PETROPHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE NUBIA SAND STONE: GEBEL ABU HASSWA, SOUTH WESTERN SINIA, EGYPT

Abstract

The Paleozoic Nubia as four rock units; Araba, Naqus, Abu Durba, and Ahemir ormations. The present study deals with results of petrophysical analyses of 51 surface plug samples were collected from the outcrops at Gebel Abu Hasswa to represent the different lithofacies of the Nubia Sandstone units in the eastern side of Gulf of Suze. The study area is located between Latitude 28° 20' -28° 40’ N and Longitude 33° 10'-33° 30’ E. The sedimentological studies that was carried out on Abu Hasswa section samples included the petrography description and XRD analysis, where the petrographyical study referred that all the study samples are of quartz arenite facies, but they are different in the diageneses processes or the compaction. The study samples were divided into four lithofacies depending on the type and degree of cementation; the divided lithofaices are calcareous quartz arenite, ferruginous sandstone, highly ferruginous quartz arenite, and siliceous quartz arenite. The XRD analysis showed that the main mineral that formed samples is silica mineral, while the minor minerals are calcite, hematite, and kaolinite. The correlation between thin sections and XRD results concluded that the samples had been suffered from dissolution process that caused the oversized porosity, in addition to, cementation process with multiple types of cements like silica overgrowth, ferruginous, and calcite minerals.