AG5022 Professional Elective, R-2019 3003

PETROLEUM GEOLOGY
Origin, Migration, accommodation,
Reservoir, trap and diagenesis
process in formation
of Hydrocarbons

SMART
What is Petroleum?

Rock oil which has come from the Latin word ‘Petra’ means
rock or stone & ‘oleum’ means oil.

Petroleum is a natural, yellow to black, flammable liquid

which is a mixture of hydrocarbon compounds with minor
amounts of nitrogen, oxygen & sulphur as impurities.

Occurs in earth crust in sedimentary rocks as gas , liquid,

semisolid & solid.

History of Petroleum :

The modern Petroleum industry began in 1859, when the

American oil Pioneer E.L.Drake drilled a producing well on
Creek in Pennsylvania at a place that later become Titusville.
It is an organic compound made up of Carbon and Hydrogen

Chemical Hydrocarbon Natural Gas

Composition
Carbon 84% - 87% 65% - 80%
Hydrogen 11% - 14% 1% - 25%
Sulfur 0.06 % - 2% 0 % - 0.2%
Nitrogen 0.1% - 2% 1% - 15%
Oxygen 0.1% - 2% 0%
 Types of Hydrocarbons
Oil and gas are formed by the thermal cracking of organic
compounds buried in fine-grained rocks.
two types;

Algae = Hydrogen rich = Oil-prone

Wood = Hydrogen poor = Gas prone

• Five major types of Hydrocarbon:
Kerosene
Asphalt
Crude oil
Natural Gas
Condensates

Gasoline - 19.5 gallons

One
Barrel = Fuel Oil - 9.2 gallons
42 Jet Fuel - 4.1 gallons
Asphalt - 2.3 gallons
gallons Kerosene - 0.2 gallons
Lubricants - 0.5 gallons
Petrochemicals,
other products - 6.2 gallons
Uses
Petroleum System
Generation-Burial of source rock to
temperature and pressure regime Petroleum System Elements
sufficient to convert organic matter into
hydrocarbon.
Migration - Movement of hydrocarbon Gas
Cap

out of the source rock toward and into Entrapment

Oil
Water Seal Rock

a trap. Reservoir
Rock

Accumulation-A volume of Migration

hydrocarbon migrating into a trap 120° F

faster than the trap leaks resulting in 350° F

Generation
an accumulation. 24803

Preservation-Hydrocarbon remains in
reservoir and is not altered by
biodegradation or “water-washing”.
Timing - Trap forms before and during
hydrocarbon migration.
 Theories of origin of hydrocarbons.
 Oil migrates from source rocks through
carrier rocks to reservoir rocks.
 Identify structural and stratigraphic traps.
 Lithological properties of various types of
reservoir rocks.
 Porosity and permeability.
 Fluid saturation
 Hydrocarbon Sources

 Inorganic
 Organic
 Inorganic Hydrocarbon Sources
 Assumes that some combination
of chemical reaction occurs
naturally to form petroleum and
coal.
 Receives little support today.
 Organic Hydrocarbon Sources

 Claims that fossil fuels were formed from

remains of plants and animals.
 Plant and animal remains were
transformed into petroleum by:

Bacterial action

Heat and pressure

Catalytic reactions

Radioactive bombardments.
 Organic Hydrocarbon Sources

Radioactive
Bacterial Action Heat Bombardment

Burial Petroleum

Chemical Reactions Pressure Time

 Deposition of Organic Matter

Erosion

Organic Matter

River Run-off
Algae
Anoxia
Sedimentation
Deposition
Conditions for hydrocarbon generation and accumulation

An oil source rock (organic material)

Heat and pressure to “cook” the rock.
6 Conditions: A path to allow oil and gas to move upwards
A reservoir rock to contain the oil
A seal or “cap-rock”
A trapping method + …. Time !
Organic rich sediments – Preservation

1) Rapidly buried
2) Anoxoic bottom waters –
organics do not decay
a) Restricted basins - <circulation
b) High organic productivity –
oxygen minimum zone
 Source rocks through time
1) Global oceanic anoxia –no polar icecaps – less/no
thermohaline circulation
2) During periods of basin restriction, e.g formation of Atlantic
or circum polar
3) Coals – equatorial continents & humid climates e.g.
Carboniferous
 Deposition of Petroleum source rocks

