Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 23, 2025
09:48
Original Experimental Approach for Assessing Transport Fuel Stability
Published on: October 21, 2016
9.3K
Structural Properties of Kerogens with Different Maturities
Wei-Shan Chiang1,2,3, Jin-Hong Chen1, David Jacobi1
1Aramco Services Company: Aramco Research Center-Houston, Texas, USA.
Energy & Fuels : an American Chemical Society Journal
|June 17, 2024
Summary
The study reveals that as kerogen matures, its pore network and surface area increase, enhancing gas storage. This research utilized advanced techniques to analyze kerogen structure and composition for better resource recovery.
Area of Science:
- Geochemistry
- Petroleum Geology
- Materials Science
Background:
- Kerogen maturation creates pore networks crucial for hydrocarbon storage and recovery in source rocks.
- Understanding nanoscale pore structure, surface properties, and connectivity is vital but challenging.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the pore structure, surface heterogeneity, and composition of kerogens at varying thermogenic maturities.
- To establish relationships between chemical composition, pore characteristics, surface properties, and maturity.
Main Methods:
- Prompt gamma-ray activation analysis (PGAA) for elemental composition.
- Nitrogen and methane gas sorption for pore volume and surface area analysis.
- Small-angle neutron scattering (SANS) and an extended generalized Porod's scattering law method (GPSLM) for pore structure and surface heterogeneity.
Main Results:
- Higher maturity kerogens exhibit lower hydrogen/carbon ratios and increased pore volume and accessible surface area.
- Methane sorption indicates a transition from heterogeneous to homogeneous binding sites with increasing maturity.
- SANS and GPSLM reveal increased surface roughness and fractal characteristics in mature kerogens, with developing microporous regions around nanopores.
Conclusions:
- Kerogen maturity significantly impacts pore structure, surface properties, and chemical homogeneity, influencing gas storage capacity.
- The developed GPSLM effectively quantifies surface heterogeneity in fractal kerogen systems.
- Findings provide insights into optimizing gas recovery from unconventional source rocks by understanding nanoscale pore evolution.
Related Concept Videos
02:33Physical Properties of Alkanes
10.9K
Alkanes are nonpolar molecules due to the presence of only carbon and hydrogen atoms. The electronegativity difference between carbon and hydrogen is minimal, and hence alkanes have a zero dipole moment. This leads to the presence of only dispersion forces between the molecules. The strength of dispersion forces is dependent on the surface area of the molecules on which they act. Since the surface area increases with the molecular length for straight-chain alkanes, the dispersion forces also...
10.9K
02:14Combustion Energy: A Measure of Stability in Alkanes and Cycloalkanes
6.3K
The low reactivity in alkanes can be attributed to the non-polar nature of C–C and C–H σ bonds. Alkanes, therefore, were initially termed as “paraffins,” derived from the Latin words: parum, meaning “too little,” and affinis, meaning “affinity.”
Alkanes undergo combustion in the presence of excess oxygen and high-temperature conditions to give carbon dioxide and water. A combustion reaction is the energy source in natural gas, liquified...
Alkanes undergo combustion in the presence of excess oxygen and high-temperature conditions to give carbon dioxide and water. A combustion reaction is the energy source in natural gas, liquified...
6.3K
02:18Constitutional Isomers of Alkanes
18.0K
Organic compounds of the same molecular formula can have different structural formulas called constitutional isomers, and the phenomenon is known as constitutional isomerism. Alkanes with four or more carbons showing multiple structures with the same molecular formula thereby exhibit constitutional isomerism.
The linear isomer of an alkane is prefixed by the term “n”; hence a linear isomer of pentane is known as n-pentane. Based on the type of branching, some of the...
The linear isomer of an alkane is prefixed by the term “n”; hence a linear isomer of pentane is known as n-pentane. Based on the type of branching, some of the...
18.0K
02:23Structure of Alkanes
27.5K
The formation of carbon-carbon bonds leading to the creation of the carbon chain is the basis of organic chemistry. August Kekulé and Archibald Scott Couper independently developed this idea of carbon chain formation.
Hydrocarbons are the simplest organic compounds composed of carbons and hydrogens. Based on the bond order between carbons, the hydrocarbons are further classified into alkanes, alkenes, and alkynes.
Alkanes are the simplest hydrocarbons with sp3 hybrid carbon atoms....
Hydrocarbons are the simplest organic compounds composed of carbons and hydrogens. Based on the bond order between carbons, the hydrocarbons are further classified into alkanes, alkenes, and alkynes.
Alkanes are the simplest hydrocarbons with sp3 hybrid carbon atoms....
27.5K
01:59Relative Stabilities of Alkenes
13.9K
The relative stability of alkenes can be determined by comparing their heats of hydrogenation. The lower heat of hydrogenation indicates the more stable alkene. The three main factors determining the relative stability of alkenes are i) the number of substituents attached to the double-bond carbon atoms, ii) hyperconjugation, and iii) the stereochemistry of the double bond.
13.9K
02:22Nomenclature of Alkanes
21.8K
In the late 19th-century, the number of new chemical compounds discovered increased tremendously. Hence, the necessity arose to develop a naming system for the systematic nomenclature of these newly discovered compounds. IUPAC (International Union for Pure and Applied Chemistry), established in 1919, sets rules for the nomenclature.
The alkane nomenclature considers the length of the carbon chain, the number, and the location of the substituent to arrive at its systematic name. The IUPAC...
The alkane nomenclature considers the length of the carbon chain, the number, and the location of the substituent to arrive at its systematic name. The IUPAC...
21.8K