INTRODUCTION TO PETROLEUM AND

NATURAL GAS ENGINEERING

INTRODUCTION TO PETROLEUM AND NATURAL
GAS ENGINEERING, PNGE 100
Dr. Beste ARSLAN GÜVEN

2019/2020 Fall Semester

1
What is engineering?

Engineering is the profession in which knowledge of mathematical and

natural sciences gained by study, experience and practice applied with
judgment to develop ways to utilize, economically, the materials and forces
of nature for the benefit of mankind.

Engineers are persons, who, by reason of their special knowledge and the
use of mathematical, physical and engineering sciences and the principles
and methods of engineering analysis and design, acquired by education
and experience, are qualified to practice engineering.

2
 An engineer is a problem solver, who applies science and technology to solve
the problems and meet the needs of society.
 A creator of new products and processes aimed at solving problems in a
practical and economic fashion.
 The engineer’s role is to bridge the gap between an idea and its physical reality
by solving problems that exist between the two extremes, very often with little
to guide him except intuition. “creativity gap”.
 The tools of engineer are the scientific principles, that have been formulated
about the behavior of universe and its contents.
 Laws of motion, thermodynamics and matter are among the tools that permit
engineer to fashion a workable solution to a problem.
• The engineer must develop sufficient depth of understanding of the basic
principles so that they indeed become like tools.
• He/she must be able to devote his/her efforts to building a solution to a
problem and not concern himself/herself with how the tools are to be used.
3
What is petroleum engineering?

Petroleum engineering is a discipline concerned with the activities

related to the production of hydrocarbons, which can be either crude oil
or natural gas.
It is considered as upstream sector of the oil and gas industry, which are
the activities of finding and producing oil and gas.
A petroleum engineer is involved in nearly all stages of oil and gas field
evaluation, development and production. The goal of a petroleum
engineer is to maximise hydrocarbon recovery at a minimum cost while
maintaining a strong emphasis on reducing all associated environmental
problems.

4
 Petroleum engineers are divided into several groups :

• Petroleum geologists find hydrocarbons by analysing subsurface structures

with geological and geophysical methods.
• Reservoir engineers work to optimize production of oil and gas via proper
well placement, production levels, and enhanced oil recovery techniques.
• Drilling engineers manage the technical aspects of drilling exploratory,
production and injection wells. It also include mud engineer who manage
the quality of drilling fluid.
• Production engineers, including subsurface engineers, manage the
interface between the reservoir and the well, including perforations, sand
control, downhole flow control, and downhole monitoring equipment;
evaluate artificial lift methods; and also select surface equipment that
separates the produced fluids (oil, gas, and water).
5
Historical Review of Petroleum Exploration

• Reports on petroleum and especially on the use and production of

petroleum have been found in Mesopotamian libraries about 4000
years BC.
• For thousands of years, the only source of petroleum had been
surface springs or tar pits.
• However most of these finds were not very productive. Therefore
people began to look for oil under the earth.

6
Historical Review of Petroleum Exploration - first oil well

 The modern oil industry dates back about 150 years.

 The world’s first oil well was drilled in Titusville, Pennsylvania in 1859. It struck oil
at 21 metres below ground and produced 3,000 litres of oil a day.
 Known as the Drake Well, after "Colonel" Edwin Drake, the man responsible for
the well, it began an international search for petroleum, and in many ways
eventually changed the way we live.
 That day, August 27, 1859 is dated as the birthday of oil industry in USA.
 Even though, James Williams had completed the first commercially producing oil
well one year earlier and oil seekers in Azerbaijan did the same few years earlier.
Drake went one step further and he proved that oil could be obtained in
sufficient quantities to meet the increasing demand by drilling through rock.

7
 What does petroleum mean?

 Petroleum literally means ‘rock oil’.

 The word comes from the Greek word ‘petra’ (meaning ‘rock’) and
the Latin word ‘oleum’ (meaning ‘oil’).
 The word petrol is a shortened version of ‘petroleum’.
 Petroleum products are all the substances made from petroleum.

