Origin, Migration, and Accumulation of Crude Oils in the Chaoyang Step-Fault Zone, Fushan Depression, Beibuwan Basin: Insight from Geochemical Evidence and Basin Modeling.

The Fushan Depression is a hydrocarbon-rich depression in the Beibuwan Basin, South China Sea. In this study, 14 source rocks and 19 crude oils from the Chaoyang Step-Fault Zone and Southern Slope Zone were geochemically analyzed to determine their origins. The hydrocarbon generation, migration, and accumulation processes were also determined using two-dimensional basin modeling. Crude oils from the low-step area show a close relationship with the source rocks of the first and second members of the Eocene Liushagang Formation (Els₁ and Els₂). The oils from the middle-step area and the Southern Slope Zone are derived from the local source rocks in those areas, in the third member of the Eocene Liushagang Formation (Els₃). Hydrocarbons generated from the Els₃ source rocks of the Southern Slope Zone migrated along sand bodies to the Els₃ reservoir. The fault system of the Chaoyang Step-Fault Zone controls hydrocarbon migration and accumulation in the low-step and middle-step areas. The resource potential of the middle-step area is limited by its shallow burial depth. The low-step area is a more favorable exploration area due to its proximity to the source kitchen. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]