ASSIGNMENT

OF

KEROGEN

Submitted in partial fulfilment of

The degree of Master of Science
In Geology
By
PARMAR PRATIK K.
Semester: - 4
Roll No: - 07
Under the supervision of
Dr. P. M. Solanki

Year 2021-22
Geology Department
M. G. Science Institute
Affiliated to Gujarat University
Navarangpura, Ahmedabad-380009
Gujarat, India.
CONTENTS:

 Introduction
 Formation
 Transformation
 Types and chemistry of kerogen
 References.
 INTRODUCTION

• Kerogen is normally defined as that portion of the organic matter present in

sedimentary rocks that is insoluble in ordinary organic solvents.

• The soluble portion, called bitumen. Lack of solubility is a direct result of

the large size of kerogen molecules, which have molecular weights of
several thousand or more.

• Each kerogen molecule is unique, because it has patchwork structures

formed by the random combination of many small molecular fragments.

• The chemical and physical characteristics of a kerogen are strongly

influenced by the type of biogenic molecules from which the kerogen is
formed and by diagenetic transformafions of those organic molecules.

• Kerogen composition is also affected by thermal maturation processes

(catagenesis and metagenesis) that alter the original kerogen.

• Subsurface heating causes chemical reactions that break off small fragments
of the kerogen as oil or gas molecules.

• The residual kerogens also undergo important changes, which are reflected
in their chemical and physical properties.
• Kerogen is of great interest to us because it is the source of most of the oil
and some of the gas that we exploit as fossil fuels.

• Diagenetic and catagenetic histories of a kerogen, as well as the nature of the

organic matter from which it was formed, strongly influence the ability of
the kerogen to generate oil and gas.

• A basic understanding of how kerogen is formed and transformed in the

subsurface is therefore important in understanding how and where
hydrocarbons are generated, whether these hydrocarbons are mainly oil or
gas, and how much oil or gas can be expected.

• The term kerogen was originally coined to describe the organic matter in oil
shales that yielded oil upon retorting.

• Today it is used to describe the insoluble organic material in both coals and
oil shales, as well as dispersed organic matter in sedimentary rocks.

FORMATION
 Organic matter (organic material, natural organic matter) is matter
composed of organic compounds that has come from the remains of
once-living organisms such as plants and animals and their waste
products in the environment.
 ORIGINAL ORGANIC MATTER

KEROGEN

MATURE CRUDE OIL

KEROGEN

METHANE
GRAPHITE

LOSING HYDROGEN GAINING HYDROGEN

Requirements for Petroleum Accumulation

 The task of finding a petroleum field is not a simple one.

 First, there must be a rock containing original organic matter source rock .
Usually this is a mudrock or shale, which is a very common rock type and
makes up about 80% of the world's sedimentary rock volume.
 However, even an average shale contains only about 1% to 2% organic
matter. Many shales have very low organic content and make poor source
rocks.
 The source rock must be buried deeply so that temperature and time can
cause the organic matter to mature into petroleum.
 This requires deposition into sedimentary basins (depressed areas) thickly
filled by sediments.
 Our search for petroleum is further limited, since over half of the world's
continental areas and adjacent marine shelves have sediment covers either
too thin or absent.

 Even where the organic matter can become mature, not all of it becomes
petroleum.
 In a typical case a normal marine shale with only 1% original organic matter
will have less than a third of it converted to the hydrocarbon molecules that
make up oil and natural gas (Waples, 1981).
 The rest remains behind as an insoluble organic residue Of all the petroleum
generated, only a small part, usually less than 1% (Hunt, 1977), is able to
undergo migration out of the source bed to accumulate within a porous and
permeable reservoir.
 The majority of petroleum, or even in some cases all of it, will be dispersed
(for lack of a good arrangement of strata to trap it), or will leak out to the
surface (for lack of a good impermeable seal or cap-rock).
 Factors critical to petroleum accumulation:
(1) a mature source rock,
(2) a migration path connecting source rock to reservoir rock,
(3) Timing of petroleum migration
(3) a porous and permeable reservoir rock,
(4) a trap, and
(5) an impermeable seal.
If any one of these factors is missing or poor, the prospect will be dry and
the exploration effort will be dissatisfied.
 TRANSFORMATION

 The only elements essential to the transformation of organic matter into

petroleum are hydrogen and carbon. Thus the nitrogen and oxygen contained
in the organic matter must somehow be removed while at the same time
preserving the hydrogen-rich organic residue.
 The formation of petroleum at this point must occur in an oxygen-deficient
environment, not be subjected to prolonged exposure to the atmosphere or to
aerated surface or subsurface waters containing acids or bases, come into
contact with elemental sulfur, vulcanicity, or other igneous activity, and
have a short transportation time from the time of death to that of burial.
 All of these conditions must be met in order to avoid decomposition of the
organic matter.
 All of this implies that as dead organic matter falls to the sea floor (organic
rain), the hydrocarbon constituents needed for creating the end product will
be preserved only if the water column through which they are falling is
anoxic - lacking living organisms, fall is rapid - the particle size must not
entirely be microscopic, bottom dwelling predators are lacking, and there is
a rapid sedimentation rate - rapid deposition buries the OM below the reach
of mud-feeding scavengers.
 Once the organic material is buried within the sea floor, transformation
begins. It is a slow process that occurs to the OM. The general process can
be illustrated by the following formulas:
 Organic matter + Transformation = Kerogen + Bitumen (by product)
 Kerogen + Bitumen + more Transformation = Petroleum
What happens to this organic matter when buried?

