Petroleum Geology Shaltami

Download as pdf or txt
Download as pdf or txt
You are on page 1of 130

LECTURES FOR

UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS

Petroleum Geology

Dr. Osama Shaltami


Department of Earth Science
Faculty of Science, Benghazi University, Libya
Introduction
Petroleum geology is the study of origin, occurrence, movement,
accumulation, and exploration of hydrocarbons. It refers to the specific
set of geological disciplines that are applied to the search for
hydrocarbons (oil exploration).

Petroleum geochemistry is the branch of petroleum geology which


deals with the application of chemical principles in the study of the
origin, generation, migration, accumulation, and alteration of petroleum.
Petroleum is a Latin word of

Petra = Rock Oleum = Oil


Petroleum (Crude Oil) is a complex mixture of hydrocarbons and other
chemicals. The composition varies widely depending where and how the
petroleum was formed.

Hydrocarbons are organic compounds consisting entirely of hydrogen


and carbon. Hydrocarbons can be solid, semisolid, liquid or gas.
The Petroleum System consists of
1) Mature source rock
2) Migration pathway
3) Reservoir rock
4) Cap rock (Seal)
5) Trap
Fig. 1: General model of reservoir, seal and trap
Unconventional Petroleum Resources

They are natural resources which require greater than industry-standard


levels of technology or investment to exploit. In the case of
unconventional hydrocarbon resources, additional technology, energy
and capital has to be applied to extract the gas or oil, replacing the
natural action of the geological processes of the petroleum system.

Examples of unconventional resources include oil shales, oil sands,


extra-heavy oil, gas-to-liquids and coal-to-liquids.
Petroleum Well
Petroleum well

Oil well: An oil well is a boring in the Earth that is designed to bring
petroleum oil hydrocarbons to the surface.

Gas well: A well that is designed to produce mainly or only gas may be
termed a gas well.

* Usually some natural gas is produced along with the oil.


Types of Wells

1) Wildcat well: The first test petroleum well in a new field

Well location Drilling well

2) Discovery well: The first successful petroleum well in a new field

Oil well Gas well


3) Dry well: The unsuccessful petroleum well that produces no
petroleum

Dry well

4) Show well: A well found to be incapable of producing either oil or gas


in sufficient quantities to justify completion as an oil or gas well

Show oil Show gas


5) Development well: A well drilled in a proven producing area for the
production of oil or gas

Note
Petroleum seep: It is a place where natural liquid or gaseous
hydrocarbons escape to the earth's atmosphere and surface, normally
under low pressure or flow. Seeps generally occur above either terrestrial
or offshore petroleum accumulation structures.
Properties of Petroleum
Chemical Properties of Petroleum (Classification of Hydrocarbons)
On the basis of structure, hydrocarbons can be broadly classified into
two classes:
1. Open chain hydrocarbons (Aliphatic compounds)
2. Closed chain hydrocarbons (Cyclic compounds)

Hydrocarbons

Open chain compounds Closed chain compounds

Saturated Unsaturated Homocyclic Heterocyclic


(Paraffin or
Alkane)
Alkene Alkyne Aromatic Alicyclic
a) Saturated hydrocarbons (Paraffin or Alkane)
Those hydrocarbons, in which the carbon atoms are bonded to each
other with a single covalent bond (CC) are called saturated
hydrocarbons. They are also known as alkanes. They follow general
formula CnH2n+2.
Examples:
1) If n=1, C1H2x1+2 ⇒ CH4 (Methane)
2) If n=2, C2H2x2+2 ⇒ C2H6 (Ethane)
3) If n=3, C3H2x3+2 ⇒ C3H8 (Propane)

Methane Ethane Propane


b) Unsaturated hydrocarbons
Hydrocarbons, which the carbon atoms are bonded to each other with
two (=C=C=), or three (C≡C) covalent bond and have the tendency to
gain more hydrogen atoms are known as unsaturated hydrocarbons.
They are two types:
b1) Alkene: Hydrocarbons containing a double bond between carbon
atoms are known as an alkene. They have the general formula of CnH2n
(e.g. ethene (C2H4) and propene (C3H6)).

