ES-409: Petroleum Geology

IV yr Integrated M.Tech. GLT

II (unintegrated/disintegrated?) M.Tech. GLT

ES-475: Petroleum Geoscience

IV yr Integrated M.Tech. GPT
II (unintegrated/disintegrated?) M.Tech. GPT

Dilip K Mukhopadhyay
 Books
• K Bjorlykke (ed) (2010) Petroleum Geoscience: From
Sedimentary Environments to Rock Physics.
Springer-Verlag.
• J Gluyas and R Swarbrick (2004) Petroleum
Geoscience. Blackwell.
• R C Selley (1998) Elements of Petroleum Geology.
2nd Edition. Academic Press.
• L B Magoon and W G Dow (ed) (1994) The petroleum
System – From Source to trap. AAPG Memoir 60.
• B P Tissot and D H Welte (1984) Petroleum
Formation and Occurrence. Springer-Verlag.
• R E Chapman (1983) Petroleum Geology. Elsevier.
• Check out www.gigapedia.com
 It is all about money!
• Petroleum geology/geoscience is intimately
linked with making money, i.e., making profit!!
• The role of petroleum geoscientists, whether in
a state oil company (e.g., ONGC, OIL), a
massive multinational company (e.g., Exxon,
Mobil), or a small independent company (e.g.,
HOEC, Essar), is to find petroleum (oil and
hydrocarbon gas) and help produce it so that it
can be sold for a profit.
What is petroleum geoscience?
A bit of
• Sedimentology
• Structural geology
• Seismology
• Palaeontology
• Stratigraphy
• Fluid flow in porous media
• Petrophysics
• …………………
 Job of a petroleum geoscientist
• In the years past, geoscientists overwhelmingly dominated the
part of the industry that explores for petroleum – they have
boldly gone to impenetrable jungles, to scorching deserts, and
to hostile seas in search for petroleum.

• Getting the oil and gas out of the ground – that is, production –
was left largely to the engineers.

• But today, the situation is different. Geoscientists now need to

work with drilling engineers, reservoir engineers, petroleum
engineers, commercial experts and facilities engineers to
determine whether the petroleum that might be discovered is
likely to be economical to produce as crude oil for market.
 Oil Production
The “magic five ingredients” without which
a basin can not become a petroleum
producing province:

• Source
• Reservoir
• Seal
• Trap
• Timing (of petroleum migration)

 Exploration
 Economics
 Source
• Petroleum/Oil: complex mixture of naturally occurring organic
compounds.

• Organic rich sediments are buried in a basin.

• Through time, under pressure and temperature associated

with deep burial, organics undergo physical and chemical
changes, eventually forming oil.

• A good source rock is black organic rich shale (mud).

• Once the generation of oil has begun, it normally begins to

move (migrate) through the rock column.

Organically rich, black-colored shales deposited in a quiet

marine, oxygen depleted environment are considered to be
the best source rocks
 Reservoir
• A reservoir rock is a rock that is capable of storing a fluid or gas.

• There are two requirements for a reservoir: Porosity and Permeability

• A rock with pores is referred to as porous.

• It has tiny holes within which fluid (oil, water, and gas) may be stored.

• A reservoir rock is also permeable. That means its pores are

connected.

• If hydrocarbons are in the pores of a rock, they must be able to move

out of them.

• Sandstone and carbonates (limestone) are good reservoir rock.

• A sponge is a good visual of a reservoir rock.

 Trap
• Under reservoir conditions oil is mobile; it therefore
needs to be trapped, and accumulate to be produced.

• A rock that does not have permeability (impermeable)

serves as a trapping material.

• Shale, salts and anhydrites are good trap rocks.

• There are two primary trap types: structural and

stratigraphic. There are subtypes (faults and pinch-outs)
and combinations of structure and stratigraphy. A reef or
mound is a combination trap
 Seal
• Oil and gas are less dense than water

• They tend to rise within the sedimentary rock

column under buoyancy.

• Seals are required to trap oil and gas.

• Seals are usually fine grained or crystalline, low-

permeability rocks.

• Typical examples include mudstone/shale, cemented

limestones, cherts, anhydrite salt (halite) and fault
rocks.
 Migration
• Active oil and gas seeps suggest migtation from source/
reservoir

• Oil/gas has to migrate from source to trap

• Migration: 1. primary - petroleum moves from source

beds to reservoir rocks, and 2. secondary - concentration
and accumulation of oil and gas in reservoir rock

• Migrate through rocks with enough permeability and

porosity

• Therefore, migration involves rock properties such as

porosity, permeability, capillary pressure, temperature
and pressure gradients, and viscosity.
 Economics
• Economics of petroleum industry usually do not depend
on cost of production and sale price

• More often economics depend on world politics

• Petroleum reserve is considered as strategic reserve

• There is more $100.00 bbl oil than there is $10.00 bbl

oil!
 Exploration

• Petroleum has to be found at a place and

in sufficient quantity that it can be
commercially produced
• Seismology, geophysical well logging and
structural geology play very important role
in exploration
Petroleum system
 ES-409/ES-475
Petroleum Geology

Source: Chemistry
 Oil Production
The “magic five ingredients” without which a
basin can not become a petroleum producing
province:
• Source
• Reservoir
• Seal
• Trap
• Timing (of petroleum migration)
 Exploration
 Economics
 Organic chemistry

• 1675: Compounds from natural sources

were divided into three classes: mineral,
vegetable and animal.

