The permeability of argillaceous formations, although rarely measured and poorly understood, is commonly a critical parameter in analyses of subsurface flow. Data now available suggest a regular relation between permeability and porosity in clays and shales and permeabilities that, even at large scales, are significantly lower than usually assumed. Permeabilities between 10 -23 and 10 -17 m 2 have been obtained at porosities between 0.1 and 0.4 in both laboratory and regional studies. Although it is clear that transmissive fractures or other heterogeneities control the large-scale hydraulic behavior of certain argillaceous units, the permeability of many others is apparently scale independent. These results have significant implications for understanding fluid transport rates and abnormal pressure generation in basins, and could prove important for waste isolation efforts.

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How permeable are clays and shales

The subduction-channel model predicts five geologically and geophysically distinctive types of convergent plate margin. They differ primarily in the proportions of incoming sediment and upflowing melange offscraped and underplated near the toe of the overriding block. The model predicts complex patterns of uplift or subsidence of the forearc region due to differential underplating or subduction erosion and to initiation or cessation of melange upflow. It shows how subduction speed, sediment input, and pressure gradient along the channel govern the general distribution and magnitude of subduction-zone earthquakes. It can predict the upward trajectories of exotic blueschist or serpentinized peridotite blocks that become entrained in the upwelling melange; and it suggests mechanisms by which much larger tracts of coherent blueschist can be raised to shallower levels. It predicts characteristic structural and metamorphic histories for geologic units accreted during steady-state subduction, showing for example, that offscraped materials undergo subhorizontally-directed compression during final dewatering and accretion, whereas underplated ones undergo large simple shear. It gives the maximum depths reached by upwelled melange, which bear significantly on the metamorphic changes observed in them. It predicts large-scale melange diapirism in certain rare cases, in which the normally adverse pressure gradient is reversed in a short reach of the channel, as at Barbados Island. Finally, it explains why pelagic sediments are seldom found in accretionary complexes and gives insight into the factors controlling what portion of the incoming sediment, and the10Be and other tracers it carries, will reach the region of volcanic-arc magmagenesis.

Subduction-channel model of prism accretion, melange formation, sediment subduction, and subduction erosion at convergent plate margins: 2. Implications and discussion

The descending plate and overriding block in a subduction zone are analogous to the guide surface and slide block in a slipper bearing, and subducted sediment is analogous to the lubricant. Subduction is more complex and varied, however, because the overriding block is not rigid, the sediment is buoyant, underplating can occur, and sediment supply can vary widely. A model based on the bearing analogy but taking these differences into account makes detailed quantitative predictions for actual sites, which are illustrated by calculations for five diverse examples: Mariana, 16°N; Mexico, 17°N; Lesser Antilles, 13°N (Barbados); Alaska, 153°W (Kodiak); and Japan, 40°N. It requires as input the geometry of the overriding block and the top of the descending plate, the distribution of density and permeability of the overriding block, the speed of subduction, the density and rheological properties of the subducted sediment, and the rate of sediment input. Its predictions include the profile of thickness of the layer of subducted sediment (all sites; maximum of 360 m at Mariana, 5300 m at Japan), the velocities of flow in the layer (all sites), the shear stresses exerted on the walls (all sites; low beneath accretionary prisms, up to 6 MPa beneath Japan), the rate of offscraping (none at Mariana and late Tertiary Mexico; 85% of input at Lesser Antilles; includes melange at Japan), the distribution and rates of underplating (none at Mariana, extensive at Japan), the zones of possible subduction erosion (extensive at Mariana; local at the others), the amount of sediment subducted to the volcanic arc (all sites; 2% of input at Lesser Antilles, 100% at Mariana), the qualitative pattern of flow at the inlet (five basic patterns; all sites), the upward flow of melange in many instances (none at Mariana; extensive at Japan), and, under relatively rare conditions, the formation of large-scale melange diapirs (only at Lesser Antilles beneath Barbados Island).