Occurs on ocean floors (marine),

or under freshwater/ lacustrine
Water column

conditions

Decomposed remains of algae,

Deposition
bacteria, higher plants +
sedimentary material
Time

Burial
Diagenesis (biological, physical,
chemical alteration) and
Sediment

catagenesis (thermal
Diagenesis decomposition of OM)

Formation of crude oil/

condensate and natural gas -
Catagenesis
collectively “petroleum”
 Crude Oil
Crude oil- mixture of hydrocarbons exists
as liquid in underground reservoirs & surface
Hydrocarbons – 3 major groups H H H H

a) Paraffins CnH2n+2 H C C C C H
H H H H
alkanes H

b) Napthalenes - CnH2n C
H

cycloalkanes
c) Aromatics ring 6 carbons,
C
e.g. benzene, toluene H

2) Also heterocompounds contain O, N & S

Composition of crude oïl
 Refined Products

° API density
10°: water
density

>10° : lighter
than water

<10° : heavier
than water
 Crude Oil Composition
Variation in bulk properties
Viscosity
Density
Colour
Variation in composition
Consequence of
formation and
accumulation history
Organic Geochemistry studies the composition of crude oil
and sedimentary organic matter
Organic-rich
Source Rock
Thermally Matured
Organic Matter Oil
(kerogen)
Oil is formed under very
high pressure.

This pressure caused hair-

line fractures to develop in
the overlying rocks,
allowing the oil to migrate.

Primary Migration

Secondary Migration
 Migration and Accumulation

 Migration is the natural movement of oil from source rock to reservoir

rock.
 Migration influences include:


Buoyancy

Hydrodynamics

Capillary action
 Buoyancy

 Basic mechanism involved in

migration of hydrocarbons.
 Occurs because petroleum is lighter
than water.
 Oil will naturally rise to set on top of
water.
 Gas will naturally rise above oil.
Buoyancy
 Hydrodynamics

 Hydrodynamics are the forces by

which one fluid flows past another
carrying the second fluid with it.
 Hydrodynamics

Confining Bed
(Shale)
Oil Accumulation

Underground Water Flow

Sandstone Bed
Confining Bed
(Shale)

Hydrodynamic Forces of Underground Water

Flow Drag Oil Droplets along with Water
 Capillary Action

 Capillary action is the

tendency of a fluid to rise in
a small tube or the way a
sponge soaks up water.
 Capillary Action
Oil is absorbed into by capillary action.

Dry Sandstone
Sand
Grain

Original
Oil Level

Oil-filled Sandstone
 Kerogen
• Complex high-molecular-weight disseminated

organic matter

• Insoluble in organic solvents

• Major starting material for oil and gas

generation

• Most abundant form of organic carbon on

Earth

• Altered remains of marine and lacustrine

organisms with varying amounts of
 Type of Kerogens

Type I (Alginites)
Rare
Algal (e.g. Botryo
-coccus braunii)
Lacustrine
Sapropelic
Oil prone
Common in oil shales
H/C ratio up to 1.9

Type II (Exinites/Liptinitic)
Principal source for oil
Marginal marine, minor continental
Algal tissues, spores, pollen
H/C ratio up to 1.4
 Type of Kerogens

Type III (vitrinite/humic)

In humic coals
Common in organic rocks
Remains of plants
Prone to gas generation
H/C ratio 1 or less

Type IV (inertinite)
organic matter non-specific
Recycled, oxidised, altered
No hydrocarbons, maybe methane
 Accumulation

 Buoyancy, hydrodynamics, and capillary

action cause the fluids to migrate from
source rock to reservoir rock.