• 1784: It was shown that all compounds

obtained from vegetable and animal
sources always contain at least carbon
and hydrogen and frequently nitrogen and
phosphorous.
Organic chemistry

It was later realized that in a number of

cases the same compound could be
obtained from both vegetable and
animal sources and it was not
justifiable to consider them under
separate headings.
Organic chemistry

• This led to the reclassification of

substances into two groups: (1) all those
which could be obtained from vegetables
or animals, i.e., substances that were
produced by the living organisms, were
classified as organic, and (2) all those
substances which were not prepared from
the living organism were classified as
inorganic.
Organic chemistry

• It appeared that there were definite

differences between organic and inorganic
compounds, e.g., complexity of
composition and the combustibility of the
former.

• It was thought that organic compounds

were produced from their elements by
laws different from those governing the
formation of inorganic compounds and
that organic compounds could not be
produced artificially
Organic chemistry

• 1828: Ammonium cyanate was converted

into urea, a substance hitherto obtained
only from animal sources.

• 1845: Acetic acid was synthesized from

elements.

• 1856: Methane was synthesized.

Organic chemistry

These syntheses weakened the distinction

between organic and inorganic compounds.

The distinction between organic and

inorganic substances as was originally
supposed collapsed.
Organic chemistry

The terms organic and inorganic have been

retained for several reasons:
• all so-called organic compounds contain carbon
• the compounds of carbon are far more
numerous than the known compounds of all the
other elements put together
• carbon has the property of combining with other
carbon atoms to form long chains; this property
is not shown to such an extent by any other
element.
Hence organic chemistry is the chemistry of
the carbon compound.
Organic chemistry

• Carbon: symbol C and atomic number 6

• It is non-metallic and tetravalent (C4+) — making
four electrons available to form covalent
chemical bonds.
• There are three naturally occurring isotopes,
with 12C and 13C being stable, while 14C is
radioactive, decaying with a half-life of about
5,730 years.
• Carbon is one of the few elements known since
antiquity.
• The name "carbon" comes from Latin carbo,
coal.
Organic chemistry

• Carbon forms more compounds than any other

element, with almost ten million pure organic
compounds described to date, which in turn are
a tiny fraction of such compounds that are
theoretically possible under standard conditions
• Carbon is the 15th most abundant element in
the Earth's crust, and the 4th most abundant
element in the universe by mass after hydrogen,
helium, and oxygen.
• It is present in all known life forms, and in the
human body carbon is the second most
abundant element by mass (about 18.5%) after
oxygen.
Organic chemistry

• Carbon has the ability to form very long chains

of interconnecting C-C bonds. This property is
called catenation.

• Carbon-carbon bonds are strong, and stable.

• The simplest form of an organic molecule is the

hydrocarbon — a large family of organic
molecules that are composed of hydrogen
atoms bonded to a chain of carbon atoms.
Organic chemistry

Combined with oxygen and hydrogen,

carbon can form many groups of important
biological compounds including sugars,
lignans, chitins, alcohols, fats, and
aromatic esters, carotenoids and terpenes
Organic chemistry

• With nitrogen it forms alkaloids, and with

the addition of sulfur also it forms
antibiotics, amino acids, and rubber
products.
With the addition of phosphorus to these
other elements, it forms DNA and RNA,
the chemical-code carriers of life, and
adenosine triphosphate (ATP), the most
important energy-transfer molecule in all
living cells.
Organic chemistry
Methane, CH4

simplest hydrocarbon
Organic chemistry
Propane, C3H8

straight chain
Organic chemistry

Isobutane, C4H10

branched chain
Organic chemistry

Cyclohexane, C6H10

ring
Organic chemistry

Naphthalene, C10H8

ring
Organic chemistry

Saturated: If, an organic compound

containing two or more carbon atoms,
there are only single bonds linking any
two adjacent carbon atoms, then that
compound is said to be saturated, e.g.,
ethane (C2H6), normal propane (C3H8O),
acetaldehyde (C2H4O)
Organic chemistry

Saturated

H H H H H H
O

H C C H H C C C O H H C C
H
H H H H H H

Ethane propanal acetaldehyde

Organic chemistry

Unsaturated: If the compounds contain

at least one pair of adjacent carbon
atoms linked by a multiple bond, then
that compound is said to unsaturated,
e.g., ethylene (C2H4) – double bond,
acetylene (C2H2) – triple bond,
acraldehyde (C3H4O) - double bond.

(The double bond between carbon and oxygen in

acetaldehyde is not a sign of unsaturation)
Organic chemistry

Unsaturated
H H

C C H C C H
H H
Ethylene Acetylene
Organic chemistry

Alkanes/cycloalkenes: used by chemists

Paraffins: used in oil industry
C C Saturated
Straight-chain structures are "normal
paraffins", branch-chain structures are
"isoparaffins", and ring-type structures
are "cycloparaffins" or naphthenes. Thus
for three hydrocarbons with five carbon
atoms (i.e. all "pentanes") we have
several structures.
Organic chemistry

Nomenclature of paraffins:

• Methane CH4
• Ethane C2H6
• Propane C3H8
• Butane C4H10
• Pentane C5H12
• Hexane C6H14
• Heptane C7H16
• Octane C8H18
• etc. CnH2n+2
Organic chemistry

Paraffin structure
Organic chemistry

Unsaturated

Alkenes (olefins or oil forming)

C C

Alkynes

C C

• unsaturated compounds are chemically more

reactive than saturates
Organic chemistry

• Straight- or branch-chain hydrocarbons

with one double bond are called mono-
olefins or alkenes.

