Geochemical typing of crude oils from the Gulf of Thailand and the Natuna Sea
- Geomark Research Inc., Houston, TX (United States)
- Scientific and Technical Center, Remy les Chevreuse (France)
The geochemical characteristics of approximately thirty oils from the Gulf of Thailand and Natuna Sea have been measured, viz., sulfur, vanadium and nickel content, density, [sup 13]C isotopes of the isolated aliphatic and aromatic hydrocarbon fractions, capillary gas chromatography of the whole oil, and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The GC-MS analysis included the classical monitoring of specific ions (SIM mode) as well as sophisticated multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) measurements (MRM mode). These latter analyses are of key importance for the detection of 24-propylsteranes, a prerequisite for the discrimination between lacustrine/deltaic oils vs. marine crude oils. Classification of the different types of oil families encountered in this region was based on visual inspection of the data, supported by multivariate statistical analysis. In the Gulf of Thailand, which includes oils from the Pattani trough and the northern part of the Malay basin, essentially three different types are recognized, generated by lacustrine, resinous, and carbonate source rocks. The situation encountered in the Natuna sea, including oils from the southern part of the Malay basin (Indonesia), the Penyu basin, and the west and east Natuna basins is almost similar to the same suite of different oil types. Although the geochemical characteristics of the resinous-derived oils are more or less similar in all basins, the lacustrine-derived oils exhibit large variations especially expressed in their isotopic signature. Interestingly, the carbonate-sourced oils from the east Natuna basin show characteristics that resemble those of the main oil family found offshore northwest Palawan.
- OSTI ID:
- 6727060
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-940803-; CODEN: AABUD2
- Journal Information:
- AAPG Bulletin (American Association of Petroleum Geologists); (United States), Vol. 78:7; Conference: American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG) international conference and exhibition, Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia), 21-24 Aug 1994; ISSN 0149-1423
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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