Ethene Propene
b2) Alkyne: Hydrocarbons containing a triple bond between carbon
atoms are known as an alkyne. They have the general formula of CnH2n-

2 (e.g. ethyne (C2H2) and propyne (C3H4)).

Ethyne Propyne
2) Cyclic (or Closed) chain compounds
Those hydrocarbons, which contain the ring of carbon atoms are known
as cyclic ring compounds They are further classified into homocyclic
and heterocyclic compounds.

a) Homocyclic compounds: If the cyclic organic compounds are


composed of carbon atoms, they are known as homocyclic compounds
or homocyclic hydrocarbons. They are two types:
a1) Aromatic hydrocarbons: They are defined as those cyclic
hydrocarbons which have alternate C-C and C=C and are similar to the
benzene ring in characters (e.g. benzene (C6H6) and naphthalene
(C10H8)).

Benzene Naphthalene
A2) Alicyclic hydrocarbons: Those cyclic hydrocarbons, which have
no alternate C-C and C=C and similar properties to aliphatic
compounds in characters, are known as alicyclic compounds (e.g.
cyclohexane (C6H12) and cyclopentane (C5H10)).

Cyclohexane Cyclopentane
b) Heterocyclic compounds: Those cyclic hydrocarbons, which are
composed of carbon atoms as well as other elements like N, O, S etc.
are known as heterocyclic compounds (e.g. furan (C4H4O) and pyridine
(C5H5N)).

Furan Pyridine
Composition of Crude Oils
* Average producible crude oils contain 57% aliphatic hydrocarbons
(with a slight dominance of acyclic over cyclic), 29% aromatic
hydrocarbons, and 14% resins and asphaltenes.

* The elemental composition of petroleum is carbon from 83 to 87%,


hydrogen from 10 to 14%, nitrogen from 0.1 to 2%, oxygen from 0.05
to 1.5%, sulfur from 0.05 to 6.0% and metals < 0.1%. The most
common metals are iron, nickel, copper and vanadium.
Natural Gases

1) Inorganic source 2) Organic source 3) Mixed source


a) Nitrogen (N) a) Hydrogen (H) a) Carbon dioxide
b) Inert gases b) Hydrocarbons (CO2)
(helium (He), argon -Dry gas (methane (CH4) b) Hydrogen sulfide
(Ar), krypton (Kr) -Wet gas (ethane (C2H6) (H2S)
and radon (Rn)) propane (C3H8) and butane
(C4H10))
Physical or Technical Properties of Petroleum

The main physical properties of crude oil include:


1) Specific gravity
2) Surface tension
3) Viscosity
4) Pour point
5) Flash point
6) Solubility in water
7) Sulfur content
1) Specific gravity (SG)

* The specific gravity of a substance is a comparison of its density to that


of water.

* Less than SG 1.0 floats on water, while greater than SG 1.0 sinks in
water

* Majority of oils float.

* In general, specific gravity of spilled oil will increase over time, as


volatiles evaporate.
* API Gravity (American Petroleum Institute).

* Pure water has arbitrary API Gravity of 10.

* Light crudes are generally those with an API gravity over 40. Those
with an API gravity below 40 are regarded as heavy.

* There is an inverse relationship between API gravity and density.

* Crude oil with high API gravity, generally has a higher monetary value.
2) Surface tension

* It is the force of attraction between the surface molecules of a liquid.

* Surface tension together with viscosity affects the rate of spread over
water or ground.

* As temperature increases, surface tension decreases, and the rate of


spread increases.
3) Viscosity

* The viscosity of an oil is a measure of the oil’s resistance to shear.


Viscosity is more commonly known as resistance to flow.

* High viscosity implies a high resistance to flow.

* As temperature decreases, viscosity increases.


4) Pour point

* It is the temperature at which the oil becomes plastic and will not flow.

