The Middle Devonian formations to be studied in this paper are the Jeffersonville and North Vernon Limestones. Together these formations make up the Muscatatuck Group in the Illinois Basin portion of Indiana. In the area of study, the Jeffersonville Limestone consists from the base upwards of the Geneva Dolomite Member, Vernon Fork Member, and Paraspirifer acuminatus Zone. The North Vernon Limestone consists of the Speed Member overlain by the Beechwood Member.In the study area, the subsurface Muscatatuck Group dips to the southwest at a rate of 20 to 50 feet per mile. These rocks thicken to the southwest, and range in thickness from 136 to 170 feet. Closed-structural highs are present on the top of the Muscatatuck Group over Silurian pinnacle-like reefs.Resistivity log - sonic log cross plots were constructed to analyze the subsurface carbonate facies in the study area. A total of 13 cross plots were constructed with over 1,490 points plotted.From this study five conclusions can be drawn about the application and usefulness of the cross plot method in analyzing the the surface distribution of carbonate facies. As explained in the text, these conclusions remain valid only when applied to the area of study.The conclusions are as follows:1. The positioning of the point groups on the cross plots is controlled by the amount and type of porosity present in the rocks.2. Due to the diagenetic alteration of the primary porosity in the rocks, the point groups can not be divided into depositional textures or facies.3. In this case, because of the uncomplex nature of the stratigraphy and the ease of correlation of the lithologic units on the logs, the cross plots were not useful in analyzing the subsurface distribution of the carbonate facies in the area.4. The cross plots were useful in checking the accuracy of the log correlations.5. The cross plots may be used to infer lateral porosity changes in the rock units, and possibly variations in the diagenetic alteration within these units.

The purpose of this study was to define the lithofacies and areal extent of the Fort Atkinson Formation (Maquoketa Group, Upper Ordovician) in the subsurface in Indiana. Two distinct lithologic facies (Members) of the Fort Atkinson Formation can be distinguished in the subsurface. The upper Shoaling Member consists of coarse grained crinoid-bryzoan grainstone deposited in a high energy depositional environment. Beneath the Shoaling Member is the Transition Member of the Fort Atkinson. This Member consists of alternating beds of shale and limestone which were deposited in depositional environments that varied from high to low energy. The Fort Atkinson is an important stratigraphic marker used to define four depositional provinces within the Maquoketa Group in Indiana. The four depositional provinces include the Maquoketa Shelf, the Overlap Ramp. the Cincinnati Shelf, and Michigan Shelf. / Department of Geology

The Pleistocene section exposed in the May Stone and Sand Company, Inc., Ardmore Avenue quarry rests in the upper reaches of the Wabash-Erie Channel. The section consists of two distinct till units which are covered by a thick outwash deposit. Analysis of the tills has led to the assignment of the lower till to the Trafalgar Formation, while the upper till is assigned to the Lagro Formation. The 13- to 16-foot outwash unit shows evidence of rapid drainage which may be related to the catastrophic drainage of glacial Lake Maumee. Isolated mud to muck inclusions in the top eight feet of the section show the final depositional environment of the channel. These deposits were produced near the end of late Wisconsinan time. The last major event in the area was the stream piracy of the St. Joseph and Ste. Mary's Rivers by the Maumee River, in Late Wisconsinan or Recent time.

The Silurian rocks in Delaware County, Indiana, include, in ascending order, the Salamonie Dolomite, Limberlost Dolomite, Waldron Formation, and Louisville Limestone, and Mississinewa Shale Member of the Wabash Formation, all of the Niagaran Series (middle Silurian).The oldest exposed Silurian rocks are the Salamonie and the overlying Limberlost Formation (lower Niagaran) are exposed in Irving and Eaton quarries. The Salamonie is 25 feet of apparently reefflank rocks within the Salamonie, with primary dips to 20 degrees, are exposed in Eaton Quarry. The Limberlost, averages six feet and is generally brown, vuggy, dolostone.The Waldron and Louisville formations (middle Niagaran), are exposed in Hoyt, Irving, and Eaton quarries. The Waldron averages six feet and is interbedded grey shale and argillaceous dolostone, and is fossiliferous. It is conformably overlain by about 60 feet of Louisville Formation, predominately argillaceous dolostone with nodular chert and fossils.At Buchanan Quarry, 10 feet of grey dolomitic siltstone and shale of the Mississinewa Member, Wabash Formation, comprise the youngest Silurian strata exposed.Correlation of distinct units within the Louisville between Hoyt, Irving, and Eaton quarries shows considerable lateral continuity and general thinning toward the north.