• Hydrocarbons with a double bond ring are

called cyclo-olefins or cycloalkenes; those
two double bonds in the structure are
called diolefins or dienes.

• Hydrocarbons with a triple bond are

called acetylenes or alkynes.
Organic chemistry

• Neither olefins nor acetylenes occur in

crude oil or natural gas but they are
produced in the conversion processes in
the refinery and are important feedstocks
for making petrochemicals.
Organic chemistry

• Ring compounds containing one or more

six-membered rings with three alternate
double bonds form an important group
known as "aromatics" because most of
them have a characteristic smell.

• More complex molecules of the aromatic

series are obtained by replacing one or
more hydrogen atoms by hydrocarbon
groups or by condensing or "stacking" one
or more rings. A simple example of this is
naphthalene
 Classification of crude oil
• The oil industry classifies "crude" by the
location of its origin and by its relative
weight or viscosity ("light", "intermediate"
or "heavy").

• The relative content of sulfur in natural oil

deposits also results in referring to oil as
"sweet," which means it contains relatively
little sulfur, or as "sour," which means it
contains substantial amounts of sulfur.
• Hydrocarbons may be gaseous, liquid, or solid at normal
temperature and pressure, depending on the number
and arrangement of the carbon atoms in their molecules.

• Those with up to 4 carbon atoms are gaseous; those

with 20 or more are solid; those in between are liquid.

• Crude oils are liquid but may contain gaseous or solid

compounds (or both) in solution.

• The heavier a crude oil (i.e. the more carbon atoms its
molecules contain) the closer it is to being a solid and
this may be especially noticeable as its temperature
cools.

• Light oils will remain liquid even at very low

temperatures.
TYPES OF HYDROCARBONS
Crude oils vary widely in appearance and
viscosity from field to field. They range in
colour, odour, and in the properties they
contain.
• While all crude oils are essentially
hydrocarbons, the differences in properties,
especially the variations in molecular
structure, mean that a crude is more or less
easy to produce, pipeline, and refine. The
variations may even influence its suitability
for certain products and the quality of those
products.
• Crudes are roughly classified into three groups,
according to the nature of the hydrocarbons they
contain.
• Paraffin-Base Crude Oils: If the residue of
petroleum, after removal of volatile compounds,
contains large amount of paraffins, the peteroleum
is classified as paraffinic or paraffin-base oil. These
contain higher molecular weight paraffins which are
solid at room temperature, but little or no asphaltic
(bituminous) matter.
• Asphaltic-Base Crude Oils: If naphthenes
predominate, the petroleum is classified as
asphaltic or asphaltic-base oil.
• Mixed-Base Crude Oils: The "gray area" between
the two types above. Both paraffins and
naphthenes are present, as well as aromatic
hydrocarbons. Most crudes fit this category.
Sulphur Compounds:
• Sulphur is common in crude oils but it varies
from 0.2% by weight to 6% by weight in
crude oils.
• There are corrosive and non-corrosive
sulphur compounds.
• One corrosive compound is Hydrogen
Sulphide, the deadly H2S, which can kill an
operator in 10 seconds.
• Fortunately sulphides have a highly
obnoxious smell which gives some warning
of their danger.
Nitrogen Compounds:
• Nitrogen compounds in crude oils are
complex and distillation may give rise to
nitrogen compounds.
• These may cause discoloration in
gasoline and kerosene, or may produce a
"lacquer" quality, reducing the
effectiveness of lubricating oils.
Oxygen Compounds:
• Some crude oils contain oxygen compounds.
• Their structure is not well-understood but on
distillation of the crudes, the oxygen
compounds decompose to form ring
compounds with a carboxylic acid group in
the side chain.
• These compounds are known as
"naphthenic acids".
 Petroleum and natural gas

A thick, flammable, yellow-to-black mixture

of gaseous, liquid, and solid hydrocarbons
that occurs naturally beneath the earth's
surface, can be separated into fractions
including natural gas, gasoline, naphtha,
kerosene, fuel and lubricating oils, paraffin
wax, and asphalt and is used as raw
material for a wide variety of derivative
products.
 Petroleum and natural gas
• The word petroleum comes from the Latin petra,
meaning “rock,” and oleum, meaning “oil.”
• It is sometimes called “rock oil” or “mineral oil”
• The oil industry classifies "crude" by the location of
its origin and by its relative weight or viscosity
("light", "intermediate" or "heavy"). The relative
content of sulfur in natural oil deposits also results
in referring to oil as "sweet," which means it
contains relatively little sulfur, or as "sour," which
means it contains substantial amounts of sulfur
• Natural gas, as it comes from the well, is also
classified as dry gas or wet gas, according to the
amount of natural gas liquid vapors it contains. A
dry gas contains less than 0.1 gallon natural gas
liquid vapors per 1,000 cubic feet, and a wet gas 0.3
or more liquid vapors per 1,000 cubic feet.
 Petroleum and natural gas
• The composition of crude petroleum varies
with the locality of occurrence
• They all contain paraffins (C1 to C40),
cycloparaffins or naphthenes and aromatic
hydrocarbons
• The low-boiling fractions are always
paraffins for all petroleums
• The composition of high-boiling fractions
differs depending on source of petroleum
• There are other compounds containing O, N,
S, and metallic constituents
 Petroleum and natural gas