* Lighter oils with low viscosities have lower pour points

* Heavy oils may become solid on cold water, and may become fluid
while sitting in the sun on the shoreline, penetrating into the shoreline.
5) Flash point

* It is the temperature at which an oil vapors will ignite

* Must know for safety

* Lighter, volatile oils, once spilled, will gradually loose their lighter
components to evaporation and dispersion.
6) Solubility in water

* Solubility of oil in water is generally very low. Despite the low


solubility, can have important consequences for the potential toxicity of
hydrocarbons to aquatic organisms.

7) Sulfur content

* Based on the sulfur content, there are two types of crude oil :
a) Sweet crude (˂ 5 % S)
b) Sour crude (˃ 5 % S)
Organic Matter
Organic materials are defined as carbon-based compounds, originally
derived from living organisms. Most are combinations of a few of the
lightest elements, particularly hydrogen, carbon, nitrogen, and oxygen.
Organic materials are further divided into three categories based on
their source. These categories are as follows:
1) Cellulosic materials (plant materials)
2) Proteinaceous materials (animal materials)
3) Organic Polymers are derived from fossil fuels or other oils.

What is the difference between organic material and organic


matter?
Organic matter is the decomposed organic material.
Preservation of Organic Matter
It is primarily the particulate remains of phytoplankton that form
organic matter in most marine and many aquatic sediments. Factors that
affect preservation of these remains include:
(a) the flux of organic matter to the sediment
(b) bulk sediment accumulation rate
(c) grain size
(d) availability of oxygen
Summary of Diagenetic Changes
1) Functional groups, such as carboxyl and hydroxyl, are preferentially
removed from their parent molecules.
2) The simple molecules such as amino acids and glucose are most
labile of all (ready to be destroyed). Lipids appear to be somewhat less
labile.
3) Unsaturated compounds decrease in abundance compared to their
saturated equivalents due to hydrogenation of double carbon bonds.
4) Aliphatic compounds decrease in abundance compared to aromatic
ones (aromatization).
5) Short-chained molecules (e.g., alkanes, fatty acids), decrease in
abundance relative to their long chain equivalents.
6) Hydrolysis of complex molecules produces a variety of molecular
fragments that subsequently recombine with other molecules to produce
new ones not present in the original biota.
7) In high sulfur environments, such as marine sediments, addition of
H2S (produced by sulfate-reducing bacteria) is incorporated into carbon
double bonds in long-chain compounds such as isoprenoids to produce
cyclic structures and ultimately aromatic compounds. This process is
known as natural vulcanization.
8) Condensation of a variety of molecules and molecular fragments into
complex macromolecules.
9) All along, bacterial remains are progressively added to the mixture,
and are progressively decomposed along with the organic matter
originally deposited.

* The principal product of these processes is kerogen


Origin of Petroleum
Origin of Petroleum
The origin of petroleum still has uncertainties despite the tremendous
researches and studies devoted to it rather than any other natural
substance. There are two different theories for the origin of petroleum:
1) Inorganic or abiotic theory
2) Organic origin.
1) Inorganic theory
States that hydrogen and carbon came together under great temperature
and pressure, far below the earth’s surface and formed oil and gas
where chemical reactions have occurred. There are some different
theories that describe the inorganic origin of petroleum which include:
a) Metal carbide theory
b) Volcanic theory
c) Earthquake theory
d) Serpentinization theory
Overwhelming evidences for inorganic origin of petroleum
Petroleum is a fossil fuel, and there has never been a real fossil found
below 16000 feet. Nowadays, there is drilling for oil reservoirs at 28000
feet or 30000 feet where there is no a fossil remains.
2) Organic origin
It is the most widely accepted. The oil and gas are formed from remains
of prehistoric plants and animals. Remains of plants have been
transformed to coal and animals to oil and gas. These remains were
settled into seas and accumulated at the ocean floor and buried under
several kilometers of sediments. Over a few million years, the layers of
the organic material were compressed under the weight of the sediments
above them. The increase in pressure and temperature with the absence
of oxygen changed the mud, sand, slit or sediments into rock and
organic matter into kerogen. After further burial and heating, the
kerogen transformed via cracking into petroleum and natural gas.
Overwhelming evidences for organic origin of petroleum
1) Presence of brine (sea water) with petroleum.

