Comparison of the Surface and Underground Natural Gas Occurrences in the Tazhong Uplift of the Tarim Basin

The oil, gas and water volumes revealed by the productivity of exploratory wells do not reflect the actual underground situations. Under the geologic conditions, a certain amount of dissolved natural gas is stored in oil or water. Based on the production test data of exploratory wells in the Tazhong uplift of the Tarim basin, this paper discusses in detail the differences in occurrence and distribution featrues between the surface and underground natural gases; presents a restoration of the surface gas occurrence to actual underground geologic conditions according to the dissolubility of natural gas under different temperature, pressure and medium conditions; and classifies the natural gas into three states, i.e. the oversaturated, saturated and undersaturated, according to its relative content underground. Through a comparative analysis of the differences in surface and underground occurrences of natural gas, it discusses the hydrocarbon reservoir formation mechanism and distribution rules, thereby providing guidances as new methods and technologies for the prediction of potential natural gas reservoir distribution in the study area.

Shale oil resource evaluation with an improved understanding of free hydrocarbons:Insights from three-step hydrocarbon thermal desorption

The pyrolysis parameter S1,which indicates the amount of free hydrocarbons present in shale,is often underestimated due to hydrocarbon loss during sample handling and measurement processes.To remedy this issue,we strongly recommend an immediate three-step hydrocarbon thermal desorption(HTD)approach to be conducted on oil shale at the drilling site.This approach measures S_(g),S_(O),and S_(1)^(*),which refer to gaseous,light,and free hydrocarbons,respectively.The new shale oil content value,calculated from the total of these three parameters,is far more precise and reliable than traditional pyrolysis S1.Moreover,we thoroughly investigated the components and microscopic occurrence features of hydrocarbons thermally desorbed at three temperature stages using gas chromatography(GC)and X-ray microcomputed tomography(CT).For example,we selected Chang 7_(3)mud shale.Our experimental results irrefutably indicate that the ultimate shale oil content of poor resource rocks is significantly impacted by evaporative loss,with this effect being greater when the total organic carbon(TOC)is lower.Additionally,C_(1-5)and C_(1-7)hydrocarbons constitute almost all of S_(g)and S_(O),respectively.S_(g)and S_(O)are predominantly composed of C_(1-3)gaseous hydrocarbons,with a maximum proportion of 42.93%.In contrast,S_(1)^(*)contains a substantial amount of C_(16-31)hydrocarbons.A three-dimensional reconstruction model of an X-ray micro-CT scan shows that while the amount of shale organic matter greatly decreases from the frozen state to 300℃,the pore volume significantly increases,particularly between 90 and 300℃.The increased pore volume is mainly due to macropores and fractures.It is imperative to note that the shale oil triple-division boundaries must be adjusted based on more accurate oil content,although this would not affect the resource zones to which the samples already belong(ineffective,low-efficient,and enriched resources).In conclusion,we strongly advise conducting an immediate well-site analysis or utilizing preservation procedures,such as deep freezing or plastic film wrapping followed by core waxing,to minimize volatile loss.