8
 Definition of Petroleum
 Petroleum is a mixture of naturally occurring hydrocarbons that may exist in
the solid, liquid or gaseous states, depending upon the conditions of
pressure and temperature to which it is subjected.
 Hydrocarbons were produced when tiny plants and animals decayed under
layers of sand and mud.
 Petroleum is produced from the reservoir in either liquid or gaseous form
 Commonly, these materials are referred to as either crude oil (the oil we find
underground) or natural gas
 Petroleum consist of approximately 11-13 wt % hydrogen and 84-87 wt % of
carbon.
 Traces of oxygen, sulphur, nitrogen and helium may be found as impurities in
crude oil
9
 Crude oils obtained from different oil reservoirs have widely different
characteristics.
 Some are black, heavy, and thick like tar, and others are brown or nearly
clear with low viscosity and low specific gravity.
 When it comes out of a well (especially an undersea well), the crude oil is
often mixed with gases, water and sand.
 However, nearly all crude oils have elemental analyses within the limits
given below :
Carbon 84 – 87 % by wt
Hydrogen 11 - 14 % by wt
Sulphur 0.06 – 2.0 % by wt
Nitrogen 0.1 – 2.0 % by wt
Oxygen 0.1 – 2.0 % by wt

10
 Origin of Petroleum

• Inorganic Origin Theory

• Organic Origin Theory
• Geological Facts about Petroleum
-it is found generally in sedimentary rocks
-Shallow marine deposits are the richest in petroleum
-Sedimentary rocks which contain petroleum in their pores are surrounded or
covered by impermeable rocks.

11
• Inorganic Theory
A number of scientists adhere to the concept that inorganic oil and gas
have originated in the earth’s interior as a result of chemical reactions
between hydrogen and carbon under conditions of high temperature
and high pressures in the absence of organic matter.
• The Organic Theory
The organic theory of the origin of oil – the most accepted theory-
maintains that the hydrogen and carbon source for petroleum was
organic material from decaying plants and animals forming and
accumulating in oceanic sediment.

12
 Chemical Facts About Petroleum

Crude oils differ from recent shallow hydrocarbons in terms of carbon chains
Crude oils contain more than 50% light hydrocarbons (high API and low density
petroleum) which are rare or absent in modern sediments.
Young oils show levo-rotation. This property of optical activity is characteristic of
hydrocarbons produced biosynthetically.
Young oils contain certain complex molecules that occur either in modern organic
matter or as a product of their degradation

13
 Origin of Petroleum: Organic or Inorganic
 Early theories of petroleum generation postulated an inorganic origin (e.g Berthelot,1860;
Mendele’ev,1877,1902)
 Some chemists suggested that petroleum is formed by some subsurface chemical reactions and volcanic
activities
 At the beginning of 20th century, some scientists suggested that origin of petroleum is magmatic.
 Mendele’ev (1902) suggested that the mantle contained iron carbide which could react with percolating
water to form methane and other oil hydrocarbons. This opinion is still claimed by some other scientists.
If this opinion is true, petroleum should have a relationship with volcanic rocks.
 Although petroleum was found in pores of some magmatic and metamorphic rocks around the world
(Alkaline intrusive rocks in Russia,Dolerite dykes in Norway, volcanics in Turkey), it does not mean that
petroleum has a magmatic origin!
 Peyve(1956) and Subbottin (1966) based on the hydrocarbon gases extracted from large and depth faults,
they suggested that these gases are deposited in the crust after emitting from mantle and then they are
converted to liquid petroleum. In this circumstance, it would be possible to reach huge petroleum
reservoirs after drilling very depth. In contrary, petroleum occurs mostly in sedimentary basins!!!
 It is possible to increase these examples however, today it is believed that petroleum is maturated by
organic matters. (Organic origin accepted!)

14
 Against Inorganic Theory

 It is not possible to form porphyrin, pyridine and chlorophyll which exist in

petroleum, with inorganic ways.
 It can not be explained that, hydrocarbons in petroleum can be formed naturally
by polymerization of the methane
 Polarization feature of petroleum is exhibited only by quartz and zinnober, not by
any other inorganic substances. In contrary this property is specific to organic
substances.
 Petroleum is found in generally in sedimentary basins, not in magmatic areas.
 The amount of petroleum does not increase a as you go deeper into earth, in
contrary it is found in young overburden rocks.

15
RESULT :

The origin of petroleum is not inorganic, it is ORGANIC !!!!

16
Organic Origin Theories

Some chemists heat the organic materials up and distilled them in laboratory
environment and produced some hydrocarbons which are similar with
petroleum.
According to organic theory, petroleum is formed by terrestrial (inland,
continental) and marine plants or animals.