2) Petroleum is mainly found in association with sedimentary rocks.


There is no petroleum associated with igneous or metamorphic rocks.

3) Polarized light passing through all petroleum resources undergoes a


rotation that is similar to all organic oils.

4) Molecules in hydrocarbons are thought to be similar to that of the


organic matter.
Source Rock
(Hydrocarbon Generation)
Source rock refers to rocks from which hydrocarbons have been
generated or are capable of being generated. It contains high total organic
carbon (TOC). It has very low permeability.

Shales are the most important types of source rocks in the world.

The formation of hydrocarbon liquids from an organic rich source rock


with kerogen and bitumen to accumulates as oil or gas.
Generation depends on three main factors:
1) The presence of organic matter rich enough to yield hydrocarbons,
2) Adequate temperature,
3) Sufficient time to bring the source rock to maturity.
4) Pressure and the presence of bacteria and catalysts also affect
generation.
Kerogen is defined as sedimentary organic matter that is insoluble in
water. It is usually accompanied by a smaller fraction of soluble organic
matter, called bitumen.

Bitumen consists primarily of 3 fractions: asphaltenes, resins and


hydrocarbons.

Resins and asphaltenes, unlike hydrocarbons, are rich in heteroatoms


such as N, S, and O. Resins tend to be somewhat richer in hydrogen
(H/C atomic ~ 1.4) and poorer in N, S, and O (7-11 wt %) than
asphaltenes (H/C atomic ~ 1.2, N, S, O ~ 8 - 12 %).
Formation of Kerogen
There are three major phases:
1) Diagenesis
2) Catagenesis
3) Metagenesis
Types of Maceral (microscopically identifiable kerogen)
1) Inertite group consists of carbonized remains formed by rapid
oxidation under aerobic conditions (peat-producing environments). Low
H/C and O/C ratios.
2) Vitrinite is preserved woody tissue derived from solidified humic
gels.
3) Exinite includes lipid-rich materials derived from leaf, spores,
pollen, algae, plant waxes, resins, fats, and oils.
4) Liptinites are derived primarily from algal remains and usually have
higher H/C ratios than exinites.
Fig. 2: Difference between kerogen maceral groups (inertite, vitrinite, exinite
and liptinite)
Classification of Kerogen
* Kerogen is usually classified into one of four types, based on bulk
H/C and O/C ratios (Van Krevelen diagram):

Type I kerogen (Sapropelic) has a high H/C (atomic) ratio (>1.25) and
a low O/C (atomic) ratio (<0.15). It is rich in lipids, especially long-
chain aliphatics, and has high petroleum potential. It is derived
primarily from algal and bacterial remains, often deposited in aquatic or
estuarine environments.
Type II kerogen (Planktonic), the most common type, has
intermediate H/C (<1.25) and O/C (<2.0) ratios. It is derived primarily
from planktonic and bacterial remains deposited in marine
environments (though remains of high plants can contribute as well).
Because of its marine origin, it is often sulfur rich. Its lipid content and
oil potential are somewhat lower than Type I kerogen. Tend to produce
a mix of gas and oil.

Type II kerogen (Sulfurous)


Similar to Type II but high in sulfur.
Type III kerogen (Humic) has low H/C ratios (<1) and high O/C ratios
(<0.3). It is rich in aromatic and poor in aliphatic structures. It is formed
principally from the remains of vascular plants. Its oil potential is poor,
but can be a source of gas (particularly methane) and coal.

Type IV kerogen (Residue) has a low H/C (atomic) ratio (<0.5) and a
low O/C (atomic) ratio (<0.3). Type IV kerogen contains mostly
decomposed organic matter in the form of polycyclic aromatic
hydrocarbons. They have no potential to produce hydrocarbons.
Fig. 3: Classification of kerogen
Comparison between kerogen types
Type I kerogen is related to liptinite
Type II kerogen is related to exinite
Type III kerogen is related to vitrinite
Type IV kerogen is related to inertite
Reservoir Rock
Reservoir rock is a rock that has sufficient porosity and permeability to
contain accumulations of oil or gas. It is a place that oil migrates to and
is held underground.

