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National Geographic, June 2004

The Where and Why of Petroleum

The origin of oil?

The rate of generation of oil?

The global distribution of oil?

The likelihood of further oil discovery?

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Sedimentary basin with nutrient input and production of organic matter

Sedimentation and burial of organic matter with incomplete decomposition Heating with burial (but not too hot!) within thermal window

Sufficient time to crack organic matter (kerogen) into oil hydrocarbons

Presence of oil trap

Migration of oil from source rock into trap

Geological requirements for the origin and accumulation of oil

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N

S

GulfBase.org

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N S

Herb Buxton

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sediment,

nutrients,organic carbon

sedimentation

heat flow

primary production (phytoplankton)

organic-richsediment layer

100 C

150 C

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sediment,

nutrients,organic carbon

sedimentation

primary production (phytoplankton)

subsidence

and burial

100 C

150 C

heat flow

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sediment,

nutrients,organic carbon

sedimentation

primary production (phytoplankton)

100 C

150 C

heat flow

subsidence

and burial

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sediment,

nutrients,organic carbon

sedimentation

primary production (phytoplankton)

100 C

150 C

heat flow

subsidence

and burial

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sediment,

nutrients,organic carbon

sedimentation

primary production (phytoplankton)

100 C

150 C

heat flow

subsidence

and burial

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sediment,

nutrients,organic carbon

sedimentation

primary production (phytoplankton)

100 C

150 C

heat flow

subsidence rate ~ 0.0002 m/yr (0.2 mm/yr)

window top ~ 2.5 km (8,000 ft); 13 million yrbottom ~ 3.5 6.5 km (11,500 21,000 ft); 18 33 million yr

Gulf of Mexico

subsidence

and burial

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National Geographic, June 2004

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The following slides can be viewed at:

http://www.earthscienceworld.org/imagebank/search/index.html

under the category Petroleum.

Source Rock for PetroleumKerogen Types

The Origin of PetroleumHydrocarbon Trap Types

Petroleum System ProcessesLargest Hydrocarbon BasinsDrilling RigDirectional Drilling

Images of ocean drilling platforms

Petroleum Products

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Triassic

Cretaceous

Tertiary

Jurassic

Africa

Africa

Africa

Africa

SA

SA

SA

SA

Asia

Asia

Asia

Asia

NA

NA

NA

NA

Image: Dave Donkin

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Cretaceous

Triassic

Jurassic

Arabian

Peninsula

Northern

Asia

Texas/Gulf

of Mexico

Africa

Africa

Africa

NA

SA

SA

SA

NA

NA

Asia

Asia

Asia

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Red Sea

G

ulfofS

uez

Mediterranean Sea

Gulfo

fAqab

a

AFRICANPLATE

ARABIANPLATE

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JerusalemTel Aviv

Cairo

Saudi Arabia

Red Sea

G

ulfofS

uez

Dead Sea

Egypt

Jordan

Nile R.

Wadi al-Jayb

Mediterranean Sea

Sinai Peninsula

Gulfo

fAqab

a

DamascusLebanon

Israel

Jordan R.

Beirut

SyriaCyprus

AFRICANPLATE

ARABIANPLATE

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Energy Density of Selected Fuels

SIMPLE COMPOUNDS MJ/kgcarbon (to CO2) 32.8carbon (to CO) 22.7ethanol 29.7hydrogen 142methane 55.5

methanol 22.7nitromethane 11.6octane 47.9propane 50.3sulfur 9.16

FOSSIL FUELS MJ/kgcoal, anthracite 31.4coal, bituminous >23.9coal, sub-bituminous 17.4 23.8coal, lignite