Salt structures

Salt structures are attractive targets for hydrocarbon exploration all over the world. The low density and the viscous nature of salt enable it to deform by buoyancy flow, and deform and penetrate sedimentary sequences above it. Hydrocarbons can be trapped under large salt domes or in subtle traps against the salt that are affected by small scale faulting. Salt deformation may destroy or create new structures over time.

The evolution of salt structures may be crucial for exploration, also because the high thermal conductivity of salt. Salt structures act like heat pipes and can dramatically change subsurface temperatures, potentially affecting the timing of hydrocarbon maturation.

 

Salt reconstruction in BMT is accomplished by: 1) changing the lithology of a polygon at a given time (litho-switching) 2) the inflating or deflating salt polygons. Litho-switching allows adding or removing portions of a salt body to mimic salt growth or withdrawal. BMT's salt reconstruction method is designed to take into account the most important effects of salt structures in exploration geology.