Abstract
Evaluation of organic matter quality in petroleum source and reservoir rocks is vital for economic, drilling, and production decisions. However, current methods for assessing kerogen quality in shales and mudrocks are either time-intensive and undesirable from a health, safety, and waste-disposal standpoint or indirect measurements of the factors of greatest interest and utility (e.g., kerogen hydrogen content). We present a new approach using laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) to both directly and quickly measure kerogen hydrogen-to-carbon elemental ratios in shales and mudrocks, providing a rapid means of assessing kerogen quality and thermal maturity with minimal sample processing. Elemental spectral intensities, including hydrogen and carbon, were monitored during LIBS measurements by optical emission spectroscopy, following ablation of a small portion of rock. Changes in the elemental intensities in the spectra over the course of LIBS measurements were then related to H/C ratios determined o...
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