Tutorial: Create a Modeled Stratigraphic Cross Section

Estimated time: 3 minutes.

In this lesson, you will use the stratigraphic surface models created in the previous lesson, and create a multi-panel cross section.  This will be similar to the cross section you created previously in this lesson set, except that the correlation panels are based on the interpolated grid models rather than straight-line correlations. 

! The instructions below are written with the assumption that you have completed the Cross Section lesson and the Stratigraphy Model lesson.

1. Click on the Stratigraphy menu and choose Section.
    
2. Correlation Options: Expand this heading.
   • Fill Background: Check this box. The panels will include the background colors defined for the units in the Stratigraphy Type Table.
   • Plot Patterns: Uncheck this.  By displaying only colors on the panels themselves, this makes it easier for the patterns in the striplogs to stand out.
   • Plot Outlines: Uncheck this.
      
3. Interpolate Surfaces: Uncheck this box since you already modeled the surfaces in the previous lesson.
   ! This is really important - if you have a good stratigraphic model created, you don't need to keep reinterpolating the surfaces just to create a new type of diagram to display, using those same surfaces.
    
4. Other settings:  These should still be default from previous lessons.
   • Smoothing Passes: This can be set to 1.
   • Stratigraphy Legend:  Yes.
   • Plot Logs: Yes.  (The current 2D Striplog Designer settings should be fine, from previous lessons.)
   • Plot Surface Profile:  Uncheck this.
   • Show Fault(s):  Uncheck this.
   • Perimeter Annotation Options:  As before.
   • Create Separate Location Map:  Yes
   • Clip (Vertically Truncate) Diagram: Uncheck this.  In your own work, this can be used to display an elevation subset of the entire model.
   • Section Selection Map: We'll use the same section trace from the previous lesson.
      
5. Click the Process button when you are ready to continue.

The program will read the existing surface models and extract panels along the indicated cross-section trace. It will build them into a continuous cross section diagram, with the indicated perimeter annotation. The stratigraphy logs will be appended to the section diagram. The completed diagram will be displayed in a new RockPlot2D tab.

6. Resize the section window so that it is longer than it is tall and laying along the bottom of your screen. As you resize the window, the section will be resized within it, accordingly. If, by chance, it is not, click the small Zoom-Out button to replot the section in the new window space.
    
7. Bring up the previously-saved straight section by hovering over the RockWorks icon on the Windows taskbar, and clicking on the RockPlot2D - Straight Strat Section window.
   

Arrange the windows so that you can compare their appearance.  The benefits of modeled sections are that they look smoother and better represent the stratigraphic data near as well as along the section cut. Straight sections are helpful by displaying the data as entered. They can highlight data errors as well as formation discontinuities.

We often create straight sections first to determine boreholes where data should be checked and missing formations dealt with – whether they are left blank or are entered with a thickness of zero will have different effects. You can refer to the "missing formations" topic in the Help messages for details (link below).

8. Save the modeled section using the File| Save As menu command. Type in the name:   strat mod section     and click the Save button.
   
   

Creating Interpolated Stratigraphic Sections, Missing Formations

  Back to Stratigraphy menu     |     Next (2D structure maps) 

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