17
 Plantal (Herbal) Origin
Terrestrial Plants
• It is asserted that, petroleum has a terrestrial origin due to the
production of petroleum from the coal and methane existence
in swamp environments.
However :
-There is no coal in petroleum areas,
-No terrestrial plant origin- petroleum was found in limestones
and,
-There are chemical differences between petroleum and asphalt
produced by lignite coal
SO; THERE IS NO IMPACT OF TERRESTRIAL PLANTS ON
PETROLEUM FORMATION!!!!
Marine Plants
• There is a relationship between marine plants and marine
deposits. Most important marine plants : algae and diatoms
Diatoms are an important group of phytoplankton. They contain silica skeleton
and may reach 1mm in diameter. Other phytoplankton organisms have
carbonate skeleton. 18
Diatoms
 Animal Origin

- Distillation of fish and other marine animals results in a substance

which had the same chemical properties with petroleum.
- Some researchers accept that, petroleum has both animal and plant
origin (Biomass origin).

19
 Datas which support Organic Origin Theory

• Porphyrin (an organic origin matter) exists extensively in petroleum

• Fluorescence feature of the petroleum it the sign of its organic origin. The reason of
this feature is cholesterol material (organic origin) which exist in petroleum.
• There are a lot of microorganic material in crude oil.
• Ash of algae and crude oil have similar amount of I, Br, P and ammonium salts.
• Modern deposits in Mexico bay has the same age with the petroleum found in these
deposits.

20
RESULT :

The origin of petroleum is ORGANIC !!!!

21
22
 How are Petroleum and Natural Gas formed?
Stage 1: All of the oil (petroleum) and gas we use today began as microscopic plants and animals living in
the ocean millions of years ago. As these microscopic plants and animals lived, they absorbed energy from
the sun, which was stored as carbon molecules in their bodies. When they died, they sank to the bottom of
the sea. Over millions of years, layer after layer of sediment and other plants and bacteria were formed.

Stage 2: As they became buried ever deeper, heat and pressure began to rise. The amount of pressure and
the degree of heat, along with the type of biomass, determined if the material became oil or natural gas.
More heat produced lighter oil. Even higher heat or biomass made predominantly of plant material
produced natural gas.

Stage 3: After oil and natural gas were formed, they tended to migrate through tiny pores in the
surrounding rock. Some oil and natural gas migrated all the way to the surface and escaped. Other oil and
natural gas deposits migrated until they were caught under impermeable layers of rock or clay where they
were trapped. These trapped deposits are where we find oil and natural gas today.

23
 Formation of Petroleum
 The complete process of alteration whereby organic materials are transformed into
petroleum is not known.
 The main factor, which prohibits complete laboratory verification of the theory, is
the inability to reproduce the million or so years, during which the process occurs.
 The role of “anerobic” bacteria in promoting this alteration may be considerable.
The evidence from studies of oil fields has led most geologists to the following
general conclusions.
Petroleum originates from organic material, primarily vegetable, which has been altered by
heat, bacterial action, pressure and other agents overlying periods of time.
Conditions favoring petroleum formation are found only in sedimentary rocks.
The principal sediments generally considered as probable source rocks are shales and
limestones that were originally mud under saline water.

24
 Formation of Petroleum
 In shallow, stagnant water basins host of blue green algae, arthropodal and planktonic organisms
develop.
 On dying, they fall to the bottom of bodies of water along with the dust of plants and entrained fine
mineral substances, and form soft, sometimes rather thick layers of organic ooze, or sapropel.
 The strata of sapropel and humus sediments gradually accumulate at the bottom of water basins. In
these strata, the reactions of hydrolysis of fat may take place depending on the pressure,
temperature, amount of oxygen and salinity of water.
 These reactions yield fatty acids, glycerin, and other products, which then transform into
hydrocarbons (methane, napthene and aromatic types) and oxygen compounds (ketones).
 All these compounds dissolve in fatty acids to give a homogeneous tar like mass that remains at the
bottom together with mineral matter (sand, clay) and is gradually covered with mineral sediments.
Such a tar like accumulation can be called primary oil (protopetroleum).
 The conversion of organic matter into oil in a reducing medium involves chemical reactions, which
tend to raise the carbon and hydrogen content and to decrease the oxygen content. It is now believed
that combination of factors is necessary to transform primary organic matter into oil, such as elevated
temperatures and pressures, the activity of bacteria and the action of radioactive substances.

