Part 4 - Berg - Hughes Center
Part 4 - Berg - Hughes Center
Part 4 - Berg - Hughes Center
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Louisiana Salt Basin. Lower Cretaceous lime mudstone was an effective local petroleum<br />
source rock in the South Florida Basin, and these rocks are possible source beds in the<br />
North Louisiana Salt Basin given the proper organic facies. Upper Jurassic strata were<br />
effective source rocks in Mexico and the East Texas Salt Basin; therefore, these strata are<br />
possible source beds in this basin given the proper organic facies. Upper Cretaceous<br />
marine shale probably is not a source bed in this basin given the thickness and organic<br />
facies of this unit. Lower Tertiary shale and lignite have been reported to have been<br />
source beds in south Louisiana and southwestern Mississippi, but these beds have not<br />
been subjected to favorable burial and thermal maturation histories required for<br />
petroleum generation in the North Louisiana Salt Basin.<br />
Comparative Basin Evaluation<br />
The origin and evolution of the North Louisiana Salt Basin and Mississippi Interior<br />
Salt Basin are comparable, and Upper Jurassic Smackover lime mudstone beds are the<br />
main petroleum source rock in both of these basins (Table 1). There is a significant<br />
difference in the geohistories of these basins. This difference is the elevated heat flow the<br />
strata in the North Louisiana Salt Basin experienced in the Cretaceous. This event is<br />
primarily due to reactivation of upward movement, igneous activity, and erosion<br />
associated with the Monroe and Sabine Uplifts.<br />
The difference is the heat flow values between the North Louisiana Salt Basin (1.25<br />
HFU) and the Mississippi Interior Salt Basin (1.09 HFU) results in the generation of<br />
hydrocarbons being initiated at depths of 6,000 to 8,500 feet for the North Louisiana Salt<br />
Basin and hydrocarbon generation commencing at depths of 8,000 to 11,000 feet for the<br />
Mississippi Interior Salt Basin using a transient heat flow model (Table 1). This elevated<br />
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