The Waltersburg sandstone produces oil from isolated sand bodies and has produced nearly eight million barrels of oil from those of the Rochester, Mounts, and Fleener Fields. From the overlying "little Menard" Limestone to the Vienna Limestone below, the Waltersburg interval is most commonly 70 feet thick, but ranges from 14 feet in the north to 116 feet in the south. Increasing interval thickness is strongly correlated with increasing sand percentage. The maximum sand accumulation occurs in elongate sand bodies up to 100 feet thick,one-fourth to one mile wide, and two to five miles long. Elongate sand bodies are commonly oriented northeast-southwest, nearly perpendicular to strike. Sheet sand bodies are less than half as thick and usually produce only from small structural highs.Structure contour maps of the Vienna and "little Msnard" Limestones show that a 16 square mile plunging anticline bearing N30E exists along with other minor folds on a regional slope dipping about 40 feet per mile into the Illinois Basin. The structure of the "little Menard" may be associated with structural features of the Vienna, with isolated thick sand bodies or both where they occur together. Structural features of the "little Menard" that are not seen on the Vienna are usually attributed to differential compaction over sand bodies. The overall similarity in folding of both limestones suggests that deformation occurred after Waltersburg deposition as a result of differential compaction over older sediments combined with regional tilting as sediments subsided into the Illinois Basin.Oil production occurs in sands 10 to 60 feet thick that are structurally high. Structural elevation is therefore more important to production than sand thickness. Since most structural traps have been exploited, the most favorable locations for potential production are where thick elongate sands thin up-dip to form stratigraphic traps. Although a few locations for possible stratigraphic traps exist within the study area, extending exploration in recommended places may lead to more promising production outside the study area.On the basis of petrography, subsurface geometry, and log signatures of the Waltersburg sandstone, the depositional environment is suggested as being a fluvial dominated delta plain facies. The various types of thick elongate sand bodies are attributed to fluvial distributary channels. The interdistributary area is represented by mostly shale and silt, with crevasse-splay sands and possible minor mouth bar/crevasse-splay couplets.

The Elliot Oil Field lies in the northeast corner of Vanderburgh County, Indiana. Elliot Field produces from the Cypress Formation that is a sandstone reservoir.The West Baden Group is the lowermost group of the Chesterian Series of late Mississippian age in the Indiana portion of the Illinois Basin. The West Baden Group encompasses, in descending order: Cypress Formation, Reelsville Limestone, Sample Formation, Beaver Bend Limestone, and Bethel Formation.Within the study area, the West Baden Group was mapped with emphasis on the distribution of the sandstones and clarification and correlation of intervening limestone units. The West Baden has been mapped between the overlying Beech Creek Limestone and the underlying Renault Formation. Both upper and lower contacts of the West Baden appear to be sharp. The maps for this report show: structure on top and bottom of the West Baden, isopach of the West Baden, sandstone thickness and percentage in the West Baden and sandstone thickness in the Bethel, Sample and Cypress Formations.in the study area, the West Baden Group ranges from 180 to 235 feet in thickness. The irregularities in thickness of the West Baden result predominantly from variation in the percentage of sandstone. The regional dip of the West Baden beds is to the southwest at a rate of approximately 45 feet per mile. The top of the West Baden lies 1275 feet below sea level within the northeast portion of the study area.The Reelsville Limestone is absent within the study area and the Beaver Bend Limestone is only present in the northwest portion. The deposition of the Beaver Bend is most likely controlled by development of underlying sandstone of the Bethel Formation and by the amount of compaction. The presence of Beaver Bend in the northwest portion of the study area precludes the concept that only a single clastic cycle is represented during the West Baden interval.Sedimentation of the West Baden interval is dominated by the clastic dispersal system of the ancient Michigan River with a predominantly southwesterly trend. The lateral gradation of sandstone bodies into a marine section is evidence for the deltaic origin of West Baden deposits. The intervening limestone units of the West Baden interval can best be explained by the sporadic transgression and regression of a shallow epicontinental sea.Elliot Field has produced more than 640,000 barrels of oil, mostly within the last 30 years. The trapping mechanism is related to a point-bar sand with an updip permeability barrier provided by fine-grained prechannel deposits.

In this paper, I will determine the subsurface structure of the Spencer Consolidated Oil Field occupying Sections 1, 2, 11-15, 22, 26, and 27 of Township 8 South, Range 14 West, Posey County, Indiana (Uniontown 7 1/2" Quadrangle).Oil production in the Spencer Consolidated is from three principal formations. These are, in descending stratigraphic order, the Renault Formation, Aux Vases Sandstone, and Ste. Genevieve Limestone, in which the producing zones are referred to as either McClosky sands or oolitic bodies. Mapping the configuration of the oilbearing rocks and defining the distribution of these rocks will be my main concern.Structure contour maps of these three formations were prepared, as were isopach maps of the base of the lower Renault limestone and the Aux Vases Sandstone. There are insufficient data points defining the Ste. Genevieve.For the possible recovery of new hydrocarbons within the Spencer Consolidated and the exploration of existing traps, electric log correlation sections, both transverse and parallel to the surrounding faults, were made. For reliability and consistency, only those wells with electric logs were used.

There is no abstract available for this thesis.

No description available.

The purpose of this investigation is to determine the effectiveness of projective well log analysis based upon data collected from Plummer Field located in Greene County, Indiana. Projective well log analysis consists of analyzing spontaneous potential (SP) logs from existing oil and gas wells in order to determine SP gradients that may be applied to locate other undiscovered hydrocarbon accumulations. Projective well log analysis was developed in 1963 by S.J. Pirson, however, the specific parameters employed in the Plummer Field investigation were developed in 1988 by Dr. R.H. Fluegeman in order to apply to the geologic conditions in southwestern Indiana.The results of this investigation indicate that SP gradients can be interpreted to determine hydrocarbon production potential in Plummer Field with a 62% to 73% certainty. Given the petroleum industry exploration success rate of 3% to 20%, it is believed that the SP gradients established in Plummer Field can be used to identify economical hydrocarbon accumulations in areas of similar geology such as other portions of the Illinois Basin and the Michigan Basin. / Department of Geology