Professional Documents
Culture Documents
seepage 5
0
1
depth (km)
accumulation
2
generation
3
1
3
2
migration
65
GEOSCIENCES
66
ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF HYDROCARBONS
67
GEOSCIENCES
freshwater
low salinity, O2
sill
high salinity
anaerobic
organic matter-rich sediments
offshore winds
plankton blooms
up
we
ll
in
anaerobic
O2 (ml/l) 1
0.1
organic matter-rich
sediments
1,000 km
68
ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF HYDROCARBONS
2.0
mean evolutionary
pathway
type I
1.5
H/C atomic ratio
type II
1.0
type III
0.5
0.05
fluids evolved
carbon dioxide
and water
liquid hydrocarbons
0.25
zone
stage
immature
diagenesis
oil
catagenesis
dry gas
metagenesis
69
GEOSCIENCES
70
diagenesis
cuticles
wood
bacteria
algae
kerogen
inert
refractory
labile
biomarkers
catagenesis
Petroleum generation
>150C
80-150C
gas
oil
rock
metagenesis
metamorphisme
gas
graphite
ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF HYDROCARBONS
71
GEOSCIENCES
72
ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF HYDROCARBONS
73
GEOSCIENCES
74
ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF HYDROCARBONS
75
GEOSCIENCES
76
ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF HYDROCARBONS
gas
gas/oil-contact
closure
oil
gas cap
oil zone
oil/water-contact
water zone
spill point
water
water
edge water
bottom water
edge water
Fig. 6. Diagram showing a folded sandstone layer representing a reservoir trap. At the apex of this anticline,
natural gas and oil below has accumulated. In the pore space of the gas cap and the oil zone, the original
pore water was displaced by gas and oil respectively, while below the oil/water-contact the sandstone
remains water-saturated (Selley, 1998).
77
GEOSCIENCES
78
ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF HYDROCARBONS
petroleum
seepage
the re-distribution
of petroleum
in a sedimentary basin
during its geological
history. Sizes of all
compartment boxes are
dimensioned as relative
proportions of the total
volume of petroleum
generated by the source
rocks at depth. These
proportions shown here
as semi-quantitative
estimates vary from basin
to basin.
petroleum
discoveries
alteration
re-distribution/
alteration
accumulation
initial
accumulation
?
secondary migration
?
burial
oil/gas
cracking
0
50
relative proportion (%)
100
79
GEOSCIENCES
80
ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF HYDROCARBONS
water washing
tars
action of waters
accumulated
oil
source
carbonate-evaporite source
depth
marine
deasphalting
natural gases
alteration processes
m
rm atur
a
al
alt tion
era
tio
n
biodegradation
the
gas
API gravity
81
GEOSCIENCES
Increasing viscosities.
Bacteria are sensitive to higher temperatures.
Based on empirical evidence, a maximum
temperature of 88C has been recognized as the limit
for this kind of bacterial activity. For a long time it
was believed that biodegradation of petroleums was
achieved only by aerobic bacteria. Recently,
however, biodegradation was documented as also
occuring under unaerobic conditions. Extensive
biodegradation and water washing leads to the
formation of heavy and extra-heavy oils and tar
sands. Heavy oil accumulations, such as those
occurring in the province of Alberta in Canada, have
specific gravities ranging from 0.93 to 1.00 g/cm3
(10-20 API) and viscosities varying between 100
and 10,000 centipoises at reservoir conditions. They
are still mobile under reservoir conditions, but
cannot be pumped at reasonably high production
rates. Tar sand are sands in near-surface intervals
which are impregnated with extra-heavy oils
(specific gravities in excess of 1.00 g/cm3, API
below 10; viscosities higher than 10,000
centipoises). Very large deposits of tar sands occur
in northern Canada (Athabasca tar sands) and
eastern Venezuela. The total in-place reserves of
heavy oils and tar sands of worldwide occurrence is
in the same order as the total in-place reserves of
conventional crude oils.
Changes in petroleum composition
due to thermal alteration
(Hunt, 1996)
Level
or extent of
Compositional changes
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
82
Biodegradation
Minor
Light
Moderate
Moderate
Extensive
Heavy
Heavy
Very heavy
Severe
Extreme
ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF HYDROCARBONS
References
Blanc P., Connan J. (1993) Crude oils in reservoirs. The
factors influencing their composition, in: Bordenave M.L.
(edited by) Applied petroleum geochemistry, Paris, Technip,
149-174.
Bordenave M.L. et al. (1993) Screening techniques for source
rock evaluation, in: Bordenave M.L. (edited by) Applied
petroleum geochemistry, Paris, Technip, 217-278.
Connan J. (1993) Molecular geochemistry in oil exploration,
in: Bordenave M.L. (edited by) Applied petroleum
geochemistry, Paris, Technip, 175-206.
Demaison G.J., Moore G.T. (1980) Anoxic environments and
oil source bed genesis, American Association of Petroleum
Geologists. Bulletin, 64, 1179-1209.
England W.A. (2002) Empirical correlations to predict gas/gas
condensate phase behaviour in sedimentary basins,
Organic Geochemistry, 33, 665-673.
England W.A. et al. (1987) The movement and entrapment
of petroleum fluids in the subsurface, Journal of the
Geological Society, 144, 327-347.
Head I.M. et al. (2003) Biological activity in the deep subsurface
and the origin of heavy oil, Nature, 426, 344-352.
Hovland M., Gudmestad O.T. (2001) Potential influence of
gas hydrates on seabed installations, in: Paull C.K., Dillon
W.P. (editors) Natural gas hydrates. Occurrence, distribution,
and detection. Washington (D.C.), American Geophysical
Union, 307-315.
Hunt J.M. (1996) Petroleum geochemistry and geology, New
York, W.H. Freeman.
Killops S.D., Killops V.J. (1993) An introduction to organic
geochemistry, New York, John Wiley.
83
GEOSCIENCES
84
Detlev Leythaeuser
Universitt Kln
Kln, Germany
ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF HYDROCARBONS