Petroleum Geology

Fundamental of petroleum Engineering course

Peyman Maroufi
Petroleum Engineering department
LOGO
Soran
university

What is petroleum
What is petroleum
Petroleum is a mixture of naturally occurring hydrocarbons which
may exist in the solid, liquid, or gaseous states, depending upon the
conditions of pressure and temperature to which it is subjected.
Whereas natural gas contains a few lighter hydrocarbons, both crude
oil and tar deposits may consist of a large number of different
hydrocarbons.
1) Liquid Hydrocarbons: Crude oil or Petroleum
2) Gas Hydrocarbons: Natural Gas: methane,
butane, propane, etc.
3) Solid Hydrocarbons: Tars and Asphalt

What is petroleum
Virtually all petroleum is produced from the earth in either liquid or gaseous form,
and commonly, these materials are referred to as either crude oil or natural gas,
depending upon the state of the hydrocarbon mixture.
Petroleum consists chemically of approximately 11 to 13 wt % hydrogen and 84 to
87 wt % carbon.
Traces of Oxygen, Sulfur, Nitrogen, and Helium may be found as impurities in crude
petroleum.
Although all petroleum is constituted primarily of carbon and hydrogen, the
molecular constitution of crude oils differs widely .

Non hydrocarbon Components of Petroleum

Petroleum also contain compounds:
1)
2)
3)
4)

Sulfur Compounds.
Nitrogen
Oxygen
Little metals

Common non hydrocarbon

constituents of petroleum
are:

1) Nitrogen (
2) carbon dioxide
3) hydrogen sulfide (

Chemistry of Petroleum
Resins and Asphaltenes
The chemicals in petroleum are classified as:
1) Paraffins
2) Naphthenes
3) Aromatics
4) Resins-asphaltenes
Resins and asphaltenes are large molecules, primarily hydrogen and carbon,
with one to three sulfur, oxygen, or nitrogen atoms per molecule.
The basic structure is composed of rings, primarily aromatic, with from three to
ten or more rings in each molecule. The non hydrocarbon atom can be a part of
the ring structure or can be located in links connecting the rings.
The color of petroleum is determined largely by the quantity of resins and
asphaltenes present, although the greenish cast of some crude oils is probably
due to the presence of molecules containing six or more rings.

Composition of petroleum
Average and Range of Hydrocarbon series molecules in Crude Oil

Origin of petroleum
The theories of the origin of petroleum may be classified as:

1) Organic
2) Inorganic

Origin of petroleum
Origin of petroleum:
1) Organic theories:
The organic theories assume that petroleum evolved from
decomposition of vegetable and animal organisms that lived during
previous ages.

2) Inorganic theories:
The inorganic theories attempt to explain the formation of petroleum
by assuming chemical reaction among water, carbon dioxide and
various inorganic substances such as carbides and carbonates, in the
earth.

Origin of petroleum
The organic theory of petroleum origin (most accepted)
Ancient seas covered much of the present land area millions of years ago
Over the years, rivers flowing down to these seas carried large volumes of mud
and sedimentary materials ( containing small plants and animals) into the sea.
The buildup of thousands of feet of mud and sediment layers over the sea floor.
The sea floors were slowly sink and squeezed to form the sedimentary rocks (the
sandstones and shales, and the carbonates)
Over many years, pressure, temperature, bacteria, and other reactions caused
these dead organisms to change into oil and gas.
The rocks where oil and gas were formed are known as the source rock.

Origin of petroleum

The Origin and Habitat of Petroleum

Accumulation of Oil and Gas
The accumulation of economic volumes of petroleum (oil and/or gas) in the
subsurface requires that several essential geological elements and processes
be present at specific time and space.

1)
2)
3)
4)

The essential elements of a petroleum system include the following:

Source rock
Reservoir rock
Migration
Traps

The Origin and Habitat of Petroleum

To have a petroleum accumulation it is necessary to have source rock and a
reservoir or storage bed
Source rock:
Source rocks generate and expel petroleum when sufficient thermal energy
is imparted to the sedimentary organic matter (kerogen) to break chemical
bonds. This heating is induced usually by burial by overburden rock.
Reservoir rock:
A subsurface body of rock having sufficient porosity and permeability to
store and transmit fluids.
A suitable reservoir rock is porous and permeable. That is , the pores
interconnect so that fluids can migrate through the rock.
Sedimentary rocks are the most common reservoir rocks because they have

The Origin and Habitat of Petroleum

Migration of petroleum :
The movement of hydrocarbons from their source into reservoir rocks.

1) Primary migration

2) Secondary migration

The Origin and Habitat of Petroleum

1) Primary migration:
The movement of newly generated hydrocarbons out of their source rock is
primary migration, also called expulsion.

2) Secondary migration:
The further movement of the hydrocarbons into reservoir rock in a
hydrocarbon trap or other area of accumulation is secondary migration.

The Origin and Habitat of Petroleum

Traps
If nothing stops oil from rising, it will reach surface.
A natural barrier, or trap, must exist for a petroleum
accumulation to form.
Trap:
A configuration of geologic features where oil and gas (petroleum) can be
barred from further movement.

