Abstract
This work represents the first detailed study of an oil shale (OS) section from the Upper Campanian Amman Silicified Limestone (ASL) Formation in south-western part of Jordan. More than five meters of oil shale have been recorded. Using the petrography and geochemistry, this study aims to focus on such non-conventional types of oil shale rocks in Jordan and to shed some light on their composition and formational environment. Unlike oil shale from Maastrichtian to early Tertiary, this type of oil shale is highly dolomitized. The dolomite is diagenetic in origin. This oil shale type contains considerable amount of OM and remarkably enriched in some trace elements and shows quite low sulfur content. Results suggest that the formation of dolomite appears to be limited by the rate of organic matter oxidation.
Highlights
Jordan has huge oil shale (OS) resource and considered one of the world leading countries in its OS potential deposits
Organic matter distribution is indicated from the distribution of total organic carbon (TOC) in the studied section
The TOC × 1.22 is commonly equated to total organic matter (TOM)
Summary
Jordan has huge oil shale (OS) resource and considered one of the world leading countries in its OS potential deposits. The well-known Jordanian OS belongs to the upper cretaceous and lower tertiary formations [2]. How to cite this paper: Alnawafleh, H.M., Tarawneh, K.E., Khoury, H.N., Abdelhadi, N.A., Shakkoury, O.Y., Dwairi, R.A. and Amaireh, M.N. (2015) Dolomitization in Campanian Oil Shale Rocks from South-Western Jordan. Previous work and OS exploration in Jordan have focused on Upper Cretaceous OS from Muwaqqar Chalk Marl formation (MCM) The upper (younger) level is that of MCM formation (Figure 2(a)) from Maastrchtian-Paleocene [2]. Full Petrographic and geochemical characterization of this OS type is found in Alnawafleh [8] and later papers by the same author The lower level (older) (Figure 2(b)), which is bituminous dolomitic limestone, is a part of upper Campanian Amman Silicified Limestone (ASL) Formation [2]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