Dynamics of sediment subduction, melange formation, and prism accretion

Certain geologic media are known to have small permeability; subsurface environments composed of these media and lacking well developed secondary permeability have groundwater flow sytems with many distinctive characteristics. Moreover, groundwater flow in these environments appears to influence the evolution of certain hydrologic, geologic, and geochemical systems, may affect the accumulation of pertroleum and ores, and probably has a role in the structural evolution of parts of the crust. Such environments are also important in the context of waste disposal. This review attempts to synthesize the diverse contributions of various disciplines to the problem of flow in low-permeability environments. Problems hindering analysis are enumerated together with suggested approaches to overcoming them. A common thread running through the discussion is the significance of size- and time-scale limitations of the ability to directly observe flow behavior and make measurements of parameters. These limitations have resulted in rather distinct small- and large-scale approaches to the problem. The first part of the review considers experimental investigations of low-permeability flow, including in situ testing; these are generally conducted on temporal and spatial scales which are relatively small compared with those of interest. Results from this work have provided increasingly detailed information about many aspects of the flow but leave certain questions unanswered. Recent advances in laboratory and in situ testing techniques have permitted measurements of permeability and storage properties in progressively “tighter” media and investigation of transient flow under these conditions. However, very large hydraulic gradients are still required for the tests; an observational gap exists for typical in situ gradients. The applicability of Darcy's law in this range is therefore untested, although claims of observed non-Darcian behavior appear flawed. Two important nonhydraulic flow phenomena, osmosis and ultrafiltration, are experimentally well established in prepared clays but have been incompletely investigated, particularly in undisturbed geologic media. Small-scale experimental results form much of the basis for analyses of flow in low-permeability environments which occurs on scales of time and size too large to permit direct observation. Such large-scale flow behavior is the focus of the second part of the review. Extrapolation of small-scale experimental experience becomes an important and sometimes controversial problem in this context. In large flow systems under steady state conditions the regional permeability can sometimes be determined, but systems with transient flow are more difficult to analyze. The complexity of the problem is enhanced by the sensitivity of large-scale flow to the effects of slow geologic processes. One-dimensional studies have begun to elucidate how simple burial or exhumation can generate transient flow conditions by changing the state of stress and temperature and by burial metamorphism. Investigation of the more complex problem of the interaction of geologic processes and flow in two and three dimensions is just beginning. Because these transient flow analyses have largely been based on flow in experimental scale systems or in relatively permeable systems, deformation in response to effective stress changes is generally treated as linearly elastic; however, this treatment creates difficulties for the long periods of interest because viscoelastic deformation is probably significant. Also, large-scale flow simulations in argillaceous environments generally have neglected osmosis and ultrafiltration, in part because extrapolation of laboratory experience with coupled flow to large scales under in situ conditions is controversial. Nevertheless, the effects are potentially quite important because the coupled flow might cause ultra long lived transient conditions. The difficulties associated with analysis are matched by those of characterizing hydrologic conditions in tight environments; measurements of hydraulic head and sampling of pore fluids have been done only rarely because of the practical difficulties involved. These problems are also discussed in the second part of this paper.

Groundwater Flow in Low‐Permeability Environments

Estimating permeability from grain-size distributions or from well logs is attractive but difficult. In this paper we present a new, generally applicable, and relatively inexpensive approach which yields permeability information on the scale of core samples and boreholes. The approach is theoretically based on a fractal model for the internal structure of a porous medium. It yields a general and petrophysically justified relation linking porosity to permeability, which may be calculated either from porosity or from the pore-radius distribution. This general relation can be tuned to the entire spectrum of sandstones, ranging from clean to shaly. The resulting expressions for the different rock types are calibrated to a comprehensive data set of petrophysical and petrographical rock properties measured on 640 sandstone core samples of the Rotliegend Series (Lower Permian) in northeastern Germany. With few modifications, this new straight-forward and petrophysically motivated approach can also be applied to metamorphic and igneous rocks. Permeability calculated with this procedure from industry porosity logs compares very well with permeability measured on sedimentary and metamorphic rock samples.

Permeability prediction based on fractal pore‐space geometry

Permeability of a large number of natural marine sediment samples from the Gulf of Mexico was determined through the use of laboratory consolidation tests. The samples were divided into the following groups: Group 1, sediment consisting of more than 80% clay (material 2 μm or less in size); Group 2, sediment containing from 60 to 80% clay‐size material; Group 3, silty clays with less than 60% clay; and Group 4, silts and clays that have a significant sand‐size fraction present (more than 5% sand). The permeabilities of the groups ranged from 10−5 to 10−10 cm/s with 35% normal seawater being used as the saturating fluid.