Sedimentary rocks (sandstones and limestones) are the most common


reservoir rocks because they have more porosity than most igneous and
metamorphic rocks .

In general, the thickness of a reservoir rock should not be less than 3m or


10 ft.
Porosity (Ø)
Porosity of a rock is a measure of its ability to hold a fluid.
Mathematically, porosity is calculated as: Ø % = (volume of voids/total
volume of rock)*100

The porosity of a reservoir rock must not be below 5 %. There are four
types of porosity in the reservoirs:
1) Poor porosity (5-10 %)
2) Medium porosity (10-15 %)
3) Good porosity (15-20 %)
4) Very good porosity (20-25 %)
Table 1: Porosity types in sandstones
Table 2: Porosity types in carbonate rocks
Total porosity
Total porosity = effective porosity + ineffective porosity

1) Effective porosity (also called open porosity)


It is the pore volume in a rock that contributes to permeability in a
reservoir. It leads to fluid flow in a reservoir. It does not include isolated
pores and volume of pores occupied by water consumed by clay minerals
and other grains. It represents the pore space which contains non-clay
water and hydrocarbons.
b) Ineffective porosity (also called closed porosity)
Refers to the fraction of the total volume in which fluids or gases are
present but in which fluid flow can not effectively take place and
includes the closed pores.
Permeability (K)

The permeability of a rock is a measure of the resistance to the flow of a


fluid through a rock. If it takes a lot of pressure to squeeze fluid through
a rock, that rock has low permeability. If fluid passes through the rock
easily, it has high permeability.

The permeability of a rock depends on effective porosity and capillary


pressure.
* We determine the permeability of a rock using Darcy's Law:

Q = (-K(P1-P2)A)/(µL)

Where:
K = Permeability
Q = Rate of flow
P1-P2 = Pressure drop across the sample
A = Cross-sectional area of the sample
L = Length of the sample
µ = Viscosity of the fluid
Reservoir Continuity

1) Vertically stacked 2) Laterally stacked 3) Isolated


Capillary Pressure

Capillary pressure is the difference in pressure across the interface


between two immiscible fluids. There is inverse relation between
capillary pressure of a reservoir and its quality.
Wettability

Wettability is the tendency of one fluid to spread on, or adhere to, a solid
surface in the presence of other immiscible fluids.

Wettability refers to the interaction between fluid and solid phases.

In a reservoir rock the liquid phase can be water, oil or gas, and the solid
phase is the rock mineral assemblage.

In the reservoirs, there are three types of wettability:


1) Water-wet reservoir (more common)
As the preferentially wetting phase, water will be in the small spaces that
were not invaded by oil. Oil will be in the large pores.
2) Oil-wet reservoir (less common)
As the preferentially wetting phase, oil will be in the small spaces that
were not invaded by water. Water will be in the large pores.

3) Mixed-wet
In this case, the oil likely migrated into a water-wet formation.
Reservoir Quality

The quality of a reservoir is defined by its hydrocarbon storage capacity


and deliverability. The hydrocarbon storage capacity is characterized by
the effective porosity and the size of the reservoir, whereas the
deliverability is a function of the permeability.
Methods of Assessing Reservoir Quality

Numerous methods exist for assessing reservoir quality, ranging in scale


from the macroscopic to the microscopic.

1) Macroscopic techniques
a) Modern three dimensional seismic data
b) Wireline logs
c) Drill stem testing (DST ) or formation testing.
d) Core analysis
2) Microscopic techniques
Microscopic techniques used to assess reservoir quality include many
techniques, for example thin section analysis, scanning electron
microscopy (SEM), and X-ray diffraction (XRD), etc.
Migration of Petroleum
Migration of petroleum refers to the movement of hydrocarbons from
source rock into reservoir rock. There two types of migration:

1) Primary migration: expulsion of hydrocarbons from the source


rock. This process is called expulsion.

