Abstract
Much has been written about the influence of time and temperature on the formation of oil and gas in the sub-surface1–5. However, a majority of previous publications have used a very simple formula to calculate the kinetics of a chemical reaction—usually referred to as the Lopatin approach6–8—which we believe is incorrect. Other more sophisticated schemes have generally used laboratory experiments as their primary calibrants9. Because reaction rates in the laboratory are at least seven orders of magnitude faster than those in nature, their relevance to sub-surface oil and gas formation is unclear, and can only be assessed provided geochemical data from deep boreholes are available10,11. We have calibrated a kinetic scheme that describes oil and gas formation using geological samples that have been heated under both natural and laboratory conditions. These equations predict that in the sub-surface the influence of time is not great, and that most oil is formed between 100 and 150 °C; and most gas between 150 and 220 °C.
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Quigley, T., Mackenzie, A. The temperatures of oil and gas formation in the sub-surface. Nature 333, 549–552 (1988). https://doi.org/10.1038/333549a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/333549a0
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