Extraction of high molecular weight hydrocarbons from source rocks: an example from the Green River Formation, Uinta Basin, Utah

Mueller, Eric; Philp, R. Paul

doi:10.1016/s0146-6380(98)00031-x

Cited by 34 publications

(12 citation statements)

References 16 publications

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“…The 40 C + high molecular-weight alkanes in crude oil and source rock samples can be readily examined using HTGC [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16] . This molecular-weight range shows quite different carbon number distributions from those of the C 22 -C 35 alkanes in routine conventional GC analysis [17] , thus providing important information on oil wax deposition [2,11,13] , organic source input, source rock depositional environment [5,7,12,15] , and oil biodegradation [3,6,14] .…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Distribution and significance of C 40 + alkanes in the extracts of Cretaceous source rocks from the Songliao Basin

et al. 2007

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Source rock extracts and crude oils from the Songliao Basin were analyzed by high-temperature gas chromatography (HTGC), gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (HTGC-MS) and gas chromatography-isotope ratio-mass spectrometry (GC-IRMS), for high molecular-weight alkanes. The distributions of n-alkanes in the Nenjiang Formation extracts are in the C 14 -C 63 range; a bimodal distribution occurs in the 21 C − and C 21 -40 regions. The C 30 -C 37 n-alkanes are accompanied by C 29 -C 35 hopanes, whereas the high molecular-weight C 45 -C 47 n-alkanes co-occur with abundant isoalkanes, alkylcyclohexanes and alkylcyclopentanes. The high δ 13 C values of the n-alkanes and the microscopic maceral compositions indicate a highly diversified organic source input for the Nenjiang Formation source rocks, ranging from aquatic plants, blue alge-bacteria, to land plant material. In contrast, n-alkanes in the rock extracts of the Qingshankou Formation are characterized by a single modal distribution, with relatively low abundances of C 29 -C 35 hopanes, but high molecular-weight isoalkanes, alkylcyclohexanes and alkylcyclopentanes. The relatively low δ 13 C values of C 22 -C 44 n-alkanes and organic material compositions indicate that the source rocks in the Qingshankou Formation contain dominantly type I algal organic matter. The relative abundance of 40 C + compounds in source rocks changes little at low maturity stage, but decreases drastically at higher maturity levels, with a concurrent reduction in the odd/even carbon predominance. In crude oils, in contrast, the relative abundance of 40 C + compounds appears to relate closely with the oil source and oil viscosity.Songliao Basin, source rock, high-temperature gas chromatography (HTGC), high-temperature gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (HTGC-MS), gas chromatography-isotope ratio-mass spectrometry (GC-IRMS).The 40 C + high molecular-weight alkanes in crude oil and source rock samples can be readily examined using HTGC [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16] . This molecular-weight range shows quite different carbon number distributions from those of the C 22 -C 35 alkanes in routine conventional GC analysis [17] , thus providing important information on oil wax deposition [2,11,13] , organic source input, source rock depositional environment [5,7,12,15] , and oil biodegradation [3,6,14] .Available data indicate that sometimes it is necessary to pre-concentrate the high molecular weight fractions from oil and source rock extract prior to HTGC analysis of the so-called ceresin wax (dominated by 40 C + ) or phaneritic wax fraction (middle and low molecularweight 40 C − compounds) [7] . As a result, the lack of compounds in other molecular-weight ranges often jeopardizes a meaningful comparison and subsequent

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mentioning

confidence: 99%

Distribution and significance of C 40 + alkanes in the extracts of Cretaceous source rocks from the Songliao Basin

et al. 2007

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“…Both carbonates and mudstones omit a strong bituminous odor when acidized. Samples taken at this location by previous workers found total organic carbon values as high as 15% (Mueller and Philp, 1998;Ruble et al, 2001).…”