Natural gas
• The term is applied to the large quantities of gas
associated with or unassociated with liquid
petroleum
• The composition of gas varies with source, and
consists chiefly of first six paraffins, the
percentage of each decreasing with increasing
molecular weight
• H2O vapour, H, N, CO2 and H2S may also be
present
 Petroleum and natural gas
Distillation of petroleum
• The crude oil is passed under pressure into
cylindrical tanks, and the gas, oil and solids are
drawn off separately
• The crude oil is fractionated by continuous
distallation into four main fractions: petrol
(gasoline), kerosene (paraffin oil), gas oil (heavy
oil) and lubricating oil
• The residue may be fractionated to give light,
medium and heavy lubricating oil, paraffin wax
and asphaltic bitumen
• Each of the four main fractions may be further
split up by batch distillation into fractions of
narrow boiling range
 Distillation of petroleum

Name B.P.,ºC Approx Uses

comp
Light Petrol 20-100 C5-C7 Solvent
Benzine 70-90 C6-C7 Dry cleaning
Ligroin 80-120 C6-C8 Solvent
Petrol (gasoline) 70-200 C6-C11 Motor fuel
Kerosene (paraffin oil) 200-300 C12-C16 Lighting
Gas oil (Heavy oil) >300 C13-C18 Fuel oil
Lubricating oil ,, C16-C20 Lubricants
Greases, vaseline ,, C18-C22 Pharmaceutical
Paraffin (hard) wax ,, C20-C30 Candles
Residue ,, C30-C40 Asphalt tar
(asphaltic bitumen)
 ES-409/ES-475
Petroleum Geology

Source: Petroleum Genesis

 Oil Production
The “magic five ingredients” without which a
basin can not become a petroleum producing
province:
• Source
• Reservoir
• Seal
• Trap
• Timing (of petroleum migration)
 Exploration
 Economics
 Origin of petroleum

Organic or Inorganic?

That is, Biogenic or Abiogenic?

 Inorganic origin
• Early theories (nineteenth century) of petroleum
generation postulated an inorganic origin
• Jupiter, Saturn and some other satellites are known
to contain methane
• A particular class of meteorites, carbonaceous
chondrites, contain traces of hydrocarbons
including amino acids
• Extraterrestrial hydrocarbons are believed to be of
abiogenic origin
• Others suggest cosmic hydrocarbon provide
evidence of extraterrestrial life (hydrocarbons in
chondrites might be remains of barbecued space
monsters !!!!!).
Indeed Sir Frederic Hoyle, a Professor of Physics,
thundered in 1955:
“The presence of hydrocarbons in bodies out of
which the Earth is formed would certainly make
the Earth’s interior contain vastly more oil than
could ever be produced from decayed fish – a
strange theory in vogue for many years. …… If
our prognostication that the oil deposits have
also been squeezed out from the interior of the
Earth is correct, then we must, I think, accept
the view that the amount of oil still present at
great depths vastly exceeds the comparatively
tiny quantities that man has been able to
recover.”
Until the turn of the century many
distinguished scientists, including well-
known geographer Alexander von Humboldt
and the great chemist Gay-Lussac, believed
in the magmatic origin of hydrocarbons.
Mendele’ev (1902) suggested that iron
carbide in mantle could react with
percolating water to form methane and other
hydrocarbons, which is analogous to the
reaction in which acetylene is produced by
carbide and water:
CaC2 + H2O = C2H2 + Ca(OH)2
• There is no evidence for the presence of iron
carbide in the mantle. Yet the belief in a
deep, inorganic origin for hydrocarbons has
been widely held by many physicists,
astronomers and chemists, but not,
however, by geologists.
• Vestigial traces of this belief still survive in
scientific community.
• If this theory is true, one would expect
hydrocarbons to be commonly associated
with igneous rocks and areas of deep crustal
disturbance and faulting.
• Three genetic types of igneous
hydrocarbons may be classified:
• Hydrocarbon gases, bitumens, and liquids
occurring within vesicles and microscopic
inclusions and irregular dissiminated
masses within igneous and metamorphic
rocks
• Hydrocarbons trapped where igneous rocks
trapped sediments
• Hydrocarbons in weathered igneous
basement trapped beneath unconformities
Seismic reflection profile
Good rock
Bad rock
 Hydrocarbons from mantle
• Fault rocks can be impermeable and can act as seal

• They can be permeable and may act as conduits for

fluid flow

• During earthquake:
• Exhale flammable gas at surface
• This is followed by loud bang, flashing lights
• Foul smell of sulfide gas
• These have been documented and suggest some faults are
conduits fro flammable (methane, hydrogen) gas