25
 Formation of Petroleum
• Petroleum generation takes place in source rocks, which may be defined as
organic rich, fine grained sediments deposited under low energy, reducing
conditions.
• Most commonly, petroleum source rocks containing a minimum of 0.3% to 0.5%
by weight of organic matter.
• Preservation of the organic matter is the key to the development of potential
source rocks.
• The environment of source rock deposition is therefore characterised by a
relatively deep, unagitated (low energy) body of water with an oxygen starved
bottom (anoxic or anaerobic env.) but abundant life at the surface.
• The generation of hydrocarbons from the source material depends primarily on
the temperature to which the organic material is subjected.
• The non-hydrocarbon organic matter (kerogen) is the major source of oil and gas
deposits.

26
 Conversion of Kerogen to Oil & Gas

After the death of marine organisms, they (those not eaten by other organisms) sink
bottom of the sea and exposed to bacterial effects. Anaerobic bacteria convert lipids (fat,
oil and waxes) into a waxy substance called kerogen.
 If the water at depth is rich in oxygen, organic matter is oxidized and converted to water
and carbon dioxide and they do not form any source rock. (Lack of oxygen needed!)
During burial of sediments, the increase in temperature results in a progressive change in
the composition of kerogen.
Organic matter is buried deeper and deeper due to the overlying sediments on top of
them. Organic matters are subjected to 3 phases due to increasing overburden pressure
and temperature :
1. Diagenesis
2. Catagenesis
3. Metagenesis
The main trend is a continuous increase in the carbon content of kerogen.

27
 1. Diagenesis

• It occurs in the shallow subsurface at near normal temperatures and pressures. It

includes both biogenic decay, aided by bacteria and abiogenic reactions. Anaerobic
bacteria convert lipids (fat, oil and waxes) into a waxy substance called kerogen.
• Diagenesis of kerogen is characterised by an important decrease of oxygen and a
corresponding increase of carbon content with increasing depth.
• As a result of these events, methane, carbon dioxide and water are given off by the
organic matter, leaving a complex hydrocarbon termed KEROGEN.
• The net result of the diagenesis of organic matter is the reduction of its oxygen
content, leaving the hydrogen:carbon ratio largely unaltered.
• Source rocks are considered as immature at this stage.
• Some heavy N, S, O compounds are released.

28
 2. Catagenesis

• As burial continues and temperature and pressure increase, catagenesis occurs in

deeperer subsurface.
• During catagenesis, firstly petroleum and then wet gas is released (generated)
from kerogen with a rapidly increasing proportion of methane.
• In catagenesis, hydrogen content and Hydrogen:Carbon ratio declines with no
significant change in Oxygen:Carbon ratio.

29
3. Metagenesis

• It occurs under temperature and pressure similar to metamorphism conditions.

( begins at temperature exceeding 175 °C)
• During this stage, a rearrangement of the aromatic sheets occurs.
• The last hydrocarbons, generally only methane, are expelled.
• At this stage only dry gas is generated.
• The hydrogen:carbon ratio declines. Only carbon is left, and it forms graphite.
The color of kerogen changes as it matures :

30
31
Chemical Composition of Petroleum & Natural Gas

1. NATURAL GASES
1.1. Hydrocarbon gases (Methane, ethane, butane, propane, paraffins)
1.2. Nonhydrocarbon gases
- Inert Gases
- Hydrogen
- Carbon Dioxide
- Hydrogen Sulfide
2. CRUDE OIL
2.1. Hydrocarbons
- Paraffins
- Naphthenes
- Aromatics
2.2. Heterocompounds

32
 Overview
• Petroleum exploration is largely concerned with the search for oil and gas, two of the chemically and physically
diverse group of compounds termed the hydrocarbons.
• Physically, hydrocarbons grade from gases, via liquids and plastic substances, to solids.
• Hydrocarbon gases:
classified as dry or wet according to the amount of liquid vapor that they contain.
- dry gas (it consists of little more than methane ex: methane)
- wet gases (Natural gas that contains less methane (typically less than 85% methane) in contrary they contain an
appreciable proportion of hydrocarbon compounds heavier than methane (e.g., ethane, propane and butane).
Condensates: gaseous hydrocarbons in the subsurface, but condense to liquid when they are cooled at the
surface.
• Liquid hydrocarbons: oil, crude oil, or just crude, to differentiate them from refined petroleum products.
• Plastic hydrocarbons: asphalt and related substances
• Solid hydrocarbons : coal and kerogen
• Gas hydrates ice crystals made of hydrogen bonded lattices, which contain molecules of methane and other
gases.
33
 Overview
• Natural gas is subclassified into :
- Dissolved gas: in solution in crude oil in the reservoir.
- Associated gas: known as gas cap gas, overlies and is in contact with crude
oil in the reservoir.
- Nonassociated gas: in a reservoir that does not contain an accumulation of
crude oil.
• Sweet or Sour: based on the absence or presence, respectively, of
hydrogen sulfide (H2S).
• Natural gas is “a mixture of hydrocarbons and varying quantities of
nonhydrocarbons that exist either in the gaseous phase or in solution with
crude oil in natural underground reservoirs. The earth’s atmosphere is
composed of natural gas.

