Advances about Petroleum Resource Evaluation Parameters

Jianzhong Qin, Guoliang Tao, Baojian Shen, and Lunju Zhen
Wuxi Institute of Petroleum Geology, SINOPEC, Wuxi, Jiangsu, China

Hydrocarbon generating characteristic can provide important parameters for evaluation of petroleum resource. In this paper, more than 90 marine source rock samples are selected to stimulate hydrocarbon generation process by new-developed thermal-pressure simulation instrument. Compared with conventional stimulation instrument, this stimulation method consider about the effect of high-pressure liquid, the fluid pressure and the porosity space besides temperature, pressure and time. The experimental conditions are more similar to actual geological conditions. Here are some new cognition:

1) Hydrocarbon generation rate of source rocks formation porosity thermal-pressure simulation experiment has been increased by 50% compared to conventional stimulation experiment. The petroleum resource potential has been great improved.

2) Oil expulsion rate is an important parameter for evaluation of petroleum resource and basin modeling. The oil expulsion rate of source rock in early-medium mature stage is different in different kinds of source rock. The oil expulsion rate of siliceous source rock is higher than calcareous source rock; the oil expulsion rate of clay source rock is the lowest. The oil expulsion rate of all kinds of source rocks has increased to 60% in high-over mature stage.

3) The petroleum generation and expulsion rate (parameter selection of TOC) is different between excellent source rock, good-medium source rock and poor source rock. The rate of poor source rock will decrease to zero gradually. This can be used in petroleum sources prediction and basin modeling.

4) The kerogen type of marine carbonate source rocks in Lower Paleozoic and Precambrian marine source rocks is dominated by type II.

5) The crude oil can generate hydrocarbon gas and solid asphalt through thermal cracking. The conversion percentage of hydrocarbon gas is between 40% and 50%, and will increase gradually as the density of crude oil become smaller (or the atomic ratio of H/C or saturated hydrocarbon content increase). This can be used in resources estimation of nature gas in marine high mature to over-mature stage and basin modeling. This can also be used in petroleum sources prediction and basin modeling.

AAPG Search and Discovery Article #90175©2013 AAPG Hedberg Conference, Beijing, China, April 21-24, 2013