• Argued that earthquake outgassing along major

faults allows methane to escape from mantle
• Outgassing theory implies that to find
limitless quantities of oil and gas all we have
to do is deep drilling adjacent to major faults
• This process should give rise to deep gas
reservoir and, by polymerization, to oil at
shallower horizons
• Geologists reject these ideas out of hand
• Porosity and permeability decrease with
depth so there can not be any deep reservoir
• Mid-oceanic ridges and continental rift
basins should have been loci of hydrocarbon
reservoirs
 Fischer-Tropsch synthesis
• The Fischer-Tropsch is a well-known industrial
process that was used to produce hydrocarbon
in Germany during WW-II and in South Africa in
later years
• In this reaction CO2 and H are passed over a
catalyst of hematite and magnetite at
temperature >500 0C
• C + Fe + H + OH  CH4 + C2H6 + C3H8 + C4H8 + Feo
• CO2 + HOH + Fe  CH4 + FeO
• C HOH + Fe CH4 + CO2 + H2
• CO2 + H2  CH4 + H2O
• It has been suggested that this method could
produce methane and liquid petroleum in
nature also
• Hydrocarbon could be generated at
convergent plate boundaries
• CO2 from metamorphism of carbonates, H
and iron oxide from serpentinization of
ophiolites
• Iron oxide may catalyse the reaction
• Geological observations:
• Major accumulations of hydrocarbon oil and
gas characteristically occur in sedimentary
rocks
• Numerous examples of hydrocarbon
accumulations in sandstone and limestone
reservoirs are totally enclosed above, below
and laterally by impermeable rocks
• Commercial accumulations of hydrocarbons
have been found in basement rocks
(metamorphic and igneous). However, there
are always lateral fluid continuity with
sedimentary rocks
• Oil and gas seeps are absent in basement rocks
• Porosity and permeability in basement are very
low unless fractures
• Geologists thus conclude commercial quantities
of petroleum formed by thermal maturation of
organic matter trapped in sedimentary rocks,
notably black shales
• Petroleum is the most important
energy source for the modern
civilization

• Where does the petroleum get the

energy that it stores?
Where else but from our good
old friend – Sun!
 How?

Photosynthesis (i.e. storage of solar

energy) by lowly (!) algae,
dinoflagellates and diatoms floating
around the sea!
 Two kinds of organisms

• Autotroph, or producer of food (from Greek,

autos = self and trophe = nutrition, related to
trephein = to make solid, congeal, thicken

• Heterotroph or consumer of food (from Greek,

heteros = "another", "different" and trophe =
"nutrition")

• > 95% of all organisms are heterotrophic

 Autotrophs
• An autotroph, or producer, is an organism that
produces complex organic compounds (such as
carbohydrates, fats, and proteins) from simple
inorganic molecules using energy from light
(photosynthesis) or inorganic chemical reactions
(chemosynthesis).

• They are the producers in a food chain, such as

plants on land or algae in water.

• They are able to make their own food and can

fix carbon. Therefore, they do not use organic
compounds as an energy source or a carbon
source.
 Autotrophs
• Autotrophs can reduce carbon dioxide (add
hydrogen to it!) to make organic compounds.
The reduction of carbon dioxide, a low-energy
compound, creates a store of chemical energy.

• Most autotrophs use water as the reducing

agent, but some can use other hydrogen
compounds such as hydrogen sulfide.

• An autotroph converts physical energy from sun

light (in case of green plants) into chemical
energy in the form of reduced carbon.
 Autotrophs
• Autotrophs can be phototrophs or lithotrophs
(chemoautotrophs).

• Phototrophs use light as an energy source,

while lithotrophs oxidize inorganic compounds,
such as hydrogen sulfide, elemental sulfur,
ammonium and ferrous iron.

• Autotrophs are fundamental to the food chains

of all ecosystems in the world. They take energy
from the environment in the form of sunlight or
inorganic chemicals and use it to create energy-
rich molecules such as carbohydrates.
 Heterotrophs
• Heterotrophs take in autotrophs as food to carry
out functions necessary for their life.
• All animals, almost all fungi, as well as most
bacteria and protozoa are heterotrophs.
• Heterotrophs depend on autotrophs for the
energy and raw materials they need.
• Heterotrophs obtain energy by breaking down
organic molecules (carbohydrates, fats, and
proteins) obtained in food.
• Carnivorous organisms ultimately rely on
autotrophs because the nutrients obtained from
their heterotroph prey come from autotrophs
they consumed.
• Most ecosystems are supported by the
autotrophic primary production of plants that
capture photons initially released by nuclear
fusion reactions in the sun.

• The process of photosynthesis splits a water

molecule (H2O), releasing oxygen (O2) into the
atmosphere, and reducing carbon dioxide (CO2)
to release the hydrogen atoms that fuel the
metabolic process of primary production.

• Plants convert and store the energy of the

photon into the chemical bonds of simple sugars
during photosynthesis.
• The plant sugars are polymerized for storage
as long-chain carbohydrates, including other
sugars, starch, and cellulose; glucose is also
used to make fats and proteins.

• When autotrophs are eaten by heterotrophs,

i.e., consumers such as animals, the
carbohydrates, fats, and proteins contained
in them become energy sources for the
heterotrophs.
Flow chart!
The food
chain
 Chlorophyll
• Chlorophyll (also chlorophyl) is a green pigment
found in almost all plants, algae, and
cyanobacteria. Its name is derived from the
Greek words chloros ("green") and phyllon
("leaf").
• Chlorophyll is an extremely important
biomolecule, critical in photosynthesis, which
allows plants to obtain energy from light.
• Chlorophyll absorbs light most strongly in the
blue portion of the electromagnetic spectrum,
followed by the red portion. However, it is a poor
absorber of green and near-green portions of
the spectrum; hence the green color of
chlorophyll-containing tissues
 Epipelagic zone

• This is the illuminated zone at the surface of

the sea where there is enough light for
photosynthesis

• Nearly all primary production of hydrocarbon

in the ocean occurs here

• Consequently, plants and animals are largely

concentrated in this zone.
Ocean layers
Ocean layers
 Plankton
• Plankton (singular plankter) are any drifting
organisms (animals, plants, or bacteria) that
inhabit the pelagic zone of oceans, seas, or
bodies of fresh water.

• Plankton are defined by their ecological niche

rather than phylogenetic or taxonomic
classification.