 Reservoir rock must have a cap rock or a

confining bed next to it to seal the
reservoir.
 Accumulation

Confining Bed
(Cap Rock)

Confining Bed
Source
Rock Fault Boundary
 SED

Accommodation for
Accumulation of derived
hydrocarbons.
Concepts of evolution of basins and
Tectonics
 Plate motions

Plate-plate interactions can generate vertical crustal movements

Basins according to their positions with respect to plate
boundaries and plate-plate interactions

“Wilson Cycle” – opening and closing of ocean basins
 Three types of plate boundaries:

Divergent – plates moving apart

Mid-ocean ridges, rifts

Convergent – plates moving towards each other

Subduction zones

Conservative – plates move parallel to each other

Strike-slip systems
 Basin Classification
 Principal factors:

Position of the basin in relation to plate margins

Crustal/lithospheric substratum

Oceanic, continental crust

Type of plate boundary

 Ingersoll and Busby (1995): 26 different types of basin


Divergent

Intraplate

Convergent

Transform

Hybrid
 Basin Classification
The tectonic setting is the premier criterion to distinguish
different types of sedimentary basins.

Extensional basins occur within or between plates and

are associated with increased heat flow due to hot mantle
plumes.

Collisional basins occur where plates collide, either

characterized by subduction of an oceanic plate or
continental collision.

Transtensional basins occur where plates move in

a strike-slip fashion relative to each other.
Sedimentary Basin Types
Extensional

Convergent

Strike-slip
 Sedimentary Basin Types
 Rift basins develop in continental crust and constitute the incipient extensional basin
type; if the process continues it will ultimately lead to the development of an ocean basin
flanked by passive margins, alternatively an intracratonic basin will form.
 Rift basins consist of a graben or half-graben separated from surrounding horsts by
normal faults; they can be filled with both continental and marine deposits.
 Intracratonic basins develop when rifting ceases, which leads to lithospheric cooling due
to reduced heat flow; they are commonly large but not very deep.
 Proto-oceanic troughs form the transitional stage to the development of large ocean
basins, and are underlain by incipient oceanic crust.
 Passive margins develop on continental margins along the edges of ocean basins;
subsidence is caused by lithospheric cooling and sediment loading, and depending on the
environmental setting clastic or carbonate facies may dominate.
 Ocean basins are dominated by pelagic deposition (biogenic material and clays) in the
central parts and turbidites along the margins.
 Basins associated with Crustal Extension

Rift basins consist of a graben or half-graben separated from surrounding horsts by

normal faults; they can be filled with both continental and marine deposits.
 Basins associated with Crustal Extension

Intracratonic basins develop when rifting ceases,

which leads to lithospheric cooling due to
reduced heat flow; they are commonly
large but not very deep.
 Basins associated with Crustal Extension

Passive margins develop on continental margins along the edges of

ocean basins; subsidence is caused by lithospheric cooling and
sediment loading, and depending on the environmental setting
clastic or carbonate facies may dominate.
Basins associated with Crustal Extension
Basins associated with Subduction
Basins associated with Subduction

)
 Basins associated with Subduction
Subduction is a common process at active margins where plates collide
and at least one oceanic plate is involved;
Basins formed due to subduction, including trench basins, fore arc
basins, back arc basins, and retro arc foreland basins
 Trench basins can be very deep, and the sedimentary fill depends
primarily on whether they are intra-oceanic or proximal to a
continent
 Accretionary prisms are ocean sediments that are scraped off the
subduction plate; they sometimes form island chains
Basins associated with Subduction
Basins associated with Continental Collision
Basins associated with Continental Collision
Basins associated with Strike-Slip Boundaries

Formation of strike-slip (or

transtensional) Basins.
The Wilson Cycle
 Reservoir Rock

 Limestone

Formed chiefly by accumulation
of shells and coral

Consists mainly of calcium
carbonate
 Reservoir Rock

 Water as a dissolving agent.

L i me st o ne

Acidic
Water

Small Void Spaces Large Void Spaces

 Rock Properties

 Lithology is a description of the mineralogy and

rock type present.
 Lithological types (and oilfield abbreviations)
include:

SS: sandstone

LS: limestone

DOL: dolomite

SH: shale

SALT: crystalline salt
 Porosity
 Porosity is the ratio of the void space in a rock to the bulk
volume or size of the rock.

Unconnected
Pore Sand Grain

Total Porosity
includes Effective Porosity
Connected and (Interconnected Pores)
Unconnected
Pores
 Porosity

 Porosity varies relative to grain shape and

arrangement.
 Normally porosity varies between 10% and 30%.
 Porosity

 Cubic porosity provides  When grains are stacked

the maximum possible in a rhombohedral
porosity = 47% fashion, porosity = 26%
 Porosity
 If formation consists
 If grains are bricklike
of varying sized
grains in a closely and loosely stacked,
packed arrangement, porosity = 1%
porosity = 10%
 Porosity
 Types of porosity include:

Total Porosity:

Ratio of total void space in a rock to the bulk volume of the rock.

