Libyan Oil Study

Thirty-six oils from 19 fields in the Sirte Basin, Libya have been analyzed by state-of-the-art analytical techniques to assess:

Figure 1: Oil field and sample locations, Sirte Basin, Libya.

• oil types and genetic relationships
• inferred source lithofacies
• source maturity
• oil alteration/ charge history
• generation temperatures
• rates of oil generation

Data available on these samples include:

• physico-chemical properties
• high-resolution light hydrocarbon whole oil fingerprinting
• carbon isotopes
• biomarker analysis including MS-MS
• source rock kinetics
• detailed interpretive report
• complete digital data package

The complete data package with interpretive report: $15,000.00 US dollars

Saturate and aromatic biomarkers were utilized to type and correlate oils, as well as assess thermal maturity. Oils were typed into separate groups based on hopanes, steranes, and triaromatic steroid biomarkers. MS-MS data were utilized to access depositional environments and oil ages.

Figure 2: Source-specific biomarker data were used to group the oils analyzed from the Sirte Basin.

Figure 3: Oil typing based on light hydrocarbon distribution show some differences from biomarker groupings.

Light hydrocarbons, which were used to type the condensate range hydrocarbons, were particularly useful for evaluating retrograde condensate-oil mixes.In reservoir oil alteration, including biodegradation and evaporative fractionation, were evaluated. The presence of retrograde condensates was assessed and implications for future exploration efforts detailed.

Kinetic data have been acquired both on effective source rocks and oil asphaltenes. Kinetic data are used to model the rate of kerogen conversion into hydrocarbons, and are essential for accurate modeling of hydrocarbon generation. For detailed modeling, compositional kinetics and yields are available on the Sirte Shale as an add on to the data for $5,000.00.

Bulk Kinetics Graphical Report

Figure 4: Assessment of the rate of oil generation from various source horizons can be determined from bulk kinetic parameters. Measurements made directly on source rocks and oil asphaltenes provide optimum data for basin modeling.

Contact Mark McCaffrey of OilTracers LLC for additional information.