Sequence stratigraphic modeling and organic matter distribution of Jurassic deposits in the Imhotep Field, Matruh Basin, Western Desert, Egypt

Lower Safa, Kabrit and Upper Safa members are studied from the recently explored Imhotep Field. The study is based on extensive high resolution sequence stratigraphy modelling that is based on statistical analysis of the electric well logs from five wells in the field, namely Imhotep W‑1X, Imhotep‑1X, Imhotep‑2X, Imhotep S‑1X and Imhotep S‑3X. These wells are extended in northwest-southeast direction across the field. The study resulted in identification of fourteen stratigraphic sequences that are tracked and correlated throughout the wells by the sequence boundaries and maximum flooding surfaces. The identified sequences are LSSeq.1, LSSeq.2, LSSeq.3, LSSeq.4, LSSeq.5, LSSeq.6, USSeq.1, USSeq.2, USSeq.3, USSeq.4, USSeq.5, USSeq.6 and USSeq.7. This sequence stratigraphy model provided a main frame that is used to study the distribution of the organic matter in time and space. The distribution of the organic matter is configured based on the relative abundance of the palynofacies categories. The distribution of the organic matter is correlated throughout the basin based on the stratigraphic sequence. This allowed the tracking of the changes of the paleoenvironmental trend such as the oxygen depletion and proximality to source area in time and space. The proximal-distal trend is mainly extended southwest-northeast throughout the deposition; however, it migrated eastward in the upper Safa Member. This affected on the other trends including oxic-suboxic and brackish-marine. This led to dynamic changes in the location of the organic matter concentration centres from southeast in Lower Safa to north in the Upper Safa based on the correlation between the palynofacies and organic geochemical parameters (TOC and S2).