Effective Porosity:

Portion of total pore space in saturated permeable rock in which movement of fluids takes place.

Ratio of interconnected pore space in a rock to bulk volume of the rock.
Types of Pores in Rocks

Selley, 1998
 Types of Pores in Rocks Porosity

Primary – present at
time of deposition

Secondary –
Developed
after deposition
(during diagensis)

Red represents pores in which fluids can be present

Porosity depends on GRI

grain size?
grain shape
packing density
degree of sorting
fractures and joints
degree of cementation
Diagenesis -
Dissolution
MS = mudstone clast
Q = quartz
F = porosity

USGS
See copyright notice, slide 1.
Porosity depends on
Well-rounded coarse
grained sediments
porosity usually > fine
grained sediments,
because the grains do
not fit together well.

Poorly sorted sediments usually have

lower porosity because the finer
grains fill in the open space.

Wide grain size distribution sand - silt size grains in a clay size matrix
 Permeability
 Permeability is the ability of a rock to transmit a fluid.
 It is measured in millidarcies (md).
 Permeability is a function of area, length, pressure, viscosity, and flow rate of the fluid.
 Formations cannot be produced if permeability is less than 50 md.
 Permeability
The ability of material to transmit fluid

measure of pore space interconnectedness

& size of the interconnections

Permeability depends on Pore Connectivity

Low porosity usually results in low permeability, but high
porosity does not necessarily imply high permeability.

Eg vesicular volcanic rock,

clay rich sandstone with microporosity
 Permeability
 Fluid flow in permeable sand
Sand Grains

Pore Space

1 Atm
1 cm
2
1 cm
Q = 1 cc/sec
Vis = 1 cp

Formation Core
Having Permeability
of 1 Darcy
Permeability
Pathway diameter and tortuosity controlled by the properties of
the sediment & determine the sediment’s permeability.

The units of permeability are Darcies (D) or millidarcies (mD)

1 darcy is the permeability that allows a fluid with 1
centipoise viscosity to flow at a rate of 1 cm/s under a
pressure gradient of 1 atm/cm.
 Controls on Permeability
Generally, permeability increases with primary porosity.

Larger & more abundant the pores the greater the

permeability.
Pore spaces must be well connected
Diameter of fluid pathways
Tortuosity of pathway
 Petroleum Reservoir
= accumulation of petroleum in porous rock
= porous rock occurs down dip of seal & up dip of 100% water saturated oil-free level
= rock contained in a trap
Key petroleum properties allowing accumulation
Oil/water immiscible
1)
Gas has limited solubility in water,
2)
Hydrocarbons less dense than water
3)
 Types of Reservoirs

Siliciclastic
Carbonate
Rocky Mts. Fractured

Stromatoporoids dissolved out

 Poroperm in Reservoirs

Porosity = amount of pore

space between grains

( Total Volume V )
 = Pore Volume VP .100%
T

coastal beach sand

 ~ 40 %
petroleum reservoir sandstone
 ~ 5 to 25 %.
Reservoir - petroleum & water
in pore spaces between grains

Marshak 2001
Darcy’s Law - empirical law for fluid flow in porous media
Darcy’s experiment: Permeability (k)
Q = fluid flow rate
A p (cm3 s-1)
Q=k
L k = permeability
(darcy, cm2)

A = area (cm2)

L = flow distance (cm)

p = pressure difference
(bar, g cm-2)
 = fluid viscosity (centipoise, g
cm-1 s-1x10-1)
 Reservoir Rock Poroperm
Porosity
Permeability 0-5% - Negligible
<1 md - Poor 5-10% - Poor
1-10 md - Fair 10-15% - Fair
10-100 md- Good 15-20% - Good
100-1000 md- v good >20% - Very good

Reservoir sst k typically tens

to hundreds of md Practical cut off for oil
Sst ~8%, Lst ~5%
Reservoir seal rock k Gas - cut off is lower
typically md range
 k vs F reservoir
Quartz arenite with intergranular pore space

