Thermal maturity of the lower carboniferous Horton group, Nova Scotia

Abstract

The Thermal Alteration Index (TAI) obtained from spore colouration is a useful maturity indicator that may be obtained from palynological preparations. Thermal maturity is an important parameter in determining the hydrocarbon potential of the Lower Carboniferous lacustrine and fluviatile sediments of the Horton Group, and coeval rocks, of Nova Scotia. Samples studied from fifty-two separate localities indicate a wide range in thermal maturity from low (TAI 2 to 3) to high (TAI 4 to 5?). Variation in depth of burial was probably the main factor responsible for the regional differences in thermal maturity. The thickness of Horton sedimentation varied considerably in a series of half grabens, as did the overburden of post-Tournaisian Lower Carboniferous, Upper Carboniferous, Permian and possibly Triassic rocks. The organic matter in most samples is composed of exinous (Type II) and woody and coaly material (Types III and IV). Locally in a few localities amorphous algal material (Type I) consisting of Botryococcus sp. is common. The composition of the organic matter and the thermal maturity data suggest that in most of the study area rocks of the Horton Group are in the dry gas generation zone, although in some areas oil generation may have taken place; in a few localities where the thermal maturity is high the organic matter has been altered beyond the dry gas preservation limit.