 Formation of Kerogen: Three major phases in the evaluation of organic

matter in response to burial
 Diagenesis of organic matter begins as soon as sediment is buried and
includes all changes that to the stage of petroleum generation.

1. Diagenesis: This phase occurs in shallow subsurface; normal temp. and pressure.
It includes both biogenic decay, aided by bacteria and biogenic reactions.
Reduction in oxygen content, leaving H:C ratio largely unaltered.

Methane, carbon dioxide and water are given off by organic matter, leaving
a complex hydrocarbon termed Kerogen.

2. Catagenesis: This phase occurs in the deeper subsurface as burial continues and
temp. and pressure increase. Petroleum (oil & gas) is released from Kerogen
during catagenesis – first oil and later gas. The H:C ratio declines, with no
significance change in the O:C ratio. Maturation kerogen stage; with increasing
maturity, first oil and then gas are expelled.

3. Metagenesis: The third phase occurs at high temp. and pressure verging on
metamorphism.

The last hydrocarbons, generally only methane, are expelled. The H:C rartio
declines until only carbon is left in the form of Graphite. Porosity and permeability
are now negligible.
 The only hydrocarbon produced in measurable amounts at this stage is
biogenic methane, as a product of anaerobic decay.
 The end product of the diagenesis of organic matter is kerogen.
 Kerogen is defined as the organic material in sedimentary rocks that is
insoluble in organic solvents.
 The insolubility of kerogen molecules is derived from their large
molecular size. It is this property, rather than fundamental differences
in chemical arrangement, that distinguishes kerogen from the soluble
portion of the organic matter, called bitumen.
 Some types of kerogen, when heated to the right temperatures in the
earth’s crust, (oil window ca. 60°-120°C, gas window ca.120°-150°C)
release crude oil or natural gas, collectively known as hydrocarbons
(fossil fuels).
 When such kerogens are present in high concentration in rocks such
as shale they form possible source rocks.
 Shales rich in kerogens that have not been heated to a sufficient
temperature to release their hydrocarbons may form oil shale deposits.
 TYPES AND CHEMISTRY OF KEROGEN

Type of Kerogen H:C ratio O:C ratio Petroleum type

TYPE-I (Algal) 1.65 0.06 Oil

Sapropelic

TYPE-II (Lipid 1.28 0.1 Oil and gas

rich-Phyto-and
zooplankton)

TYPE-III 0.84 0.13 Gas

(Humic-land
plants)-wood

Sedimentary rocks commonly contain mixtures of the kerogen types.

 Type I, Type II, Type II- sulfur, Type III and Type IV (residue)

 Many oil shales contain dominantly Type I, the algal kerogens.

 Coals & some nearshore clastic source rocks, such as those found in deltas,
contain mainly Type III, coaly kerogen.

In some cases, coal deposits can be direct contributors to significant natural gas
accumulations, as for ex. the Carboniferous coals of the North Sea.

Many marine source rocks have either Type I algal or Type II mixed marine
kerogen, with Type II the more common.
  Type II kerogen is derived from mixed marine sources. Its particles are
mostly amorphous & result from the decomposition of phytoplankton,
zooplankton, & some higher animals. Its chemical nature is intermediate
between Types I & III. Type II kerogens tend to produce naphthenic &
aromatic-rich oils, & they yield more gas than Type I.
 Type III (coaly) kerogen is rich in vitrinite & has a very low capacity to
form oil. It mainly generates dry gas. Any oils generated from Type III
kerogens are mostly paraffinic waxy crudes.
 There is a fourth kerogen type which is extremely rare. It is rich in inertinite
macerals & produces very low hydrocarbon yields.
 Inertinite as its name implies, has practically no ability to generate either oil
or gas.
 Inertinite is oxidized organic material or fossilized charcoal. A maceral is a
component, organic in origin, of coal or oil shale (Inertinite)
 Charcoal is usually produced by slow pyrolysis.
 Pyrolysis is a thermochemical decomposition of organic material at
elevated temperatures without the participation of oxygen.

RESULTS:

o Major oil generation does not occur until source rocks are heated above 60 °C.
o The low temp. oil formed at shallower depths tend to be heavy.
o With increasing temp. & depth the oils become lighter.
o Maximum oil generation occurs at about 100°C. Above this temp. oil
generation gradually declines & condensates form.
o The oil window closes & the principal zone of gas generation begins at about
175°C.
o Generation directly from kerogen stops at about 225°C but methane is still
generated from the cracking of previously formed oil at temp. up to 315°C.
o Beyond this temp source rocks undergo regional metamorphism.
o At those elevated temp., however, porosity may be so reduced that gas
generated at this stage might not be economically recoverable.
 REFERENCES

 [Link]
 Petroleum formation and occurrence by Tissot, B. P. and Welte, D. H.
 [Link]
 [Link]