2) Secondary migration: It is any movement in carrier rocks or


reservoir rocks outside the source rock or movement through fractures
within the source rock.
Seal and Trap
Caprock (Seal) is any nonpermeable or low permeable formation that
may trap oil, gas or water, preventing it from migrating to the surface.
Typical caprocks are compacted shales, evaporites and tightly cemented
sandstones and carbonate rocks.

Trap is an underground rock formation that blocks the movement of


petroleum and causes it to accumulate in a reservoir that can be
exploited.
Fig. 4: Basic Trap-Fluid Nomenclature
Classification of traps

1) Structural traps
2) Stratigraphic traps
3) Salt dome traps
4) Hydrodynamic traps
5) Combination traps (structural trap + stratigraphic trap)
1) Structural traps

a) Fold trap: A fold trap is formed by syn- or postdepositional processes


that deform geological surfaces into a curved or nonplanar arrangement.
The proposed classes in the fold trap regime are monocline, dome, nose,
anticline and syncline.
b) Fault trap: Fault traps are formed by movement of rock along a fault
line. In some cases, the reservoir rock has moved opposite a layer of
impermeable rock. The impermeable rock thus prevents the oil from
escaping. In other cases, the fault itself can be a very effective trap. The
proposed classes in the fault trap regime are normal and reverse faults.
c) Fractured trap
* There are two types:
c1) Oil is trapped in fracture porosity below an unconformity
c2) Oil is trapped in fracture porosity adjacent to fault plane
2) Stratigraphic traps
* Two main groups can be recognized:
a) Primary stratigraphic traps result from variations in facies that
developed during sedimentation. There are four main types:

a1) Primary pinch out of strata, e.g., strata that pinch out updip in less
permeable rocks such as shale.
a2) Fluvial channels of sandstone that are isolated and surrounded by
impermeable shale
a3) Submarine channels and sandstone turbidites in strata rich in shale
a4) Porous reefs that are surrounded by shale, etc.
b) Secondary stratigraphic traps result from variations that developed
after sedimentation, mainly because of diagenesis.

* Many secondary stratigraphic traps are controlled by unconformities so


are termed unconformity traps.

* There are two types of unconformity traps:


b1) Oil trapped below unconformity
b2) Oil trapped above unconformity
b1) Oil trapped below unconformity in paleotopographic highs below
transgressive shales
b2) Oil trapped above unconformity in paleotopographic lows formed by
porous channel sands
3) Salt domes
* Salt domes form when salt is less dense than the overlying rock, and
the salt moves slowly upwards due to its buoyancy. For this to happen,
there must be a minimum overburden and the thickness of the salt
deposits must be more than ~100 m. Upward movement of salt through
the sedimentary strata, and associated deformation is termed halokinetics
or salt tectonics. Movements may continue for several hundred million
years.

* Traps may form (1) in the strata overlying the salt dome, (2) in the top
of the salt domes, (3) in the strata that curve upward against the salt
intrusion, (4) due to stratigraphic pinch-out of strata around the salt
Fig. 5: Ideal salt-dome traps
5) Hydrodynamic Traps
* If porewater flow in a sedimentary basin is strong enough, the oil-water
contact may deviate from the horizontal because of the hydrodynamic
shear stress that is set up. In some cases, oil may accumulate without
closure.
Sedimentary Basin
Sedimentary basin is a low area in the Earth’s crust, of tectonic origin,
in which sediments accumulate.

* The Source rocks, reservoirs and seals are found in the sedimentary
basin

* Width and length of the sedimentary basin shall not be less than 10 and
100 km, respectively.