Traps
As oil and gas are lighter than the ground water which permeates the porous rocks
below the water table, it is evident that the upward movement of petroleum must be
restricted in order that accumulations exist at depth

Traps
Theclosureofthetrapisthedistancebetweenthecrestandthespill
point(lowestpointofthetrapthatcancontainhydrocarbons).

Traps
Classification of Hydrocarbon Traps
1) Structural traps :Structuraltrapsaretrapsthatareformedbecauseof
adeformationintherocklayerthatcontainsthehydrocarbons.
a) Anticlinaltraps:anupwardfoldinthelayersofrock
b) Faulttraps:Afaulttrapoccurswhentheformationsoneithersideof
thefaulthavebeenmovedintoapositionthatpreventsfurther
migrationofpetroleum.
c) diapirictraps:producedbyintrusionofsaltormuddiapirs
2) Stratigraphic traps: resultwhenadepositionalbedchangesfrom
permeablerockintofine-grainimpermeablerock

Traps

Traps

The Origin and Habitat of Petroleum

GENERATION, MIGRATION, AND
TRAPPING OF HYDROCARBONS

Types of Rocks
Igneous Rocks
about20%ofallrocks
theyaretheproductofthecoolingofmoltenmagma
intrudingfrombelowthemantleofthecrust.

Metamorphic rocks
about14%ofallrocks
originatefrommechanical,thermal,andchemical
changesofigneousrocks
Sedimentary Rocks
about66%ofallrocks
theyareimportanttothestudyofpetrophysicsand
petroleumreservoirengineering.

Sediments and Sedimentary Rocks

What are sediments?
Sediment - loose, solid particles originating from:
Weathering and erosion of pre-existing rocks
Chemical precipitation from solution, including secretion by
organisms in water

Sediments and Sedimentary Rocks

What is a Sedimentary Rock?
Sedimentary rocks are types of rock that Sediments after
they are deposited may be buried and undergo physical and
chemical change resulting in a solid rock.

Sediments and Sedimentary Rocks

The three most common sedimentary rocks associated
with petroleum reservoirs are:
1) sandstone
2) shale
3) limestone.

Sedimentary Rock Types

Relative abundance
Sandstone
and conglomerate
~11%

Limestone and
dolomite
~13%
Siltstone, mud
and shale
~75%

Physical properties of Hydrocarbons

Physical properties of Hydrocarbons

Physical properties of Hydrocarbons

Viscosity
Density
Spesific gravity
API

Physical properties of Hydrocarbons

Density:
Density is an extremely important property of matter.
The density of a fluid (or any other form of matter) is the amount of mass
per unit volume.

Dimensions:

Density is highly variable in gases and increases nearly proportionally to the

pressure level. Density in liquids is nearly constant. at C and atm:
Water:
1000 kg/m3;
Mercury: 13546 kg/m3;
Air:
1.23 kg/m3;
Paraffin:
800 kg/m3.

Physical properties of Hydrocarbons

Specific gravity:
Specific gravity, denoted by SG.
Specific gravity is defined as the ratio of the density of a fluid
to the density of some standard fluid at a specified temperature
and pressure.
Commonly
Specific
gravity for gases
standard

fluid for liquids is Water and for gasses is

Air.
Specific gravity for liquids

Physical properties of Hydrocarbons

Specific gravity of gases:

P=14.7 psi = 101.325 kPa =1atm

at
T= 60 F = 15 F = 288.15 K

Physical properties of Hydrocarbons

Specific gravity of Crude Oil:

P=14.7 psi = 101.325 kPa =1atm

at
T= 60 F = 15 F = 288.15 K

The specific gravity of crude oils ranges from

about 0.75 to 1.01.

Physical properties of Hydrocarbons

The American Petroleum Institute gravity, or API gravity
Although the density and specific gravity are used
extensively in the petroleum industry, the API gravity is the
preferred gravity scale.
This gravity scale is precisely related to the specific gravity
by the following expression:

Conversely,

Physical properties of Hydrocarbons

API gravity, is a measure of how heavy or light a petroleum liquid is
compared to water.
Crude oil is classified as light, medium or heavy, according to its measured
API gravity.
Light crude oil is defined as having an API gravity higher than 31.1 API (less than
870 kg/m3)
Medium oil is defined as having an API gravity between 22.3 API and 31.1 API (870
to 920 kg/m3)
Heavy crude oil is defined as having an API gravity below 22.3 API (920 to
1000 kg/m3)
Extra heavy oil is defined with API gravity below 10.0 API (greater than 1000 kg/m3)

Crude Oils

Light Crude

Palo Pinto Field

North Texas

Heavy Crude

Humble Oil Field

Southwest Texas

Physical properties of Hydrocarbons

Viscosity:
The viscosity of a fluid is a measure of the internal fluid friction (resistance) to
flow.
If the friction between layers of the fluid is small, i.e., low viscosity, an applied
shearing force will result in a large velocity gradient.
As the viscosity increases, each fluid layer exerts a larger frictional drag on the
adjacent layers and velocity gradient decreases.
Symbols: o, g, w
Units: cp
Range and typical values
0.25 to 10,000 cp, Black oil
0.5 to 1.0 cp, Water
0.012 to 0.035 cp, Gas

Physical properties of Hydrocarbons