Wilson, 2004

Foraminifera
Limestone
with inter
and intra
granular pore
space now
filled by cement

Wilson, 2000 Selley, 1998

 Poroperm of different Sediments

Porosity Permeability

Gravel Very High Very High

Coarse- to medium sand High High
Fine sand & silt Moderate Moderate - Low
Sandstone, mod. Cemented Mod - Low Low
Fractured Shale Low Low - moderate
Metamorphic Rocks Low Very Low
Unfractured Shale Very Low Very Low

Generally, permeability crudely correlates

with porosity, but not always.
 Controls on Poroperm
Immature
Poor sorting
Angular grains
High matrix content Wilson, 2004

Mature
No matrix  & K increase
Moderate-good sorting with Textural
Degree of rounding
Super mature
Maturity
No matrix
Very good sorting
High degree of roundness

Wilson, 2004
 Reservoir Traps

 Structural Traps

Result from rock layer deformation.

 Stratigraphic Traps

Result when a reservoir bed is sealed by
other beds

Result when porosity or permeability
change within a reservoir bed.
 Structural Traps


Anticline

Syncline

Fold

Fault

Salt Dome
Anticlinal Traps
Synclinal Traps
Structural Traps- Fault traps

Gas
Oil
Salt
Water
 Structural Traps
Gas

Oil

Oil

Salt

Oil

• Salt is deposited in shallow seas, Later sinking seafloor deposits organic rich
shale over the salt, which in turn covered with layers of sandstone and shale.
• Deeply buried salt trends to rise unevenly in swells or salt domes. Any oil
generated with in the sediments is trapped where sandstones are pushed up
over or adjacent to the salt dome.
• Salt dome intruded into the sedimentary rocks, a good oil traps are formed.
• Oil accumulates near the upturned edges of the reservoir rock which are
sealed by a salt.
 Stratigraphic Traps

 Stratigraphic Traps: Result when a reservoir bed is

sealed by other beds or when porosity or permeability
change within a reservoir bed.
 A few examples of stratigraphic traps are:

Lens

Unconformity

Pinchout

Porosity Trap
 Stratigraphic Traps

 A lens is an isolated body of

sedimentary rock, such as a
reef or a sand bar.

 A pinch out is the natural ending of a sedimentary rock


regressive sands

transgressive sands
Unconformity Stratigraphic Traps
 Stratigraphic Traps- Porosity trap

 A porosity trap is created because of variations in porosity within rock.

 It can also be created with secondary porosity.

Oil
Selly 1985
 Diagenesis
Changes to sediment after deposition
Processes
Compaction
Dissolution
Replacement
Cementation
Dolomitization
Environments – differ from deposition Products
Diagenesis
Diagenesis includes all of the chemical, physical,
and biological processes that take place in
sediment after it was deposited:
Chemical processes: dissolution of minerals in
pore water, precipitation of insoluble compounds,
and ion exchange reactions between aqueous
species and the surfaces of solids
Biological processes: bioturbation, bacteria-driven
Chemical actions (reduction of sulfate), biogenic
Compounds may inhibit dissolution of minerals by
coating grain surfaces or enhance dissolution by
adsorbing ions
Physical processes: compaction
 Diagenesis
Stages of Petroleum Formation biogenic &
abiogenic
Burial OM change temp/time decay OM
>kerogen
Catagenesis
petroleum
release from kerogen
Metagenesis
Metamorphic
graphite& gas

HUNT, J.M. 1996. Petroleum Geochemistry and Geology.

 Catagenesis
• Increasing
temperature and
pressure during
deeper burial of
Oil
sediments
window
causes thermal
breakdown of
kerogen, thus Gas
producing window
petroleum
 Diagenetic controls on Poroperm
Sandstones
Diagenetic Clay formation – by
chemical alteration of minerals
(eg feldspar after burial)

Clays are very fine-grained and

may reduce porosity and pore
diameters

Observation
Quartz overgrowth later
than grain coating chlorite

Cements
5 -diagenetic processes

Compaction
Replacement

Dissolution

Cementation &
dolomitization
20 cm
 Marine - diagenesis - Meteoric (fresh water)
Isopachous fringing
cement Vadose zone
-above WT

20 cm
Dissolution

Drusy calcite cement Phreatic-below WT

 Post burial changes in porosity
Includes processes that reduce and increase porosity.
primary porosity = Porosity at time of deposition

secondary porosity = Porosity developed after deposition

Overall, with increasing

burial depth the porosity of
sediment decreases.