* There are six sedimentary basins in Libya namely; Cyrenaica, Kufra,


Sirte, Murzuq, Ghadamis and Sabratah basins.
Methods of formation

* It is common to categorize sedimentary basins according to the


perceived method of formation, creating such groups as:

1) Foreland basins (caused by lithospheric flexure)


2) Back-arc basins (caused by lithospheric stretching)
3) Pull-apart basins (caused by strike-slip deformation of the lithosphere)

* Mechanisms for formation of sedimentary basins are numerous and


often fundamentally linked to the concepts of plate tectonics.
Types of sedimentary basins

* There are three types namely; pre-, syn- and post-depositional basins:
1) Pre-depositional basins: Rapid tectonic movements predate
significant sediment accumulation and create a morphological basin. The
water depth in the basin decreases with time.
2) Syn-depositional basins: Sediment accumulation is affected by
syndepositional tectonic movements. The sediment thickness increases
toward the center of the basin.
3) Post-depositional basins: The deposition of sediments largely
predates tectonic movements forming a basin structure. Hence, there is
no or little relationship between the transport, distribution and facies of
these sediments and the later evolved basin structure.
The difference between syn- and post-depositional basins
* The main difference between syn- and post-depositional basins are
showing in the following figure.
Transitions between basins
* Of course, there are transitions between these simplified basin types
and certain basins may show a complex history and therefore contain
pre- tectonic as well as syn-tectonic or post-tectonic sediments.
Geomorphological classification of sedimentary basins

* Geomorpholically, sedimentary basins may be subdivided into basins,


embayments and troughs. Basins are saucer shaped and subcircular in
plan. Embayments are areas which are not completely closed structurally,
but which open out into a deeper area. Troughs are linear basins.
Distribution of hydrocarbons within basin (Gussow’s
Principle)
Rock-Eval Pyrolysis
What is pyrolysis?
Pyrolysis is the decomposition of organic matter by heating in the
absence of oxygen. Organic geochemists use pyrolysis to measure
richness and maturity of potential source rocks. In a pyrolysis analysis,
the organic content is pyrolyzed in the absence of oxygen, then
combusted. The amount of hydrocarbons and carbon dioxide released is
measured. The most widely used pyrolysis technique is Rock-Eval.
Rock-Eval Measurements
S1 = quantity of free hydrocarbons (gas + oil), in mg/g of rock

S2 = quantity of thermally generated (cracked) hydrocarbons, in mg/g of


rock

S3 = quantity of CO2 generated during pyrolysis of the sample, in mg/g


of rock

S4 = quantity of CO2 generated during oxidation of the sample, in mg/g


of rock
Tmax = Temperature in °C, at which the largest quantity of hydrocarbons
is released upon cracking

Production Index: PI = S1/(S1+ S2)

PC = quantity of carbon that can be pyrolysised

RC = quantity of carbon that remains in the sediment following


pyrolysis

Hydrogen Index in mg/g of rock: HI = (S2*100)/TOC


Oxygen Index in mg/g of rock: OI = (S3*100)/TOC

Total Organic Carbon: TOC (%) = PC + RC


or TOC (%) = (0.082(S1+S2)+S4)/10

MinC = Mineral Carbon, the quantity of C contained in minerals


Table 1: Geochemical parameters describing the petroleum potential
(quantity) of a source rock

Petroleum TOC Bitumen Hydrocarbons


S1 S2
Potential (wt. %) (wt. %) (ppm)
Poor 0 to 0.5 0 to 0.5 0 to 0.25 0 to 0.05 0 to 300
Fair 0.5 to 1 0.5 to 1 2.5 to 5 0.05 to 0.1 300 to 600
Good 1 to 2 1 to 2 5 to 10 0.1 to 0.2 600 to 1200
Very Good 2 to 4 2 to 4 10 to 20 0.2 to 0.4 1200 to 2400
Excellent >4 >4 >20 >0.4 >2400
Fig. 6: Plot of S2 vs. TOC showing the hydrocarbon potentialities
* The plotting of S1 vs. TOC can differentiate between the migrated and non-
migrated hydrocarbons.

