Selley / Sonnenberg Elements of Petroleum Geology

3. Auflage 2014
ISBN: 978-0-12-386032-3
Verlag: Elsevier Science & Techn.
Format: EPUB
Kopierschutz: 6 - ePub Watermark

E-Book, Englisch, 526 Seiten

This Third Edition of Elements of Petroleum Geology is completely updated and revised to reflect the vast changes in the field since publication of the Second Edition. This book is a usefulprimer for geophysicists, geologists, and petroleum engineers in the oil industry who wish to expand their knowledge beyond their specialized area. It is also an excellent introductory text for a university course in petroleum geoscience. Elements of Petroleum Geology begins with an account of the physical and chemical properties of petroleum, reviewing methods of petroleum exploration and production. These methods include drilling, geophysical exploration techniques, wireline logging, and subsurface geological mapping. After describing the temperatures and pressures of the subsurface environment and the hydrodynamics of connate fluids, Selley examines the generation and migration of petroleum, reservoir rocks and trapping mechanisms, and the habit of petroleum in sedimentary basins. The book contains an account of the composition and formation of tar sands and oil shales, and concludes with a brief review of prospect risk analysis, reserve estimation, and other economic topics. - Updates the Second Edition completely - Reviews the concepts and methodology of petroleum exploration and production - Written by a preeminent petroleum geologist and sedimentologist with decades of petroleum exploration in remote corners of the world - Contains information pertinent to geophysicists, geologists, and petroleum reservoir engineers - Updated statistics throughout - Additional figures to illustrate key points and new developments - New information on drilling activity and production methods including crude oil, directional drilling, thermal techniques, and gas plays - Added coverage of 3D seismic interpretation - New section on pressure compartments - New section on hydrocarbon adsorption and absorption in source rocks - Coverage of The Orinoco Heavy Oil Belt of Venezuela - Updated chapter on unconventional petroleum

Richard C. Selley has spent most of his career at Imperial College, apart from several years working for oil companies in Libya, Greenland and the North Sea. He was a member of Conoco's exploration team that found the Lyell, Murchison and Hutton fields. Selley has provided consultancy and CPD services in Australia, Bahrain, Belize, Canada, France, Germany, Greece, Greenland, Holland, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Jamaica, Jordan, Malaysia, Morocco, Libya, New Zealand, Norway, the North Sea, Sao Tomé and Principé, Poland, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Africa, Spain, the U.A.E., Uganda, the U.S.A., Vietnam and the former Yugoslavia. He holds an Hon DSc from Kingston University and is an Honorary Member of the Petroleum Exploration Society of Great Britain.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Selley, Richard C.

Sonnenberg, Stephen A.