34
1.1. Hydrocarbon gases

• The major constituents of

natural gas are the
hydrocarbons of the
paraffin series.

• Methane is the most

abundant; ethane, butane,
and propane are quite
common; and paraffins
with a molecular weight
greater than pentane are
the least common.

• The heavier members of

the series decline in
abundance with increasing
molecular weight.

35
1.1 Hydrocarbon gases
• Methane - colourless, flammable, produced (along with other fluids) by the
destructive distillation of coal, chemically nonreactive, nearly soluble in water, lighter
than air. also known as marsh gas if found at the surface or firedamp if present down
a coal mine.
• Methane forms in three ways:
-Derived from the mantle,
- form from thermal maturation of buried organic matter (kerogen) -Thermogenic
-Bacterial degradation of organic matter at shallow burial depths –Biogenic

Thermal versus Biogenic __---differentiated from isotope analysis of 13C/12C ratio

36
 1.1. Hydrocarbon gases
• The other major hydrocarbons that occur in
natural gas are ethane, propane, butane, and
occasionally pentane.
• Heavier members of the paraffin series are
only produced by the thermal maturation of
organic matter
• If their presence is recorded by a gas detector
during the drilling of a well, it often indicates
proximity to a significant petroleum
accumulation of source rock.

37
 1.2. Nonhydrocarbon gases
- Inert Gases
• Helium (He) is of economic significance because it is lighter than air and, because it is inert, is safer than hydrogen for use in
dirigibles (airships).
• Occurs in the atmosphere at 5ppm and has also been recorded in mines, hot springs and fumaroles.
• Found in oil field gases in amounts of up to 8%.
• Produced by the decay of various radioactive elements(uranium, thorium and radium).
• Emanated from deep-seated basement rocks, especially granite.

38
• Argon and Radon
• little economic significance
• Radon is a considerable environmental hazard, however, because its inhalation is a cause of lung
cancer.
• Argon and radon are by-products of the radioactive disintegration of potassium and radium,
respectively, believed to have origin similar to helium.
• Regional maps of Radon prepared; impermeable membrane foundations designed to ameliorate
radon gas invasion into houses!!!
• Nitrogen (N2)
• frequently occurs in the earth’s crust.
• Associated with both with inert gases and hydrocarbons.
• The origin of nitrogen: inorganic origin in deep subsurface, possibly igneous rocks.

39
 1.2. Nonhydrocarbon gases
- Hydrogen
• Free hydrogen gas rarely occurs in the subsurface, partly because of its reactivity and
partly because of its mobility.
• Hydrogen is commonly dissolved in subsurface waters and in petroleum as traces, but it is
seldom recorded in conventional analyses.
• Subsurface hydrogen is probably produced by the thermal maturation of organic matter.

40
 1.2. Nonhydrocarbon gases
- Carbon Dioxide
• minor accessory in hydrocarbon natural gases.
• associated with nitrogen and helium
• recorded in natural gases associated with volcanic eruptions and earthquakes.
Inorganic origin of CO2
• It may also be generated where igneous intrusives metamorphose carbonate sediments
• Permeable limestones and dolomites can also yield carbon dioxide when they are invaded
and leached by acid waters of either meteoric or connate origin.
Organic origin of CO2
• Produced by thermal maturation of kerogen, fermentation of organic matter and oxidation of
mature organic matter due to either fluid invasion or bacterial degradation.

