Geological Controls on High Production of Tight Sandstone Gas in Linxing Block, Eastern Ordos Basin, China

Tight sandstone gas in the Linxing Block, eastern Ordos Basin, has been successfully exploited. The high performance is mainly a result of the special geological conditions. The key geological controls for high production have been discussed on the basis of seismic data, field observation, sample features, mercury porosimetry, mechanical properties, and basin modeling. Firstly, the coal measures have good gas generation potential, not only because of the existence of coalbeds and organic‐rich shales, but also because coal laminae and microbial mats in the shales significantly increase their total organic carbon (TOC) contents. Secondly, except for the uplifted zone of the Zijinshan complex and the eastern fault zone, rare large faults develop in the Carboniferous–Permian sequence, ensuing the sealing capacity of cap rock. Small fractures generally concentrated in the sandstones rather than the mudstones. Thirdly, gas accumulation in the Linxing Block was controlled by the tectonic, burial and thermal histories. Gas accumulation in the Linxing Block started in the Late Triassic, followed by three short pauses of thermal maturation caused by relatively small uplifts; the maximum hydrocarbon generation period is the Early Cetaceous as a combined result of regional and magmatic thermal metamorphisms. Field profiles show abundant fractures in sandstone beds but rare fractures in mudstone beds. Mechanical properties, determined by lithostratigraphy, confine the fractures in the sandstones, increasing the permeability of sandstone reservoirs and retaining the sealing capacity of the mudstone cap rocks. The modern ground stress conditions favor the opening of predominant natural fractures in the NNW–SSE and N–S directions. These conclusions are useful for exploring the potential tight sandstone gas field.