Inhaltsverzeichnis

1;Front Cover;1
2;Petroleum Exploration: Past, Present, and Future;3
3;ELEMENTS OF PETROLEUM GEOLOGY;4
4;Copyright;5
5;Contents;6
6;Preface to the Third Edition;8
7;Acknowledgments;10
8;Chapter 1 - Introduction;12
8.1;1.1 HISTORICAL REVIEW OF PETROLEUM EXPLORATION;12
8.2;1.2 THE CONTEXT OF PETROLEUM GEOLOGY;18
8.3;References;22
8.4;Selected Bibliography;22
9;Chapter 2 - The Physical and Chemical Properties of Petroleum;24
9.1;2.1 NATURAL GASES;25
9.2;2.2 GAS HYDRATES;34
9.3;2.3 CRUDE OIL;38
9.4;References;48
9.5;Selected Bibliography;50
10;Chapter 3 - Methods of Exploration;52
10.1;3.1 WELL DRILLING AND COMPLETION;52
10.2;3.2 FORMATION EVALUATION;67
10.3;3.3 GEOPHYSICAL METHODS OF EXPLORATION;104
10.4;3.4 BOREHOLE GEOPHYSICS AND 4D SEISMIC;139
10.5;3.5 SUBSURFACE GEOLOGY;142
10.6;3.6 REMOTE SENSING;152
10.7;References;159
10.8;Selected Bibliography;163
10.9;Oil Well Drilling and Production;163
10.10;Formation Evaluation;163
10.11;Geophysics;163
10.12;Remote Sensing;163
11;Chapter 4 - The Subsurface Environment;164
11.1;4.1 SUBSURFACE WATERS;164
11.2;4.2 SUBSURFACE TEMPERATURES;171
11.3;4.3 SUBSURFACE PRESSURES;178
11.4;4.4 SUBSURFACE FLUID DYNAMICS;192
11.5;References;197
11.6;Selected Bibliography;200
11.7;Chemistry of Subsurface Fluids;200
11.8;Subsurface Temperatures;200
11.9;Subsurface Pressures;200
11.10;Subsurface Pressure Compartments;200
11.11;Subsurface Fluid Dynamics;200
12;Chapter 5 - Generation and Migration of Petroleum;202
12.1;5.1 ORIGIN OF PETROLEUM: ORGANIC OR INORGANIC;204
12.2;5.2 MODERN ORGANIC PROCESSES ON THE EARTH'S SURFACE;210
12.3;5.3 FORMATION OF KEROGEN;219
12.4;5.4 PETROLEUM MIGRATION;236
12.5;5.5 THE PETROLEUM SYSTEM;250
12.6;References;257
12.7;Selected Bibliography;264
13;Chapter 6 - The Reservoir;266
13.1;6.1 POROSITY;266
13.2;6.2 PERMEABILITY;276
13.3;6.3 CAPILLARY PRESSURE;280
13.4;6.4 RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN POROSITY, PERMEABILITY, AND TEXTURE;282
13.5;6.5 EFFECTS OF DIAGENESIS ON RESERVOIR QUALITY;287
13.6;6.6 RESERVOIR CONTINUITY;307
13.7;6.7 RESERVOIR CHARACTERIZATION;313
13.8;6.8 RESERVE CALCULATIONS;316
13.9;6.9 PRODUCTION METHODS;320
13.10;References;325
13.11;Selected Bibliography;331
14;Chapter 7 - Traps and Seals;332
14.1;7.1 INTRODUCTION;332
14.2;7.2 NOMENCLATURE OF A TRAP;332
14.3;7.3 DISTRIBUTION OF PETROLEUM WITHIN A TRAP;333
14.4;7.4 SEALS AND CAP ROCKS;336
14.5;7.5 CLASSIFICATION OF TRAPS;337
14.6;7.6 STRUCTURAL TRAPS;338
14.7;7.7 DIAPIRIC TRAPS;352
14.8;7.8 STRATIGRAPHIC TRAPS;356
14.9;7.9 HYDRODYNAMIC TRAPS;375
14.10;7.10 COMBINATION TRAPS;376
14.11;7.11 TRAPS: CONCLUSION;379
14.12;References;381
14.13;Selected Bibliography;386
15;Chapter 8 - Sedimentary Basins and Petroleum Systems;388
15.1;8.1 BASIC CONCEPTS AND TERMS;388
15.2;8.2 MECHANISMS OF BASIN FORMATION;391
15.3;8.3 CLASSIFICATION OF SEDIMENTARY BASINS;396
15.4;8.4 CRATONIC BASINS;397
15.5;8.5 TROUGHS;409
15.6;8.6 THE RIFT-DRIFT SUITE OF BASINS;417
15.7;8.7 STRIKE-SLIP BASINS;427
15.8;8.8 SEDIMENTARY BASINS AND PETROLEUM SYSTEMS;429
15.9;References;432
15.10;Selected Bibliography;437
16;Chapter 9 - Nonconventional Petroleum Resources;438
16.1;9.1 INTRODUCTION;438
16.2;9.2 PLASTIC AND SOLID HYDROCARBONS;438
16.3;9.3 TAR SANDS;445
16.4;9.4 OIL SHALES;457
16.5;9.5 TIGHT OIL RESERVOIRS;465
16.6;9.6 COALBED METHANE;470
16.7;9.7 SHALE GAS;475
16.8;9.8 TIGHT GAS RESERVOIRS;487
16.9;References;489
16.10;Selected Bibliography;492
16.11;Solid hydrocarbons and oil seeps;492
16.12;Tar sands;492
16.13;Oil shales;492
16.14;Coal-bed methane:;493
17;Chapter 10 - Conclusions;494
17.1;10.1 PROSPECTS AND PROBABILITIES;494
17.2;10.2 RESERVES AND RESOURCES;497
17.3;References;508
17.4;Selected Bibliography;508
18;Index;510
19;Color Plates;520