A statistical analysis of the natural log of permeability versus porosity was used to develop the permeability prediction equation for each of the groups listed. The equation for Group 1 is k =en(15.05)‐27.37. for Group 2, k=en(14. 18)‐26.50. for Group 3, k= en(15.59)‐26.65. for Group 4 k=en(17.51)‐26.93.and for all data, k = en(14.30)‐26.30; wherc n is the porosity (in decimals) and k is the coefficient of permeability. These equations are useful for predicting changes in permeability with depth in fine‐grained sediments of the Gulf of Mexico. The ability to predict permeability in a continuous sequence, where the deposition history is known, may explain the large variations that we see in the physical properties in sediments similar in grain size and mineralogy.

Permeability of Unconsolidated and Consolidated Marine Sediments, Gulf of Mexico

Permeability of a large number of natural marine sediment samples from the Gulf of Mexico was determined through the use of laboratory consolidation tests. The samples were divided into groups as follows. Group 1, sediment consisting of more than 80 percent clay (material 2µ or less in size); Group 2, sediment containing from 60 to 80 percent clay-size material; Group 3, silty clays with less than 60 percent clay; Group 4, silts and clays that have a significant sand-size fraction present (more than 5 percent sand). The permeabilities of the groups ranged from 10-5 to 10-10 cm/sec with 35 ppm normal seawater being used as the saturating fluid. A statistical analysis of the natural log of permeability versus porosity was used to develop the permeability prediction equation for each of the groups listed. The equation for Group 1 is k = eP(15.05) - 27.37, for Group 2 k = eP(14.18) - 26.50, for Group 3 K = eP(15.59) - 26.65, for Group 4 k = eP(17.51) - 26.93), and for all data k = eP(14.30) - 26.30, where P is the porosity (in decimal) and k is the coefficient of permeability. These equations are useful for predicting changes in permeability with depth in fine grained sediments of the Gulf of Mexico. The ability to predict permeability in a continuous sequence, where the deposition history is known, may explain the large variations that we see in the physical properties in sediments similar in grain size and mineralogy. End_of_Article - Last_Page 2207------------

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Permeability of Unconsolidated and Consolidated marine Sediments, Gulf of Mexico: ABSTRACT

End_Page 988------------------------------The late Miocene to Pliocene argillaceous and siliceous shales of the upper Monterey Formation (the Brown Shale and overlying Belridge Diatomite) represent laterally continuous deposits of nearshore, diatom-rich muds and open marine, argillaceous, diatom-bearing muds on a developing shelf and growing anticline which flanked the San Joaquin basin. These units are laterally equivalent to submarine fan and turbidite sedimentary rocks deposited into the basin from the west, south, and east. The lithology of the Brown Shale and Belridge Diatomite is controlled by original composition and subsequent burial diagenesis. The muds underwent diagenetic alteration with the development of silica phases in the sequence: (1) unaltered diatom frustules (biogenic amorphous silica or opal-A); (2) diagenetic amorphous silica (opal-A); and (3) diagenetic crystalline silica (opal-CT). In the oil field, the Belridge Diatomite grades downward from a massive or faintly laminated siliceous mudstone with diatom frustules and opal-A^prime, to a laminated and massive siliceous mudstone with opal-A^prime and some well-preserved diatoms. The Brown Shale grades from a massive or laminated siliceous mudstone with opal-A^prime and some diatoms to a well-laminated argillaceous, diatom-bearing mudston with opal-A^prime and some opal-CT. There is no distinct break in lithology between the Belridge Diatomite and Brown Shale reservoirs, but recrystallization and detrital clay increase downward across the boundary. Porosity in the best diatomite is about 62%, and permeability is about 1 md. End_of_Article - Last_Page 989------------

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William E. Hottman

Papers

Permeability of Unconsolidated and Consolidated Marine Sediments, Gulf of Mexico

Permeability of Unconsolidated and Consolidated marine Sediments, Gulf of Mexico: ABSTRACT

Geology and Diagenesis of Belridge Diatomite and Brown Shale, San Joaquin Valley, California: ABSTRACT

SEASWAB II (Shallow Experiment To Access Storm Wave Affects On The Bottom)