Abstract
This is the first study focuses on the characteristics of newly discovered subsurface oil shale deposit in Isfir Al-Mahata Area in the southern part of Jordan. This area considered as one of the promising oil shale resources that are located in the southern region. This study aims through mineralogical and geochemical analyses to shed light on the characteristics of this potential resource. Oil shale is described as bituminous chalk marl phosphatic rich at the bottom. A total of 115 meters of oil shale were penetrated and recorded. Oil content is about 6% in the first 80 meters and increases to 11% in the remaining part. Petrography indicates that the oil shale of this borehole is foraminiferal wackestone changes to grainstone in the lowermost part. Amorphous organic matter is filling foram’s cavities and dispersed within the mineral matrix. The later consists mainly of calcite with minor amounts of quartz, clay and apatite. With exception of the lower most part, major and minor elements oxides reveals minor variation indicate stagnant formational conditions. High terrestrial input contribution is expected.
Highlights
Jordan has a huge potential of oil shale in the subsurface
Oil shale of Isfir-1 BH consists of organic material which is the minor component and the inorganic mineral matter which makes the bulk of the samples
Variability of organic matter (OM) content can be inferred from the total organic carbon (TOC) depth profile (Figure 3)
Summary
Jordan has a huge potential of oil shale in the subsurface. Major oil shale (OS) deposits are located in the central part of Jordan (Alali, 2006). Since 1966, successive discoveries of OS deposits were recorded in Jordan. Despite of what has been discovered from the OS resource in Jordan, still oil shale prospecting and exploration is an important task. Previous oil shale research in Jordan focused on central Jordan and gave little attention to those in northern Jordan, where southern Jordan remaining unstudied. A number of local source rock evaluation and geological studies of oil shale (e.g., Amireh, 1979; Abed & Amireh, 1983; Alnawafleh, 2007; Abed et al, 2009) have been carried out
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