Leseproben

Chapter 2

The Physical and Chemical Properties of Petroleum

Abstract

Natural gas and crude oil are two of the chemically and physically diverse group of compounds called hydrocarbons. Hydrocarbon molecules are classified based on their molecular structure as paraffins, napthenes, and aromatics. Hetercompounds also contain carbon and hydrogen but also other elements such as oxygen, nitrogen, and sulfur.

Hydrocarbon gases consist mainly of hydrocarbons of the paraffin series (i.e., methane, ethane, propane, butane, and occasionally pentane).

Inert gases are a minor accessory in natural gas. Common inert gases are helium, hydrogen, carbon dioxide, and hydrogen sulfide.

Gas hydrates are compounds of frozen water that contain gas molecules. Hydrates are formed in shallow artic sediments and in deep ocean deposits.

Crude oils are mixtures of hydrocarbons that exist in liquid state in natural underground reservoirs and remain liquid at atmospheric pressure. They consist mainly of carbon and hydrogen with traces of vanadium, nickel, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen and are classified based on their percentage of paraffin, naphthene, and aromatic compounds.

Typical refined petroleum products of crude oils include gasoline, kerosene, diesel fuel, lubricating oil, and residuum.

Keywords

Aromatic; Carbon Dioxide; Classification of crude oils; Crude oil; Gas hydrates; Helium; Heterocompounds; Hydrogen Sulfide; Hydrogen; Naphthene; Natural gas; Nitrogen; Nonhydrocarbon gases; Paraffin; Refined petroleum products

Petroleum exploration is largely concerned with the search for oil and gas, two of the chemically and physically diverse group of compounds termed the hydrocarbons. Physically, hydrocarbons grade from gases, via liquids and plastic substances, to solids. The hydrocarbon gases include dry gas (methane) and the wet gases (ethane, propane, butane, etc.). Condensates are hydrocarbons that are gaseous in the subsurface, but condense to liquid when they are cooled at the surface. Liquid hydrocarbons are termed oil, crude oil, or just crude, to differentiate them from refined petroleum products. The plastic hydrocarbons include asphalt and related substances. Solid hydrocarbons include coal and kerogen. Gas hydrates are ice crystals with peculiarly structured atomic lattices, which contain molecules of methane and other gases. This chapter describes the physical and chemical properties of natural gas, oil, and the gas hydrates; it is a necessary prerequisite to Chapter 5, which deals with petroleum generation and migration. The plastic and solid hydrocarbons are discussed in Chapter 9, which covers the tar sands and oil shales.

The earth's atmosphere is composed of natural gas. In the oil industry, however, natural gas is defined as “a mixture of hydrocarbons and varying quantities of nonhydrocarbons that exist either in the gaseous phase or in solution with crude oil in natural underground reservoirs.” The foregoing is the definition adopted by the American Petroleum Institute (API), the American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG), and the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE). The same authorities subclassify natural gas into dissolved, associated, and nonassociated gas. Dissolved gas is in solution in crude oil in the reservoir. Associated gas, commonly known as gas cap gas, overlies and is in contact with crude oil in the reservoir. Nonassociated gas is in reservoirs that do not contain significant quantities of crude oil. Natural gas liquids, or NGLs, are the portions of the reservoir gas that are liquefied at the surface in lease operations, field facilities, or gas processing plants. NGLs include, but are not limited to, ethane, propane, butane, pentane, natural gasoline, and condensate. Basically, natural gases encountered in the subsurface can be classified into two groups: those of organic origin and those of inorganic origin (Table 2.1).