• They provide a crucial source of food to larger,

more familiar aquatic organisms such as fish
and cetacea (marine mammals, e.g., whales,
dolphins)
Though many planktic (or planktonic) species are
microscopic in size, plankton includes
organisms covering a wide range of sizes,
including large organisms such as jellyfish

– Phytoplankton
– Zooplankton
• Phytoplankton (from Greek phyton, or plant) are
plant plankton

• Phytoplankton include seaweed and algae but

are mostly made up of diatoms and
dinoflagellates.

• Diatoms are microscopic, single celled plants

covered by two shells that look glossy!

• Dinoflagellates are tiny plants with white shells

all over them.
• These small plants are very important to the
ocean and to the whole planet! They are at the
base of the food chain.

• Many small fish and whales eat them. Then

bigger fish eat the little fish, etc. The food chain
continues and at some point in time we (people)
come into it when we eat the fish. So the energy
of plankton becomes our energy too!
Phytoplanktons
Diatoms
Dinoflagellates
• Zooplankton (from Greek zoon, or animal)
are animal plankton

• Zooplankton include small protozoans or

metazoans (e.g. crustaceans and other
animals) that feed on other plankton.
Some of the eggs and larvae of larger
animals, such as fish, crustaceans, and
annelids, are also included.
Zooplankton
 Photosynthesis
• The emergence of photosynthesis as a
worldwide phenomenon is a noteworthy
geological event with respect to potential
source rocks

• Photosynthesis converts light energy from

Sun to chemical energy that is stored in the
form of hydrocarbons

• Photosynthesis is basically a transfer of

hydrogen from water to CO2 to form of
glucose and oxygen
 Photosynthesis

• A simple photosynthesis reaction producing

glucose ( polysaccharides)

• 6 CO2 + 12 H2O  C6H12O6 + 6 O2 + 6 H2O

• Photosynthesis is responsible for mass

production of organic matter on earth
 Photosynthesis
• Primitive bacteria and blue-green algae, were
the first organisms responsible for this mass
production

• About 2 b.y.b.p. photosynthetic production of

organic matter was fairly well-established
worldwide but it may have taken another b.y. or
so for most primitive organism to spread
sufficiently for photosynthesis, hence, mass
production of organic matter to be universally
prevalent
Carbon cycle
 Source for hydrocarbon

• The organic matter from which petroleum is

derived originated through photosynthesis, i.e.
storage of solar energy.

• Sunlight is continuously transformed into such

energy on Earth but only a very small proportion
of the solar energy is preserved as organic
matter and petroleum.
• The oil and gas which forms in sedimentary
basins each year is thus minute in comparison
with the rate of exploitation (production) and
consumption

• In practice petroleum must, therefore, be

regarded as a non-renewable resource even
though some petroleum is being formed all the
time.
• Most of the organic materials which occur in
source rocks for petroleum are algae, formed by
photosynthesis

• The zooplankton and higher organisms grazed

the algae and are thus indirectly dependent on
photosynthesis too

• The energy which we release when burning

petroleum is therefore stored solar energy.
• The total production of organic material in the
world’s oceans is now 5×1010 tonnes/year.

• Nutrients for this organic production are supplied

by erosion of rocks on land and transported into the
ocean.

• The supply of nutrients is therefore greatest in

coastal areas, particularly where sediment-laden
rivers discharge into the sea. Plant debris is also
supplied directly from the land in coastal areas.

• Biological production is greatest in the uppermost

20–30 m of the ocean and most of the phytoplankton
growth takes place in this zone. In clear water,
sunlight penetrates much deeper than in turbid
water, but in clear water there is usually little
nutrient supply.
• At about 100–150 m depth, sunlight is too
weak for photosynthesis even in very clear
water.

• Phytoplankton provides nutrition for all other

marine life in the oceans.

• Zooplankton feed on phytoplankton and

therefore proliferate only where there is
vigorous phytoplankton production.

• Organisms sink after they have died

Production and preservation of organic carbon

• Total amount of carbon in earth’s crust: 2.65

x 1020 g

• 82% occurs as CO3 in limestones and

dolomites

• 18% occurs as organic carbon in coal/oil/gas

• Amount of organic matter buried in

sediments is related the ratio of organic
productivity and destruction
• Generally, organic matter is destroyed on the
earth’s surface, and only minor amounts are
preserved

• Deposition of an organic-rich sediment is

favoured by high rate of production of
organic matter and a high preservation
potential

• Determining production and preservation for

the present day is relatively easy;
extrapolating back in time harder
 Source for organic hydrocarbon

• Marine environment

• Continental environment
 Marine environment
• In the sea, as on land, all organic matter is
originally formed by photosysthesis

• Photosynthesizers are pelagic

phytoplankton and benthic algae

• Depends on both physical and chemical

parameters

• Physical parameters for photosynthesis:

temperature and light
• Amount of light is dependent on depth,
latitude and turbidity of the water

• Chemical conditions: abundance of nutrients

such as phosphates and nitrates

• Oxygen is not important for phytoplanktons

but is vital for animals in the food chain

• Photosynthesis increases the oxygen

content of the sea
 Continental environment

• Present day production of organic matter on the

continent similar to that of oceans

• But destruction of organic matter on land is

much more significant

• Dinosaurs did not give off hydrocarbon!

