Classification and well-log identification of lithofacies of continental shale oil reservoirs in Chang 7-3 submember of the Triassic Yanchang Formation in the Longdong area of the Ordos Basin, China

Abstract The division and identification of lithology and lithofacies are very important in exploration and development of oil and gas reservoirs. Information on lithofacies determines the development modes and provides the favorable “sweet spot” intervals of shales. The Chang 7-3 submember of the Triassic Yanchang Formation in the Longdong area of the Ordos Basin is an important shale formation in China. Core photos, cast thin sections, and log response characteristics were used to clarify the development and distribution characteristics of the various lithofacies in this formation. The lithofacies of target intervals are classified into fine-grained sandy debrite, silty to fine-grained sandy turbidite, fine-grained sandy slump, semideep to deep lacustrine mudstone, and deep lacustrine shale. Furthermore, the conventional and microresistivity imaging log response characteristics of different lithofacies are analyzed. Compared with other lithofacies, deep lacustrine shale facies are characterized by high gamma ray (GR), high compensated neutron log (CNL), high acoustic log (AC), and low-density (DEN) log values. Crossplots of GR-AC, DEN-CNL, and DEN-AC are proposed to identify most of the lithofacies, and a criterion was established for use of well logs to characterize the lithofacies. Finally, a method joining conventional logs and microresistivity imaging log data was applied to field wells, achieving the very high accuracy rate of 88%. The distribution maps of different lithofacies thickness in the study area are obtained. Deep lacustrine shale facies have the widest development area and many thickness centers. Accurate and effective identification of lithofacies indicates that within the Ordos Basin, there is an area of approximately 20,000 km2 with shale thickness of greater than 6 m, providing an important basis for shale oil exploration in the study area.