Energy Resources Program
Publications
Geology and assessment of undiscovered oil and gas resources of the Franklinian Shelf Province, Arctic Canada and North Greenland, 2008
In 2008, the U.S. Geological Survey assessed the potential for undiscovered oil and gas resources of the Franklinian Shelf Province of northern Canada and Greenland as part of the U.S. Geological Survey Circum-Arctic Resource Appraisal Program. The Franklinian Shelf Province lies along the northernmost edge of the North American craton in...
Moore, Thomas E.; Gautier, Donald L.; Tennyson, Marilyn E.; Pitman, Janet K.
Oil-source rock correlation studies in the unconventional Upper Cretaceous Tuscaloosa marine shale (TMS) petroleum system, Mississippi and Louisiana, USA
The U.S. Geological Survey assessed undiscovered unconventional hydrocarbon resources reservoired in the Upper Cretaceous Tuscaloosa marine shale (TMS) of southern Mississippi and adjacent Louisiana in 2018. As part of the assessment, oil-source rock correlations were examined in the TMS play area where operators produce light (38–45° API), sweet...
Hackley, Paul C.; Dennen, Kristin Opferkuch; Garza, Daniel; Lohr, Celeste; Valentine, Brett; Hatcherian, Javin J.; Enomoto, Catherine B.; Dulong, Frank T. Impacts of mineralogical variation on CO2 behavior in small pores from producing intervals of the Marcellus Shale: Results from neutron scattering
The Near and InterMediate Range Order Diffractometer (NIMROD) was used to examine the potential impact of shale mineralogy on CO2 behavior within micropores. Two samples with varying mineral compositions were obtained from producing intervals in the dry gas window in the Middle Devonian Marcellus Shale. One of the samples contained relatively...
Ruppert, Leslie F.; Jubb, Aaron M.; Headen, Thomas F; Youngs, Tristan G. A.; Bandli, Bryan Effect of copper salts on hydrothermal oxidative decarboxylation: A study of phenylacetic acid
Decarboxylation of carboxylic acids is favored under hydrothermal conditions, and can be influenced by dissolved metals. Here, we use phenylacetic acid as a model compound to study its hydrothermal decarboxylation in the presence of copper(II) salts but no O2. Our results showed a strong oxidizing role of copper in facilitating oxidative...
Fu, Xuan; Jamison, Megan; Jubb, Aaron M.; Liao, Yiju; Aspin, Alexandria; Hayes, Kyle; Glein, Christopher R; Yang, Ziming Evidence of wildfires and elevated atmospheric oxygen at the Frasnian–Famennian boundary in New York (USA): Implications for the Late Devonian mass extinction
The Devonian Period experienced significant fluctuations of atmospheric oxygen (O2) levels (∼25–13%), for which the extent and timing are debated. Also characteristic of the Devonian Period, at the Frasnian–Famennian (F–F) boundary, is one of the “big five” mass extinction events of the Phanerozoic. Fossilized charcoal (inertinite) provides a...
Liu, Zeyang; Selby, David; Hackley, Paul C.; Over, Jeffrey Biomarker similarities between the saline lacustrine Eocene Green River and the Paleoproterozoic Barney Creek Formations
The Paleoproterozoic Barney Creek Formation, which is currently interpreted as a restricted, deep marine paleoenvironment, plays a disproportionate role in our understanding of Proterozoic ocean chemistry and the rise of complex life. The Barney Creek Formation hosts several unusual biomarker features, specifically its methylhopane and carotenoid...
French, Katherine L.; Birdwell, Justin E.; Vanden Berg, Michael Review of studies of composition, toxicology and human health impacts of wastewater from unconventional oil and gas development from shale
Unconventional oil and gas (UOG) extractions has produced large economic benefits. However, prudent management of UOG wastes necessitates a thorough understanding of the complex composition, fate, and potential impacts of wastewater releases. UOG production results in large volumes of wastewater. Despite limited re-use of the wastewater, the...
Crosby, Lynn M.; Orem, William H. Direct trace element determination in oil and gas produced waters with inductively coupled plasma - Optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES): Advantages of high salinity tolerance
Waters co-produced during petroleum extraction are the largest waste stream from oil and gas development. Reuse or disposal of these waters is difficult due to their high salinities and the sheer volumes generated. Produced waters may also contain valuable mineral commodities. While an understanding of produced water trace element composition is...
Jubb, Aaron M.; Engle, Mark; Chenault, Jessica; Blondes, Madalyn; Danforth, Cloelle G.; Doolan, Colin; Gallegos, Tanya; Mueller, Dan; Shelton, Jenna Applications of correlative light and electron microscopy (CLEM) to organic matter in the North American shale petroleum systems
Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) has revolutionized our understanding of shale petroleum systems through microstructural characterization of dispersed organic matter (OM). However, due to the low atomic weight of carbon, all OM appears black in SEM (BSE image) regardless of differences in thermal maturity or OM type (kerogen types or solid...
Valentine, Brett J.; Hackley, Paul C. Natural gas hydrates: Status of potential as an energy resource
Gas hydrate is a widespread naturally-occurring combination of water and natural gases. Gas hydrate is found in shallow sediments of deepwater regions of the continental margins and in areas of continuous permafrost. Where gas supply is sufficient and migration pathways connect gas sources to favorable reservoirs, gas hydrate can accumulate to...
Boswell, Ray; Hancock, Steve; Yamamoto, Koji; Collett, Timothy; Pratap, Mahendra; Lee, Sung-Rock
Assessment of undiscovered oil and gas resources in the Central North Slope of Alaska, 2020
Using a geology-based assessment methodology, the U.S. Geological Survey estimated undiscovered, technically recoverable mean resources of 3.6 billion barrels of oil and 8.9 trillion cubic feet of natural gas (associated and nonassociated) in conventional accumulations in Mississippian through Paleogene strata in the central North Slope...
Houseknecht, David W.; Whidden, Katherine J.; Connors, Christopher D.; Lease, Richard O.; Schenk, Christopher J.; Mercier, Tracey J.; Rouse, William A.; Botterell, Palma J.; Smith, Rebecca A.; Sanders, Margaret M.; Craddock, William H.; DeVera, Christina A.; Garrity, Christopher P.; Buursink, Marc L.; Karacan, C. Özgen; Heller, Samuel J.; Moore, Thomas E.; Dumoulin, Julie A.; Tennyson, Marilyn E.; French, Katherine L.; Woodall, Cheryl A.; Drake, Ronald M.; Marra, Kristen R.; Finn, Thomas M.; Kinney, Scott A.; Shorten, Chilisa M. A chemo-mechanical snapshot of in-situ conversion of kerogen to petroleum
Organic matter (OM) from various biogenic origins converts to solid bitumen in-situ when it undergoes thermal maturation. It is well documented that during this process, the ratios of both hydrogen and oxygen to carbon will decrease, resulting in an increase in OM aromaticity and molecular chemo-mechanical homogeneity. Although there...
Abarghani, Arash; Ostadhassan, Mehdi; Hackley, Paul C.; Pomerantz, Andrew E.; Nejati, Siamak