senior research scientist at the Bureau of Economic Geology. In addition to the Barnett shale-gas studies, he maintains active research interests in the complete Paleozoic carbonate section of the Permian Basin.
The Mississippian Barnett Formation of the Fort Worth Basin is a classic shale-gas system in which the rock is the source, reservoir, and seal. Barnett strata were deposited in a deeper water foreland basin that had poor circulation with the open ocean. For most of the basin's history, bottom waters were euxinic, preserving organic matter and, thus, creating a rich source rock, along with abundant framboidal pyrite. The Barnett interval comprises a variety of facies but is dominated by fine-grained (clay- to silt-size) particles. Three general lithofacies are recognized on the basis of mineralogy, fabric, biota, and texture: (1) laminated siliceous mudstone; (2) laminated argillaceous lime mudstone (marl); and (3) skeletal, argillaceous lime packstone. Each facies contains abundant pyrite and phosphate (apatite), which are especially common at hardgrounds. Carbonate concretions, a product of early diagenesis, are also common. The entire Barnett biota is composed of debris transported to the basin from the shelf or upper oxygenated slope by hemipelagic mud plumes, dilute turbidites, and debris flows. Biogenic sediment was also sourced from the shallower, better oxygenated water column. Barnett deposition is estimated to have occurred over a 25-m.y. period, and despite the variations in sublithofacies, sedimentation style remained remarkably similar throughout this span of time.
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  R. J. Hill, D. M. Jarvie, J. Zumberge, M. Henry, and R. M. Pollastro Oil and gas geochemistry and petroleum systems of the Fort Worth Basin AAPG Bulletin, April 1, 2007; 91(4): 445 - 473. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
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D. M. Jarvie, R. J. Hill, T. E. Ruble, and R. M. Pollastro Unconventional shale-gas systems: The Mississippian Barnett Shale of north-central Texas as one model for thermogenic shale-gas assessment AAPG Bulletin, April 1, 2007; 91(4): 475 - 499. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
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J. F. W. Gale, R. M. Reed, and J. Holder Natural fractures in the Barnett Shale and their importance for hydraulic fracture treatments AAPG Bulletin, April 1, 2007; 91(4): 603 - 622. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
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