41
 1.2. Nonhydrocarbon gases
- Hydrogen Sulfide
• occurs in subsurface both as free gas and because of its high solubility, in solution with oil and
brine.
• It is poisonous, evil-smelling gas, highly corrosive to steel, quickly attacking production pipes,
valves, and flowlines.
• Gas oil containing significant traces of hydrogen sulfide are referred to as sour-in contrast to
sweet, which refers to oil or gas without hydrogen sulfide.
• Small amounts of hydrogen sulphide are economically deleterious in oil or gas because a
washing plant must be installed to remove them, both to prevent corrosion and to render the
residual gas safe for domestic combustion.
• Origin of H2S: expelled together with sulfur dioxide (SO2) from volcanic eruptions.
• It is associated with evaporites but it is frequently associated with carbonates, generally reefal
and lead-zinc sulphide ore bodies.

42
2. CRUDE OIL
Crude Oil : “A mixture of hydrocarbons that existed in the liquid phase in
natural underground reservoirs and remains liquid at atmospheric pressure
after passing through surface separating facilities”

Vary from straw yellow, green, and brown to dark brown or black in color.
Naturally oily in texture and have widely varying viscosities.
Oils on the surface tend to be more viscous than oils in warm subsurface
reservoirs.

43
Crude Oil

Although the density of oil may be measured as the difference between its specific gravity and
that of water, it is often expressed in gravity units defined by the API according to the following
formula :

T(°C) = (T(°F) - 32) / 1.8

• Where,
• 60/60 F : specific gravity of the oil at 60 F compared with that of water at 60 F.
• API degrees are inversely proportional to density.
• Light oils have API gravities of more than 40 (0.83 specific gravity)
• Heavy oils have API gravities of less than 10 (1.0 specific gravity)
• Oil viscosity and API gravity are generally inversely proportional to one another.
Heavy oils : those oils that denser than water

44
2.1 Chemistry of Crude Oils

• Oils consists largely of carbon and hydrogen with

traces of vanadium, nickel and other elements.

• Compositional trends are related to the age,

depth, source and geographic location of the oil
and degree of degradation to which they have
been subjected

45
 2.1. Hydrocarbons
Paraffins
• Often called “alkanes”
• Occurred abundantly in crude oil
• Saturated hydrocarbons, with formula CnH2n +2
• For values of n<5 : gaseous at normal temperatures and pressures.
• For values n=5 (pentane, C5H12) to n=15 (pentadecane, C12H32) : liquid at normal
temperatures and pressures
• For values n>15 : grade from viscous liquids to solid waxes.

46
 Naphthenes

• Cometimes called :
“Cycloalkanes”
• Chemical formula : CnH2n
• Unlike paraffins, all the
naphthenes are liquid at normal
temperatures and pressures.
• Make up about 40 % of both light
and heavy crude oil

47
 Aromatics
• Third major group of hydrocarbons found in
crude oil
• Their molecular structure is based on a ring
of six carbon atoms.
• Include asphalt compounds
• Liquid at normal temperatures and pressures
(the boiling point of benzene: 80.5 C)
• Tolune (C6H5CH3) is the most common,
followed by xylenes (C6H4(CH3)2) and
benzene

48
 2.2. Heterocompounds
Crude oil contains many different heterocompounds that contain elements other than
hydrogen and carbon. (oxygen,nitrogen and sulfur, together with rare metal atoms,
commonly nickel and vanadium)

Oxygen compounds: 0.06 and 0.4% by weight in crude oils. E.g. acids, esters, ketones,
phenols and alchols
Nitrogen compounds: 0.01 and 0.9% by weight in crude oils. E.g. amides, pyridines,
indoles and pyroles
Sulfur Compounds: 0.1 to 7.0 % by weigt in crude oils. E.g. alkane thiols(mercaptans), the
thio alkanes (sulphides), thio cycloalkanes, dithio alkanes and cyclic sulphides.

49
 Heterocompounds (cont.)

• Traces of numerous other elements found in crude oils.

• Determining whether they occur in genuine organic compounds or whether they
are contaminants from the reservoir rock, formation waters, or production
equipment is difficult.
• They include common rock forming elements: Si, Ca, Mg together with numerous
metals Fe, Cu, Pb, Au, Ag, Sn
• MOSTLY – Nickel (Ni) and Vanadium (V)
• Unlike other metals, it is proved that Ni and V occur, not as contaminants, but as
actual organometallic compounds, generally in porphyrin molecules.
• Metals are rare in old, deep marine oils and are relatively abundant in shallow,
young, or degraded crudes (figure).

50