Hydrocarbon exploration and reservoir analysis

Shale gas extraction depends on understanding how natural gas moves through and is stored within mudstones — fine-grained sedimentary rocks whose pore spaces are often measured in nanometers. Because these nanopores are embedded in organic matter and mineral matrices that shift in character as rock is buried and heated over geologic time, predicting how much gas a formation holds and how readily it can be recovered requires linking thermal maturity and diagenetic history to pore geometry and permeability at a very small scale. Gas transport in these systems is further complicated by the interplay between the intrinsic permeability of the pore network and permeability introduced by natural fractures, making it difficult to build predictive models that apply across different basins and burial depths. Current research is working to establish clearer relationships between organic matter type and content, the development of organic porosity, and the mechanical conditions that govern fracture behavior — questions that bear directly on how efficiently shale reservoirs can be characterized before and during production.

Works

187,703

Total citations

2,042,129

Keywords

Shale GasPore StructureMudstonesGas PermeabilityThermal MaturityNanopores