Section: Deep Lacustrinementioning

confidence: 57%

“…The organic-rich laminated mudstones, marls, and carbonates of the deep lacustrine environment are excellent source rocks, and are likely the major source of lower Green River oil in the Uinta Basin (Mueller and Philp, 1998;Ruble et al, 2001). Mueller and Philp (1998) documented total organic carbon values of up to 15 wt% from lacustrine algae for this environment in Willow Creek Canyon. Because of the richness, thickness, and lateral extent of source rocks in the lower black shale interval, it is interpreted as the best source rock in the lower Green River.…”

Section: Sourcementioning

confidence: 99%

Lacustrine depositional environments in the Green River Formation, Uinta Basin: Expression in outcrop and wireline logs

2014

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Lacustrine basins are key oil-productive areas of the world. Because fewer lacustrine exist than marine basins, lacustrine systems are relatively less well studied. This paper investigates fluvial-lacustrine depositional environments and their representation in wireline logs in the lower part of the Green River Formation, Uinta Basin, Utah. The five principal depositional environments of the lower Green River Formation are (1) deep lacustrine, (2) shallow lacustrine, (3) lacustrine delta, (4) coastal plain, and (5) alluvial plain. Deep-lake environments are characterized by laminated oil shales and fine-grained carbonates. These facies exhibit anomalously high neutron porosity, and low bulk density relative to other settings. Shallow-lake environments are dominated by weakly laminated to massive gray mudstones, and limestones, with occasional thin high-bulk-density sandstones. Lacustrine deltas (both sand-prone and mud-prone) grade from shallow-lake muds to ripple-laminated to cross-bedded sandstones. The upward decrease in clay can be seen in the gamma-ray, neutron-porosity, and bulk-density profiles of deltaic intervals. Coastal plain mudstones have a greenish hue, and frequently contain organic matter. Channels in coastal plain settings are typically thin, isolated, and heterolithic. Alluvial plain channels tend to be sandier, thicker, and less isolated than coastal plain channels. Alluvial mudstones are reddish with abundant pedogenic features. The vertical association of depositional environments in the lower Green River indicates both high-amplitude and high-frequency lake-level fluctuations. However, the macroscale trend shows a rapid deepening of the lake lower in the

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“…From equation (1), the OPL has been calculated for both rays; we then calculate the optical path difference ( ∆ ), which is easily transformed into the phase difference( δ ) by using the relation 2π δ λ ∆ ＝ (2) where λ is the wavelength of the light used. The intensity distribution can be calculated by the equation below: (3) where I is the intensity of the interference fringes and A the amplitude of each pair of interfering rays.…”

Section: Cylindrical Lensmentioning

confidence: 99%

Source rock maturity study by capillary tube interferometer

Yang

Dong

et al. 2007

SPIE Proceedings

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The mechanism of capillary tube interferometer is expected to be two-beam interference by ray tracing. A computer program to simulate the interference fringe pattern was established. By comparing the simulated fringe pattern and experimental fringe pattern, the refractive index of the liquid can be given when the two fringes coincide best. The results of this method are very near the Abbe refratometer.In the first time, the refractive indices of the low transparent extraction of source rocks were measured by capillary tube interferometer. A curve between the refractive indices of the diluted extraction of source rocks and corresponding vitrinite reflectance Ro was established. When Ro is in the range of 0.36-1.25, the refractive indices of the extraction increase with Ro, or the maturity of the source rocks. Good correlation was observed between the refractive indices and vitrinite reflectance Ro. The refractive index of the extraction of source rock is valuable for determining the degree of maturity of source rock. This technique is promising to measure the refractive indices of low transparent liquids and could be used to estimate the maturity of source rock.

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Extraction of high molecular weight hydrocarbons from source rocks: an example from the Green River Formation, Uinta Basin, Utah

Cited by 34 publications

References 16 publications

Distribution and significance of C 40 + alkanes in the extracts of Cretaceous source rocks from the Songliao Basin

Distribution and significance of C 40 + alkanes in the extracts of Cretaceous source rocks from the Songliao Basin

Lacustrine depositional environments in the Green River Formation, Uinta Basin: Expression in outcrop and wireline logs

Source rock maturity study by capillary tube interferometer

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