• Rates of production of organic carbon on land

and in ocean varied through earth’s history
Net organic carbon production - ocean
Geological
Time
Scale
 Distribution of major petroleum source
rocks through time

• Hydrocarbon-rich source rocks are largely

concentrated in several stratigraphic intervals
during the Phanerozoic (Cambrian to Recent,
past 542 million years)

• Such unequal distribution of source rocks in the

geological record is apparent both on a global
scale and in given sedimentary basin
 Distribution of major petroleum source
rocks through time
1. Silurian (444-416 Ma)
2. Late Devonian (385-360 Ma)
3. Late Pennsylvanian-Permian (318-270 Ma)
4. Late Jurassic (165-145 Ma)
5. Middle Cretaceous (125-89 Ma)
6. Oligocene-Miocene (34-5 ma)

34% of Phanerozoic account for more than 90% of

the world’s known oul and gas resources
• These highs are not regular pulses caused by
single recurring factor in Earth’s history

• Explanation probably lies in a combination of

geological factors operating in specific regions
and periods, and favouring the deposition and
preservation of effective source rocks
Silurian
430 Ma

Late
Devonian
370 Ma
Late
Permian
280 Ma

Late
Jurassic
150 Ma
Mid
Cretaceous
105 Ma

Early
Miocene
280 Ma
 ES-409/ES-475
Petroleum Geology

Biomass to Oil/Gas
 Composition of biomass

• Bacterria, phytoplanktons, zooplanktons

(forminifers and crustaceans), and higher
plants are the main contributors for organic
carbon in sediments

• Natural associations of these various groups

of organisms determine composition and
types of organic matter incorporated in
sediments
• Sediments do not contain a true image of the
organic population in water column above

• Chemical composition of organisms changes

prior to incorporation in a sediment

• All organisms are basically composed of same

groups of chemical constitutents, i.e., proteins,
lipids, carbohydrates and lignins in higher
plants

• Lipid and lipid-like fractions of organisms play

dominant role in the formation of petroleum
 Proteins

• Proteins are highly ordered polymers made

from individual amino acids

• They account for most of the nitrogen

compounds in organisms

• Proteins constitute materials such as fibers,

silk and sponge
 Carbohydrates
• Carbohydrates is a collective name for
individual sugars and their polymers

• The name carbohydrate is derived from

emperical formula Cn(H2O)n

• Among the most abundant constituents of

plants and animals, and are sources of
energy and form supporting tissues of plants
and animals
 Carbohydrates

• Cellulose and chitins (polysaccharides) are

the most common carbohydrates in nature

• Polysaccharides are largely insoluble in

water

• Through hydrolysis they are converted into

C6- and C5-sugars
 Lipids
• The term lipids are applied to all organism-
produced substances that are practically
insoluble in water but are extractable by so-
called fat-solvents such as chloroform,
carbon tetrachloride, ethers, aliphatic and
aromatic hydrocarbons and acetone

• Lipids include fat substances, such as

animal fat, vegetable oils, waxes

• Fats add to energy budget of organisms but

waxes are designed for protective functions
 Lipids

• Seeds, spores and fruits are especially rich

in lipids

• Among algae, diatoms are known to contain

great quantities of lipid ( up to 70% dry
weight basis)
 Lignin and tannin

• Wide-spread occurrence in organisms

• Both have aromatic structure

• Common in plant tissue but usually not in

animals

• Both are collective terms and do not refer to

clearly defined substances
 Lignin and tannin
• Lignin occurs as three-dimensional network located
between supporting tissues of plants

• Tannins are quantitatively mush less important than

lignins, but are quite wide-spread

• Tannins are intermediate between lignin and

cellulose

• Tannins are found in mainly in higher plants (in bark

and leaves) but also in fungi and algae
 Formation of source rock

• Under the geological conditions prevailing

on the earth’s surface, all organic matter is
unstable
•
• Preservation of organic matter is favoured
by
– High organic productivity
– An optimum, though not necessarily slow,
sedimentation rate
– Anoxic condition
• Petroleum is generated from organic matter

• Organic matter accumulates in sedimentary

basins

• A small fraction (about 0.5%) of the organic

matter produced in the photic zone gets
trapped in sediments
•
• Most of the organic matter is oxidised in the
water column or on the sea floor
• Destruction of organic matter is continued at
lower rate at greater depth by anaerobic,
heterotrophic bacteria

• Breakdown of organic matter releases

nutrients into the water and become
available for new organic production near
the surface during upwelling

• Organic matter is transformed into kerogen,

which consists of very large and complex
hydrocarbon molecules
• The term kerogen is not applied to fresh
organic material

• Kerogen is a somewhat dehydrated material

after burial to about 100 m or more in the
sediment

• Kerogen has higher H/C and lower O/C ratios

than initial compounds

• Kerogen rich shales, called black shales, are

the source rocks for petroleum
Water
column
• Three major phases of in the evolution of
organic material in response to burial (in
order of increasing depth

– Diagenesis
– Catagenesis
– Metagenesis

(metamorphism at greater depth – formation

of graphite)
 Diagenesis

• This phase occurs in the shallow subsurface

at near normal T and P
• Includes both biogenic decay and abiogenic
reactions
• Methane, carbon dioxide and water are given
off by the organic matter
• Reduces oxygen content
• H/C ratio remain largely unaltered
• Depth: to few 100s, occasionally few 1000s m
• Leads to the formation of a complex
hydrocarbon called kerogen
 Diagenesis