25% reduction in sst with

burial to 6 km is typical and
due to a variety of
processes.
Pressure Solution

Dissolution of quartz or
calcite grains at high stress
points where they touch
Re-precipitation of quartz or
calcite in the adjacent
interstices or dissolved
material moves elsewhere
by diffusion / advection.
This re-crystallization
results in intergrowths
between grains.
Stylolite = irregular pressure dissolution surfaces
with higher proportions of residual material

Limestones - often extent of

recrystallization is extreme –
all original textures destroyed

eps.mcgill.ca
Effect of Petroleum charge

Selley, 1998
 Maturity
Immature source rocks
the organic matter has undergone diagenetic effects
without a significant effect from temperature
Mature source rocks
the organic matter has undergone significant thermal
breakdown. This generally occurs during catagenesis
and represents the major zone of oil production.
Post-mature source rocks
the organic matter has undergone thermal destruction
into graphite capable of only generating gas, brought
about by the stage of metagenesis.
 Maturity of Source Rocks

Maturity parameters describe the thermal evolution of

sedimentary organic matter

Thermal Alteration Indicators

Vitrinite Reflectance

Bulk parameters

Molecular parameters
 Maturity of Source Rocks

Thermal Alteration Index (TAI)

Based on the change of colour of
spores and pollen with maturity

maturity
Textural maturity reflects depositional processes
Little current activity: immature sed (glaciers, some rivers)
High current activity: mature (deserts, beaches)

Composition Indicates Textural Maturity

Transport breaks softer grains

allows more chemical breakdown
of unstable minerals

Maturity reflected in
higher quartz content, Single, 1998

Lesser lithic grains, ferromagnesian

minerals
 Depositional Environment – influence on maturity

Particles are large and Particles are mid-sized Particles are small and
irregular, and consist of and of intermediate nearly spherical, and
a variety of lithologies, sphericity, and include consist mainly of the
including the least resistant and nonresistant most resistant lithologies,
resistant. lithologies. such as quartz.
HIGHLANDS LOWLANDS NEAR-COASTAL
 Vitrinite Reflectance
Vitrinite particles (land-plant derived) reflect light

Reflectance increases with maturity as the molecular structure

changes

Changes are predictable and consistent

The reflectivity of at least 30 individual grains of vitrinite from a

rock sample is measured under a microscope.

The measurement is given in units of reflectance, % Ro, with

typical values ranging from 0% Ro to 3% Ro.
 Vitrinite Reflectance

Ro < 0.6 immature

0.6 < Ro < 1: oil window

Ro > 1 over mature

 Vitrinite Reflectance

 Ro < 0.6 immature

 0.6 < Ro < 1 : oil window

 Ro > 1 overmature
 Bulk Parameters
Derived from Rock Eval pyrolysis

Tmax
oil window between 430 and 460
ºC

PI (Production Index)
S1 / (S1+S2)
oil window between 0.1 and 0.4
Molecular Parameters/Distributions
Crude cannot use TAI, Rock Eval VR

Molecular measure/evaluate:
Source & Depositional Environment
Maturity

Secondary alteration
Biodegradation
Mixing
Water washing
 Ground Rock

Extraction with organic solvents

rock

EXTRACT-
looks like oil

Liquid Chromatography

Saturated Aromatic Polar

Hydrocarbons hydrocarbons hydrocarbons
alkanes
Special mass spectrometry techniques to identify
hydrocarbons/biomarkers
and to determine 13C/12C of hydrocarbons
 Total Composition
Cyclohexanes Naphthalenes
n-Alkanes Phenanthrenes

Saturated and
Benzenes
Branched
aromatic
hydrocarbons
intensity

alkanes

UCM

retention time

 These compounds represent the largest part of almost

any crude oil and determine much of its properties
 Distribution of compounds reflect history
Source
Molecular Maturity Parameters
Secondary Alteration
 Water Washing
Moving water past an oil field

Dissolves the most soluble hydrocarbons in to the water

Interaction of water with oil at OWC

Depletion of more soluble hydrocarbons.