Gases are classified as dry or wet according to the amount of liquid vapor that they contain. A dry gas may be arbitrarily defined as one with less than 0.1gal/1000ft3 of condensate; chemically, dry gas is largely methane. A wet gas is one with more than 0.3gal/1000ft3 of condensate; chemically, these gases contain ethane, butane, and propane. Gases are also described as sweet or sour, based on the absence or presence, respectively, of hydrogen sulfide.

TABLE 2.1

Natural Gases and Their Dominant Modes of Formation

2.1. Natural Gases

2.1.1. Hydrocarbon Gases

The major constituents of natural gas are the hydrocarbons of the paraffin series (Table 2.2). The heavier members of the series decline in abundance with increasing molecular weight. Methane is the most abundant; ethane, butane, and propane are quite common, and paraffins with a molecular weight greater than pentane are the least common. Methane (CH4) is also known as marsh gas if found at the surface or fire damp if present down a coal mine. Traces of methane are commonly recorded as shale gas or background gas during the drilling of all but the driest of dry wells. Methane is a colorless, flammable gas, which is produced (along with other fluids) by the destructive distillation of coal. As such, it was commonly used for domestic purposes in Europe until replaced by natural gas, itself largely composed of methane. Methane is the first member of the paraffin series. It is chemically nonreactive, sparingly soluble in water, and lighter than air (0.554 relative density).

Methane forms in three ways. It may be derived from the mantle, it may form from the thermal maturation of buried organic matter, and it may form by the bacterial degradation of organic matter at shallow depths. Geochemical and isotope analysis can differentiate the source of methane in a reservoir. Mantle-derived methane is differentiated from biogenically sourced methane from the carbon 12:13 ratio. Methane occurs as a by-product of bacterial decay of organic matter at normal temperatures and pressures. This biogenic methane has considerable potential as a source of energy. It has been calculated that some 20% of the natural gas produced today is of biogenic origin (Rice and Claypool, 1981). In the nineteenth century, eminent Victorians debated the possibility of lighting the streets of London with methane from the sewers. Today's avant-garde agriculturalists acquire much of the energy needed for their farms by collecting the gas generated by the maturation of manure. Methane generated by waste fills (garbage) is now pumped into the domestic gas grid in many countries. Biogenic methane is commonly formed in the shallow subsurface by the bacterial decay of organic-rich sediments. As the burial depth and temperature increase, however, this process diminishes and the bacterial action is extinguished. The methane encountered in deep reservoirs is produced by thermal maturation of organic matter. This process is discussed in detail later in Chapter 5.

TABLE 2.2

Significant Data of the Paraffin Series

Methane

CH4

16.04

-162

24.4

Ethane

C2H6

30.07

-89

60.4

Propane

C3H8

44.09

-42

62.4

Isobutane

C4H10

58.12

-12

48.9

n-Butane

C4H10

58.12

-1

61.4

Isopentane

C5H12

72.15

30

47.8

n-Pentane

C5H12

72.15

36

38.5

n-Hexane

C6H14

86.17

69

9.5

The other major hydrocarbons that occur in natural gas are ethane, propane, butane, and occasionally pentane. Their chemical formulas and molecular structure are shown in Fig. 2.1. Their occurrence in various gas reservoirs is given in Table 2.3. Unlike methane these heavier members of the paraffin series do not form biogenically. They are only produced by the thermal maturation of organic matter. If their presence is recorded by a gas detector during the drilling of a well, it often indicates proximity to a significant petroleum accumulation or source rock.

2.1.2. Nonhydrocarbon Gases

2.1.2.1. Inert Gases

Helium is a common minor accessory in many natural gases, and traces of argon and radon have also been found in the subsurface. Helium occurs in the atmosphere at 5ppm and has also been recorded in mines, hot springs, and fumaroles. It has been found in oil field gases in amounts of up to 8% (Dobbin, 1935). In North America helium-enriched natural gases occur in the Four Corners area and Texas panhandle of the United States and in Alberta and Saskatchewan, Canada (Lee, 1963; Hitchon, 1963). In Canada the major concentrations occur along areas of crustal tension, such as the Peace River and Sweetwater arches, and the foothills of the Rocky Mountains. Other regions containing helium-enriched...