• The main agent of transformation: Microbial

activity
• Aerobic bacteria consume free oxygen
• Anaerobes reduce sulfates to obtain oxygen
• The energy is provided by decomposition of
organic matter which is converted into carbon
dioxide, ammonia and water
• Biogenic polymers or “biopolymers” (proteins,
carbohydrates) change to polycondensed
structures called “geopolymers”, which are
precursor to kerogen
 Diagenesis
• The formation of geopolymers accounts for the large
molecular weights and diverse chemical
compositions associated with kerogen

• The smallest geopolymers are the fulvic acids, the

medium geopolymers are the humic, and the largest
geopolymers are the humins

• When geopolymers are subjected to sufficient

geothermal pressures for sufficient geologic time,
they begin to undergo certain peculiar changes to
become kerogen
 Diagenesis
• Such changes are indicative of the maturity
stage of a particular kerogen

• These changes include loss of hydrogen,

oxygen, nitrogen, and sulfur

• If organic matter is derived from dominantly

plants, peat and brown coal forms
 Diagenesis
• The most common hydrocarbon produced
during diagenesis is methane, for example
– cellulose (C6H10O5)n = CO2 + CH4

• If deposition of organic matter is and its rate

of decay are rapid, free methane may seep to
the surface as bubbles of marsh gas.

• This gas occasionally ignites spontaneously

terrifying the uninformed in bogs and
graveyeards
 Catagenesis

• This phase occurs in the deeper subsurface as

burial continues and, T and P increase

• Petroleum is released from kerogen during

catagenesis

• Oil is released first and gas is released later

• H/C ratio declines

• No significanti change in O/C ratio

• T: 50-150ºC; P: 300 to 1000 or 1500 bars

 Metagenesis

• This phase occurs at high T and P verging

on metamorphism

• Last hydrocarbons, generally only methane,

are explelled

• H/C ratio further declines until only carbon is

left in the form of graphite

• Porosity and permeability are negligible

 Kerogen
• The term was introduced by the Scottish
organic chemist Alexander Crum Brown in
1912.

• Kerogen is a mixture of organic chemical

compounds that make up a portion of the
organic matter in sedimentary rocks

• It is insoluble in normal organic solvents

because of the huge molecular weight of its
component compounds

• The soluble portion is known as bitumen.

 Kerogen
• When heated to the right temperatures in the
Earth's crust, some types of kerogen release
crude oil or natural gas, collectively known
as hydrocarbons (fossil fuels)

• Oil window: ca. 60–160 °C

• Gas window: ca. 150–200 °C
• (both depending on how quickly the source
rock is heated)

• Shales rich in kerogens that have not been

heated to warm temperature to release their
hydrocarbons may form oil shale deposits
 Kerogen
• As kerogen is a mixture of organic material,
rather than a specific chemical; it cannot be
given a chemical formula

• Labile kerogen breaks down to form heavy

hydrocarbons (i.e. oils), refractory kerogen
breaks down to form light hydrocarbons (i.e.
gases), and inert kerogen forms graphite.

• A Van Krevelen diagram is one example of

classifying kerogens, where they tend to
form groups when the ratios of hydrogen to
carbon and oxygen to carbon are compared.
 Types of kerogen

Type I

• contains alginite, amorphous organic matter,

cyanobacteria, freshwater algae, and land plant
resins
• H/C ratio > 1.25; O/C ratio < 0.15
• Shows great tendency to readily produce liquid
hydrocarbons
• It derives principally from lacustrine algae and forms
only in anoxic lakes
• Has few cyclic or aromatic structures
• Formed mainly from proteins and lipids
Type II
• H/C ratio < 1.25; O/C ratio 0.03 to 0.18
• Tend to produce a mix of gas and oil.
• Several types:
– Sporinite: formed from the casings of pollen and spores
– Cutinite: formed from terrestrial plant cuticle
– Resinite: formed from terrestrial plant resins and animal
decomposition resins
– Liptinite: formed from terrestrial plant lipids (hydrophobic
molecules that are soluble in organic solvents) and marine
algae
• They all have great tendencies to produce petroleum
and are all formed from lipids deposited under
reducing conditions
Type II–sulfur

• Similar to Type II but high in sulfur

Type III
• H/C ratio < 1 ; O/C ratio 0.03
• Material is thick, resembling wood or coal.
• Tends to produce coal and gas (Recent research has
shown that type III kerogens can actually produce oil
under extreme conditions)
• Has very low hydrogen because of the extensive
ring and aromatic systems
• Kerogen Type III is formed from terrestrial plant
matter that is lacking in lipids or waxy matter. It
forms from cellulose, the carbohydrate polymer that
forms the rigid structure of terrestrial plants, lignin,
a non-carbohydrate polymer formed from phenyl-
propane units that binds the strings of cellulose
together, and terpenes and phenolic compounds in
the plant.
Type IV (residue)

• • H/C ratio < 0.5

• Type IV kerogen contains mostly

decomposed organic matter in the form of
polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. They
have no potential to produce hydrocarbons
Maturation path of kerogen

Van Krevelen
diagram
Van Krevelen
diagram
At > 225ºC kerogen is
inert having expelled all
hydrocarbons, only carbon
remains as graphite
•The maturity of a
rock is a function of
time-temperature
index (TTI)

Maturation is an
exponential function
of temperature

Curve C is highest
maturity

Curves A,B less

mature because
their exposure to to
greater burial depth
has been much
shorter
Burial curve, Central Graben, North Sea

Source rock
Major Kimmeridge clay
Correlation between hydrocarbon generation ,
temperature, and some paleothermometers