Aromatics more soluble than saturates.
Low molecular weight compounds more soluble.
Measured from relative abundances of benzene and toluene: Benz/n-C6,
Tol/n-C7
Gases may also be affected
 Biodegradation
Moving water containing microbes
Micro-organisms can utilise petroleum as a food/energy source

Conditions for large scale biodegradation

Reservoir temperature < 60–80 °C, usually < 2000 m.
Access to nutrients and oxygen, nitrates, phosphates (meteoric water).
No H2S for aerobic microbes; or below 5% H2S for anaerobic sulfate
reducers.
Salinity of formation water less than 100–150 ppt.

Biodegradation is usually observed in cool, shallower reservoirs

flushed by nutrient-rich water.
 Effects of Biodegradation

With increasing biodegradation, oils become more

viscous, richer in sulphur, resins, asphaltenes, and
metals
(e.g. Ni and V), and have lower API gravities.

Substantial loss of hydrocarbons (up to 90%).

Composition of oil is severely altered.

Biodegraded oils can often be instantly recognised by

the presence of a ‘hump’ in the GC chromatogram
 Biodegradation
The hump consists of many unresolved ‘peaks’ in the
chromatogram, reflecting the presence of many compounds
with slightly different structures

0
20.00 30.00 40.00 50.00 60.00 70.00 80.00 90.00 100.00 110.00
 Mixing
Oils from different sources/ maturities or mix
biodegraded & fresh

TIC
Sats + Aros Biodegraded oil

Small contribution from

non-degraded oil as
m/z 85 recognized from
characteristic n-alkanes
pattern
 NATURAL VARIATIONS IN STABLE CARBON ISOTOPE VALUES
Bacterial methane
-100

Natural gas
-80

 13C
‰ (per mil) -60 Crude oils

land plants C3
-40 – eg. conifers peat
phytoplankton

soil carbonate
-20
marine bicarbonate wood
coal
carbon dioxide arbitary standard
today ca. -8 0 land plants C4-tropical grasses 0 per mil
per mil marine carbonate
20

Stable isotopes used to correlate13

natural gases with one another and their source rocks.
 Crude oils have  C values similar to algae and land
plants
 Failure of Potential System
Inadequate: volume/character - organic source material,
reservoir or seal (eg. sufficient strength/ thickness to contain
fluids under pressure)
Timing: Trap Formation must be prior to migration. Source,
reservoir & seal must be arranged in such a way & at such a
time that petroleum is trapped
Maturation: Source rock OM must mature
Migration: Petroleum must migrate from source to reservoir
Loss / degradation of accumulation – restructuring
– breach of trap and leakage, biodegradation,
water washing, further maturation
 Fluid Properties
 Gas, oil, and water are the most commonly found fluids in a reservoir rock.
 Fluid saturation

Ratio between the volume that a specific fluid occupies in the reservoir’s void space

Fluid saturation of the formation’s void space of a porous rock is always 100%.

If the void space is said to be half filled with oil and half filled with water, then the rock would have a 50% oil
saturation (So) and a 50% water saturation (S w)
 Fluid Saturation
 Water saturation (Sw): percentage of formation fluid that is water.
 Oil saturation (So): percentage of formation fluid that is oil.
 Gas saturation (Sg): percentage of formation fluid that is gas.
 Fluid Density

 Fluid density describes the mass of formation

fluids.
 Fluid density determines the location of different
fluids in a reservoir.

Gas has the lowest (lightest) density.

Water has the highest (heaviest) density.

Oil lies between gas and water in density.
Effect of Fluid Densities

Gas Cap

Gas

Oil

Water

Aquifer
 Effect of Formation Water
Pore
Space

Limestone
Quartz

Quartz

Chert

Feldspar

Quartz

Clay

Quartz
Sand Grain
Clay

Formation water wetting

the sand grains
Comparison Between Undisturbed and Invaded Formations
Undisturbed Invaded
Formation Formation

Washed Out
Hole

Oil
Sw = Irreducible

Mudcake
Formation
Water
Filtrate
Sw = 100%

Shale
a