Crude Oil Geochemistry and Its Relation to the Potential Source Beds for Some Meleiha Oil Fields in the North Western Desert, Egypt

Nady, Mohamed M. El; Harb, Fatma M.; Basta, J. S.

doi:10.1081/lft-120016913

Cited by 29 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 10 publications

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“…The northern Western Desert of Egypt has significant hydrocarbon prospects, as recent oil and gas discoveries have suggested (Dolson et al ., ), with as much as 90% of oil reserves and 80% of gas in the Western Desert basins yet to be discovered (Zein El‐Din et al ., ). Significant publications on the northern Western Desert have described the regional geology, petroleum prospects, source rock evaluation, sedimentology, and tectonic evolution of individual parts of the basin and adjoining areas (e.g., Barakat et al ., ; Sultan and Halim, ; El Ayouty, ; Dahi and Shahin, ; Ghanem et al ., ; Khaled, ; Rossi et al ., ; Carlos et al ., ; Sharaf, ; El‐Nadi et al ., ; Alsharhan and Abd El‐Gawad, ; Abdou et al ., ; Shalaby et al ., ).…”

Section: Geological Settingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Diagenesis in the Middle Jurassic Khatatba Formation sandstones in the Shoushan Basin, northern Western Desert, Egypt

2013

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The Middle Jurassic Khatatba Formation acts as a hydrocarbon reservoir in the subsurface in the Western Desert, Egypt. This study, which is based on core samples from two exploration boreholes, describes the lithological and diagenetic characteristics of the Khatatba Formation sandstones. The sandstones are fine‐ to coarse‐grained, moderately to well‐sorted quartz arenites, deposited in fluvial channels and in a shallow‐marine setting. Diagenetic components include mechanical and chemical compaction, cementation (calcite, clay minerals, quartz overgrowths, and a minor amount of pyrite), and dissolution of calcite cements and feldspar grains. The widespread occurrence of an early calcite cement suggests that the Khatatba sandstones lost a significant amount of primary porosity at an early stage of its diagenetic history. In addition to calcite, several different cements including kaolinite and syntaxial quartz overgrowth occur as pore‐filling and pore‐lining cements. Kaolinite (largely vermicular) fills pore spaces and causes reduction in the permeability of the reservoir. Based on framework grain–cement relationships, precipitation of the early calcite cement was either accompanied by or followed the development of part of the pore‐lining and pore‐filling cements. Secondary porosity development occurred due to partial to complete dissolution of early calcite cements and feldspar. Late kaolinite clay cement occurs due to dissolved feldspar and has an impact on the reservoir quality of the Khatatba sandstones. Open hydraulic fractures also generated significant secondary porosity in sandstone reservoirs, where both fractures and dissolution took place in multiple phases during late diagenetic stages. The diagenesis and sedimentary facies help control the reservoir quality of the Khatatba sandstones. Fluvial channel sandstones have the highest porosities and permeabilities, in part because of calcite cementation, which inhibited authigenic clays or was later dissolved, creating intergranular secondary porosity. Fluvial crevasse‐splay and marine sandstones have the lowest reservoir quality because of an abundance of depositional kaolinite matrix and pervasive, shallow‐burial calcite and quartz overgrowth cements, respectively. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

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Section: Geological Settingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Diagenesis in the Middle Jurassic Khatatba Formation sandstones in the Shoushan Basin, northern Western Desert, Egypt

2013

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“…Adequate potential source rocks are stratigraphically and areally widespread in the Western Desert. Petroleum source rocks are common in Jurassic, Cretaceous, and Paleozoic rock units (Parker, 1982;Sultan and Halim, 1988;El Ayouty, 1990;EGPC, 1992;Dahi and Shahin, 1992;Ghanem et al, 1999;Khaled, 1999;Sharaf et al, 1999;El-Nadi et al, 2003;and Alsharhan and Abd El-Gawad, 2008). Among the various source rocks in the north Western Desert, (Fig.…”

Section: Geological Backgroundmentioning

confidence: 99%

Molecular Organic Geochemistry of Crude Oil from Shushan and Abu Gharadig Basins, Western Desert, Egypt

Bakr¹

2009

ear

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Eight crude oil samples recovered from eight fields located in Abu Gharadig and Shushan basins in the north Western Desert, Egypt, were geochemically assessed in order to understand their genetic relationships. Two genetic families of oil are identified in this study, namely Abu Gharadig and Shushan oil families. Bulk (API and sulphur contents), n-alkanes, isoprenoids, biomarkers terpanes and steranes, and dibenzothiophene and phenanthrene parameters of the oils of the two families suggest regional variations of organic facies in their source rocks. Shushan samples represent oil typically generated from clay-rich terrigenous source rocks with great higher plant input, deposited under oxic conditions. Contrary, Abu Gharadig oil samples are of marine origin, their source rocks are rich in clay content and were deposited under suboxic environment. Biomarker maturity parameters Ts/Ts+Tm, ββ/αα and 20S/(20S+20R) C 29 sterane ratios indicate that the studied samples had reached the peak of the oil window, with high maturity level biased towards Abu Gharadig oil. None of the studied oils have undergone biodegradation or water washing. This explains much of the chemical and physical properties uniformity observed across individual oil samples in each basin.

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“…1) and has attracted the interest of numerous researchers and oil companies for exploration of hydrocarbons. The presence of possible source rocks in the Shoushan Basin occurs in the Jurassic, Cretaceous, and Paleozoic rock units (El Ayouty, 1990;Ghanem et al, 1999;Khaled, 1999;Sharaf, 2003;El-Nadi et al, 2003;Alsharhan and Abd El-Gawad, 2008). The Jurassic organic-rich sediments of the Ras Qattara and Khatatba Formations are considered to be the most prolific oil and gas prone source rocks in the basin.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Geochemical characteristics and hydrocarbon generation modeling of the Jurassic source rocks in the Shoushan Basin, north Western Desert, Egypt

Shalaby

Hakimi

Abdullah

2011

Marine and Petroleum Geology

136

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Crude Oil Geochemistry and Its Relation to the Potential Source Beds for Some Meleiha Oil Fields in the North Western Desert, Egypt

Cited by 29 publications

References 10 publications

Diagenesis in the Middle Jurassic Khatatba Formation sandstones in the Shoushan Basin, northern Western Desert, Egypt

Diagenesis in the Middle Jurassic Khatatba Formation sandstones in the Shoushan Basin, northern Western Desert, Egypt

Molecular Organic Geochemistry of Crude Oil from Shushan and Abu Gharadig Basins, Western Desert, Egypt

Geochemical characteristics and hydrocarbon generation modeling of the Jurassic source rocks in the Shoushan Basin, north Western Desert, Egypt

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