Source rock characterisation of under-explored regions of Queensland
Alison Troup A and Sally Edwards AGeological Survey of Queensland.
The APPEA Journal 56(2) 580-580 https://doi.org/10.1071/AJ15086
Published: 2016
Abstract
Historically, petroleum exploration in Queensland has focused on the Bowen-Surat and Cooper-Eromanga basins, with only cursory examination of other basins across the state. As part of the Queensland Industry Priorities Initiative, two projects (Round 1 and 2) were submitted to the Geological Survey of Queensland (GSQ) to examine the geochemical characteristics of potential petroleum source rocks throughout Queensland. The analysis conducted provides a better understanding of generative potential for petroleum, and predicts the timing, volume, composition, and physical state of hydrocarbons retained in and expelled from source rocks. It is an integral component to petroleum systems analysis used to identify the potential for undiscovered accumulations of petroleum from conventional and unconventional reservoirs. Of particular interest were the Georgina, Drummond, Eromanga, and Maryborough basins. Of these, the Georgina and Maryborough basins have known hydrocarbon shows identified through exploration drilling, though no commercial discoveries have yet been made. The Drummond Basin was targeted to identify a potential source for oil and gas shows encountered in drilling within the Galilee Basin. The Toolebuc Formation in the Eromanga Basin has been noted as having the potential for a shale oil play and this study is supporting further assessment to identify optimal areas for future exploration through predictive modelling.
This report details the results from Round 1 of the study for samples taken from the Georgina Limestone and Scartwater, Ducabrook, Mount Hall, Toolebuc, and Maryborough formations, where limited analysis of source rock characteristics has historically been undertaken. Ninety-seven samples were chosen from nine wells and sent to Geos4 in Potsdam, Germany, for source rock analysis. All samples were screened for suitability of further analysis using Rock-Eval and TOC by LECO, with immature and organic-rich samples being preferentially selected for further testing. Screened samples were analysed using pyrolysis gas chromatography (n = 27), thermovaporisation (n = 23), bulk kinetics (n = 5), compositional kinetics (n = 4), late gas analysis (n = 14), and biomarker and bulk isotope analysis (n = 15). These results have been integrated with existing analyses to better understand the prospectivity of the under-explored basins of Queensland.
Alison Troup graduated from the University of Queensland with a BSc (Hons) in geology in 2009. She presently works as a geoscientist as part of the Petroleum and Gas group in the Geological Survey of Queensland (GSQ). Since joining the GSQ, she has participated in several regional-scale projects, including the North West Queensland Minerals and Energy Province report, and the Coastal Geothermal Energy Initiative. She is presently involved in the assessment of unconventional resources in Queensland, including the regional assessment of the Toolebuc Formation, examining its unconventional petroleum potential. |
Sally Edwards was awarded her Masters in Science (geology) in 2005 from James Cook University after completing undergrad and honours degrees at the University of Adelaide. Her early employment was within research groups at the South Australian Museum and Adelaide University, and the Cooperative Research Centre for Greenhouse Gas Technologies (CO2CRC). She joined GSQ in 2012 and has been involved in the assessment of unconventional resources in Queensland, including the regional assessment of the Toolebuc Formation. Sally is presently working on a collaborative project with coal seam gas companies to re-define and map the individual members of the Injune Creek Group of the Surat Basin. Member: PESA and SPE. |
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