Fig. 7: Plot of S1 vs. TOC showing the difference between non-indigenous and
indigenous hydrocarbons
Table 2: Geochemical parameters describing kerogen type (quality) and
the character of expelled products

HI Atomic Main Expelled Product


Kerogen Type S2/S3
(mg HC/g TOC) H/C at Peak Maturity
I >600 >15 >1.5 Oil
II 300 to 600 10 to 15 1.2 to 1.5 Mixed oil and gas
II/III 200 to 300 5 to 10 1 to 1.2 Mixed oil and gas
III 50 to 200 1 to 5 0.7 to 1 Gas and coal
IV <50 <1 <0.7 None
Fig. 8: Classification of kerogens using OI and HI
Fig. 9: Plot of Tmax vs. HI showing maturity and kerogen type
Fig. 10: Plot of Tmax vs. PI showing maturation and nature of the
hydrocarbon products
Gas Chromatography–
Mass Spectrometry
Gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GCMS) is an analytical
method that combines the features of gaschromatography and mass
spectrometry to identify different substances within a test sample.

*In petroleum geochemistry, this technique is used to evaluate the


source rock.
Fig. 11: Ternary diagram showing the relationship between sterane
compositions, organic matter input and depositional environment
0.15

C30 sterane index

0.10

0.05
Terrestrial

Lacustrine
0.00
0.0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7

C31 22R/H

Fig. 12: Plot of C31 22R/H vs. C30 sterane index showing the organic matter
input
Land Plant
C29/C27

Anoxic Suboxic Oxic


Algal-bacteria

Pr/Ph
Fig. 13: Plot of Pr/Ph versus C29/C27 regular steranes showing
paleooxygenation conditions
Pristane (Pr) is an isoprenoid hydrocarbon C19H40 obtained primarily
from shark liver oil, from which its name is derived. It is also found in
the stomach oil of birds in mineral oil and some foods.

Phytane (Ph) is an isoprenoid hydrocarbon C20H42 that is found


especially associated with fossilized plant remains from the
Precambrian and later eras.
* The most widely used biomarker parameter for the assessment of
redox conditions during sediment accumulation is the Pr/Ph ratio.
Organic matter deposited under oxidizing conditions is expected to
contain high Pr/Ph ratio of >3, while low values of Pr/Ph ratio (<1)
indicate anoxic conditions, and values between 1 and 3 suggest suboxic
conditions.
Ph/n-C17

Ph/n-C18
Fig. 14: Ph/n-C18 vs. Pr/n-C17 showing depositional conditions and type of
organic matter
1.5

anoxic/ dysoxic
highly
C35/C34 homohopanes 1.0 anoxic

0.5

oxic

0.0
0.0 0.5 1.0 1.5 2.0 2.5 3.0 3.5
Pr/Ph

Fig. 15: Plot of Pr/Ph vs. C35/C34 homohopanes showing the depositional
environment with chemical variations
Marine
C31-22R-hopane/C30-hopane

Fluvial to fluvial-deltaic

Pr/Ph

Fig. 16: Plot of C31-22R-hopane/C30-hopane vs. Pr/Ph showing depositional


environments
1.5
Heavy biodegradation

Toluene/Methyl Cyclo-Hexane
1.2

0.9

Pristine oils
0.6

0.3 Water washing

0.0
0.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0
Benzene/Cyclo-Hexane

Fig. 17: Plot of benzene and toluene ratios against their water-insoluble
structural equivalents
0.8

C29 steranes:20S/(20S+20R) Bacterial degradation

0.6
High mature oil
Oils

0.4 Low mature oil


Migrational fractionation

0.2

Immature source rock


0.0
0.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0

C29 steranes:ßß/(αα+ßß)

Fig. 18: Plot of the %20S and %ββ sterane maturity biomarker showing the
sterane isomerization
0.6

29Ts/(29Ts+30NH)
0.4 Late mature

Mid mature

0.2

Early mature

0.0
0.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8
Ts/(Ts+Tm)

Fig. 19: Plot of the Ts/(Ts+Tm) vs. 29Ts/(29Ts+30NH) showing the oil maturity
Fig. 20: Ternary plot of SARA composition for oil
Thanks

You might also like

pFad - Phonifier reborn

Pfad - The Proxy pFad of © 2024 Garber Painting. All rights reserved.

Note: This service is not intended for secure transactions such as banking, social media, email, or purchasing. Use at your own risk. We assume no liability whatsoever for broken pages.


Alternative Proxies:

Alternative Proxy

pFad Proxy

pFad v3 Proxy

pFad v4 Proxy